Sledding

Here's a little post-holiday Rorschach test: what do you see in this image?

Those red squiggles represent 3 adults, 2 little boys, 4 sleds, a sunny winter day, and two-and-a-half hours of snowy fun! Chris, Cailan, and I went up to Grand Mesa with our friends Maria and Max to go sledding. Just for kicks, I wore my GPS watch to track our action. It's pretty funny to watch it in the player.

We got Cailan a blue sled for Christmas. He'd never been sledding before so he didn't really know what to expect. We weren't sure, either. Three winters ago, Cailan didn't want to even walk on snow, even with boots on. Last winter, we had to cut a snowshoeing trip short because just the act of putting on a stiff, puffy coat sent him into unstoppable tears. This year, we got new boots, snow bibs, and a nice coat that seems both warm and comfortable, plus some mittens with a really long cuff to minimize the gap between mitten and sleeve. He was all set, but would he like it?

The answer is: yes! He liked sledding, whether it was in a sled with Chris or me or Maria, or in a sled with both Maria and Max, or on a solo trip! He liked it when the sled stopped halfway down the hill, when it whizzed all the way to the trees, and even when it capsized!

He was less enthusiastic about trudging up the hill after each trip down. Sometimes he would have to stop and take a break, or eat some snow, or lie on his belly and wriggle like an eel.

All winter Cailan has been interested in building a snow cave or a snow tunnel. The snow yesterday wasn't quite deep enough for a good snow tunnel but Chris did manage to construct a pretty good cave, just the right size for a six-year-old boy, or a rare Blue-coated Snow Goby.