Our final day.
A storm hit the night before leaving us with perfect powder as predicted. At 9am I left Ben with Honey and Papa and headed up to the top of Elk Camp with Matt, Jen, Jason, and Heidi in search of fresh powder on one of the longest ski run in Aspen/Snowmass - Long Shot. You have to hike a bit to get to it, but it's worth it if the snow is good. We got to the top of the lift only to find out that the trail was closed. Jason stopped in the ski patrol shack to see if they had any plans to open it up. The patrolwoman there said they were a little short-handed that morning and then she said these magic words, "I'll let you open it". You know what that means. . . first tracks!!! Jason got to flip the sign from closed to open and everything. We had a blast!
Later that morning I met up with Ben and we skiied the rest of the day together. He didn't like the powder so much - it can be pretty frustrating if you're new to skiing. But we still had a good time and were exhausted by the time it was time to head back to Utah and pick up Little P at my sister Noelle's house.
The drive back to Orem took us about 6 1/2 hours. We made it there a little after 9:30pm and Paige and Noelle were up waiting for us. When we walked in the door I called out,"where's my girl?!" and she yelled back,"me is here! Me is here! Me is HERE!" until we found eachother. Ben and I had missed her like crazy.
Thanks to Noelle, Steve, and Anna and Jill, Tim, and Quinn for taking care of our little girl so we could go on this trip!
Friday, February 13, 2009
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Skiing Day Four
Beautiful, cloudless, blue sky day.
The 3 youngest great-grandkids in ski school had races today; they all did awesome!
Amber took some great pictures of everyone at the top of Elk Camp.
Eddie's knee was hurting during his very first run :( He didn't think it wise to keep going, so Chelsea and Eddie headed to Denver to visit friends.
Ben moved up to level 7, and if he were going to ski school tomorrow, he would ski his very first black diamond. But he's not going to ski school because it's our last day - he'll be skiing with me :)
A big storm is supposed to hit tonight! You know what that means? . . . tomorrow, POWDER!
The 3 youngest great-grandkids in ski school had races today; they all did awesome!
Amber took some great pictures of everyone at the top of Elk Camp.
Eddie's knee was hurting during his very first run :( He didn't think it wise to keep going, so Chelsea and Eddie headed to Denver to visit friends.
Ben moved up to level 7, and if he were going to ski school tomorrow, he would ski his very first black diamond. But he's not going to ski school because it's our last day - he'll be skiing with me :)
A big storm is supposed to hit tonight! You know what that means? . . . tomorrow, POWDER!
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Skiing Day Three
Yet another great day! Is there such a thing as a bad day skiing in Snowmass? I don't think so! Today was beautiful and sunny.
Before lunch Beth, John, Matt, Chelsea, Jen, and I headed up the Cirque for a little adventure. Someone put Beth in charge, and we ended up at the entrance to the Hanging Valley Wall. Beth, John, and Matt toughed it out while Jen, Chelsea, and I found an alternate way down and took a great run down The Edge.
Ben is rockin' ski school. He was able to meet up with us at Gwynn's for lunch where I met his instructor, who said I was pretty (I like him immediately), and another couple in his ski school class who are realtors from RPV (they sold my Aunt and Uncle's house in Torrance several years ago). Small world.
We're still having a blast and are looking forward to 2 more days.
I'll get pictures up soon.
Before lunch Beth, John, Matt, Chelsea, Jen, and I headed up the Cirque for a little adventure. Someone put Beth in charge, and we ended up at the entrance to the Hanging Valley Wall. Beth, John, and Matt toughed it out while Jen, Chelsea, and I found an alternate way down and took a great run down The Edge.
Ben is rockin' ski school. He was able to meet up with us at Gwynn's for lunch where I met his instructor, who said I was pretty (I like him immediately), and another couple in his ski school class who are realtors from RPV (they sold my Aunt and Uncle's house in Torrance several years ago). Small world.
We're still having a blast and are looking forward to 2 more days.
I'll get pictures up soon.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Skiing Day Two
We had another great day of skiing today. It snowed most of the day and visibility wasn't great, but the runs were perfect - groomed with just a inch or two of fresh stuff on top. Sweet!
At the end of the day when Ben and I met up for a couple of final runs, he told me he thinks he could really get in to skiing. Yes!!! Ski school is working, folks! And he's doing great too. He skied some blues today and is moving up an ability level tomorrow. I'm so excited to be skiing again, AND to be skiing with Ben.
We've got 3 days of skiing left!
At the end of the day when Ben and I met up for a couple of final runs, he told me he thinks he could really get in to skiing. Yes!!! Ski school is working, folks! And he's doing great too. He skied some blues today and is moving up an ability level tomorrow. I'm so excited to be skiing again, AND to be skiing with Ben.
We've got 3 days of skiing left!
Monday, February 9, 2009
Skiing Day One
We had a lovely skiing day today. Ben went to ski school and I spent the day skiing with my parents, grandpa, sisters (Jen, Amber, and Chelsea), Amber's husband (Matt), cousins, Beth and Jason, and their spouses (John and Heidi) and Aunt Ann. Jen's kids are in ski school as well as Amber's daughter, Kate, and Jason's son, Nick.
At the end of the day, Ben and I took a last run together. I caught a couple minutes of it on video, and even though it's just Ben skiing on the catwalk, I'd thought I'd include it here, you know, for posterity's sake. Oh, and I have no idea who the lady in the blue coat is, but I was pretty annoyed that she got right in the way. About half-way through Ben almost wipes out.
Fun times.
At the end of the day, Ben and I took a last run together. I caught a couple minutes of it on video, and even though it's just Ben skiing on the catwalk, I'd thought I'd include it here, you know, for posterity's sake. Oh, and I have no idea who the lady in the blue coat is, but I was pretty annoyed that she got right in the way. About half-way through Ben almost wipes out.
Fun times.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Getaway
Lucky for us, the second week of living in our new, yucky apartment coincides with my family's annual week long ski trip to Snowmass, CO. This is the first time in 6 years that Ben and I have been able to attend and I AM SO EXCITED!!! Ben? Not so much. He's what you would call a beginner and therefore will be attending ski school all week. He's a little embarrassed about it (I may be forced to remove this post later), but honestly I think the thought of being shown up by all the expert skiing girls in my family has convinced him that ski school is in good order. I've promised him that the by the end of a week in ski school he'll be able to keep up on at least the moderate runs for the rest of his life. I hope I'm right.
I'll keep you updated throughout the week.
I'll keep you updated throughout the week.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Life Underground
Well, it's been about a week and a half since Ben got back. We managed to spend a couple of days in Heber, visiting a few friends and some family in the area before we came back to St. George to move into our new-to-us apartment.
It's a basement.
It's gross.
I'm the one that found it so I shouldn't complain. But I'm going to.
Sometimes real life sucks. Don't get me wrong, having Ben back is great; moving into a not clean 1970s basement apartment with a wood burning stove/fireplace, OLD church-style carpet, and a wooden toilet seat that's so nasty Ben is replacing it (without being asked) right this minute. . . . sucky.
And I thought Wymount was the yuckiest place I'd ever live. This place makes Wymount look like a palace.
To be fair, I have seen worse. Much worse. Like the "home" of a girl I used to visit teach in Provo. Ben and I had just moved south of campus (out of Wymount) and into a new ward. We lived in a pretty nice 2 bedroom apartment with all the amenities married college students crave: washer/dryer, dishwasher, large closets, bathroom cabinets (all of the things we hadn't had yet in our 4 years of marriage). I assumed others in the ward lived in similar circumstances.
I was wrong.
The ward was full of basement apartments. And my new visiting-teachee's had to be one of the worst. The first time I went to visit Megan* I spent 10 minutes searching the outside of the house, looking for a way in. I finally went around to the back and leaned over to peer through the open back door down a long concrete hallway with multiple doors. Huh? I got closer and heard a washing machine running. Someone must be home if the back door is open and the washing machine is going, right? I walked down the stairs and through the door and yelled Megan's name. No answer. Hmmm.
I decided to call my visiting teaching companion's cell to find out if she had arrived and if she knew what was going on. Turns out she was out front and was equally as perplexed as I. We finally got brave and ventured down the long dim hall through the back door. Turns out the doors down that hall led to individual apartments. Someone had turned a 1600 sq foot basement of a 1960s house into 4 married student apartments AND a small communal laundry room. What the heck?
Megan's apartment was 2 rooms. You entered through the kitchen which had a door to the bedroom which had a door to a bathroom. At least I assume there was a bathroom back there. She always kept the bedroom door closed, so I can't be sure. When we'd visit my companion and I would sit at the kitchen table which was against the wall on one side, 6 inches from the sink on another, and 1 foot from the refrigerator on the other. Megan would stand. She had an old fashioned stove that wouldn't even fit a normal sized cookie sheet. The sink was stained yellow. How is this place BYU approved?, I would wonder. But she seemed happy there. She was a newlywed afterall. The rent was cheap AND it wasn't like she was going to live there forever.
So this week as I've been scrubbing red globs of goo off the bottom of the cabinets above the kitchen sink and Ben's been scrubbing mildew stains out of the grout in the shower (I refused to take a shower before he did so), I've been taking deep breaths, counting my blessings (like 1350 sq feet, 3 bedrooms, free cable and internet), and channeling my inner Megan.
I can be happy here. I'm practically a newlywed afterall. The rent's cheap AND I will not be living here forever (or any longer than 6 months, which is when our lease runs out).
*name has been changed
It's a basement.
It's gross.
I'm the one that found it so I shouldn't complain. But I'm going to.
Sometimes real life sucks. Don't get me wrong, having Ben back is great; moving into a not clean 1970s basement apartment with a wood burning stove/fireplace, OLD church-style carpet, and a wooden toilet seat that's so nasty Ben is replacing it (without being asked) right this minute. . . . sucky.
And I thought Wymount was the yuckiest place I'd ever live. This place makes Wymount look like a palace.
To be fair, I have seen worse. Much worse. Like the "home" of a girl I used to visit teach in Provo. Ben and I had just moved south of campus (out of Wymount) and into a new ward. We lived in a pretty nice 2 bedroom apartment with all the amenities married college students crave: washer/dryer, dishwasher, large closets, bathroom cabinets (all of the things we hadn't had yet in our 4 years of marriage). I assumed others in the ward lived in similar circumstances.
I was wrong.
The ward was full of basement apartments. And my new visiting-teachee's had to be one of the worst. The first time I went to visit Megan* I spent 10 minutes searching the outside of the house, looking for a way in. I finally went around to the back and leaned over to peer through the open back door down a long concrete hallway with multiple doors. Huh? I got closer and heard a washing machine running. Someone must be home if the back door is open and the washing machine is going, right? I walked down the stairs and through the door and yelled Megan's name. No answer. Hmmm.
I decided to call my visiting teaching companion's cell to find out if she had arrived and if she knew what was going on. Turns out she was out front and was equally as perplexed as I. We finally got brave and ventured down the long dim hall through the back door. Turns out the doors down that hall led to individual apartments. Someone had turned a 1600 sq foot basement of a 1960s house into 4 married student apartments AND a small communal laundry room. What the heck?
Megan's apartment was 2 rooms. You entered through the kitchen which had a door to the bedroom which had a door to a bathroom. At least I assume there was a bathroom back there. She always kept the bedroom door closed, so I can't be sure. When we'd visit my companion and I would sit at the kitchen table which was against the wall on one side, 6 inches from the sink on another, and 1 foot from the refrigerator on the other. Megan would stand. She had an old fashioned stove that wouldn't even fit a normal sized cookie sheet. The sink was stained yellow. How is this place BYU approved?, I would wonder. But she seemed happy there. She was a newlywed afterall. The rent was cheap AND it wasn't like she was going to live there forever.
So this week as I've been scrubbing red globs of goo off the bottom of the cabinets above the kitchen sink and Ben's been scrubbing mildew stains out of the grout in the shower (I refused to take a shower before he did so), I've been taking deep breaths, counting my blessings (like 1350 sq feet, 3 bedrooms, free cable and internet), and channeling my inner Megan.
I can be happy here. I'm practically a newlywed afterall. The rent's cheap AND I will not be living here forever (or any longer than 6 months, which is when our lease runs out).
*name has been changed
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