Christmas did not go as I had planned. AC woke up the Saturday before Christmas with a fever of 102 which hung on until Christmas Eve and was accompanied by an ear infection early Thursday morning. All my plans for having friends over to bake Christmas cookies and to create crafts slowly crumbled before my eyes. But, more importantly, we didn't get to play. Anna Cate's big belly laugh was missing and the house seemed a little sad because of it.
On Christmas day, we flew to GA. As we landed, we saw snow flakes filling the sky and covering the ground and were so excited to have a "white Christmas". Unfortunately, a white Christmas also meant more time inside. AC was still on antibiotics, our schedule was packed and we really didn't have warm clothing. Again, it seemed we didn't get to play.
On our arrival back to AZ, Matthew and I decided that our family needed some time to play together - some time with no schedule and no where to be. We decided that a weekend in Flagstaff would be the perfect solution.
Having fully recovered, AC was so excited. With mittens, ski jackets, rain boots and two-feet of fresh snow awaiting us we were on our way.
Upon arrival, we claimed our bedrooms and AC asked if she could have hers all by herself. (Heck, yeah!) We then explored around the hotel looking for fresh snow that no one had yet walked on. While exploring, Matthew found an abandoned sled and we took turns sledding down a hill in the dark. Fun, fun, FUN!
The next morning AC woke up at 6:30 ready to go. After breakfast and showers, we loaded up our things and went out in search of a hidden hill that our friends had raved about. The hill was a disappointment, but the family time shared during our drive was not. We talked about how when Matthew and I were kids and homes lost power everyone would huddle around little kerosene heaters. Matthew laughed and said, "You wanted to get so close to the heater, but you couldn't because you might catch on fire!" and AC thought that was really funny. We then discussed time before cell phones and AC got a kick out of the idea of beepers and being able to prank call people. We were all three talking and laughing and totally stress-free.
Having seen that the secret hill was really nothing special, we headed to Wing Mountain to sled and play. The mountain has a backdrop of the San Francisco Peaks and is absolutely beautiful. We took turns sledding - AC totally took out a boy that was standing at the bottom of the slope. (I wish I had been recording it, b/c it really looked like footage for an America's Funniest Videos runner-up) We had snowball fights, added on to half-made snowmen, made snow angels and hiked to find a place where no one else had yet made footprints. Matthew also attempted to snow board on the sled, the resulting fall was another moment that I wish I had caught on video.
In short, it was a day of play, filled with big belly laughs. We had no schedule, we had no other place we had to be. We were able to just be with one another and laugh and enjoy the moment. It was extremely good for my soul.
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