One Last Snow

We had so much fun up at Wintergreen back in January, that we decided to do it again last weekend. This time, Zack's folks joined us. We all arrived on Friday evening and had a fantastic dinner at a local restaurant. Saturday, Zack, his dad, and his sister took off for the slopes, while Ela, her Grandma, and I headed back to the kiddie play area for one last romp in the snow before spring seriously sets in.
Of course, we went back to our favorite activity from last time...

...and Ela greeted a few old friends with hugs...

We made a new friend, too: Ridgely the bear was out and tubing with the kids. Ela got to give him a hug, too.

And Grandma helped Ela make a few snow balls with the snow ball makers that were available.

Notice she still won't wear mittens, though, so holding the snowballs wasn't as fun as making them.
The nice thing about this trip was that things weren't as crowded, it being the end of the season. When we arrived at the kiddie area, there were may be five kids there, leaving plenty of room for exploration and play. By the time we left, it was getting a bit more crowded, but still not as crazy as it was the last time we went.
We spent about an hour romping in the snow before we took off for a little shopping. We ate some lunch back down off the mountain, and then wandered the small towns in the area checking out interesting stores until dinner time. We met up with the skiiers for dinner. All in all, it was a very pleasant trip, and another nice chance to hang out with family, something we really missed when we were in Japan.
Now, though, I must admit I really am about done with winter. I like the snow and cold and all, but I'm feeling ready to take more trips to the park and walks with kiddo before I get too big to move. Luckily, the weather seems to be in agreement with me. Here's hoping the temperature continues to rise for awhile!