A Mountain Get-Away

And this was NOT on our Mountain.

Back in early December -

We packed our bags.

Kissed the 9 children.

And drove from one mountain to another.

This Get-Away was at Snowbird Ski Resort

on the other side of our mountain range.

My brothers own/run a company.

They are always so thoughtful to invite Brian and I to

the company Christmas party.

It's hard for us to say "no".

We like a good party!

They sure know how to "throw one".

We especially enjoy a dinner with friends/family.

And REALLY especially like a "night away".

First thing on the agenda was to ride the tram to the top.

Oh Fun!

 My Bro-in-law

Crazy dude.

My older brother, Paul and his wife Elaine

My sweet seesta and cute Isaac.

Hello?! Can you say - yum?

Me and My Guy

 So Beautiful

 At the Top

 WOW!!!

Breathtaking.

 Debbie (sister) and Bob

Grant (brother) and Shannon

Paul (brother) and Elaine

Sam(their son) and his "close" friend, Beka

Paul and Grant

I am so proud of these guys.

They do a great job being bosses/owners.

(and I know they couldn't do what they do without their awesome wives)

Way to go guys!

Grant kissing Shannon wait... that's Sam. 

Ewww

 The Whole Crew with spouses.

Hammin' it up! 

 Oh MY GOODNESS...

gobble him up!!!

OK. So this is my family.

L to R

Grant, Me, Dad, Mom, Debbie, Paul

These are some of my most favorite people in the whole world.

 My family with spouses!

 The 2 people that started this whole thing.

And what a great thing!

Thanks Mom and Dad...

for everything!

Oops. Don't look...

A little kissy face.

 We had a most fabulous time!

A Break...

between snow storms!
We woke up to snow but most had melted by afternoon.
See how green our grass IS?
It's a beautiful thing. But even more beautiful will be when we are walking barefoot on it.
Anyways, the kiddos took full advantage of the "warm" weather.

Fun Games! Fun Siblings! Fun Times!

A Great Ski Day...

for my chums!

They skiied without me.

I missed out on my once a year ski day with my friends due to other circumstances -

A VERY LARGE BELLY!

BUT...

I met up with them at Deer Valley for lunch

What a treat!

LOVE MY CHUMS!

Mush! Mush On!

Our own private Dog Sled Team.

When I say "dog" - I do mean A dog.

A single dog.

So, really, there is not much of team.

Anyways, my dad left his dogs with us for a day.

Leaving them was not his initial plan but when they ran off and were nowhere to be found, he left for his home - dogless. His hopes were that they would show up eventually.

They came back that evening.

My children loved playing with Rocky.

He is a very strong dog.

So, the girls put a horse halter on him like a harness and hooked a sled onto him.

Oh, the fun rides he provided.

They had a blast!

Rocky, well, not so sure, he had as much fun as they did.

Maybe that will teach him to run off.

Thanks Rocky!!

Oh the Creativity!

My children decided to make a 

"Great Snow-Grandma"

in honor

of

Grandma Great

My Grandma sat at the window and watched as they built
 the Great Snow-Grandma.
She smiled and giggled the whole time.

ps Woke up to more snow today. I am just sure it is going to melt by tomorrow and we will be back to our wonderful fall weather. (positive thinking)

Good Morning...

SNOW!!

(again!)

Don't worry about me. I WILL pull through. :-)

My flip-flops are in my closet awaiting my bare-feet.

;)

My day will soon come.

(I hope)

We Miss...

our HORSES!!
Our horses winter at my dad's in Salt Lake.
We miss not seeing and playing with them every day.
We snuck away (another spontaneous move on my part) and spent the afternoon with them.
Oh, we had fun!

Dani Rae on 30 year old Risky ~ her boy.

She loves speed.

Risky loves her!

Hudson brushed Ranger (no pics) and took a ride with Dani Rae.

Abbi brushing and loving on Tally ~ her girl.

Lunging Tally on a lead line

Asking Tally to stand still.

I could watch Abbi "work" with her horse all day long.

Enjoying being "in the saddle" again. 

(Even though there was NO saddle. Abbi loves bareback.)

Our barn is almost done. And the horses will soon be coming back.

Yee Haw! 

New Winter Olympic Sport?

Tomahawk Toss

Why not?

It's got a nice "ring" to the name and you can do it in the snow.

Perfect!

Equipment Needed:

*A target*

(This particular one was built by Caleb with some leftover lumber. He said he didn't have a tape measure so it is a little cattywompus.

 Do ya think?)

*A Tomahawk*

*And a professional thrower!*

BULLSEYE!

Here is another competitor in training.

(Weston)

Nice form and a good hit.

Well, I am off to have a visit with the Olympic Committee...

:-)

Costing me a Fortune!!

 See these trees?

   

There is a row of them just down from our house. 

Nothing fancy. Just trees. 

However, in the winter, these not-so-fancy trees get frequent visits from the Bald Eagles and they come alive with beauty. Not just one Bald Eagle. Many! We have had as many as 18 at one time. 

Absolutely breathtaking.

Look carefully and you can see two in this picture.

Here is a close up. 

Most of the time they will NOT fly away as we drive by. This time I had my camera.

You may be asking yourself, "Why are these costing her a fortune? What is she talking about?" Well, you see, it all started back about a month ago when I was in the plow-truck with Brian. He told asked me to drop the plow whenever I was driving the truck. And I had been driving it quite a bit because the tires on my car were so bald that I could not get up to the camp. Anyways, I said, "Really? You want me to plow? You do such a great job." He said, "Yes. It is very easy and it will be helpful to me. Just drop it and turn the blade. You can do it." In my mind I was thinking - "ahhg! I REALLY don't want to. But... maybe. We'll see."

Well... we had a big Men's Retreat at Big Canyon. Brian was meeting with the men. It was snowing and I (unfortunately) had the truck. Argh! I toyed with the idea of plowing for Brian so he wouldn't have to leave early and the road would be clear for the men to leave. I wanted to help but I was fearful of "messing" something up. Who knows what. But I am sure I could find something. So I convinced myself NOT to. But, I knew it would be helpful.

Back and forth. 

Yes - No! Yes - No! 

OK! I will just do it! 

I finally decided I could/would do it and earn "points" with my husband. :-)

Abbi was with me. She was cheering me on. She kept saying, "Dad is going to love it. He is going to be so proud." I was just as excited as her.

We got down to Eagles Landing (the trees where the eagles sit) and there were about 5 in the trees and just as we passed 4 flew up from the ground and were flying right along with us. It was amazing.

Then that "something" happened!

I came to the cattle guard.

Let's just say... Not pretty.

Note to self: Lift plow when crossing the cattle guard and 

Don't get distracted by the Eagles.

The plow blade got caught.

It snapped!

Fixing the plow was NOT cheap.

I think I will be suing the Bald Eagles.

After-all, it IS their fault.

Know a good lawyer?

I am wondering if my husband will tell ask me to plow again... hmmm

"But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; 

they shall mount up with wings as eagles; 

they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."

Isaiah 40:31