Author Archives: Sandra Essary

Top Ten Family Ski Resorts Countdown (Best Two Resorts)

2. NORTHSTAR, CALIF Considered the best ski resort in the Tahoe area for families with young children, Northstar is also one of the area’s best values. Lodging runs as low as $196, plus comes with gift baskets geared toward children (with items such as coloring books). There are children’s movies to rent, complimentary cribs, kids’ trail maps, and a kids’ corner in the reception area. Ever have to pay for two adult lift tickets and then take turns staying with the kids? Northstar has solved that predicament with, appropriately enough, the Parent Predicament ticket. For the same price as a … Continue reading →

Top Ten Family Ski Resorts Countdown (Part Three)

The countdown continues… 4. RITZ-CARLTON BACHELOR GULCH, Beaver Creek Mountain, Colorado Don’t let the name scare you away. I found some affordable packages for families here – and the amenities make it well worth every dollar. This is a year round AAA five diamond resort, so there is no question that you and your family will have a top-notch vacation. The spa at Bachelor Gulch was rated #3 by a well-known travel magazine. Besides a fitness area and beauty treatments, BG offers a wonderful hot tub in a rock-lined grotto. Even with all this luxury and pampering, the Kids’ Program … Continue reading →

Top Ten Family Ski Resorts Countdown (Part Two)

We continue with the countdown… 7. THE CANYONS, Park City, Utah The American Skiing Company is sending SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer to a number of ski resorts this season. The Canyons plans a Nickelodeon Family Winter Fest March 19-23, 2007. Kids under 14 can ski free during the Fest. During the week, family activities, music, and special events will delight even the most hard-to-please child. Here and at Sunday River, the staff is creating miniature terrain gardens for kids (and kids who never grew up), complete with SpongeBob cutouts and a “secret passageway” that brings a little adventure … Continue reading →

Top Ten Family Ski Resorts Countdown (Part One)

Over the years, I have skied both the East and West coasts. Myself, I prefer West Coast snow. The higher altitude keeps the snow dry and fluffy. East coast snow tends to be a bit icy. In any case, I went in search of the top ten resorts in the USA that are family and kid-friendly. We will countdown from the number 10 spot to number one. Some resorts deserved an honorable mention and they are: Heavenly in Lake Tahoe area, California – The whole family can ski together, with a kids’ instructor tagging along to help the kids. Killington, … Continue reading →

There’s No Camping Like Snow Camping

Camping had become almost a matter of routine. I was ready for a challenge. I thought about camping in the snow, but frankly, I was scared. I didn’t know if I could handle it, or if the cold would triumph instead. I decided to camp in an area where I could run to a motel if I needed to. (This was my first time, remember.) After some thought, I figured Sequoia National Park would be just perfect. There was a hotel and at least a few people around if I ran into trouble. And there was about 2 feet of … Continue reading →

Last Minute Valentine’s Getaways

So you would like to sweep your sweetheart into your arms and take him or her on a special trip? (Or hint at being taken!) Here are some ideas, in no particular order: 1. Vegas for Valentine’s – I have always stayed at the Flamingo, right in the heart of the Vegas Strip. The rooms are nice and you can get them now for as low as $60 a night. The hotel is big, but not overwhelming like some of the mega-hotels in the area. The Flamingo has eight restaurants from casual dining to romantic gourmet dining. My niece had … Continue reading →

Nice to Meet You!

When two people meet for the first time, it is only polite to introduce yourself. You and I are just meeting, as this is my first blog for Families.com, so please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Sandra Essary and I was raised in Roswell, New Mexico (no, I never saw any aliens there) and Midland, Texas, the oil mecca of the southwest. We then moved to California when I was in high school. I did well in high school, but you couldn’t pay me to be a teenager again. College meant freedom to me. I studied hard, … Continue reading →

Fire in the Sky

A small coal penetrates the very center of the tipi-shaped stack of small twigs. A few flames struggle, and you wonder if it is going to catch. A few more flames, then through the top of the tipi a blue flame licks at the sky. Wood, which is really stored sunshine, is added, and each piece of wood in its turn succumbs to the fire. Yellow and orange tongues dance around and under each log. Blue flames peek from underneath a flat piece of kindling. The flames puff and crack in small tornadoes emerging from underneath a log. Peering past … Continue reading →

Where Do You Stand?

The place I camp is about 1 ½ hours from here, up in the Sierra Nevadas at about 7,000 feet. When I went there, I always took a walk along a path, across a paved single-lane road, down a dirt road that winds its way around a meadow, and finally to an area with huge boulders. I took in the fresh air, smelled the pines, and listened to the wind. Along the way I saw the dirt road, the meadow, the boulders – but time would teach me that I never really “saw” these things at all. Since I often … Continue reading →