disclosure: smugglers’ notch was an inaugural sponsor of blog brûlée. i was not, however, compensated or asked to write this post. opinions expressed are my own.
gra·mer·cy [gr-uh-mur-see]
archaic. (interjection) – used to express gratitude or surprise
i believe strongly in the power of gratitude. of being thankful for what we have. of expressing appreciation.
it keeps our souls healthy and it brings joy to the front.
so on mondays, the dreaded return to the grind day, i plan to begin with an attitude of gratitude. not always food-related, but sometimes. maybe a product i love. possibly a place i miss… always gramercy!
today i am thankful for an amazing place near jeffersonville, vermont… smugglers’ notch resort.
i’m thankful for two reasons (at least):
first: this beautiful escape is only a handful of hours from me. which means i plan to take my whole family for a bit of fun and together-time before our time in this assignment is up.
smugglers’ notch was named the #1 kid-friendly ski resort in the east by ski magazine this year. they have plenty to do for all ages, indoor and out, all times of the year.
it has been a long time since i was on a pair of skis, so the kids and i could take advantage of their lessons. but they have all sorts of other exciting options for winter sports, like tubing, snow-shoeing, snow mobile excursions, and ice skating! they also have lots of indoor fun for the family like an indoor & heated pools, a funzone with bouncy house, a giant slide, and indoor putt putt…
honestly, their zip-line, hikes, canoes, llama trekking(!) and waterpark fun during the summer months looks equally as enticing to me and my crew. the hardest part is figuring out when to take that family vacation…
the resort is nestled on the back side of stowe’s spruce peak and was certainly designed with the family in mind. the condominium lodging makes it feel like a home away from home. full kitchens in the condos make them easy for family dinners in, although every bite of food i ate in the resort restaurants while there was delicious and they were SUPER gluten-free friendly. seriously… even my server (julie) was gluten-free herself and was monumentally helpful.
while the resort is full of fun for kids, there’s also quite an agenda of options for adults too… like an informative and divine chocolate tasting (you need calories for all of the activity, right?…). the surrounding towns are pretty adorable too, full of antique shops and great local restaurants.
second: this tranquil location was the site of our inaugural blog brûlée event in september. personally, i was thrilled as this was my first trip ever to vermont. and it was during the time of year that the leaves were beginning to change. the drive was breath-taking.
because this was our first time planning this blogger weekend, we were all grateful for the staff at smuggs. from the planning process through the weekend itself, they were immensely attentive, tremendously kind and always one step ahead of our needs.
i think great people is what makes a great business, and i’ll speak for all of us co-founders… we can’t say enough about how amazing the people are at smuggs.
if you are looking for a great mountain escape with your family (that is also gluten-free friendly!), my vote is smugglers’ notch. i know we’ll be going!
