By SkiMum Paula

An Update — The fitted ski boots with custom insoles are sweet.  My feet are no longer swimming in my boots, which, you may recall, were four sizes too big.  Admittedly, we had a little breaking in period – all great loves have to make adjustments when getting to know one another – but now we’re cruising down the mountain in harmony.  My boots fit snugly around my feet and are attached firmly to my skis making them extremely responsive whether carving down Chip’s Run or grabbing a powder-filled Tiger Tail. 

One small issue – cold feet, still plagued me.  Stop.  Right.  There.  Before you say something possibly age-related that could result in a smack upside the head, let me remind you that I ski Snowbird, the biggest, baddest, coldest mountain with the longest season in the area.  While wind and visibility may keep me home, cold weather does not.  And it shouldn’t …

So, what’s a girl to do?  With my old ski boats, I could shove those maxi-pad warmer things into the toes and head out.  That is no longer possible with my smaller, better fitting boots.  Some argue that if the boots fit, your toes should be warm due to better circulation but not too much space.  While this is partially true, we all know that some gals need two layers under their shell and others (uh-hum, Bettina) swear they need six.  After years of watching me steal the covers, his jackets, sweatshirts, socks… my hubby sighed and said, “Just go get the boot warmers!”

But this was my real dilemma – while I wanted the warmers, I choked on the price.  They range from $200-300 per pair.  That’s a nice pair of shoes … or two.  No deals on the Internet.  Doggoneit!  I skied a few more weeks with cold toes until, one day, after finding my prescription sunglasses (which meant that I didn’t have to buy new ones somehow convincing me that I had “found” money), and I could now buy boot heaters.  Oh, don’t scrunch your face.  You have done the exact same math on one or more occasions!

Done!  They’re in and they work.  Little battery operated wonders to keep my toesies warm for many seasons to come.  I often wonder why I stress myself out over stupid stuff like this, why I torture myself with cold feet [or fill in the blank] because I am unwilling to “do for me” occasionally.  Why is this a common phenomenon?  We think nothing of giving our kids sports equipment, dance or gymnastics classes, piano or swim lessons, summer camps, and on and on, and we quibble over things big or small for ourselves.  We suffer frozen toes through one of the coldest Januarys on record thereby denying ourselves the real joy we find on the mountain.  The simplistic example makes it sound like a “First World Problem”, but taken on the whole, it becomes a form of self-sabotage that eventually wears you down as well as the people around you.

Does this make us selfish and materialistic?  Of course not, but before denying ourselves the pleasure of time or toys or tools that will enrich or nourish us, we need to honestly ask ourselves why.  Most women I know give and give and give to everyone else but feel they need permission to give a little to themselves.  I was surprised a few years ago to learn that it drives my calm and cool husband bat-poop crazy when I do this!  It helped me to cut loose a little bit, and he was so happy when I decided to ski with Skimums on Wednesdays forcing me to carve out time for myself.  The laundry, groceries, kids, bills, work could wait for a few hours.  Each week, I come back refreshed (some days, just downright giddy) and, yet, magically, everything still gets done.  If a couple boot heaters makes it even more enjoyable, it’s a small but absolutely worthwhile gift to myself.