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Published: March 11th 2011
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Spring Break has gone so fast. Since we didn't get back from camping till Tuesday, it has been a short week. P had his second and third snowboarding lessons on Tuesday and Wednesday. Before going he had been complaining that in the first class he didn't get to slide on his own and he had to walk up the hill, and in true P fashion he would "never get to go faster or go down the bigger hill!". Well in these lessons they had him using the chair lift and coming all the way down the big hill. When he came back from the Tuesday lesson he had been freaked out by the chair lift (they had to stop it to get him off), and his instructor made him do "way too much sliding!" Just no happy medium I guess! On the Wednesday class I pep talked him about the chair lift and his instructor got him off before the emergency stop. He made it down the hill, but in watching him trying to get back up on his board when he falls looks tough and he was pretty tired. He didn't go for the complete lesson, but he did manage
to get up on his own near the end. Two more lessons to go next weekend. I think in watching him that learning to ski is easier than learning to snowboard.
Yesterday we also spent a good amount of time outside digging "igloos" in the snow banks of the driveway. It was a beautiful sunny day. We also made a little snow cat outside the barn where the cats live. One even came to check it out as we left.
Today it was snowing really hard. I had promised the boys I would take them to the ski hill to go sliding. My cold was leaving me with a marshmallow head, but after lunch we suited up and headed over there. It was fun. I have never seen sliding hills like this back at home. There is actually a tow lift to take you up the hill on your tube. Then there are 3 runs at the top just for tubes. Run 3 was quite steep and more in the bush. P wanted to try it but M took one look and decided it was too steep for him. So we stuck to the other 2 runs and
will have to try the steeper one when Claude is along so we can split up. The temperature was close to zero so with the snow coming down so hard, you just get soaked. My insulated pants are only water resisitant. They were so wet and heavy I thought they would pull off. By the end of the day M was so tired that he could barely walk to the parking lot. I had to support him by one arm. Both boys should sleep well tonight. Tomorrow it is off to see the Ice Hotel.
I have determined that one of the reasons Quebecers do winter activities so well is that the weather here is so much better for doing them in. When we arrived they warned us about how cold there winters get; -30 and colder. We have discovered that temperature is the relative one with humidity and wind factored in, and even at that they only get there very occasionally and only at night. I think the coldest actual temperature I have seen is about -25 maybe a couple of nights. Most days the high is between -5 and -10 or warmer. We have had a few
days back in mid winter that maybe were closer to highs of -15, but rarely. It is such great weather for doing activities. In fact the days this week that we have been out it has been closer to zero as a high and you really get too hot if you are being active. last week when it was -28 as a high back in Alberta I heard the weather report here and the guy says "Oh it is going to be a cold one the next few days: -7 as a high today and down to -15 tonight!" Cold???? I have only plugged my car in once this winter! It will be a shock to be back in Alberta next winter.
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