One of the best family trips we've ever had

"You can do it, but only if you stop over-thinking it."

That, right there, is the sentence that sums up my life.

The latest person to say that to me was Instructor Dan when we went skiing at Mt Buller last week. I'd tried skiing for the first time two years ago, but left on a negative, having spent the last half of the day falling and swearing and getting grumpy at my lack of ability.

I tried again last week. The bad news is that when I put the skis on, I got grumpy again and was sure I couldn't do it. The good news is...

I did it!

Thanks to a private lesson, where Instructor Dan helped me gain some confidence and gave me enough basic skill to have confidence that I could do it.

By the end of the two days, I was not only heading straight down Bourke Street (Mt Buller's main run) - I was going right to the summit and coming down with total confidence in my ability to slow down or stop when I wanted to. I felt in control and sure that I could do it, and I didn't think past that.

The rest of the family had fun, too. Steve took part in a group lesson and we put Abbey into a half-day kids' lesson, and in the end the two of them were skiing down Bourke Street together (Steve holding onto Abbey).

I even ventured up to the summit of Buller, and it was one of the most thrilling feelings. The view means you just can't think about anything but how amazing this spot is, so you're skiing down and looking around and you feel like life can't get any better than that. And to have made it to the bottom without falling, and even having enjoyed myself? Wow.

I've been fortunate to have done some incredible things this year, so I had no idea that I'd get one of the greatest senses of satisfaction from sliding down a mountain on skis. I think it's because I was so sure of my inability to do it. And it was all on me: after my one hour lesson it was just me, my skis and my ability to use my strength and overcome my doubts.

We had the best time. This was honestly one of the best trips we've had together.

Sometimes you need to just have fun, don't over-think it.


My family and I were guests of Mt Buller Resort. I'll be writing more about our trip for Kidspot's Village Voices soon!