We’ve gotten a lot of apples recently, from our CSA (Jones Family Farm), from the farmer’s market (JFX), and from another fruit and vegetable delivery (South Mountain Creamery). Some were about to go bad, so a recipe in Laura Ligos’s Clean Eating cookbook for baked cinnamon apple chips caught my eye. I had several hours to myself this morning while Gabriel and Dan went to jiujitsu, so I tried it out. It made the house smell delicious while they baked for two hours, they were super easy, and they taste yummy. The only downside is that four apples become many fewer apple chips than it seems they ought to.
In other news, I’ve been trying to embrace the holiday season. It was 70 degrees in Baltimore until about a week before Thanksgiving, so it was hard to get into it before that. We spent Thanksgiving in Michigan with my mom’s side of the family, and Gabriel got to hang out with his new cousin (my sister’s daughter) and his second cousins (closer to his age). We went to get a tree at Jones Family Tree Farm (same as our CSA) the Saturday after Thanksgiving and finished decorating the house that weekend. Today, we biked to the Inner Harbor to see the Christmas market and ride the ferris wheel. Tonight is the parade of lighted boats in the Harbor, so we’ll go with neighbors to Under Armour to watch them. I love doing all the events.
In late June, we went to the Azores with my whole family (Dan, Gabriel; my parents; and my sister, her husband, and their then 11-week old daughter). We stayed in a four bedroom Airbnb on São Miguel outside of Ponta Delgada, the biggest city and capital and rented a 9-passenger van.
If you don’t know, and I didn’t until a year or so ago, the Azores are a set of nine small islands in the Atlantic Ocean. They are part of Portugal, but are autonomously governed, and they are closer to the middle of the ocean than they are to Portugal. The time zone is only four hours ahead of the east coast, and we took a direct, 5-6 hour flight from Newark (following an Amtrak train ride from Penn Station in Baltimore, my favorite way to travel!).
We spent the entire week on São Miguel. The other islands sound great to visit, and each seems to have its own character or unique offering, but the one island made the most sense for us logistically. Travel to the other islands takes a multi-hour to full day ferry or a short plane ride and would have limited our time on São Miguel and added a lot of logistical complexity.
I’m sure there’s way more that we could have done on São Miguel, but one week felt like the perfect amount of time to fully explore the island while having some downtime. I used the Moon guidebook to the Azores to help plan our itinerary. For anyone thinking of going to the Azores: 1) Do it! 2) Do it now! 3) Know that tourism to the Azores from other countries is rapidly expanding. I think there was probably a difference even from the time our guidebook was written a year ago to when we went. Our guidebook said that reservations weren’t necessary for most attractions except during the highest season, but we found they were necessary for almost everything. In all cases, we were able to get an entrance time for the same day, within a few hours, but most places we couldn’t just walk up and go in.
Day by Day Snapshot
Saturday: We arrived in the morning after an overnight flight. We got our rental van and went straight to get settled into our Airbnb. Then we got a late lunch at nearby Cais 20 in São Roque, outside of Ponta Delgada. We spent some time walking on the volcanic rocky shore behind the restaurant. Then we grocery shopped for the week and made dinner at ‘home,’ using vegetables from the impressive garden behind the house our Airbnb host said we could use.
Sunday: We drove to a hike to an overlook (Vista do Red Viewpoint) of Lagoa Sete Cicadas. Then we drove to a town on the lake and ate lunch at a restaurant on the shoreline (Green Love). We kayaked for an hour on the lake, then drove further west to the coast to swim in the Ponta da Ferraria natural pool. The Azores natural pools are in the ocean in areas where there is geothermally heated water from the ground mixing with the ocean water, making the water temperature lovely. This was probably my favorite thing of the week. After that we went to another town on the coast, Mosteiros, to watch the sunset from the beach and eat dinner in the tiny town square.
Monday: Another long day. It started with our van breaking down on the side of one of the few highways on our way to Furnas. That got sorted out after a few hours. We were too late in Furnas to secure a lunchtime meal of cozido, which is a meat and potato stew cooked in pots in the thermally-heated ground, but we were able to make a dinner reservation at a second location of one of the main restaurants (Miroma). In the meantime, we explored the steaming caldeiras in the Calderas Square, had lunch (which included the common Azorean appetizer of Azorean cheese with Azorean chili sauce on it… mm, chef’s kiss), the warm thermal water pool in the Parque Terra Nostre, and the Poça da Dona Beija hot springs. The cozido was delicious.
Tuesday: We had a lazier morning. We spent some time on the nearby Populo black sand beach. Then we drove northeast to the Moinho do Felix Cascatas hike on the northern coast. It was about 4 miles and had a wide variety of views and terrains, including 3 waterfalls, woodsy sections, ocean views, etc. It was great. On the way ‘home,’ we stopped at the Gorreana tea plantation, the only tea plantation in Europe, and all sampled some green tea. It was near closing time, but we still had a few minutes on their porch overlooking the plantation. For dinner, we went to Bar Caloura on the southern coast, which also had a natural pool out on a point, but we didn’t swim in it.
Wednesday: Whale watching day! I’d made reservations the day before by phone. We went for about three hours and saw lots of dolphins and sperm whales. We used the company Moby Dick Tours, and it was great. We had a late lunch at Stage Restaurant at the docks, and then I think had a relaxing afternoon and dinner at the house?
Thursday: This was another long day, but it started slowly; Dan and I went alone to the Sunset Beach restaurant on Populo Beach for a date breakfast. After, we all drove to an overlook to see the Lagoa do Fogo, and then hiked out to a point from which we had 360 degree views of the island. That afternoon, we went to the Caldeira Velha hot springs. We had to wait for a couple of hours before a reserved time was available so we ate lunch at the food stand across the street. ALSO that day, most of us went on the 30-minute tour of Carvão Cave, outside of Ponta Delgada, which is a section of a lava tunnel formed by lava that flowed from a volcano to the ocean. A lot of infrastructure has been built over it without attention to its preservation, so only small sections of it are available for touring. In the evening, we ate dinner on a cute cobblestone street in downtown Ponta Delgada.
Friday: Our last full day in the Azores was rainy, but we still made the most of it. We visited Parque Ribeira dos Caldeirões, got fofas (cream-filled pastries) in Provoação, walked down the steep road to the octagonal Farol do Arnal lighthouse (it was closed, but we still amazing views from the road), visited another natural pool (this one was overtaken by large, cold waves, but Dan and Gabriel did go in briefly), and grocery shopped for souvenirs to bring home. The Parque had nicely paved paths as well as woodsy trails. There were several pools and waterfalls and buildings that were formerly water mills. We saw several tour groups using the park as the starting point for canyoning or waterfall climbing tours that looked like they’d be a lot of fun.
Saturday: We flew home! Whew!
My favorite things were the views (crater lakes, incredible oceans and cliffs); the Azorean chili sauce (very flavorful, naturally sweet, a touch of spice); and the natural pools, particular the Ponta da Ferraria on the west coast. My least favorite thing was having our van break down and also having to drive down veeerrrrry steep, narrow roads to get to some of the attractions on the coast. But we made it, so they were worth it ;-).
I’ve written about camping with babies and toddlers. I mentioned there that we had hopes of one day backpacking with our kiddo also. Well, we’ve done it – or at least a proof of concept – and it was a smashing success, if I do say so.
Dan and I have backpacked a couple times in Michaux State Forest in Pennsylvania. In April, we went car camping there at Caledonia State Park with Gabriel for two nights. On Sunday morning before we left, we did a short hike on the AT from the campground purposefully to look for a potential camping spot for a future backpacking attempt. The AT from the campground starts with a steep hill. Near the top, we found a nice camping spot that had a fire ring built from rocks and clearly was used for camping. We continued our hike along the AT, which was relatively flat beyond that point, to look for additional potential spots. We found a few that would suffice, but none that had a fire pit or was as ideal as the first. After a total hike of about 1.5 or 2 miles along the trail, we turned around, knowing we wouldn’t want hike further than that for our first backpacking adventure with Gabriel.
We originally planned to go in early June, but schedules were overfilled and we were a little stressed out, and frankly, it felt like a lot. But we picked another weekend to go. When it rolled around, we again considered bailing, life feeling so full and what not, but we stuck to it – and thank goodness. Getting into the woods… even just a little… is often the cure for those feelings.
Stats:
1.5 miles round trip
300 feet elevation gain
1 night
15 hours total
2 adults, one happy boy, and a tired dog
Lots of overnight rain
We drove up on a Saturday afternoon. We were hoping we could park our car overnight in a campground parking lot close to the start of the trail, but posted signs said no overnight parking. So I dropped Gabriel, Dan, and all our stuff off, drove the car 0.5 miles away to a parking lot outside the campground, and walked back to meet them. We started our hike shortly after 5:30pm. About 18 minutes, 0.5 miles, and 300 feet elevation gain later, we made it to the spot we’d seen when we previewed the hike in April. It was available, so we took it and began setting up camp. A few other people passed us on the nearby trail in the next hour or two, carrying backpacks and equipment. I wonder where they ended up camping.
It had rained the night before, so we’d prepared Gabriel for the potential that we wouldn’t be able to have a fire due to wet wood. I’d also picked up sandwiches for dinner instead of our original plan of cooking hot dogs over a campfire. However, we managed to collect plenty of dry (enough) firewood for several hours of a fire. Yay, s’mores!
We were fortunate that there weren’t a lot of mosquitos, but there WERE a lot a of other bugs. The area was wet and humid and teeming with all kinds of life. Grubs, snails, ants, spiders, beetles, etc. We managed, though.
It rained all night overnight, but fortunately stopped by morning. We ate oatmeal, packed up camp, and hiked the one mile back to the car, mostly downhill. Success!
How we did it
Packs: Dan and I each used our 70L backpacking packs. Gabriel chose to wear our Osprey Daylite Pack. This became our diaper bag replacement when Gabriel was no longer in diapers or a stroller, but we still wanted to carry snack, water, and usually wipes around. Usually Dan or I wear it, but Gabriel chose to wear it over his tiny school backpack. It certainly looks more like a backpacking pack, but was still kinda huge on him.
Tent: We brought the non-backpacking mansion tent. Yep. All 17 or whatever pounds of it. We considered renting a 3-person backpacking tent for this occasion, but see above about life just being really busy, and so that remained a nice thought and nothing more.
Stuff: Dan has always carried the tent, and I have always carried the cooking equipment. We continued that tradition… except now the tent weighed almost 20 pounds instead of like 5 and took up all the space in his bag. So I also carried most of Gabriel’s stuff, including his sleeping pad and sleeping pad. He carried all of his clothes and water bottle in his own pack.
Food: Deli-bought sandwiches for dinner, and s’mores. Oatmeal for breakfast. Baby-bel, granola bars, meat sticks, apples, and various other snacks. We bear bagged it all in Dan’s Sea to Summit dry bag, slung over a high tree branch.
And that was that! I can’t wait to go again, although I do want to have a location picked out again. I need to go back to some our former trips and remember what could be shortened…
I’ve been missing pre-prepped breakfasts – especially on mornings that I go to the gym, get home at 7:40, and have to be showered and dressed to take Gabriel to school around 8am so that I can be back at my work desk by 8:30am. (Hungry, or having shoveled something quickly down my throat.) So I’ve tried a few things recently, and this is my report out.
Take 1: Chia Seed Oatmeal
On a flight recently, I saw a recipe for chia seed oatmeal and decided to adapt it and give it a try. I’ve made – and liked – chia seed pudding in the past, but it’s never really become a regular part of my mix.
Because of the steel cut oats, this recipe is not as fast as just chia seed pudding. But it’s relatively hands off.
Here’s what I did:
Ingredients
1 cup steel cut oats
1 cup coconut milk
4 tablespoon chia seeds
2 scoops (40 grams) collagen peptides
2 tbsp maple syrup or other sweetener
1 cup frozen mango, chopped
Steps
Cook steel cut oats. I did 4 minutes pressure cook on high in the Instant Pot (natural release for at least 20 minutes), with water with a ratio of 3:1.
Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot with the cooked oats.
Distribute mixture among 4 jars, glasses, or other containers. I used handled drinking jars, and put lids on them.
Place in fridge for at least 4 hours. Up to a week?
Okay, so the truth? I didn’t love it 😬. I ended up eating it and it sort of grew on me, but I’m not going to make it again. There was something slightly bitter. I was able to cover it up with some extra syrup or jam on a few mornings, but it didn’t go away. So, not adding this one to the mix.
Take 2: Morning Glory Muffins
My mom has made muffins in the past with lots of seeds and dried fruit in them, and I think Gabriel remembers them. He saw craisins in the cabinet and asked for muffins with them in them, so I looked up a recipe and found this one.
I used zucchini instead of carrot. I also used paper muffin tin liners for some of these, which I really think I just must never do again. I always end up losing half the muffin due to it sticking to the paper, every time, even though this time I sprayed the cups with a lot of avocado spray. The (well-sprayed) silicone cups I have worked great here.
These were A-plus. I don’t have any pictures. The recipe website is prettier anyway. These will definitely be added to the mix.
While everyone is excited about spring, and leaves budding, and warm(er) weather… I’m over here writing about skiing, yes. I’m actually in Colorado as I begin to write this, and I think Dan told me that some of the ski resorts (oh, maybe in Utah) are still open. But I’m not here to ski – I’m here to meet my new baby niece! But I am going to write about skiing. (Note: I started this in mid April and didn’t finish til late May 🤦🏻♀️).
Because skiing was so fun this year! Actually, for me personally, it wasn’t amazing. I bruised my leg really bad my first day in Utah, which hurt and shook my confidence. BUT, Gabriel skied a ton, and loved it, which just made the whole season a blast. By the end of the season, he was basically as good as me.
But he didn’t start that way. Dan should be writing this post because he put in the lion’s share of the work. I don’t think he considered it work, though. As I wrote in a previous post, the foundation began to be laid when Gabriel was eight months old and Dan wore Gabriel in the Ergo while skiing through the neighborhood trails of our ski-in/ski-out rental in Big Sky. It continued the following winter when Gabriel was 1.5 and got to ‘ski’ on his toy Lucky Bums ‘First Tracks’ skis at Tahoe, and the next when Gabriel skied on the same skis at Snowshoe. Also, ski videos on YouTube of epic ski triumphs were part of his education as soon as screens were remotely allowed in our house.
My previous post about skiing was mostly about how WE got to ski despite having a child. This one’s about Gabriel skiing, because now we all ski together! Hooray.
Equipment
Skis and Boots: We bought Gabriel used skis and boots during the summer at the Baltimore Ski Warehouse. Dan did a lot of research, or at least a lot of perseverating, about whether to rent for the season, rent each time we went, rent in CO for the season, or buy. We decided to buy (used), and I think Dan decided it was worth it? I think so. I think Gabriel will be able to use at least the skis again next year, and it was just nice to have them and not worry about it.
Gabriel was just under 3.5 years when we bought them. I think his shoe size was a 9 or 10. He’s 36 lbs now and was about 40″ tall then. His skis are size 90 and the boots we got are size 11. I wanted to buy the boots a little big, but actually, Gabriel said the 9s and 10s he tried on were too tight, so I don’t know if they were actually too big. The boots probably won’t fit him still next year.
Dan also got a ski bag that holds two sets of skis.
Clothes: Last spring, when stores were having their sales, we (Dan) bought Gabriel a 4T Columbia snowsuit (bib and coat) and other ski equipment. This thing was AMAZING. Gabriel was not cold once. Dan also bought him a new, larger pair of the Snowstopper mittens. At some point we purchased a new pair of Smartwool ski socks. We have also had a Turtlefur balaclava for a couple winters now.
Other Equipment:
Helmet and goggles: Dan also bought Gabriel a Smith Prospect Jr helmet and Smith Youth Rascal ski goggles in various sales around Memorial Day last year. The helmet has two stages. Stage 1 (which Gabriel is using now) is for head circumference 48-52cm. Stage 2 can be achieved by removing a liner from the helmet to increase the head circumference to 52-56cm.
Liftie ski pass holder: because Gabriel was too short for the lift gates to scan his pass… this solved everything.
Launchpad ski harness: This has one of those leashes, which we didn’t use, but importantly has a handle that makes pulling a kiddo up onto a chair lift or off the ground super easy.
Process
Process… you mean besides Dan taking him out on toy skis at every possible opportunity as soon as he could walk, watching countless ski videos, and talking about skiing all the time? Well, the first time we took Gabriel on real skis was in mid-December. We went to Eldora, which is a small resort in Colorado. It was quite cold and windy the day we went, and it started off not great. The magic carpet and bunny hill was A.L.L. the way on the other side of the resort from the main entrance, where we parked, and so we had to trudge in all our gear across the resort to get there. Gabriel trudged with us, carrying his skis for part of it, but by the time we got there, no one was happy. We could have parked closer to the magic carpet, but didn’t know that. We did a ‘run’ or two down the bunny hill with Gabriel holding Dan’s skis while he skied backwards before Gabriel started to melt down. I went and got the car and drove back over while Dan and Gabriel attempted one more ‘run.’ Then we took a very long break in the car, with snacks and cuddling. After that, we went back out for a couple bunny hill runs, and then drove back across the parking lot to get closer to the main lodge and had an extended lunch break.
Gabriel was still napping most days at that point, so we thought that might be the end of it. He’d be tired and cranky. But he rallied, and we made our way back toward the bunny hill. At some point, I think it was then, he said he wanted to go on the lift, so we took the lift up to a green run. He lost it and cried most of the way down, though I think I was able to calm him down by stopping and explaining to him that he was safe, we’d stay with him, and we’d get down slowly. But he picked up steam all afternoon and did the green run several more times and also the bunny hill a bunch. Mostly with Dan or me, and he couldn’t snow plow or stop himself yet, but baby steps. He had a lot of fun.
His next day or two out were with Dan at our nearby ski hills (Roundtop and Liberty), and he got better each time, learning to snow plow and stop.
Then we spent a week at Solitude for our annual ski trip with friends, and he skied 6 out of 7 days. Not full days, but some pretty full days and others at least half days. He got to ski a bit with our friends’ daughters who were 6, 6, and 8, all of whom had had lessons, and Gabriel wanted to keep up and be with the crew. He had a ton of fun with them. He also had fun with just me or just Dan, but I think the crew was most motivating. We tried to get him into the ski school, but the cutoff was age 4, and they were strict about it. By the end of the week, he was basically as good as me (not quite, but not too far), able to stop himself and do S curves.
Dan then took him one or two more times to local places to round out the season. Can’t wait for next year.
Pass
I really need Dan to write this section, because he again did all the work to figure out passes. This past season, Dan and I had Ikon passes, and I think Dan bought Epic day passes for the resorts around here in Maryland. He wasn’t sure if Gabriel needed an Ikon pass, but got one in case, and I think indeed it was needed. I think the Ikon pass for Gabriel was $100? For next year, we got Epic passes. Gabriel’s access is free, but he has an Epic pass from this year (with his age already verified) that he will use.
What’s Next
We’re really looking forward to next year. We’re planning to stay near Vail and ski at Vail and Beaver Creek. We might not need straight childcare any more… Gabriel will do ski school or ski with us. He’s already excited!
I don’t write much any more about what I’m cooking. There are lots of reasons why, but one is that I don’t feel like I have much that’s interesting or useful to share. I rarely cook on the weekends, and I try to decide on and plan for the upcoming weeknight dinners on the weekend, and once the weeknight arrives, I’m sort of on autopilot trying to get dinner on the table as quickly as possible. Or I’m working/entertaining my son/doing other household tasks while my husband does it.
But I am still eating, of course. And cooking. And every weekend, I am suddenly struck anew, like it’s never happened before, that I need to plan for dinners that week. My mind draws a blank. So here – documentation of my weeknight dinners as a resource that I – and possibly you – can come back to to get the planning juices flowing.
I think one of the challenges of planning for weeknight dinners is having to marry different inputs: what meat do we have in the freezer (mostly from Butcher Box, so I didn’t choose the specific types/cuts myself with a particular plan); what vegetables do we have on hand (mostly from a farm delivery CSA, so again, I didn’t choose them with a specific plan); what do we feel like eating. I’ve shared before that this is why meal planning programs don’t really fit the bill for me. What I want is a tool in which I can plug in what I have (meat, veggies), and it will spit out a plan for me based on the groceries I already have. Alas, I have not found such a tool yet (though have settled on Paprika as the best recipe collection tool that does allow me to filter on each of these things or search for recipes with a particular ingredient).
But I digress. Given the many inputs I mentioned above, I – and probably you – will never be able to look at these entries and say, yep, that’s exactly what I’m having this week. But it will hopefully just help with the blank-mind thing. (Side note – Fed & Fit provides a much more professional weekly dinners newsletter. I’ve used it as inspiration plenty of times. The challenge for me is that I’m not immediately familiar with the recipes or able to marry it to what I have, so it takes more cognitive effort. I imagine you’ll have the same challenge with my lists, but I won’t, so. Well. There you go. I encourage you to look at Fed & Fit instead/also.)
Without further ado, here is what Gabriel and I ate a few weeks ago when Dan was out of town:
Monday: went out to eat with Dan’s mom and sister and Gabriel for my birthday
Tuesday: homemade pizza (I forgot to start sourdough pizza dough the day before, so we went to the store after school pickup and bought store-bought fresh pizza dough) with mozzarella, pizza/pasta sauce, basil (leftover from pizza the previous week), prosciutto, red pepper, red onion, and arugula. We cooked the pizza with all the toppings except basil, prosciutto, and arugula. We added those after it was cooked and while it was resting for about 5 minutes.
Wednesday:
Protein: shredded pork (made previously in the slow cooker, frozen, and reheated), Noble Made mustard BBQ sauce
Starch: mashed butternut squash (adapted from this recipe) using up the last of the butternut squash chunks and pumpkin puree that were frozen in the freezer
Vegetable: steamed broccoli
Thursday (Dan’s parents joined us):
Protein: Baked white fish (I used the recipe from @thesassydietitian ‘s Clean Eating cookbook)
Starch: more mashed butternut squash and homemade sourdough bread
Vegetable: roasted green beans (from farm box) and leftover broccoli
I’m making it somewhat of a tradition to stay somewhere fancy for a night or two for my birthday. Two years ago (right before Covid shut everything down), Dan and I stayed at the Inn at Perry Cabin in St Michaels, Maryland for my birthday. Last year, we spent a night at the Ivy Hotel in downtown Baltimore. And this year, we went to Savage River Lodge in western Maryland. It’s really nice to get away with Dan for a weekend (or night) all to ourselves, enjoy each others company, and relax together. We owe great thanks each year to Dan’s parents for making it possible by hosting our son for the weekend.
At Savage River Lodge, we stayed in a fancy yurt, which is a far cry, I’m sure, from the traditional structures from which it gets its name.
It was 60 degrees when we arrived on Friday, but the temperature dropped over night, and it began raining hard in the wee hours. The temperature kept dropping, and it turned to snow sometime before I woke up at 6:30am on Saturday. The temperature kept dropping throughout the day, and the wind picked up, making for some seriously blustery conditions, which sounded pretty monstrous from inside the (incredibly cozy) yurt.
We trekked to the main lodge for breakfast, then took the long way back to our yurt on one of the Savage River State Forest trails that runs through the property. My feet got cold, but otherwise it was nice to be outside and walking in the snow. The trees blocked some of the crazy wind. After a bit of a rest and relax in the yurt, we went back out on different trails. This time I had toe warmers that Dan had conveniently packed. We walked a little over 1.5 miles and made it back to the lodge for a leisurely lunch, during which time it mostly stopped snowing. We went back out for another nearly 3 miles on the trails, some of which had no footprints so hadn’t been traveled that day. The sun peeked through a couple times, it was lovely.
We spent the rest of the afternoon before dinner relaxing in the yurt with the wind howling outside. I finished a book, we did a Peloton stretch together, and we each took a bit of a doze. We ended the day with a lovely dinner back at the lodge’s restaurant.
Is there a better way to spend a day?
On Sunday, we enjoyed the complimentary muffins that were delivered to our doorstep before setting out for a 4-mile walk on the trails (still cold, but sunnier and less windy) and then heading out. We stopped in Cumberland, Maryland for lunch to see what it was about. On a wintry Sunday in March? Not much. Almost all businesses were closed, but we managed to find Lost Mountain BBQ before making our way home.
In August, we went to Glacier National Park. ‘We’ includes Dan, Gabriel, and me. And my parents, and sister, and my sister’s husband. And my mother in law, and my two sisters-in-law, and the husband of one of them. Ten adults, and one kiddo. We all stayed at Lake McDonald Lodge and Lake McDonald Motel for four nights, which was a feat, as anyone who has tried to book lodging in a national park might know.
(Feel free to message me if interested. Essentially, Glacier lodging availability opens up on the first day of the month twelve months in advance, at midnight mountain time which is 2am Eastern time. In the wee early morning hours of both August 1, 2020 and September 1, 2020, I spent several hours on the website trying any number of variations, trying to book up whatever I could for whatever days I could to try and get something to work out for all of us. My sister and mom also called and did the same thing over the phone. We somehow managed to make it all work, and Dan’s family was able to find lodging in the nearby Lake McDonald Motel.)
It was pretty much super amazing all around. The weather was great. Travel for everyone went well, for the most part (although American lost Dan’s bag for the first five days…). Five of us stayed in two of the four rooms in the Cobb House, a separate house from the main Lake McDonald Lodge. The other guests in the Cobb House rotated each night, so our group sort of took over the lovely front porch each evening and that was the gathering place for everyone.
We all did a red jammer tour, went on hikes, saw bears and moose, and just enjoyed the incredible beauty.
We did three main hikes. Eight of us, including Gabriel, hiked to Avalanche Lake together. It’s a very popular day hike that starts from the Going to the Sun Road a few miles from Lake McDonald Lodge. The parking was totally full every time we drove past, but on the afternoon we decided to go, we luckily found spots people were leaving without a problem. It’s about a 4.5-mile out and back hike to a really beautiful lake. Gabriel has had a Glacier National Park poster in his room featuring this lake since he was born, so it was awesome for him to see it in person (at least Dan and I thought so… not sure Gabriel really cared). It was just under 700 feet elevation gain and easy to moderate. Gabriel hiked almost all of by himself and only got carried a little.
Dan and I also really wanted to do a long day hike. Others were invited, but it ended up just being us. Gabriel hung out with Nana (my mom) all day. My dad dropped Dan and me off at ‘The Loop,’ a landmark and trailhead along the Going to the Sun Road. We hiked a total of 15.5 miles, ending at Many Glacier. The route took us up past Granite Peak Chalet to Swiftcurrent Pass. We saw deer and a few other humans along the way, but no other animal life. Beautiful views and wildflowers and berries though. We also decided to add on the trek up to Swiftcurrent Lookout, which is an optional 1.2-mile (one way) out and back addition up an additional 1,200 feet to one of the highest places you can hike in the park. There’s a building up there where a scientist lives for weeks at a time, sheltered, but otherwise completely exposed. We got to say hello to her, and others in my family learned more about her during their boat tour in many glacier. I was resistant to doing the Lookout addition at first, but was really glad we did it. After that, the route took us over Swiftcurrent Pass, past glaciers, down toward the Many Glacier part of the park, past several lakes, and finally to Swiftcurrent Lodge in Many Glacier where my sister, her husband, and my dad had driven to meet us, check out a different part of the park, and do a boat tour.
The third hike was the just-under 3-mile round trip out and back hike to the Hidden Lake overlook from Logan Pass. All 11 of us did together. It was raining and cold! Dan’s sister had planned ahead and gotten us all timed tickets for the shuttles, so we all took the shuttle from Lake McDonald Lodge to Logan Pass and then hiked to the overlook. Dan and I did this same hike 6 years ago (and continued on to actually reach the lake instead of stopping at the overlook). Both times it was so foggy that we couldn’t see the lake from the overlook! Luckily, there is a sign at the overlook showing how beautiful the view is. We were all pretty wet and cold so didn’t spend too much time there before heading back. (We did not encounter a grizzly bear on the trail like Dan and I did six years ago, forcing us to wait for almost an hour until it ambled away…). The shuttle queuing system really broke down at Logan Pass and we ended up on different shuttles to get back (and some people went different places), but it all worked okay.
That was our last full day there. The rain mostly cleared up in the afternoon and everyone went their different ways, and Dan and I finally had an opportunity to go out on the paddle boards on Lake McDonald. Gabriel came with us at first and we went maybe 2/3 across the lake before it started raining, so we turned around and went back to the shore. Gabriel wanted to get off at that point, and Grandma was there, so we dropped Gabriel off and when it stopped raining a few minutes later, Dan and I went back out. Super fun, and beautiful.
All in all, a pretty great trip. It takes a lot of pre-planning, but I definitely recommend it as a family trip!
I went to Claremont, CA for work for a few weeks working on a special project that had me working some sorta weird hours. I had two days off while I was there, and I took a part of both of them to do a local hike.
I could’ve been sent a number of places across the country for this project, and I don’t mind at all that I landed in southern California. Humidity is low, temperatures were nice, the sun was out most days, some days there was a little wind but nothing crazy. Really didn’t mind at all. Also, I was all alone. Some work colleagues were around, and I was social with them a few times, but mostly, outside of work, I spent time alone. No kiddo, no husband, no home routine. It was pretty wild. I haven’t felt that untethered since before I got married, probably.
I still mostly did the same things, though. I worked out most mornings. I went to bed really early and got up really early. I ran 1-2 days per week. I tried the local restaurants, and I enjoyed the local outdoors.
The two hikes I did are the Claremont Wilderness Hills Loop and Potato Mountain. The one I didn’t do but wish I had more time for is Mt. Baldy. I almost did it on my second day off, but already had midday brunch plans with Dan’s cousin and decided I wouldn’t have enough time.
I learned that the typical hiker in suburban LA is different than the typical grungy hiker in some other places. I was out of place in my clunky Merrell hiking shoes. There were lots of designer sunglasses, leggings and crop tops, cute low profile sneakers. My fellow hikers were very diverse in other ways (and of course I’m still generalizing a lot), but these folks seemed to be more in the mindset of out-for-a-stroll (and a stroll where there will be other people to see and be seen by, which was certainly true) than out to commune with the wilderness. Well, okay. There was no hiding my out-of-townness so I didn’t try and just enjoyed myself and got a good walk in.
Hike #1: Claremont Wilderness Hills Loop
This was a 5-mile, very well-trafficked loop just a few miles away from my hotel. Dogs, bikers, and jogging strollers were all allowed, and I saw them all, as well as runners and lollygaggers. The path was more of a well-maintained dirt road. It had decent views of Claremont and Pomona and probably the other towns around there that all blend one into another. According to my watch record, it took me about an hour and 45 minutes and had just under 1,000 feet of elevation gain. There wasn’t much of a ‘peak’ or anything that felt like ‘I made it!’ I guess there was a small pavilion type thing at about the halfway point, but it was overrun with mountain bikers, so I just walked on by it.
This clearly isn’t the hike to do if you’re looking to get away from civilization, but as a solo female hiking in unfamiliar territory, it was a perfect way to get outside and move my body surrounded by a little bit of nature.
One drawback was parking. There are two pay parking lots (one of which is quite large), but they fill up quickly, especially on weekend mornings, and there’s no other parking close by. I arrived around 7:30am on a Saturday. After seeing the line of cars, I spent about ten minutes driving around looking for another place to park, and then finally just came back and got in the line. Turns out I should have just stayed there to begin with – it only took 10-15 minutes to move through the line and for me to be able to park.
I didn’t take a lot of pictures :/.
Hike #2: Mt. Potato
This is also a just-under 5-mile out-and-back trail partway between Claremont Hills Wilderness Park (CHWP) and the entrance to Angeles National Forest along Mt Baldy Road (so, again, only a few miles from my hotel). It was slightly-less well-trafficked, though I went 1.5 hours earlier on a Saturday. Still – I saw a number of hikers (including other solo female hikers!), so I expect it can get pretty busy. Like the CHWP Loop, most of it was also more of a well-maintained dirt road than a hiking path, though it became a little more rugged after a sharp turn toward the summit. I enjoyed the views more (of the valley, and of the nearby mountains, including Mt. Baldy) and felt that I was more ‘in nature’ than on the CHWP loop, and there were a lot of lovely wildflowers.
It also took me just under one hour and 45 minutes and had a total of about 1,300 feet elevation gain. It ends at the peak of Potato Mountain (and a pile of potatoes, mostly decorated!) with some nice views. The trail also connects to the CHWP trails, though that would have made it a much longer hike.
Parking was also not ideal here. The trail is very clearly used, but it is blocked off and there is a sign that says ‘No Trail Access’ (but goes on to say ‘to CHWP’). Several cars could park at the trailhead (that’s not marked as a trailhead), but there are No Parking signs. So hikers must resort to parking a quarter mile down the road at a dirt pullout, and then walk on the sidewalk-less side of the two-lane, 45-MPH road. Alas. It wasn’t too busy at 6am.
Probably due to the hour, I only encountered one couple on my way up. At first, I felt a little more secluded than I would have liked, but their presence helped when we finally crossed paths. Then several hikers passed me on their way down as I neared the summit, and there were several hikers at the summit with me. I passed a number of others on my way down.
Hike I didn’t do: Mt. Baldy
If I’d planned ahead a bit more instead of making same-day plans, I would have hiked Mt. Baldy while I had the chance.
Ideally, I would have done what She Dreams of Alpine recommends in this post, which makes an 11-mile loop hike out of it. My Plan B when I realized I was short on time was to take the Mt Baldy Resort lift up and then hike the 6.6-mile out-and-back Devil’s Backbone trail to and from the summit, then take the lift down. But the lift didn’t open until 7:30 am, and I realized I likely didn’t have time for that either, given the other plans I’d already made for the day.
Alas. Next time I’m randomly sent to Claremont, CA and have some free time…
We ski. Not as much as we’d like, but as much as we can.
The first trip Dan and I ever took together was to Breckenridge for a week of skiing, fourteen years ago. We were recent college graduates and rented a non-four-wheel-drive sedan that somehow made it through a snow storm, over the pass, without incident. It was a windy week, and I finally broke down and bought ski goggles at the top of the mountain, which I’d never owned. (I still didn’t have a helmet… these were not standard things that skiers had when I was growing up.) We stayed in a decently nice hotel. We bought beer for our stay, but didn’t have a fridge, so set it out on our balcony… where most of it burst after freezing in the frigid temperatures. And we were never really in the mood for the rest because the altitude made us feel not great.
That year, or maybe the next, Dan’s best friend, Dan, and I also took a trip to Vail, where Dan’s friend’s aunt had a house and was willing to host us. The three of us did this trip 2 or 3 times over the next few years, and Dan and his friend did it more times without me (I always say I was the third wheel on these trips anyway).
In 2014, Dan’s best friend, Dan, me, and four others rented a house for a week outside Park City, UT and spent the week skiing there. This kicked off an annual friends ski trip in which six of us from that 2014 trip continue to gather from around the country for a week of skiing each year, usually the week of Presidents Day in February. Each year, there are different additional people as well (two have gotten married, for example, and Dan and I now have a kid), but the six of us are core.
Dan and I have also taken day trips from Baltimore to ski in the mid-Atlantic and romantic weekends away to ski together in Utah. If I weren’t married to Dan, I definitely wouldn’t ski as much, but I had to accept early on that this was a non-negotiable, and I was either going to embrace it or be forever bitter that we aren’t using our precious vacation time each year to, say, go to Hawaii, or Peru, or France. I embraced it.
We’ve continued our annual friends ski trips since having Gabriel. In some ways they look different, but in the most important ways, they’re the same, or better. Here’s what we’ve done.
Trip #1: Big Sky, Montana (Gabriel: 8.5 months)
Travel: We flew via connecting flight to Bozeman. We brought our Uppababy Vista stroller with Uppababy Mesa infant carseat. I brought the ergobaby carrier on the plan so Gabriel could relax and sleep in there. If I recall, this was the stage where he was not interested in being in the carrier at all, and though he couldn’t walk yet, he was super mobile and discontent to be in one place for an extended period. I think he probably napped at some point on the plane while in the carrier, but I don’t actually remember. I do remember setting him on the airport floor and letting him crawl along beside us as we walked down the hallway. Gross, maybe, but I cared more about him getting activity.
Ski plan: Dan and I each skied 3 days on this trip. He would usually ski at least 1-2 more, but agreed to this plan without grumbling in order to increase my interest/willingness in attempting the ski-with-child endeavor in the first place, and to show that it could go well. I would usually maybe ski 1 more, but more likely spend a day hiking. For this trip, we each watched Gabriel alone (or with whatever friends weren’t skiing that day) for two days, and we skied some together the third day.
Childcare: Big Sky had on-mountain daycare. Gabriel had never been to another daycare besides his normal one and had never even been baby-sat by a non-grandparent, so I didn’t want to try it for more than one day. It was also very expensive. Maybe as (more?) expensive as a lift ticket. It went fine. I stopped skiing mid-morning to breastfeed him in the daycare. I got to sit in a rocking chair in front of big windows with a view of the ski mountain. Not too shabby. He didn’t seem any worse for the wear after that day. One day after skiing, my childless male friend offered to watch Gabriel while I enjoyed the hot tub with his wife. His report was that Gabriel cried the whole time, but Gabriel didn’t seem any worse for the wear after that, either.
Sleeping: Gabriel slept in his travel crib in our room overnight and for all naps (except the day he was at daycare). Having him in the same room as me means I don’t sleep as well.
Feeding: Gabriel was having milk four times a day at this point, and I was breastfeeding 3 of those (morning, night, and mid-morning), and the other we were giving a bottle of formula. That continued. My first day of skiing, Dan planned to meet me with Gabriel at the base of the mountain so I could breastfeed him. He was very late, and when I called him, the connection was poor and he was clearly upset, so I ended up just driving back to the house we were renting. I found that Dan had backed into a snowbank when reversing down the steep driveway and had spent the last hour digging himself out. (Ridiculously, we had a rear-wheel-drive Tahoe that we’d rented. We wanted a 4WD – we had moved on from our frugal post-college days, but the rental agency was out. Who makes – and rents – a two wheel drive Tahoe anyway??) I took an unhappy Gabriel out of the carseat inside to feed him, then handed him back to Dan and went back to the ski mountain. Other than that, there were no fiascos. Dan met us at the mountain base the other morning I skied, without incident. And other than that, I was with Gabriel. No need to pump. Thank god. I did breastfeed him in an old school snowcoach tour vehicle in Yellowstone, though. That was cool.
Ski/snow education: Gabriel got his first literal taste of snow on the porch of our home with me. I also took him for a short hike out behind the house where we stayed. Dan chose to not consult me on his decision to strap Gabriel to his chest and ski down the hills outside our rented house and then take the privately-operated neighborhood lift back up the hill, still with Gabriel on his chest.
Other recreation: We took and old-school snow coach tour of Yellowstone, on which we saw Old Faithful, bison, and frozen waterfalls. Awesome.
Travel: We flew into Reno, NV and then drove to South Lake Tahoe. Gabriel had graduated from the infant car seat, so our entire travel routine had changed. We brought our new WAYB Pico travel carseat, which weighs like 8 lbs or something and folds up small-ish into a backpack carrier. We’d used it once, on our trip to Mexico the month before. I didn’t love the idea of having Gabriel forward-facing before he was two, but alas. He was still rear-facing in his cushy carseat at home. Also, this carseat can be used on airplanes, which we did on at least part of the flight. We also brought our gb Pockit travel stroller, I think, though I don’t actually remember for sure. I don’t think we brought the ergobaby or our hiking carrier or any sort of carrier. Gabriel was walking at this point, not far, but we definitely encouraged him to walk as much as he was willing.
Ski plan: I again skied 3 days (my preferred amount), and Dan maybe skied four? I’m having trouble remembering. I didn’t feel deprived, and neither did he, in any case.
Childcare: This time, we used the on-mountain daycare two days. It was so expensive. I can’t remember. Maybe $175/day or something crazy like that?? We obviously decided we were willing to spend our money on that, but man. I began daydreaming with other ski friends who had (or would soon have) children of their own that the following year we’d be able to get a baby sitter (or even two) to watch the kids at our rental house, which would be cheaper and more convenient. I think Gabriel seemed to like the daycare. If I recall, they actually took them out in the snow? I can’t remember what they did for food…
Sleeping: Gabriel still slept in his travel crib (Guava Lotus), but this time in the bedroom’s walk in closet. I now refuse, if at all possible, to have him sleep in the same room as us, because I don’t sleep well. It worked great.
Feeding: No longer really a thing. Gabriel ate what we ate. As I said, I can’t remember what the daycare rules were. They must have fed them. I don’t remember sending food…
Ski/snow education: This was a SUPER fun trip. Dan had a season pass and so was able to use the gondola as much as he wanted. He took Gabriel on the gondola on his watch-Gabriel days. Before the trip, he’d bought Gabriel a pair of step-in Lucky Bums ‘First Tracks’ skis. I thought he was crazy to bring them with us, but they totally used them together and skied around the magic carpet. I took Gabriel sledding on my watch-Gabriel days. He had a blast. We used a saucer the rental house had provided. I have a great video of him even getting air on one bump, and loving it.
Other recreation: I tried to go for a hike with Gabriel out the backyard. We went for a bit, but he wasn’t really having it and just wanted to go home or be carried, so it didn’t last for long.
Other features of this trip: Two main things –
We got to see my friend from grad school and her husband, who lived in San Francisco but were also at Tahoe that week. I found out then that she was pregnant, and it was just awesome to hang out with her and congratulate her on that.
We went during MLK week in January. That was the week that news about the COVID-19 (before it was named that, I think) really started to hit. While on that trip, we heard about the number of cases in China doubling from 400 to 800 in a matter of a day or so. We talked about it a lot, it was a big news story, but I don’t think we could have imagined how our lives would soon change so much as a result of it.
Key clothes:
REI 12-mo snow pants, purchased used at consignment store. They were huge, and he still wore them this season (2.5 years old)
Puffy jacket, purchased used from consignment store.
Hat from Amazon, gifted from a friend because it came in a pack of 3 and they only needed one (and G had recently lost his on a hike at Sherando Lake Campground)
BOGS Neo-classic boots, size 7.5, purchased used on eBay. These are amazing. And it was amazing we were able to find them used. Such was not the case this year, and we ended up paying full price for his current size (9). But there’s no going back. BOGS are the best.
SnowStoppers kids mittens, purchased new. Still used this year. They go all the way up the arm, under the coat sleeve, so the kiddo can’t pull them off. Amazing.
Trip #3 (planned, but not executed): Steamboat, CO
We didn’t actually take this trip. We planned it in August 2020 for February of 2021, with hope but also realism. On NYE 2020, I informed my husband that I wasn’t comfortable planning to go, and informed my friends (three different families) that we wouldn’t be. Had we gone, however, our plans included:
Travel: we were going to fly directly to Steamboat (Hayden, actually), via… Denver?
Ski plan: I was going to ski three days and maybe hike a day, and I think Dan was going to ski four? I think we were each going to take a Gabriel day, we were going to take a non-ski family day, and Dan and I were going to ski together a day…
Childcare: One of the other families going was the same family we’d gone to Big Sky with two years before. They have twin five-year olds and a seven-year old. We arranged with Steamboat Babysitting Company to have a sitter stay with the kids. We tentatively reserved them for every day but one (our family day). They were flexible. The rate for four children was $39/hour.
Trip #3 (actual): Snowshoe, WV (2.75 years)
Instead of flying go Colorado to ski with our friends, we chose to drive to Snowshoe, WV, which has some of the better east coast skiing. We also considered Killington in Vermont, but the state’s COVID guidance was to quarantine for two weeks before or after arriving in the state. West Virginia’s COVID guidance was sort of ‘we’ve got a lot of space, y’all come!’
Travel: We drove! So nothing really to report here. The actual driving time was about 5 hours, but it took us 8 total to drive down (had to detour to drop the dog off at Dan’s parents, had several car charging stops, lunch, had to buy Gabriel a coat because we forgot his, etc.). Gabriel’s attention span for TV has, for better or worse, improved dramatically, making long car rides easier. Unfortunately, his napping in cars is getting less good. We ordered takeout from a Chipotle and ate it in the car while charging it at a Tesla supercharger. We would prefer not to eat in the car and are looking forward to some day when we can eat in restaurants again. We did not bring a stroller on this trip at all.
Ski plan: Dan and I each skied two days, each alone. Dan also bought a lift ticket for my second day of skiing because 1) ski tickets had to be reserved well in advance due to COVID restrictions, 2) Snowshoe has evening skiing, and he thought he might ski after me that day, and 3) He wanted to be able to take Gabriel (who was free) on lifts that day. And he did! Our last day, Friday, was a family day, and neither of us skied.
Childcare: We had no childcare on this trip, which is why we each only skied two days. The other person spent the day with Gabriel. Snowshoe did have a daycare that was open, but they were pretty frank on their website that if you’re not comfortable with laxness about COVID precautions, they probably weren’t the right option for you. I also briefly looked for babysitters or nannies for the day, but couldn’t find any.
Sleeping: We stayed in a two-bedroom ski-in, ski-out condo at the top of the Ballhooter lift (Snowshoe is weird…the village is at the top of the ski hills, instead of the bottom). So Gabriel had his own room. There was a bed, but he was still in a crib at home, so he slept in his Guava Lotus travel crib. (Side note: we have since removed the fourth wall of his crib at home. It’s going pretty wall. It’s been almost two weeks, and he’s rolled out maybe half the nights. He still waits for us to come get him in bed, though, and hasn’t wandered out at all… hooray! Not sure what this means about travel going forward. Maybe the travel crib has seen it’s last trip??) Gabriel slept pretty well, but especially on the last couple nights, woke up crying. He was homesick and missed our dog and cat and his bed and home.
Feeding: We all got more treats than usual ;-). Hot chocolate. Waffles drizzled in chocolate. Apple cobbler. Yum.
Ski/snow education: This. was. AWESOME. We brought Gabriel’s snap-in skis, and he and Dan actually went skiing together! (I took him out on both days I was with him, and he did a little, but didn’t have nearly as much fun as he did with Dan.) Dan took him on the magic carpet the first day they were together and just around. I met up with them and got to see him a little. The second day Dan had with him, they actually went on the bunny hill lift and then to the other area of Snowshoe (called Silver Creek) and did the magic carpet there and then a legit green run lift! Multiple times! Gabriel wasn’t skiing by himself really or anything (though did a little), but was super excited about the lifts. This was really cool.
Other recreation: Also cool. My first day with Gabriel, we went to the tubing park at Silver Creek. Like skiing, you had to reserve tickets far in advance, which we did. It was snowing and beautiful when we went, and nicely protected from the wind. We’d read that they had a kiddie hill, so I thought that was what we’d do, but it turned out to be really lame. Even though Gabriel wasn’t 4 (technically the minimum age), they told me I could take him on the real tubing part if he wanted to. He said he did, so we tried it. I really thought he might freak out and regret it, but he loved it and wanted to go again and again and again. He went in his own tube (per the rules) and I held the rope from my lane. So that was great. On our family day (Friday), we did a sleigh ride in the morning, which was about 40 minutes. I thought it was super cool. Gabriel thought it was okay. And then the three of us tubed again in the afternoon. It was much more crowded that day (it was Friday, after all), and – ahem – I may have allowed Gabriel to fall out of his tube when it was my turn to go down with him. But Dan rolled out of his tube to rescue him (I kept going…. um), and Gabriel just wanted to go again, after a brief cry. What a trooper.
Key clothes:
Still wearing the REI 12-mo pants. Definitely the last time. Too short.
Size 9 BOGS. Purchased new. Just the best.
Same SnowStoppers gloves.
We bought a $15 coat (shell + insulating layer) at Walmart on the ride down that worked great. The whole dont-wear-coats-in-carseats has resulted in us forgetting his coat on more than one occasion, including this one. Can’t go skiing without a coat. We called a few places in the Snowshoe Village to see if they had toddler coats, but sounded like slim pickings. It turned out one kids store had a coat for $140. Glad we stopped at Walmart.
Next time, we’ll get him some goggles. And maybe some real boots and skis!
she eats and other things 