Dinner on the mountain!

Saturday night we went to a dinner that takes place in a lodge halfway up the mountain.  It was a blast!

 You can read more about the whole experience here.

We had a large group (22!) and the Cabin Cat can only take 10, so 12 people either skinned or snow shoed up the mountain.  Let's just be crystal clear...I was one of the first to sign up for the Cabin Cat ride!! ;)

We started with drinks at the base lodge:

 Then got ready to climb in the Cat and head up the mountain. It was a very snowy evening.  Perfect for our adventure!

 People have their skis because they will ski down after dinner. (I am a new skier, so I chose to ride the Cat back down. - Good choice for me!)

 Our friends C and E.  Everyone at the dinner is from our little hometown.  And all ski at Sugarbush every weekend!  Fun, fun!

 John and me.

 Allyn's Lodge all set up for our dinner.

 The evening started with wine, beer, cheese fondue and pate.  Isn't the fire place gorgeous?

 Talking to our chef.  He (and all the waitstaff) skied down at the end of the night too!

 The chef welcoming us all (telling us we were the largest group ever) and explaining what would be on the menu for the evening.  We had butternut squash soup, asian duck salad with bok choi, and grilled beef tenderloin with a potato dish and asparagus.

Here is the Cat again, ready to take down any bags (and ME!)

 Everyone suited up and ready to go down.

 Group photo:

 because I was the only one not skiing down, the Cat driver allowed me to sit up front :)  That was a great way to get down the mountain!!

 We arrived back to the base lodge and dessert was waiting for us.

 Yum, Yum!

 And this is what you see if you look up!!

It was such a fun evening with good friends.  We already have a night reserved for next year!!

Valentine's Day :)

So sorry I have not posted in forever! We have had a fun VDay. My Mom gave me a set of hearts shaped cookie cutters years ago and I love using them all day on Valentine's day :) The boys think I'm a bit nuts. (I seem to have forgotten to take a picture of dinner though :()
Hubs and I went out to an early dinner (boys stayed home alone!!) and then out for coffee and dessert. So fun!

Valentine's lunch. (It was a 1/2 day)

Mmmm.  Red velvet cake and cappuccino. (decaf - at least I hope so!!)

Cooking with C

C has always loved to work in the kitchen and recently he has realized he can do most cooking/baking projects with little help from me! I also think he has taken more of an interest since I stopped eating (most if the time) grains!! A child needs his pancakes :)
Last night after dinner he was flipping through his cookbook and discovered we had just enough time to make pretzels before he had to go to bed. I am always looking for non screen activities after dinner, so this seemed like the perfect thing.
He really did all the work himself! I just put them in and took them out of the oven. Oh, and I couldn't resist shaping some!!

Skiing

We are finally getting in a great ski weekend! We pulled the boys from school Friday at noon and it was so nice to make the drive North during the daylight!
My Sister and her family are here with us and we are having a great time.
Much better than being cooped up in the condo with the flu :)
The mountain put on a great fireworks display last night and we were able to watch the whole show from our living room. Much warmer that way ;)
Enjoy the long weekend!

Projects

My Mom came up today (and my Dad too, Thanks for giving Mom a ride!!) to work with me on finally finishing the boys curtains. You see, I made them about 3 years ago and never hemmed them! Oh, the horror! ;) I believe I have mentioned before that my mom has Alzheimer's. What a horrible horrible disease! I treasure these times we have together working on projects. She is the one who taught me how to sew. Although she neglected to pass on her perfectionist gene. Well, that's not correct. I think I possess the instant gratification gene!! So there are many projects that I could have done better, I just really want to see what it's going to look like ;)
Which makes my next project a tad ironic... I am needle pointing a stocking for C. I made one for J (in time for his first Christmas) and did start C's back when he was a baby, but it got put away and never completed. We found it when I was cleaning out my craft room. I am determined that it will be done for next Christmas! ( and this SO is not a project for those who like instant gratification!!!)

Snowy day

We woke up to a beautiful snow covering this morning although much to the boys dismay there was not enough to warrant a snow day. I kind of treated it as such for myself though! I made cookies and spaghetti sauce and meatballs to take North this weekend. Yum!
After dinner C and I decided to play a game of Battleship. Fun fun! :)

Better!!!

I am finally feeling as though I am on the other side of this nasty bug! Planning my Dad's 70th birthday celebration, will post all the details after the fact (because he reads my blog!!)
Hope you are all staying well!!