Winter fun!

We are surrounded by amazing places to ski where we live and yesterday we took the whole crew to Lech, Austria, and it was breathtaking!  Like a little slice of heaven!! It was beautiful!

Chris and Michael have gone skiing a lot this winter...they go somewhere nearly every Saturday. We are surrounded by so many cool places to go (something we won't have such easy access to when we move back to Michigan!) so we're taking advantage of it while we can. I've heard a lot about Lech from a friend of mine (hi Ilda!!), and I was so excited to check it out. It's about 1.5 hours away from us so super easy to make a day trip.The boys had gone skiing there a few weeks ago and it was their favorite they had been to thus far. We actually almost bailed earlier that morning (because sometimes it's hard to get motivated!) and we hit a lot of traffic on the way there (we're pretty sure all of the Netherlands was heading the same direction for a holiday!) but we made it! 

We got there later than we had planned so we had lunch before we headed up the gondola. It was such a cool town! 

The weather was perfection. Sunny and warm and just, well...perfect!! 

The six of us can't all ski together just yet, so while Chris, Allie and Michael went skiing I stayed with Mary & Emily to do some sledding and play in the snow. They have this HUGE toboggan run but we made it about 20 feet before Mary fell off and LOST. HER. MIND. Like seriously, she freaked out and would not keep going. There was no talking her into it It was so funny listening to Emily (who is 3) tell Mary (who will be 5 in April) to be brave! ha! So we walked back up the trail and found a big open area where they just played in the snow. 

Chris and the big kids came to meet up with us to say hi before heading out to ski some more and then the little girls and I wandered around a bit and hit the jackpot when we stumbled upon the kids area! They had the perfect size sledding hill for them and a little obstacle course for beginning skiers...guess I should have done my research before we left because they totally could have skied that little area all day..oops! Live and learn, right? They had a blast sledding though...it was so cute! 

Chris, Allie and Michael came to check in again and this time we all grabbed a table at one of the restaurants and had drink. Did I mention earlier how amazing the weather was? Because if was stunning! If I'm being honest I'd *probably* choose a beach vacation over a mountain one BUT sitting outside in the sun with my family...it doesn't matter where we are, I love it. 

Michael was so funny at this point...like I said, he and Chris have been skiing a lot just the two of them so they've kind of gotten their "routine" down. Four girls tagging along ( and maybe a tantrum or two by some of the younger ones!!) was kind of cramping his style...he just wanted to ski! He chugged his hot chocolate and just kept checking the status of Chris and Allie's drinks while not so patiently waiting for them to be finished so he could get back on the slopes! He would ski alone if we'd let him but he's 8! So we don't. He just put his helmet and goggles back on so he was ready to go as soon as they were ready to go! 

After some more skiing and sledding we met back up at the car and headed home. It was such a fun Saturday!! Friends in the US who live near the mountains you are the lucky ones!! 

Barcelona

The kids had this past week off of school so it was the perfect time for us to make a special trip to Barcelona! Chris' sister and her family (Paul, Mary, Thomas and Aidan) have been living in Barcelona since November so we were super excited to see them and check out their new city...and on top of that Chris' dad and one of his other sisters (Liz) were planning a visit at the same time so we were able to see a lot of family which only makes everything better!!

We drove to Zürich on Saturday (it's about a 1.5 hour drive from us) and then made the quick flight to Barcelona. Up until this point we've driven everywhere we've traveled so the kids are only used to the long international flights we've taken to and from the US. They were a little disappointed to see they didn't each have their own TV on the back of the seat in front of them, but were super pumped when they realized the flight was less than 2 hours! We had some of the most breathtaking views of the alps from our window. It was unreal.

I got to sit next to these cuties!

Above the clouds and near eye level with the alps. Swoon.

We rented a little Airbnb just around the corner from their apartment and it was perfect..minus the fact that it was on the 5th floor and there were no elevators. The kids weren't super pumped about that part! I think they're convinced we do things like this just to torture them! ha!

Exhausted faces after one of the treks up the stairs!

It was around 7:30pm by the time we arrived so we just dropped our stuff at the apartment and then headed to the Blaicher's to see everyone and hang out. 

Sunday morning we met up and headed to La Rambla to walk around and have brunch. We found a great little spot to eat and mid way through the meal we realized we had hit the jackpot and the restaurant we chose was a prime spot to watch a Carnival parade! It was so fun to watch the parade go by as we ate! The kids were all pumped!! Mary and Paul have two little boys (Thomas and Aidan) who are 3 and 15 months.

Chris bought thee for the kids a few years ago when he was in Barcelona for work. 

After a little bit of walking around we found a park for the kids to play at that was surrounded by restaurants so the adults grabbed a table nearby and enjoyed some beer and sangria while the kids played. I think this was honestly my most favorite part of the trip. Sunshine, happy kids and time with family. It was pretty great. 

After a bit it was time for our group to split up...Chris, Paul, Liz, Allie and Michael had tickets to the FC Barcelona game! 

We were on the other side of the metro heading the opposite direction as these guys headed to the game!

On Monday we had made plans for half of our group to visit Sagrada Familia. We decided to not bring the younger kids (Mary, Emily, Thomas & Aidan) so Chris and Paul stayed back with them since they had both been before and the rest of us went. I would also like to mention at this point that while I was very excited to see Sagrada Familia and share that with Allie and Michel, they were *ticked* that they "had" to come. Stinkers. Allie very quickly changed her tune once we arrived and started touring the beautiful basilica and was loving everything...Michael took a bit longer to warm up but ended up having a great time as well, he even asked if we could come back in when it is completed in 2026! Um...deal, buddy! It was made even more special that they got to experience this with their grandfather.

On Monday night Mary had arranged babysitters for all of the kids and the adults were able to go out to dinner. We had the best time! LOTS of Sangria (maybe a little too much??) yummy tapas and amazing company. It was such a fun night!

Chris's two younger sisters, Liz and Mary. We missed his sister Emily!!

Tuesday morning we ventured to Mount Tibidabo. Since we weren't visiting during the "peak" season the main method of transportation up to the top (the funicular) wasn't running so we had to take cabs. The views from the top were amazing and the church, Sagrat Cor, was something really special. We were able to wander and explore. Allie and I were even able to spend some time in eucharistic adoration. We weren't able to go all the way to the top because of the weather (I was surprised to see snow!) but even what we could see from the areas we were allowed to explore were pretty fantastic!

We left for the airport around noon on Wednesday and we were all sad to say goodbye to our family and this beautiful city. Thank you Paul and Mary for showing us around Barcelona!!! We had the best time!!!