Apart from our son just learning how to “walk on ice” (gliding on ice skates), the whole family has become pretty good at skating – which has already brought us a lot of winter joy. But living in Canada, especially so close to the Rocky Mountains and not far south into the United States, where there are countless ski resorts, not learning to ski would almost be a disservice to our heritage. Hehehe~ We had long talked with my wife about it being time to take up skiing again, but we never quite mustered the resolve to start. Since last year’s trip to BC for some hot springs and our first-everskiingexperience at a ski resort, we’ve been completely hooked on this skiing “journey.” There's no denying it – it’s addictive. Once you get into it, you just can’t stop. Every weekend we go, and not to mention the money spent on buying ski gear, just the cost of lift tickets (chairlifts) has added up to who knows how much. Fortunately, starting this winter, our daughter qualifies for a second-grade student ski discount policy. For just a $20 processing fee, she can ski for free all season at four mountain resorts. It’s a program offered by Husky Oil to give every child the chance to ski. Fourth and sixth graders also qualify for this discount. Our son isn’t old enough for first grade yet, but kids under six get a Tiger Card, commonly known as the “tiger card.” The deal is the same – just pay $20 once a year. So when you do the math, soon it’ll just be the adults paying for lift tickets, saving us quite a bit of money. Haha~ People say golf is an elite sport, a costly pastime, but I’d say skiing is right up there with it. That said, skiing has truly given us immense joy, and we no longer find winters long or boring. On the contrary, we’re always looking forward to “more snow, more snow, lots more!” Hahaha~ This coming weekend, April 14th, is the last day the Olympic Ski Resort (COP) will be open – which is impressive, considering it’s managed to stay open through several weekends with temperatures above 10°C. But apparently the mountain resorts can stay open until May. So tomorrow we’re taking a day off, driving up the mountain to ski one last time – going out with a bang~!! Oh yeah~~~!!