Here we are again. Almost exactly 2 years later, we are back to Colorado; this time in Beaver Creek, with our little ones. Also, Happy Lunar New Year for those who celebrate. This in some way was our way of celebrating the occasion. A lot has happened in these last 2 years as we return to this beautiful mountainous state. First, Zoe is now 4...not 2 anymore, and we have a new little one in tow. This is Zaylee's second time flying out of Texas since our last mega-trip to Asia 6 months ago. Here is a very raw, day-by-day recap of our trip:
Day 1(?) - Extremely hard to call this day 1 because we took a night flight out to Colorado.
The days leading up to this evening were a bit stressful. My day lately has been spent dealing with contractors related to our big ongoing backyard renovation (which you don't know about yet...shhhh) while keeping my new toddler alive. Zaylee, our adorable/almost independently walking/brand-new toddler has a knack for climbing on things and crawling away quietly. I also forgot how much negates my small tasks throughout the day, which in many feels frustrating, but as a second-time mom trying to remind myself that it's just a phase (in fact, everything is a phase). Of course, Z was working until the last minute before heading out of the house, so all 'thinking of what everyone needs' and packing were completely left to me. I would love for someone to take over this job one day.
Also, please enjoy the family of four's snowsuit bundle that requires one whole checked suitcase.
Our flight was at 8:25 pm, so of course, it was right at the start of our children's bedtime. On our way to the airport, both girls slept. Unsurprisingly, neither of them slept for the whole duration of the flight and Zaylee was also a very unhappy passenger. If you were on the flight from Dallas Love Field to Denver at this hour...well, we apologize. My hypothesis on Zaylee's sleep continues to prove correctly - this girl does not do on-the-go sleep. She also does not like to be held to sleep. She just wants somewhere where she can lay flat...bed, playpen...you name it. By the time we got to Denver, Zoe was cranky, and Zaylee was so done with life.
We got to a friend's house in Denver around midnight and promptly went to sleep. Thank you, Hasans, for giving us a comfortable place to sleep!
Day 2 - "When am I going to start snowboarding?1?!"
Our inpatient Zoe started our morning bright and early, persistently asking when we were heading to the mountains. We knew the family was tired after a long, late-night travel so we wanted to take our morning slow with the Hasans, who graciously hosted us, to catch up on life and hang out with their toddler (I had never met the toddler, so I was very excited about this).
>> Local tip: if you want to head to the mountains, you really want to be there by noon otherwise you will get stuck in horrible traffic from Denver. Same thing with Saturday - leave to head to the mountains as early as humanly possible. If you are not on I-70 by 7 am, the chances are that you will be in a minimum 2-hour traffic trying to get up there. <<
We stayed in Beaver Creek Lodge. I think it is technically a Marriot property, but we booked our specific room through Airbnb. It was a studio room with a king-sized bed, a pull-out sofa bed, and a small kitchen equipped with a microwave, coffee maker, and sink. The room owner also provided us with a playpen for Zaylee to sleep in. Overall, it was a comfortable stay for our family size. The best part about this property is that it is a ski-in/out area so you can get to the ski lifts/slopes within a few minutes of walking. The close location was extremely important (and the extra $$ is worth it) because kids get tired fast and hard, and carrying all that equipment to take a shuttle bus to get to the parking lot to then reach your lodging makes it exhausting for everyone involved. However, ski-in/out location = a lot more money per night.
We arrived at our place around noon. Christy's Sports was just on the second floor in the same building so Z took Zoe to get her boot and board fitted. If you are bringing your littles (especially age under 5), always call the rental ski/snowboard place in advance to see if they carry your kid's size. Zaylee needed some extra rest so I spent the afternoon with her inside.
Z and Zoe spent the whole afternoon together. She hardly missed a beat since 2 years ago (you can read our first snowboarding trip as a family here) - in fact, you can tell how much her endurance has improved. Despite quite a physical afternoon, she walked back without needing to be carried by Z, which was a huge shift from 2 years ago.
The resort village has several dining options so we went with Citrea. We were lucked out with getting seated right away since it was a Friday night and the village wasn't too busy yet. On weekends, make a reservation way ahead of time - we all know late dinner time and tired/hangry little ones don't mix well.
Day 3 - Mommy-Zoe private lesson and Daddy gets to have fun
Saturday was truly the only full day we had in the mountains. Since snowboarding has always been more of Z's thing than mine, I wanted to make sure that he gets some mountain time in. Our dear friend from medical school years, Roxi, drove up from Denver to meet with us. I sent Z away to the slopes first thing in the morning, and Roxi eventually met up with him there. During that time, I fed the girls and walked around the village.
Without any additional childcare help, we had to plan out our day pretty strategically to make sure all of us had some fun time. After much strategizing, Z and I decided to try to hire a babysitter through a local sitting agency to find someone to care for Zaylee. After some research, I decided to inquire through The Sitter Agency but didn't get my hopes up considering how late we were submitting a request. Surprisingly, I got a call from Natalie, the owner, first thing in the morning; and by 10 am, we were matched with a sitter. I was emailed with our matched babysitter's profile, which was helpful. She promptly contacted me via WhatsApp to connect, which allowed me to give her more information about Zaylee's care. The overall process of requesting to match with a sitter to checking out after the appointment was completed was efficient and seamless - we were delighted with how it turned out and know that we will be utilizing this service more in the future.
Once we were assured that Zaylee was going to be well taken care of, we all went to the slopes to have our version of fun/activities for the afternoon. At the last minute, Zoe and I signed ourselves up for a private lesson with Bill, who turned out to be an amazingly patient, gentle instructor - just what both of us needed. Z and Roxi used that time to hit up more difficult slopes - probably ones that I will never get to experience in my current lifetime...haha.
So, more about the private lesson. First of all, I recognize that it's EXPENSIVE. I am well aware that this is a privilege screaming at you, and I won't deny that. We were originally interested in enrolling Zoe in a group lesson, but we had found out (and then confirmed again by calling) that the minimum age for snowboarding group lessons is 5. For ski lessons, that minimum age goes down to 3 - I think it's probably easier to teach little ones to ski than to snowboard, to be honest. The funny thing is that they will allow starting at age 3 if you enroll in a private lesson. And since that is what Zoe was exposed to and liked, we bit the bullet and enrolled her in an unthinkably expensive lesson. It was 3 hours long, from 1 pm to 4 pm, and I can proudly say that our 4-year-old Zoe just powered through. She took a couple of short snacks and bathroom breaks, but she continued her lesson strongly, even Bill was impressed by her persistence. It must have been challenging to teach a little child and an adult in the same lesson period (i.e., explaining a skill to an adult isn't necessarily going to be understood by a child), but Bill was extremely patient and helpful - his years of experience teaching to beginners really shined. Would I recommend a group or private lesson if you are trying to ski or snowboard for the first, second, or third time? - absolutely.
By the time, we came back to our room, changed, and rested for a little bit, it was 6pm and most of the restaurants in the village were packed. Needing to get the kids fed soon, we ended up finding a pho place in Avon, which ended up being a perfect kind of dinner to warm up our bodies.
Day 4 - Probably should have left the mountains sooner
Sunday was when we were heading back home. We left Beaver Creek around 10am and grabbed a bite to eat in Avon (which took a little bit longer than I would have liked). Our flight was at 3:10pm, and honestly, I would recommend leaving sooner than we did haha. We were already stopped with congestion here and there as we were trekking down from the mountains. By the time returned the rental car, took the shuttle to the terminal, checked the bags in, went through security, and then took another shuttle (train) to get to the correct terminal for our gate, we had minutes to spar before boarding. The way Denver airport is designed, everything is very spread out, so buffer in more time than you think, especially if little ones are with you.
Final Thoughts
Not going to lie, even after numerous travels with these little ones, I am still trying to figure out how to pack more lightly. As a Texan, I truly could not fathom how many clothes I needed to pack so I did go a little overboard this time. Turns out, you don't really sweat much and you are in snowsuits most of the day so you end up re-wearing a lot of the casual clothes.
For essential food times for the kids (think milk, some snacks, etc.), we bought them once we got there. We have Walmart+ which came in really handy this time - the closest Walmart was in Avon (just 5-10 minutes away from Beaver Creek) so I placed an order to get it delivered to the room. The delivery was dropped off at the front desk so I simply had to go downstairs to get it. The other option would have been doing a drive-up order at Target, but that would have required a little more thinking ahead as there wasn't one super close.
Our girls really struggled with dry air. Both of them had bloody noses while they were sleeping, and Zaylee also experienced some altitude sickness which was understandable for a 1-year-old. I wish we had requested a humidifier in the unite if possible. We managed it by steaming up the bathroom periodically.
Overall, a fun, successful trip! Zoe definitely showed improvement and maturity on this trip the second time around while it was a more challenging experience for Zaylee. We hope that she will get to have a little more fun the next time around - when she can actually walk. I was surprised at myself how much I enjoyed this trip considering I don't do much winter sports nor like cold weather.