This winter has been a series of up and down weather, a combination of polar vortexes and unseasonably warm days. In early January it had not yet snowed in New York City enough to enjoy snow adventures like sledding and building snowmen. With Frozen-mania taking over our home, it has been difficult to curb the enthusiasm for snow fun. So we decided to hit the slopes with the little ones. Skiing with a one and four-year-old, you ask… was I kookie? Yes, sort of but a short weekend on the slopes was just what we needed to get outdoors and get our bodies moving in this chilly weather. The typical go to NYC area ski slopes seemed too daunting for the hubby, so we set out to a nearby and manageable ski weekend in Warwick, NY. The town of Warwick is a place that we frequent during the fall for our favorite apple picking adventures. We’d always visited Warwick in autumn but soon found out it was a great family destination in wintertime too.
For our overnight stay, we booked a charming barn house right outside of the Warwick town main street. Our host Hanna was as charming as her retro decorated barn house. We found her through a recommendation from one of my mommy list serves and booked using the Airbnb website. Hanna was so sweet from the beginning of our initial website interaction. She gave us tips that helped us plan for the impending snowstorm during our scheduled trip. The stars aligned for our getaway with the small snowstorm, it turned out better than we could have imagined.
This trip called for some serious and makeshift snow gear pulled together at the last minute. Elias was not entirely ski ready, but we improvised where we could. He used a few layers of clothes ending with windbreaker pants and vest to help keep him dry after all the falls. I did have the forethought to invest in waterproof gloves for Elias; a must have for skiing. We were able to get his gloves at a second-hand store for $3.00 which saved us a significant amount on expensive gloves he would outgrow in 2.5 seconds. The other must have for this trip Disney’s Frozen album, on repeat for the entire trip, the things we do for our kids.
Our drive to Warwick was just an hour and ten minutes from New York City. We drove up I87 to 17A. Once you reach the Sterling Forest area the drive becomes a fun roller coaster of steep roads. The kids loved the feeling although I did get a little nervous because of the snow that had already fallen but was glad we had a 4 wheel drive to handle the bit of snow on the roads. I love Idina Menzel but there was only so much letting it go hubby and I could take. Finally, we had arrived. Our first stop on our trip was Mount Peter, one of the few remaining family operated ski areas in the US. We reserved Elias a space at Pete’s Pals, the toddler, 4 and under ski class. We had to arrive about an hour before the class to prep and get his gear on for his time in the snow.
Mount Peter had extremely friendly and helpful staff from the ski rental staff to the ski school instructors. Pete’s Pals instructors were organized, patient, and totally fun. It has an excellent family-friendly atmosphere so we got to take our time at every step of our visit and relax. After checking in and gearing up Elias, we met with ski school staff at the designated area. The class had lead instructors and a one to one buddy. Elias buddy was a totally awesome snowboard dude that used fun lingo and made Elias feel like a meat torpedo for at least one afternoon.
Selena although fearless and eager to hang with her big brother is not ready to ski. Instead, we played a few games to familiarize her with basic ski skills. Selena and I spent most of our time playing with other snow babies in the snow and ski lodge. After some hot chocolate and a meal, we headed out for our fun and nerve racking snowy drive through Warwick’s historic district.
Once we made it to the barn, our host was there to greet us and point us in the right direction. At the barn house, we got to enjoy all the fun rooms and unique details throughout. The barn house was fully-equipped with television/cable and Wi-Fi but by happenstance we ended up off the grid. Our mini-explorers had so much fun discovering the house that we ended up not using any electronic devices during our stay. The kids spent most of the evening in the children’s room which had plenty of toys to occupy their interests.
I spent some time in the retro kitchen making dinner, tea, and hot chocolate. The kitchen was fully stocked and meticulously clean, tidy and fun. I felt like I was a 1950’s bonafide hip suburban mom and was on cloud 9. After our righteous day, it was time for us to kick back. We ended with some cozy time by the fire. The wood stove was a hit for dad, and he became our official flametender.
The next morning we had a blast sledding and building magical snowmen in the backyard before heading to brunch. Hannah had a nice list of recommended eateries, and we choose Rogowski Farm for a farm to table breakfast. It was a 15-minute drive from the barn, and away from NYC. The additional time spent driving was ultimately well worth it. W. Rogowski Farm is a family owned and operated organic farm located in Pine Island, NY. Rogowski serves breakfast on weekends and hosts a monthly field to fork supper club. The farm to table breakfast yumminess surprised even my most picky eater Elias, we had to order him a second helping of their Banana Chocolate Chip Dirt Bombs. We had the veggie filled omelet, bacon, greens and pancakes from the menu. They were full of fresh flavor, and the fresh squeezed orange juice was sweet to perfection. We ate our meals enjoying the communal ambiance while Selena had some fun flirting with the staff. Besides the Dirt Bombs the other special treat included exploring the farm store’s fruits, vegetables, and spices. Elias asked lots of questions about all the colorful and beautiful produce and farm staff and friendly customers were happy to indulge his curiosity. Rogowski is a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm, and we will be joining once the harvest season begins in June. They have a CSA pick-up location in the Bronx, as well as other parts of the city, so it will be easy for us to support a local farm and eat healthily.
Our weekend adventure was too short and super sweet. We hope to make winter skiing another of our Warwick family traditions.
