Pizza and french fries

Pardon us for subjecting you to more skiing photos, but the Barkers love to ski- all of three of us. And we spend a lot of time on the mountain, so if you want to see what Hazel is up to, well, here it is.

Last weekend, Hazel rode the ski bus for the first time. She was pretty excited about that and ever since, has been asking to ride the ski bus, even when we're not going skiing.

Hazel has continued her progression of ski skills and spent some runs skiing through the "door" set up at the bottom of the magic carpet. She thought that was pretty rad.

A ski instructor was watching her and asked Mom how old she was. When Mom said she was 2, the instructor told her that Hazel was doing extremely well. Mom shrugged because she knows nothing about teaching a 2-year-old to ski. All she knows is, if the kid isn't smiling, it's time to

go inside for hot chocolate.

And this kid? She smiles a lot when she skis. She now absolutely refuses to have anyone help her off the magic carpet. It's best to do what she says.

Hazel is now starting to understand the concept of "pizza" and "french fries" and can act accordingly on her skis. Her parents think it's pretty cool to see her pick up the concepts so quickly. But, then again, she's been on the mountain since she was 3 months old, so she doesn't have much of an excuse.

Ballet class

Hazel Goes Hiking

Hazel took her new hiking stick for a spin on Powell Butte today. It's the first time it's been sunny on the weekend in a looooong time and she wanted to warm up before spending Sunday on the mountain.

Hazel Skis!

OK, the fact that Hazel strapped on a pair of skis is nothing new. She's been "skiing" for a year or more. But this weekend, for the first time, SHE ACTUALLY SKIED FOR REAL! Sorry about the all-caps, we're just really, really excited.

Here's the video:

Hazel has always counted on us to hold her up while she skied but, after a few runs on the magic carpet at White Pass, Dad decided to hold her hand instead of holding her under her arms and see how she liked it. Hazel skied great, so Dad just let go!
It was a very exciting weekend for the whole family.
Hazel spent the weekend with her parents, two of her aunts and uncles and Baby Eli at a hotel in Packwood, near White Pass.
Hazel LOVES showing Baby Eli the ropes and can't wait to see him, and her skis, again.

Pink. Fast. Stoked!

After months of looking in ski shops across the West, we finally found a pair of ski boots small enough to fit Hazel. As you know, she's been wearing her strap on skis for about a year but we all knew she needed big girl skis.

So for $200 Hazel has new pink boots and skis. Why pink? Well, that's a great question considering the fact it would make a lot of sense to buy gender neutral skis and boots so we can pass them on to Cousin Eli. Well: Hazel refused to wear anything but pink. But she's super excited about the skis and boots and, if she's excited we're excited.

On Hazel's first day out on her new skis she did 7 laps on Bruno's at Timberline and didn't want to quit.

This is just the beginning of a life spent on skis, we hope...

For real, we went to Colorado

What the heck happened to January? Because Hazel would like it back, especially the parts that involved Colorado and Nana and Poppy.

With great excitement, Hazel boarded the plane for Colorado after Christmas and proceeded to narrate the entire trip, from the car ride to the airport to the bus ride from the parking lot to the airplane. She also told everyone who would listen that she was going to see Nana and Poppy.

Upon arrival, she immediately drove her dad and Nana around Whole Foods in Boulder and told them what to buy.

Once at Nana and Poppy's house, Hazel spent many hours reading books on their comfy couch in front of the fireplace.

The Barker family usually visits Eldora for a day of skiing. This year was no exception, except that Hazel was big enough to ride the magic carpet with the hordes of other holiday skiers. "Go faster!" she exclaimed.

After taking her leave of Eldora so Mommy and Daddy could ski together, Nana and Poppy took Hazel to the merry-go-round in Nederland. She chose this beauty herself.

Evenings were spent in Nana and Poppy's wonderful kitchen, coloring or playing, while the adults made dinner and catered to Hazel's whims.

And, of course, the evenings in Colorado were filled with presents- from Nana and Poppy and from Mimi. Nana indulged the Hizzle with a princess crown and earrings. They were an immediate hit.

Did we mention the down time? Down time is good.

And the up time? With baby? In the snow in Rocky Mountain National Park? That was good too.

After this, the pictures end because Mom and Dad took off for three days to ski and left Hazel with Nana and Poppy. Since we have no picture evidence, we can only assume that she ate donuts all hours of the day, watched soap operas and generally wreaked havoc. And why not? That's what Nanas and Poppies are for, right? And Mom and Dad and Hazel love them for it.

See you soon, Colorado. We miss you!