A Wintery Adventure to Redfish
One thing I've been focused on lately is having new adventures, especially ones that are close to home that I simply haven't explored. We have these habits of seeing and doing the same things all the time, going to our favorite places, eating the same meals, enjoying the same activities. I'm not saying I don't love our normal routine, I do, but I want to emulate the importance of stepping outside of my comfort zone for my girls. Besides, I believe that part of staying young is never getting stale - I want to see and learn and do new things!
The best part is that my kids are at the perfect age where they are excited to explore too. We did beach vacations for a long time because that was an easy way to get out without having to pack them around. But now, they are so capable. The best part about living in the Valley is that there are a ton of hidden (and not so hidden) gems to check out! Stanley is only 45 minutes away and yet we never go in the winter. Even after living in the Valley for so long, I realized I had no idea about how the summer spots work in the winter. Like can you ski into Redfish? Turns out you can!
So, I decided to just go for it - a wintertime Redfish adventure. The kids weren't initially psyched - but that's the way of having kids right? You have to fuel the stoke so they could be stoked! I had poked around a little bit online, but realistically - I had no idea what we were going to get into. We strapped on our cross country skis and skiied half the way out and then realized we could walk so we ditched the skis. It was so nice, and it turns out the thing I thought was going to be a huge lift, turned into an easy outing. I've found this consistently with taking the girls on adventures - it feels like huge and daunting at first, but then I find out that the girls are so much more resilient than I give them credit for - things are easier than you think they are going to be. I also get to recognize the mental fortitude and problem solving that I have - and I realize after the experience "why was I even worried about that?"
The moral of the story? Try new things! Go skiing where you usually go to the beach. Make that new recipe you've been eyeing, reach out to the friend you haven't talked to in too long, try the hobby you've always wanted to take up. Life is too short and it's important to remember you can constantly reinvent yourself to be the person you want to be.
