Travel Tuesday: Steamboat Springs, CO

Hello! We are back from our annual trip to Steamboat with hubby’s family a few days later than planned (more on that in a minute) and I am scrambling to get Christmas down, unpack and organize my life. The trip was incredible, per usual, as Steamboat is an amazing place to ski as a family.

We always stay at One Steamboat Place, thanks to my in laws, which is pretty much heaven on earth. This year was even better than usual because LUKE BRYAN and his family were also staying there. I’m happy to say that Luke and his family were able to walk around, ski and swim just like all of the other guests at One Steamboat Place and I never saw anyone approach them for autographs or pictures. Of course I was dying to snap a picture of him, but I didn’t want to be that annoying fan who called attention to him. That said, I couldn’t resist getting this quick shot of Luke and his sons as they headed out for a day of skiing. Wearing a helmet and goggles makes it easy for him to blend in, but his voice was a dead giveaway.

That’s Luke in the black pants with his skis on his shoulder.

We skied almost every day of the trip. In fact, I think the kids skied every day and the adults took off one day midweek. The weather was abnormally cold, but the kids didn’t seem to mind.Our kids are so lucky to have such fun cousins on both sides of the family. It’s always such a treat to see them all play, ski and swim together. If only we could do it more often!

We were in Steamboat for New Years and hubby’s birthday, which made the trip extra special. B is not one to enjoy a big birthday party, but a day of skiing and a nice dinner out with his family is his idea of a great birthday. Hubby and his brothers. God Bless my in laws. These boys are WILD. One Steamboat Place kicked off our NYE celebration at apres ski with a cotton candy machine and tiaras. The kids were thrilled.Of course I had to make Hoppin’ John for our New Years day dinner. My in laws had never heard of this tradition, so they didn’t seem to mind that my recipe was extremely modified. I had to make do with what I could find. And yes, I cooked in my spa robe while wearing ski goggles.

Speaking of food, we hit up all of my favorite Steamboat restaurants during this trip. I always have to get a turkey ruben at Gondola pub for lunch one day, eat dinner at Cafe Diva one evening (make reservations well in advance) and enjoy happy hour at Truffle Pig. Truffle Pig has amazing deals on beer and snacks from 2:00-5:00 every day and their food is delicious. Go for the truffle fries and marcona almonds. You won’t regret it, I promise.The kids participated in “ski week,” which means they skied with the same instructor and kids all week. This is such a great program and the children improve so much each year. They are both definitely better than me. Emery has been for the past few years and Bodie joined her this year in surpassing me. They are so fast and fearless! The ski week kids get to race the Nastar course at the end of the week. Bodie was one of the youngest skiers to do it! Post Nastar race, the kids were treated to an impromptu lesson by Billy Kidd. Billy is a Steamboat local who just so happens to be an Olympic skier. He used to always wear a cowboy hat on the slopes, but times have changed. This was such a cool moment!Now for the reason our trip was extended….Emery came down with Type A flu at the tail end of our trip. The morning we were scheduled to leave, she fainted as she was getting in the shower. I completely panicked and dialed 911. The paramedics arrived within minutes and were wonderful. Thankfully, Emery came to quickly and wasn’t injured when she collapsed. My husband and I were in complete shock when the ER doctor told us the diagnosis. Emery had complained of a headache and had been a little tired, but we chalked it up to altitude and exhaustion. After all, she’d been skiing and swimming six days in a row. She never spiked a fever. We never suspected she was ill. No cough or body aches, either. Emery is one tough cookie! She was well enough to travel home Monday, so we got home last night. She seems completely fine today! All in all, I guess she didn’t have a very severe case. Other than the fainting episode, she’s barely acted sick. Kids are so resilient.