Big Ski Weekend

What a life! It's crazy to think that skiing may be getting in the way of things we need to get done, but we love it! It's 8:30 p.m. on Sunday night as I sit and post this blog and I feel like I'm ready for bed. Yesterday, we met some friends at The Canyons, skied for a couple of hours, watched the pond skimming competition and then watched The Wailers concert. This morning, we met some friends and went skiing at Alta. On the way down to Salt Lake to meet our friends, we encountered a major wind storm in Parley's Canyon which caused a whole bunch of debris to fly up and hit our windshield. Not fun. We weren't quite sure we were even going to go skiing because it started to rain, then turned to snow while we waited out the storm. Well, we knew we couldn't make a decision until we were actually up at Alta, so off we went. The drive up was slow going. As we got there, it was still pretty windy but it was snowing and that means one thing--powder. Anyways, it was another fun ski weekend!


pond skimming competition at The Canyons



The Wailers




skiing at Alta...notice the snow stuck to my hair

Winter is Back!

It's not a typical reaction to winter, but we're just not ready to put our skis away quite yet. As excited as we are to get out on our bikes, I need to get in a few more days on the slopes. Plus, my sister is coming to town next week and I've bought her a "never ever ski lesson." (Uh, that means it will be her first time, ever, on skis!!) We are both so excited!

We didn't get out skiing this afternoon, but we did get out for an amazing snowshoe around some old mining buildings.

No Longer in My 20's

For my 30th birthday, Andy planned a get together at his aunt and uncle's advertising business. It was so much fun to have everyone together, sipping wine and eating munchies. Andy's mom even flew in from San Diego to be a part of the festivities! My 20's were great and I can only imagine my 30's being even better.


Andy and his mom


Courtney, Jen, Jeff, and Nyk


Thanks for a great time, Andy!!!


Me with Jodi, Joanna, and Devon (Jodi and Joanna teach 1st grade at our school.)

Out and About

After a glorious morning of skiing, we took Cooper out for a snowshoe hike. It was such a beautiful day today. Hopefully, we get that storm they are predicting for Monday and Tuesday. It's always nice to get a fresh coat of white stuff.

My Trip to Alaska

This past week was another winter break for our school district, so I took that time to visit my girlfriends up in Anchorage. It was so great to see everybody. We definitely had some quality "girl time." :)


This is a photo taken from Powerline Pass. Anchorage is in the background.


I was so excited to see Sarah, the bloodhound, again. I brought up 2 of Cooper's toys for her and brought back 2 of her toys for Cooper.


I stayed with my friend, Angie. They have a little girl named Natalie and let me tell ya, this little girl (and her parents) have been through a lot in her 16 months. What a strong family.


One morning, I did a little snowshoeing at Kincaid Park, one of the places where Andy and I would go a lot. It has changed a lot. I even caught sight of some moose. It's kind of hard to see, but it is the dark spot in the middle of the trees.


On my last night in Anchorage, we went out for a tasty dinner at Kinley's. I'm pretty lucky to have such wonderful friends.

A Date to Snowed Inn

It was our 6-month anniversary this past Monday. Can you believe it's already been 6 months? To celebrate (along with Valentine's Day since I'll be up in Alaska), we splurged on a fun sleigh ride and dinner at the Snowed Inn Sleigh Company. It was so much fun! The sleigh ride up took about 20 minutes. Upon our arrival we were treated to hot apple cider. Dinner started off with soup (or chili), followed by your choice of prime rib, chicken or fish (along with garlic mashed potatoes and salad). To top it all off, we had a delicious brownie with vanilla ice cream for dessert. Yummy! What a treat!


That's John, our sleigh driver.




All bundled up on a snowy evening


Our destination, Snowed Inn

A Night of Relaxation

Andy and I both had a tough day skiing. Okay, so it wasn't that tough, but we still felt we needed a little relaxation tonight. There is this great place on Main Street called Mountain Body. It has an herbal "deli" where you can get Utah mud. Each masque has a different purpose, or there is also some mud you rub on your achy feet. Maybe we should try that next time...


Cooper felt the need to be in the photo, as well.

It Doesn't Get Better Than This...

I just wanted to post a few photos of beautiful Park City. Ahhhhh....


A view from the chair lift--that's a hot air balloon in the background.


The Park City Mountain Resort hosted the World Cup halfpipe competition last weekend. We didn't see him, but we heard Shawn White in the announcer's tent.

Snowshoeing in Iron Canyon

Our friends, Jeff and Courtney, came up to Park City this weekend. We went on an incredible snowshoe trek today. The sun was shining, our layers were light, and we may have even gotten a little tan.

Skiing in the Backcountry

Andy did some backcountry skiing on Saturday with another teacher from our school. I don't have the right gear for backcountry skiing right now, so I guess I know what I'll be buying soon. I'd also need to get all of the safety gear, too. Anyways, Andy did an awesome excursion up to Kessler Peak in Big Cottonwood Canyon. Enjoy the photos...it was a gorgeous day.

New Years in Brighton

We spent New Year's Eve at the cabin in Brighton. With hopes of doing some night skiing, we hauled our skis, boots, poles and other miscellaneous gear along with us. With our snow gear on we started walking the 200 yards to the ski resort. Hmmm...that's funny. There aren't any cars in the parking lot. The runs are not lit up. Much to our dismay, Brighton did not have night skiing last night. Bummer. It was still a fun night. Some friends drove up from SLC to bring in the new year with us.

Andy was very proud of his snow bench and cooler he made from sawing through the snow. Really, he used a saw to carve out the snow.

Sloan, Nyk and Jen watching the fireworks in the distance.




We wish everyone a very happy, healthy new year. We look forward to the many more adventures that await us.

Winter Fun

With 8 straight days of skiing under his belt, Andy decided to take the day off from the slopes. Instead, we went for a nice, long snowshoe hike. It was a nice day--partly cloudy with temps in the upper 20's.



One of Cooper's favorite things to do is try to find snowballs we throw at the snow. Of course, he never finds them, but it sure is cute to watch his head get buried in the snow.



This is called a snow wheel. It's the result of snow rolling down the side of a hill. We thought they were pretty neat.

Another Day on the Slopes

There's nothing better than waking up, drinking a nice, hot cup of coffee, and then hitting the powder for a few hours. Ahhh...


Riding the chair lift up...


There's something about our older camera that won't let me rotate the photos. :(


Would it be appropriate to say "knee high by the 4th of January?"

The Beginning of Winter Break

With about 8 inches of fresh powder today, it was the perfect time to play outdoors. We skied for about 3 hours this morning. Oh boy, was it ever windy at the top! Great snow, though. Then we took a before dinner snowshoe trek. Our plan is to ski another few hours tomorrow morning before making our way down to SLC for the beginning of our holiday festivities. Ahhh...we love living 2 minutes from the ski resort!

Making our way to the trail


With the blowing snow, Andy insisted on wearing his ski goggles.


On Sunday night, we got together with some friends for a Christmas potluck dinner. Great fun!

Sloan, lighting all of the little candles


Right before we stuffed our faces with turkey, stuffing, casserole, veggie pizza, salad, rolls, and mudpie