Winter Wonderland

A snowstorm passed through in the evening and left a beautiful winter wonderland for us to enjoy on our last day. 

When we stepped out of the unit, the girls were amazed at how much snow had accumulated since yesterday. They found the sight of our car very funny. As we were walking to the ski lifts, we heard numerous booms in the distance for  mini- avalanches throughout the area for the safety of everyone. 

Upon arriving at the ski lift area, it was complete chaos. There were only two lifts open, so everyone was trying to get on a lift to go somewhere. Then the mini-lift broke down just about the time we were going to board. When it reopened, the workers were not helpful in making sure the numerous children boarded first since they were all going to the ski school as the adults pushed their way through. By teaming up with another parent, the two of us were able to get our kids on the lift and up to the school in time. 

I was glad I decided to pass on skiing this day as well, as I was exhausted by the time I dropped the girls off at ski school and made it back to town for a few groceries. It worked out as Eric was able to try out newer skis by trading in my skis as he left his set in the unit. 

Katerina informed me we were very fortunate, as numerous towns around us were hit very hard from the overnight snowstorm. Some villages had no electricity and others had to be evacuated. It was reported that when a train came into one town last night, all of the passengers had to stay in a school because the roads up to the village were closed.

A few hours later, the girls received their Piou Piou Club medals for completing the ESF French Ski school. After the medal presentation, the girls demonstrated one last time the things they learned these past few days. 

The booms were still occurring around us although not as frequent and the lift area was busy, but not chaotic as earlier in the day.  We met up with the Kopp boys to determine what the plan was for the afternoon. With the weather turning sunny and visibility improving by the hour, they all decided to enjoy the runs that were open a few more times.

The girls were done with skiing and wanted to go sledding again after lunch, so we had our plans for the afternoon.

It was a chilly afternoon of sledding, but lots of fun in the new snow. Afterwards, we started digging out the car. With the rain and snow mix, the huge pieces of snow that were coming off of the car brought much laughter. Eric returned from the slopes in time for deicing the car and then the snowplows came through. This was perfect timing as our spot was cleared so we could pack up the car easily for our ride home in the morning.