Post Winter Catch Up

We left home in snow, drove up to Calais in cold Spring sunshine, spent 2 weeks in Devon in cold but dry spring and yesterday was 26 °C followed by 9 °C and rain today.  Very mad weather!

However, we did not go tot England for the weather but it hardly rained so that made a nice change.  But it was not the nice Spring Easter that I  like in the UK but nonetheless we had a good time.  I think we have mastered having a trip home without too much stress and rushing about. I mean we do rush about but it feels manageable now.

My dad is definitely up there in the list of favourite people.  It's all Grandad this and Grandad that, can we go to the greenhouse?  Alex can't get enough of him!

Alex playing the Ukulele

And he LOVES checking the fire and putting wood on it.

Had fun with the Fearons too

Amos and Inigo eating their stash of gummies.

And Katie being silly with Cecilie

Very cute

We did our usual Easter Sunday jaunt to Duloe and it was a bit less manic this year as there were no Georges, only Bayleys and Booths.  We did the coldest Easter Egg hunt ever and a chilly trip to Talland Bay which was unusually quiet.

Egg hunters waiting for the off.

fishing!

Egg hunting at Knitting Granny's

"Can we go to the Green house Grandad?"

Training

Very cold walk up near Burrator. thank goodness we were in the woods.

Up to 9°C so a trip to Wonwell

Digging

And a ride on the tractor

Alex gets his first proper haircut.  He was so still.

Warmish day at South Milton

More fishing

So we did the usual Duloe trip and had a nice Easter Sunday and did all the usual seeing all the family which was good too.

One of the things Katie likes to do is see Darci and Chloe and ride their pony.  Fortunately I like to see Jen too so that's all good.  They have been very lucky and their old ploddy pony has been exchanged for a very nice little pony who I think Jen should show in hand as she runs very nicely next to him!  Anyhow, Katie couldn't wait to "ride" him and she loved it.  She was trotting along and would have stayed on for ages.  She has no fear that girl and is totally relaxed.

Katie on Ginger

And Alex had a turn too

Feeding the miniature ponies

We also did the South Devon Railway and Rare Breeds Farm again with Richard and the cousins and went to  the Aquarium with Jen, Helen and their girls. 

One of the owls on the platform

Stroking Flitwick

Feeding goats

Even Alex managed to feed them without

And Katie loves a good quiz

Alex loves to cuddle a guinea pig

I also managed to do a very successful amount of shopping and went for a ride with Jen which was lovely except my lower legs hurt.  First time riding in years.

We drove up to Sidmouth to the Donkey Sanctuary again to meet my friend Helen.  The kids had a great time doing an Easter Egg hunt and talking to lots of donkeys, which, by the way, are not short of money.

As Matt had driven home the week before we went, I went up to London on the train and stayed a night with my friend Sam.  We went for a lovely muddy walk and had to wash all our jackets before we flew back home the next day to Munich where it was dry and decidedly warmer.

We had a good trip and I always enjoy going back at Easter.   Car travel is so much easier now they are a bit older and it really is quite a good journey despite the fire alarm going off at midnight in our hotel near Cologne!

And so now we have summer approaching.  Bikes out and I need to get fit!

Ski Bunnies!

I am really enjoying the fact that we have ski bunnies and can begin to start thinking of skiing as a family next year. 

Katie just finished her second ski course with TSV Oberhaching (our local sports club) and yesterday I went down to watch her and have a ski with Alex.  We haven't really done much with Alex so far as the weather has not been great as either too cold or too much snow.  But he was really excited to ski yesterday and he wanted to ski with me and come on the T-bar lift (you can drink tea on the T-bar… according to the boy!)  So we dropped Katie at the bus and then Alex and I headed down and caught up with the bus just before we arrived.  It was actually really nice as I think most of the ski courses have finished and it wasn't too busy.  Last time we went you couldn't move for kindergarten ski courses!

Anyway, Alex was keen as mustard so we let Katie get on with her ski group and we went and had a go on the carpet lift.  I have totally underestimated the boy!  He has been quietly watching and quietly getting keen and for a two and a half year old he is really very good.  He has great balance and can move easily on the snow, get on and off the lift. I was astounded!  He did as I said and put his hands on his knees, bent forward and kind of skiied!  I mean I had to catch him as he hasn't mastered stopping yet obviously but his legs are strong. 

Well this is fun!

I can ski!

And stop!

I think compared to Katie at the same age he is much better and easier and has far more stamina.  Katie was so keen to ski but her legs were not as strong and she got frustrated too easily as she wanted to be able to do it too early.  And she doesn't listen to what she is told to do and says "I know" all the time.  (Hmmm, think I know someone else who was like that…)  My poor parents! 

Alex is totally different and I expected him to not want to do it and it all to be a bit slippery or something but he has his head in the right place and not once was there a whinge or moan or anything to make me wonder why the heck I was doing this. 

He really wanted to come on the T-bar with me so after a few runs on the carpet lift I took him up and he was great. I remember Katie getting really tired legs the first time she did the T-bar lift.  We skiied down together and when we stopped I was just chivied along "Come on let's ski!" 

We saw Katie and watched her do her slalom race and then the medal prize giving.  Alex just wants a medal and was so upset when he didn't get one.  Katie was very kind and let him wear hers.

And Katie really is a very relaxed and confident skier.  I envy her.  She will be good if she carries on like this.

Ski race at the end of her course.

And through the bumpy tunnels

Hi mum!

Monkey!

Certificate, medal and Schlepplift-Führerschein

That was yesterday.   And a week ago I registered her online to do a ski race at another small place near Tegernsee where TSV Oberhaching were doing a big race day.  Of course yesterday I was wondering if this was a good idea as she might be tired but she was keen to do it.  But this morning, she really didn't want to go as she was tired.  We went anyway and said we would just all have a ski.  For the first time, the whole Powell family went on a lift and skiied together!  Only for a short time as Katie wanted to go on the T-bar lift and go to the top.  She still wouldn't be persuaded to go in the race and I said ok we would just ski down but, silly wotsit decided, just as we got the to entry point of the race that she wanted to do it.  So there I am rushing down to find someone official and find that she is number 14 but we haven't paid or got her vest. No matter, join in the queue.  We were only just in time.  But she was stood at the top and I thought, flip there is no way I would have been brave enough to do something like that so young.  She is a star.  I watched her start and then ran back up to get my skis and whizzed down to find her at the bottom stuffing a chocolate coated marshmallow, having already chosen a big bag of gummy bears as a prize and then she threw ski socks at tin cans!  I managed to pay and then we traipsed off to find Matt and Alex who missed the whole thing as they were in the ski kinderland.  We found them and Katie and Alex stuffed gummy bears before doing more skiing.

At the start gate minus number

And she's off!

Alex in the kinderland

jumping

wanting to do it alone!

Eating gummy bears

 Then we went on the snow tubing which was really fun, before coming home. 

Note Matty's new colour coordinated ski boots he bought yesterday

A great morning's fun in the snow and all for €29 family ski tickets for the morning (oh and €10 for the race).  Not many more chances this year as it's warming up this week.  But next year we'll be really off! I'm so pleased our kinders both love the snow and skiing.

Ski Holiday

We have just returned from a very lovely ski week away.  I very luxuriously booked a Kinderhotel which has "free" child care and is all very child friendly.  It just took the whole stress out of delivering children to different places in potentially cold snowy weather.  It's hard at the moment as Alex is too small to ski (except for a few minutes) and Katie wants to ski with us but is too small and is better off in ski school which of course she loved.

So we went off to the Kleinwalsertal which is just in Austria over the border from Oberstdorf in Germany and stayed at this hotel.  We got the last room which was a double room with an extra bed and a cot in but plenty of space for us all really.  We had a balcony too.  It was the first time we have done a Saturday to Saturday ski holiday and it was quite nice in some ways doing the week in the hotel from start to finish.

It was a very easy two hour drive to get to and the hotel is situated so you can ski right from it to a chair lift but coming back you have to get a really steep t-bar which I hated as I always felt I would fall off with Katie - and we did once and the other time the t-bar flipped up from behind me and I wen the rest of the way up hanging onto it with my arms from grim death with Katie between my legs.  Must have looked a right muppet.  Arms were killing me!

View to the left from our balcony

So, although I felt a little bad about leaving Alex in the kids club (but I don't know why as that was the whole point so we could ski!), he was fine with it all and loved the girls and a very camp chap called Chris!   He went outside with them too and had a generally fun time before I came back for him between two and three in the afternoon.

Katie skied with us on the Sunday and then did ski school for the rest of the week which she loved - although she claimed to be too tired to do a full day the following day!

We are definitely spoiled with our skiing at SkiWelt.  Not the snow necessarily but the huge interconnected area and constantly upgraded lifts.   The skiing was fab as it snowed most of the time so the snow was just deep and fluffy and kept a lot of muppets off the piste.  But the areas were all small and not connected which was ok, you just got a five minute bus and it was all easy, but some of the lifts were so old and slow!  If it had been beautiful sunshine all week with easy piste skiing I think we would have covered it all by the second day, so we were pleased that the snow made for great powder skiing.  Not so great for Alex to have a try though as it was all just a bit too deep.  But for me, my legs were killing me so was quite grateful to go back early to spend time with Alex, which was in the pool mostly.  Which he loved.


Katie skied from 10-12 and then 1:30-3:30. She was the youngest in her group and was really good - very relaxed and controlled.  We were really proud of her.  She skied a bit with us too and I now feel confident about taking her anywhere on the slopes if not too steep as she can now do all the lifts too.

First day of ski school.

On the Friday she didn't want to do ski school as she wanted to ski with us but there was the race in the morning and medals to present.  The races were so funny.  The raced within their group and Katie came 6th out of 9 think.  The commentator was fab and so hilariously funny as these small kinders came carefully slaloming down.  She got a medal and certificate and photo. Alex also had a small ski too and he really enjoyed it so I must take him to Lenggries by himself soon.






The evenings were nice too.  The children could eat at 6pm in the kids club and then stay down there for evening entertainment until we were finished with our dinner and then we all went to bed.  

All in all it was a lovely holiday and can't wait for when Alex is skiing too.  Worth every penny.

On the button lift

Ski school fun

Taking every opportunity to go off into the fluff! Not difficult as so much of it.

The one day it started of beautiful sunshine

My best skiiers

Matt on the lift

Fantastic snow

And empty runs (this is the bottom of the best black run), due to ancient lifts

Spot me!

Gorgeous run

Getting ready to go out in the snow

Skis on outside the hotel

Skiing with Daddy

Alex on the slide in the pool

Zooming Katie

Bit steep!

The Norwegian tops were a bit hit Janecke!