Whistler British Columbia- Best Family Vacation!

Jessica and Alyssa on Whistler Mountain

 I'm not a skilled skier at all, so I was a little apprehensive when my husband, Jesse, thought it would be fun to take us on a family ski adventure to Whistler in British Columbia, Canada.  He showed me a map of the ski routes and YouTube videos of people skiing on a skinny trail running down the mountain.  My imagination ran wild and I pictured myself tripping, falling off the trail, rolling down the mountain and getting a full body cast for my only souvenir.  It wasn't just me I was worried about either. I was convinced our 5 year old son would simply fly off the edge of the mountain.  (Ok as I'm writing this I do realize how silly this sounds.  But that's my brain!)

Alyssa and Ryan riding the "Magic Carpet" in the beginners' area

Anyway, we decided to go.  The snow was amazing.  About 2 feet of powder had just fallen the night before.  We all went on the first run together... which maybe was a mistake.  The soft snow came up to the knees of my son and being his 4th time ever skiing, he just kept sitting down.  It was going to be a long way to the bottom.  My husband, a relatively good skier was getting frustrated and my son was ready to go home!  That first run took us about 2 hours.  We decided we had to split up.  My husband took our older daughter to the higher runs and I took our son and middle daughter to the kids' area.  I have to admit this was much more my speed as well.  We had fun getting used to being on skis again and we felt much safer here.
By the next day Ryan and Alyssa were ready to tackle some steeper slopes.  So we all stayed together for awhile until Jesse and Jessica wanted to brave the top of the mountain.  I was glad I was not with them when Jessica flipped over and landed face first in a snow bank!
Apart from skiing, we ate at great restaurants in the adorable Whistler Village, tried indoor rock climbing, played at a park, went to a movie theater and swam in an outdoor pool (water was warm but it sure was cold before getting in!).

By the end of our stay Ryan and Alyssa were zooming down the mountain ahead of me, even navigating moguls.   We had a great time and can't wait to go back.  Happily, none of my imagined scenarios even came close to occurring.  I guess I need to learn to use my imagination only for writing!

Ryan zooming in from of Jesse and me
(I'm the really awkward looking one in the back!)

Kathy


Check out http://www.whistler.com/ to see for yourself!