Montana

Oh, Montana. How I fell in love with thee. Your landscape, your climate, your inhabitants, your mountains. Oh, those mountains, so, so so beautiful. So many things to love. Our visit was not nearly long enough, and leaving you was oh, so hard. We will definitely be back. I already yearn for you.

Bozeman

We flew into Bozeman, and spent a few hours exploring before making the drive to Big Sky. Our time was cut short in Bozemen due to the Tesla we rented having computer issues. Gotta love technology, right? We got it all sorted, and had a fun time driving the computer around town. Bozeman is...little! Not really much to downtown. If you've seen Yellowstone (if you haven't, go start it tout de suite), then you might be somewhat familiar with the downtown area. We ate at Ted's Montana Grill. Our options were limited since we were smack in the middle of lunch and dinner, but I was happy with our choice. After linner (see what I did there?), we walked about a mile to Boot Barn to get the kids cowboy boots and cowboy hats. I was hoping for a local store, but Boot Barn it was.

The hour drive to Big Sky was gorgeous. Wide open land filled with farms and ranches, surrounded by snow-filled mountains. I wanted to stop so many times to take pictures, but also wanted to get to the hotel.

Big Sky

We stayed at The Wilson Hotel (a Marriott hotel, hello, points), in Big Sky's Town Center, only a 15 minute drive to the ski area. The hotel has an outdoor pool and hot tub, laundry on-site, and breakfast is included. We loved, and used, all of these features. They also have a shuttle that goes to Big Sky, which we did not use, but we should have. Parking is HORRIFIC! I am not exaggerating.

We skied 3 days. The kids were in half day lessons each/day, which gave me 2 1/2 hours/day to explore the mammoth mountain. Wait that's the name of another giant mountain. We were at Big Sky, and it is aptly named. It is BIG. I skied a lot in those 2 1/2 hours. 11 runs the first day, 12 runs the second day, and only 9 the last day, but on that last day, I took the time (and paid the whopping $80) to ride the tram to the peak, and skied the hidden south side (I seriously didn't even know this existed until 2PM on the last day). I skied one run on the south side, Marx, and it was the best run of my entire trip. The snow was FANTASTIC, and the terrain was fun (steep and mogul free). I was hoping to get another run in before having to go swoop my kids, but a storm rolled in, with thunder and lightning, so all of the chairs and the tram shut down. A ski patrol adopted me to make sure I got to the Madison Base side (which is, no joke, a 15 minute drive from the Mountain Village side). On the way back, he pointed out some mountain goats to me!

The first and second day, we skied the Mountain Village side. It took us no less than 30 minutes to find a parking spot, after driving around and around and around and having to take a shuttle because we parked 10 miles away. Just kidding, it wasn't 10 miles, but it definitely wasn't close. I probably could have walked, but when you have two tiny humans with you, your skis, and their skis, a shuttle is the smarter option. The Mountain Village side is enormous, and is filled with a variety of terrain, 8 person heated seats with bubbles, 6 person heated seats with bubbles, multiple magic carpets for the beginner skiers, a Nastar race (which I ran), multiple lodges, and plenty of places to go potty. The apres-ski on this side was OFF THE CHAIN. My kids are now in love with "DJ music" and think apres-ski means limbo and champagne showers. I am a good mom.

The third day we ventured over to the more introverted younger sibling of Mountain Village, Madison Base. Parking was a breeze, the terrain was much more suited for the little ones, and the lodge was more low key and nondescript. The two sides are connected, so I was able to venture to the other side to get some good turns in while my kiddos learned to be Olympic hopefuls. That is, until the storm shattered their dreams. At least temporarily. Apres-ski on this side was much more tame. No limbo. No champagne showers. No DJ. Just some elevator music and lots of open tables. It was dumping snow outside anyway, so cozying up inside was a perfect way to end the trip.

This was a working vacation for me. What does that mean? I didn't hand my business over to any of my colleagues to watch for me while I was away. I was responding to emails, answering phone calls, and scheduling meetings for when I return, all while skiing, and parenting. Some might call me a superhero (my kids), others might call me crazy. Maybe a little of both. I did get many comments: "Where is your husband?" My response was a blank stare. "You are very brave to take your kids on such a big trip all alone." Or, "I can barely take my kids out to eat alone, yet alone travel with them alone. Kudos." Well, folks, I am here to say: I love my kids, and I love to travel. If I want to combine the two, I just do it. I have been traveling solo with them since my youngest was 14 months (he is now 5). Is it hard? Sometimes. Is it worth it? 100%. We are creating awesome memories, we are having fun, and the best thing of all!? They LOVE skiing!! It is a literal dream come true for me. I feel so lucky to have a job that offers me the flexibility to spend so much time with my kiddos while also traveling to amazing places. It is all quite dreamy.

**I rode up the chair (Headwaters 2) with an easy on the eyes guy (or at least from what I could tell under helmet and goggles. Okay, his mouth and chin were nice) at around 1:55 PM on Sunday 3/13. He is in film production and splits his time between Colorado and Montana. We had an amazing chat on the short ride up the chair, and I could have talked to him all day! If you're reading this (biggest shot in the dark), please reach out, I would love to continue our conversation!**

I can't wait for our next adventure, which comes up next month...Disneyland!!! That one will be interesting, for sure!

Montana, you have a little piece of my heart, and I will be back to probably give you some more of it. Advice: if you are planning a trip to Montana, go for AT LEAST a week.

I am now settled back in rainy, albeit beautiful, Seattle. Kids are back to school. Mom's back to work. Time to hustle so we can plan our next trip! Up next in the blog? Update on my real estate business in Seattle! Things are heating up! Stay tuned. :)