Day 6 thursday…

The snow conditions were icy today. Not so great. We went up to the top of the resort again as we did yesterday but it just goes to show how much difference the weather can make in this environment. The snow was hardpacked and icy and gave a fairly unenjoyable ride.

So i thought i would do a ten on thursday based on the holiday.

1. Buying your husband an off piste private snowboarding lesson for his birthday (which is next tuesday) makes him pretty happy…
Bensettingoffforlesson 
taking off for an hour and half with Jerome. Isaac's teacher who easily switched from skis to board and who Ben said is a VERY GOOD snowboarder. Jerome told Ben that his board was 'old school' and so Ben is now on the look out for a new board.

2. Sometimes you have to give up carving ice and go and get one of these…
Hotchocthursday 

3. MTV is pretty much unsuitable for young kids at any time of day. We discovered this when looking for something in english for the kids to watch in the room and leaving it on MTV for a while, coming back in and thinking 'ooohh…probably not a good idea then'

4. The French seem to have a very different attitude to smoking and its related health issues and concerns. It seems that most of the people here smoke…..

5. One of the nicest place to see a line of deckchairs, the sun is very strong at 2480m
Deckchairsthursday 

6. Being on a snowboard when your kids are on skis can be a little frustrating especially when they could do with some help on the button lifts. Thats a no can do.

7. When a certain little miss decides that she wont wear either her coat or gloves to ski, we just have to go along with it..
Poppyweds 

8. We saw some pictures of Flaine today when it is deep in the middle of winter and there is snow everywhere. At the moment its very patchy and the snow is being shifted about and onto runs to make them useable. I have to say the snow doesn't really enhance the beauty of the place. Its very square and angular and looks like there may have been an over purchase on grey concrete blocks. Isaac wants to come back when the whole place is covered in snow.

9. You can't get away from pushy parents even in ski school…

10. It is so incredibly beautiful here…..maybe just dont want to come back…..

WATCHING

which of course given the "ASH" issue is probably a little bit more than just a whimsical statement now…oy…

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Day 5 Wednesday…

I have had a couple of comments about Matilda…as in 'where is she while you are having all this fun?' Well have no fear we have not left her behind….

Matildawednesday 

awaiting at the bus stop in the morning. She is coping very well with the altitude and when we are off on the slopes she is being wonderfully looked after by my mum and dad who have an apartment in the same block as us. 

On wednesday they had the morning off and she came with us to drop the kids off at ski school. It was a gorgeous day. 

Sunupwednesday 

The girls, Poppy at the front doing their now perfected snowplough move. All three kids went down the little blue run that runs behind our apartment yesterday afternoon with Ben and my mum and dad. They are getting really confident. Love how they have picked it up so easily. 

Girlsweds 

I have few shots of Isaac now as he leaps of the bus and runs for the button lift, straps his skis on and is away….

As it was such an incredible day we took Matilda to the top of the mountain here in Flaine. Its 2800mm and has an incredible view…

2800mm mont blanc 
the highest point you can see there is Mont Blanc, which i think is the highest point in Europe. It was incredible up there. Fresh snow, crunching underfoot. Perfect.

We met some happy skiers up there…

Mumdadmontblanc 
Benmatilda 

After a hot chocolate and a little more time gazing and staring…we caught the cable car back down feeling a little gutted that we couldn't ride some of the perfect snow at the top. 

We popped back up with the kids after their lesson to have some lunch. Sun soaked mountain view and hearty lunch…went down very very well…

Benkidstop 
Familytop

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day 4 Tuesday

Catching the bus down to the ski school in the morning this morning we met the 'resort dog' I didnt think quickly enough to take a picture but if we see him again ill be sure to. It is a large mountain type dog, pretty shaggy and unkept looking but you might see it lying at the bus stop or at the foot of a cable car and think 'oh it must belong to the lift operator/bus driver..whatever' But when the bus or cable car or whatever turns up the dog shakes itself to life, gets up and gets on the bus without even a nod to the driver and then a few stops down it will get off and go about its way. Doesn't seem to belong to anyone or seem in a particular hurry to get anywhere, just gets on and off the buses and cable cars and hitches lifts up and down the resort…..bizarre…

Today we rode in the morning and the sun was shining. 

13-04-10tuesdaymorningride 
Stillsmiling
A little video from day 2 skiing lesson. Isaac goes past eventually! See if you can see him…


Tuesday afternoon/evening finished off with a good couple of hours snowfall. Snowfall in the evening/night- time is always good news in a resort. We watched the piste basher lights up the mountain that evening and thought 'tomorrow is going to be a good day'
Snowfalltuesday
🙂

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Day 3 Monday…

So today was the day that yours truly actually strapped my snowboard to my feet and attempted to remember what it was that i learnt all those years ago. I cant tell you how nervous i was. I had visions of falling and cracking my head open or doing something nasty to a limb and having to be skied down the mountain in one of those humiliating little beds on skis that the red cross type people have here on the mountains for foolish people who try and snowboard after 8 years absence…not to mention slack muscles/joints etc from general ageing and childbirth…

But anyway….Ben was eager to go so we dropped the kids off at their lesson. Isaac has turned into his normal self and because he has sussed out the button lift and can now successfully navigate his way down the run..he was off…skis on..up the lift before the rest of us had got off the ski bus almost. 

Kidssecondday12-04-10 

Just before the lesson started i made Isaac come back and shot a picture of all three of them together with our little point and shoot.

Then there were no more excuses I had to get on and have a go. Now having done much of my snowboarding in the past in North America where they very sensibly don't have button lifts (a between the legs disc that drags you up the slopes – designed for skiers, not very easy on a snowboard because you are not facing forward)…I am not confident using them on a SB and Ben who learnt to board in Scotland where quite frankly your lucky to get a chair lift at all…is very used to them. 

I am the comfort please, no hardship snowboarder and Ben is the gnarly, make do and get on with it snowboarder…so we dont match very well…haha….

So it was either walk up the run to get out of the nursery area of go on the other option to the button which was a rope tow. Which, again is probably designed for skiers but i had to have a go so heart pounding away i sidled up to it and grabbed hold. Snowboarders have to ride these lift with one foot out of the bindings..which makes you(me) pretty unstable..I also ride goofy, which was nothing to do with the disney character but means that i ride with my right foot forward instead of my left (which i more the norm) and so i had to hold onto the rope behind my back.

My first attempt was not pretty and involved a bit of hopping but i managed to get to the top unscathed but out of breath and every muscle throbbing from the pure effort of hanging on….little note to self…relax next time…

Then we found a couple of gentle greens and blues and slowly, slowly i started to find my way again…..Initially i thought to myself 'this is ridiculous, im never going to remember this….i just cant do it…why humiliate myself like this…im too old for this sort of nonsense….!*^!*….' but then the magic of muscle memory kicked in and suddenly i could feel the board and carve through a few nice turns….and then of course I loved it again and was all 'oh what a suh-weet run.' So fickle, so fickle…..

Seconddaylift 

this is me thinking 'umm..am i going to give myself a black eye when i get off this chairlift?'

i didn't…..

Seconddayridesarh 

all in all it was a good day. 

and just to prove that i didnt just sit on the slopes…
Heelsidesarah 
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day 2 sunday….

Day 2 was the first day really…first real day of the holiday when the stress of the travelling was over. We replaced that with the stress of getting our kids to ski school……we ran very late in the morning and missed the bus down the hill and were forced into getting the kids to walk. That didnt go down very well….but we learnt a lesson. Dont miss the bus!


Anyway we got them to their respective ski schools. we hung about a bit on the first day, not knowing how it was going to go, the girls were great. Big smiles and excited about having a go. Which was not the case for every kid in their group. Lots of howlers and screamers..I would not want the ski instructors job any day. Coping with someone else's upset kid is hard enough but and trying to get them to 'do zee snowplough'…..they deserve some kind of medal..or at least ear plugs…

Poppyday1 
this is Poppy doing her snowplough run and for some reason she is holding her gloves in her hands and not actually wearing them?

This picture richly demonstrates what the ski instructors has to deal with. This is Poppy doing another run and being caught by one of the instructors…but notice just to the side of ear of the big blue mickey mouse type thing is a kid lying on the floor. This was an english kid who lay down on the floor after about two runs and said 'im not doing this anymore!'
Stroppykidday1 
Just love how both the instructors just ignored it and carried on. Im not sure if this was actually their thought out strategy they just had some other fires to put out at the time..like the wailing and crying kids….

Isaac was in ski school proper and in Isaac stye he spent the first couple of hours in a major strop because he didnt just strap skis to his feet and fly perfectly down the nearest black. But by the end of the lesson he had worked out the snowplough and that pretty much set him up.
Isaacday1 
thats him at the front of the two standing up kids. if you could see his face he was still in his sullen phase of learning 😉

We headed back to our apartment for some lunch and then the big kids opted to use the pool. Ben couldnt resist the call of the slopes and went out to ride the runs that are directly outside the apartments and I took Matilda to watch the swimmers. The apartment has a indoor jacuzzi pool and an outdoor heated swimming pool with sauna and steam room. It is such a luxury and perfect for easing tired muscles. We are staying here and they really are lovely. The resort of Flaine seems very well equipped for families and we have met a lot of people in the last couple of days who have been coming here a long time. Its not going to win any attractive tyrolian awards. It is purpose built so it has lots of apartments but the resort surpasses itself in usability and ease for families. Apart from maybe a few too many button lifts.

Tired muscles but happy smiles and a few extra freckles ended our first proper day here in the Grand Massif. We are already planning our next visit 🙂

Grandmassif

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