ski bunny

so, as most of you know, i live in montana. i didn't plan on living here. i didn't come here because i grew up trout fishing or, for gods sakes, downhill skiing. but here i am. and it's another winter. and it's time for me to conquer my fear of the slopes. last winter i had the "i'm too pregnant to ski" excuse, so i was able to avoid the scene at snowbowl completely. while jeff went up with his bro-bras and yahooed all the way down, i stayed in the comforts of my living room with a good book. he would then come home and tell me about all the cute little families he saw in the snowbowl bar. how the mama would take a run while the papa played with junior in front of the fire with a nice, tall glass of draft beer. this pastoral scene really stuck a chord with my hubby. i really didn't give two hoots. ski areas are simply not my scene. never have been. never (though one can never say never...) will be.

then i had a birthday in march. and guess what hubby bought me? brand new downhill skis. so the whole "it's too expensive for me to rent skis AND buy a lift ticket" excuse doesn't work so well anymore. and today a good friend is having his birthday party at three in the snowbowl bar after everyone spends the day playing on the slopes. and i have no more excuses.

so i'm in my long johns. my hair is in two "wannabe shredder" braids. i have my sporty orange vest on. and i'll be heading up the mountain in about an hour. luckily for me, i have a baby. and my baby doesn't want to spend the day in any bar at the top of any mountain. so she and i will cross country ski, a sport i happily picked up upon moving to montana, and meet her daddy after he gets all his ya-ya's out on the slopes. and i'll try my best to have a good attitude while looking at all those rosy cheeked folks talking about "pow pow" and "skiing the trees" and all that other crap that drives me nuts. i'll do it for my daughter. my little montana babe. i'll take one for the team.