Winter wonderland

This weekend, Tim had the opportunity to offer a Marriage retreat for couples in the JMRC (his team at Hohenfels). We had about 15 couples and their kids join us at the Edelweiss Resort in Garmisch, Germany for a 3 day relaxation and training event.  The resort is one of several Armed Forces Recreation Centers around the world designed for the use of active duty and retired military members.  To read more about the resort, click on the link:

http://www.edelweisslodgeandresort.com/

Each morning, the adults met for 2 hours of couples communication training while the kids (ages 0-12) gathered in the staffed “4 Kids Only” club.  Both groups had an enjoyable time being apart from each other. Come noon, it was time to find activities to keep the family occupied. We decided to take the kids sledding on Saturday afternoon near the US military run Hausberg Ski Area.  Both Will and Lilly quickly tired of traditional sledding; instead, they attempted to go down the hill standing first on one sled and then riding two sleds (one for each foot).  We had a great time laughing and encouraging them to try  it again!  Many of the German sledders bought a lift ticket to take the gondola up to the top and ride their sleds down. When we asked about doing this, we were told “Very steep. Not for kids.”  Apparently, wearing a helmet on these steep trails is one of the requirements if you’re going to take the risk–and the cautionary look from the ticket takers made us think twice about taking Will and Lilly up so high without some head gear.

During the weekend we received about 7 inches of snow which was a treat because we have no snow at home.  I met several families from around Bavaria who had the same idea…take the 2 hour drive to Garmisch to simply play in a winter wonderland.