We are so snow starved in Seattle right now.  Ever since that icy cold week a few months back where we were teased with just a little hint of snow in our yard (and yes, I let the kids go out even though it was SUPER early!) we haven’t got ANYTHING.

So when I heard there was a chance of snow last weekend I booked us a getaway.  I thought a visit to the Suncadia Resort would be perfect because it wasn’t super far away.  They have a tubing park that they make snow for on the weekends and an ice rink.  They also have a pool with waterslides, so I figured we’d be okay even if the weather didn’t work out.

Unfortunately, I have no sense of direction and I also thought this sweet bakery was on the way.  Apparently it’s on the 2 and not the 90.  I’ll remember that for next time.

But we were pretty much there in no time.  I think it was a mere hour and a half from Seattle (I think you have to be careful in winter with weather because you might need chains in bad weather on the 90).  When we got to Cle Elum, our van GPS had no idea where we were, but we just followed the Suncadia signs.

Did I mention that the Seahawks game was on?

So once we got to our room my three boys did NOT want to go anywhere.  I was sent to find food and I met a blizzard on the way to Cle Elum Safeway which was about 10 minutes away and I was totally thrilled I’d finally found snow.  The good thing about booking one of the suite rooms is that there is a kitchen and it was pretty easy to make lunches and dinners on both of our nights there. (Which is perfect when traveling with kids and it saves a bunch of money too!  It’s also one way I justify getting a spendier room.)

So what can one make for an easy dinner in a hotel room?  Frozen pizza and those ready-bag salads.  Pasta, sauce and steamed veggies. Quesadillas and burritos. We even love takeout because then you still get a restaurant-style meal but the kids get a little break in the behavior department.

We didn’t exactly get a TON of snow, but we got enough.  We even took the kids out at night to build a snowman.

And the next day after breakfast (oh we adored our waiter at Portals!  He was so sweet with our kids!) we headed out into the winter wonderland.

The kids were excited to finally use the sleds we bought a few years ago.

At one point some deer popped out while we sledded.  We certainly knew they were there because there was a TON of deer poop where we sledded.  (If you’ve been reading a while, you know that I am not a fan of poo.) But I do adore deer.

We didn’t end up doing the resort tubing (They had ride passes and I think it would be about 10 dollars each time our family went down a hill and got pulled back up by the rope tow.) or the skating (that was a little pricey too, I think it would be about 50 dollars for our family to skate) because by the time we finished sledding it wasn’t the happiest snowy weather-it was more sleet-like so these things weren’t appealing.

And there are waterslides at Suncadia Resort!

But we did use the swimming pool.  The guys both tried the waterslides for the first time (you have to be 42 inches and you ride alone) and I nearly had a heart attack waiting for them at the bottom.  Apparently the slide is pitch black inside and the guys were proud of themselves but they only wanted to go ONCE.  We even ran through the icy rain to try the heated outdoor pool.  It was fun and wonderfully freezing when we got out.  The pool here was definitely a highlight.

So we had such a lovely time at this Suncadia resort.  I definitely want to come back in the summertime.  I would love to go to the Swiftwater cellars and I’m excited to hike the 1000 steps that they just built.  I think these coal mine trail hikes would also be fun in the summer. But for us, this was the perfect impromptu weekend getaway and my family really enjoyed ourselves and came home refreshed.

Terumi

Terumi Pong is a Seattle-based family travel writer and mom of twin teenage boys.  She loves coffee and pastries, shopping local and looking for greener ways to live.  She is also known as Scout’s mom (Scout is a 5ish pound little black yorkie-poo)