The Hays Family: Steamboat--Let's hit the slopes!

After a little rest the night before, we were all ready to get on the mountain.

The littlest girl in our group was beyond excited! She was all about her ski outfit, helmet, goggles and mittens. Unfortunately, her cousin's luggage got left at home, so Boom had to ski down and go shopping for Maddie before their 9am lesson. Oops!

He did good and by the time we got down there, Maddie was stylin' in her new purple bib and pink gloves and jacket. We were all relieved to meet their ski instructor, Gabsy, who was as nice as she was cute. And she had such incredible patience, too! A must when teaching kiddos to snow ski.

She had the kids start off by just using one ski...maybe to work on their balance?

We stayed and watched for a little while and were very happy to see all three kids working hard to get it right.

Their lesson lasted three hours, so Jared, Dad and I took advantage of it and went to the mountain top. And oh my, what a view! It really does take your breath away, no matter how many times you see it.

We picked the kids up at noon and went back to the condo for some lunch. Maddie said she was too tired and wanted to take a nap, but J and L were all about more ski time. Yeehaw! Let's go!

We took them up a short lift and they did GREAT!

Jackson skied with the boys, while I gradually got Lila to ski down more and more of the run.

Within an hour, this girly was skiing all the way down by herself! She was awesome! Fast, but in control, and not falling at all. Even her big brother was amazed.

We stayed on the mountain until the lifts closed and then went back to the condo for a hot chocolate celebration. They were so proud of themselves and we were, too! That night, we stayed in and made some chili and hot dogs. It was the perfect way to end our first full day in Steamboat. We were all tuckered out and ready for some good sleep. Too bad Cami didn't feel the same way. Sweet girl would have nothing to do with her crib, and instead decided that some good horizontal sleep in between her daddy and I was preferable. Oh well! Morning came and we were back down to meet Gabsy by 9am. After about 45 minutes, she told us that Jackson and Lila were doing so well that they could go with us. She wanted to keep Maddie for a private lesson and was sure that she'd catch up in no time.

All of us were so excited to be able to ski together that we went to the top of the Christie lift.

We took a green called Boulevard to Why Not, a favorite of the kids. They loved all of the turns and thought skiing through these wooden teepees was super fun, too.

There she goes!

Even Daddo got in on the action and skied thru one...

followed by J man.

Go Jackson, go!

As we finished up the teepees, we found ourselves in yet another picture perfect scene.

The kids were doing great, the sun was shining. It really was such a fantastic day.

As we were skiing back to find Maddie, we saw her and Gabsy about to get on the lift. Maddie had learned to turn and stop and was ready for the big time!

We all went back up to the same run so that Maddie could do the teepees, too. She was skiing so well and was very happy to be with all of us.

Go Madison!

We ended the day by going down Lil Rodeo about 7 times. It had all kinds of fun jumps and you could even ski through this green box!

After the box, you skied into a half pipe, and this little girl LOVED it. She zoomed through it, no matter how many other skiers were there. The kid has a need for speed! And we think that's so cool.

By the end of the day, she was leading the pack and told us how she loved "going really fast."
She is definitely my child. Get it girl!

We closed down the lifts that day, too, and then went to see Cami and Gigi. They were ready to get outside, so we headed down to the firepit. Cami chilled on my lap, ate her snacks, and listened to us talk. The sun was setting behind the mountains and it was the best way to end the day.