Snow

 Monday night we were able to meet the Hurdles for dinner. They were in Utah for their annual ski trip. Justin really wanted to take them to his favorite restaurant, Harbor Seafood and Steakhouse. It is a cute restaurant in Sugarhouse. They have turned an older home into the restaurant. We had everyone look ahead at the menu and make sure that there was something people would eat as it is quite spendy and they have a very small menu. We had such a great time catching up with them. There is always plenty of laughing when the Hurdles are around. Everyone loved their food. It was fun to see that Tyson was now taller than everyone (except Jacob). He has probably grown six inches since we last saw him!

Wilson and Isaac and their ridiculous hair. So glad they got to see each other. Isaac really misses him.

They came to Utah to ski during the right week. We really haven't had a lot of snow until this week. It started snowing Tuesday and snowed all day but it was wet and didn't stick, until later that night. The mountains got quite a bit of new snow though. We woke up to about 6 inches and then got another inch before I had to leave for work. I was worn out from shoveling the walk/driveway before I went.

Our driveway is so frustrating to shovel since there is nowhere to put the snow in the alley! I have to open up our backyard gate and shovel it all into the yard. I took this picture just as I had nowhere else to stack it and had to open the gate.

I was really nervous about going to work but the snowplows had been our on all the main roads and they were fine to drive on. Crazy thing was in a couple hours, most of this had melted. All of the roads were completely clear.

Friday morning I went and played volleyball for a little bit. That afternoon I had an appointment to donate blood in Lehi. Justin came with me and dropped me off and went to the card store. He is always looking for an excuse to get there. They were doing the blood drive at Skyridge HS which is only about five minutes from the store. Unfortunately, my iron was too low to donate. UGH!! It has to be 12.5 and mine was 12.4. This is the second time in a row I have been unable to. Usually the week I donate I make sure I eat a lot of food with iron and take an iron supplement and it works. I guess I need to start making sure I take the supplement daily all the time. It would probably help me have more energy. I waited until Justin got back and then we drove over to a restaurant we have been wanting to try called Moochies (a sanchwhich shop). It had closed down. There was now a pizza place that had just opened. We drove to Midvale to their other location. We thought the food was just ok.

Saturday I picked up Gary and Rachael at a Smith's parking lot on the way to Little Mountain and we went snowshoeing. Gary had seen pictures I had posted on Facebook from last week and said they had just bought snowshoes and wanted to try them out. I'm always up for going! There was quite a bit more snow than last week when Tammy and I went. We had a great time. It was nice to see them. The last time was at Camille's wedding in August.

We didn't go as far as Tammy and I did. Since it was their first time, they were quite tired. We turned around at a spot I remembered having a beautiful view. There was a good foot of fresh powder there.

The wind was pretty cold so it felt really good when the sun came out for brief moments. On the way back it started snowing lightly and was raining as we left and got down to where I had picked them up. The loved it and want to go again next weekend.

Hannah had an appointment to try on wedding dresses at 4:00 in Provo. She has decided that she just wants to rent a dress and this place had really good reviews. She fell in love with the first dress she tried on. It fit her perfect! I thought it would be really hard to rent one as she is so short. I thought for sure we would need to buy one to have it altered to her length. She tried on about 10 others just to make sure she didn't like another style but her mind was set on the first one. 

She is going to look so beautiful on her wedding day. She also picked out a veil. Of course, I had no idea where the veil was suppose to clip on. There was a grandma there with her granddaughter. The granddaughter was in a dressing room. The grandma could see us trying to figure it out and came over. She was so sweet. She told Hannah this was definitely "the one" and helped us put on the veil. It was perfect. She picked a very simple one that only has a very delicate row of beading on the very edges of it. I am still in shock we didn't have to go to stores all over the valley trying to find one. We went out for pizza and ice cream to celebrate.

Nathan had taken the night off work as Josh had the Georgia boys all over to spend time together before Rylan heads to boot camp. Autumn (his wife) was out of town so they had the apartment to themselves, Josh, Rylan, Roman, Nathan and Daniel. Nathan didn't get home until around 5:45 am Sunday morning. They had a great time playing Xbox through the night. The last time they were all together was for Nathan's birthday last September.

Sunday we had church at home on Zoom. That evening we went over to Parker and Emily's for dinner and to finally see their new town house. They made pasta, bread and salad and we brought brownies. Their house is super cute and Emily has it decorated really nice. Hope got to come too. Piper tried to play a little but Hope wanted nothing to do with her. She is such a stinker. We enjoyed our evening catching up with them and what is going on in their lives. I love the bond our family has with them now after having them live with us. 

Engagement!

 What a week! It was midterms for the boys. Hannah's classes didn't have any. There were some late nights after work finishing things off. So far, they have done well. Hannah worked two mid shifts this week which means that she works from 12-4. That means she is working the same time I am as I am there 11:30-4:30. It was fun to be there with her. 

On Friday Tammy and I went snowshoeing. We were supposed to get a big storm on Thursday night so we thought we would wake up to a lot of new snow. However, it had just rained. We really needed that rain to clean off all the dirt from last week! As we headed up to the Little Mountain trailhead (towards Park City), it was still raining. It pretty much rained the whole way until we parked at the trailhead. It was not raining there but the clouds were really low and the wind was blowing. The parking lot was a slushy mess. Tammy is at the car. You can see how misty it was.

This was the perfect winter trail. Wide open and no chance for an avalanche! The first little bit was pretty steep and then it was steep at the end. Other than that is rolled up and down. We were a little concerned at the start as the snow was just slush and only about an inch thick. However, after about the first quarter mile, it thickened and was perfect. We definitely needed snowshoes at the top. The clouds were crazy. They would be so low you could taste the humidity in the air and you couldn't see any of the surrounding views. Then, they would lift and you could and you could see for miles. It really was beautiful.

The wind was pretty brutal but we didn't feel too cold. I unzipped my coat for a bit but never took it off.

We could see Little Dell Reservoir the whole way.

I was thankful that we didn't have snow at our house as I didn't want Nathan to have to drive in it. It was a strange work weekend for him as planes were delayed or cancelled because of weather in the East. That meant some early nights and some later ones. It was supposed to snow all day on Saturday but was rain until about 4 pm and then it took awhile for it to start sticking. I felt bad for Jacob as his plans for where he was going to propose to Hannah kept having to change. His sister and best friend were in charge of getting things set up ( a little blanket, some roses and pictures strung up). His original plan was to go up American Fork Canyon to a little area he had planned out but they were getting snow and no one was allowed up the canyon without snow chains. His next plan was for a little bridge over a creek in a park he liked but the water in the creek had risen and was over the bridge. He was trying to remain cool and not let up that he was up to anything as he and Hannah just kept driving around. They ended up in Murray Park. He knew there was a little gazebo there so he instructed his sister to set up there. Well, when they got there a gender-reveal party was going on in the gazebo. Ha. It looked like the people were getting ready to leave so they just sat in the car for a bit and then gave his sister time to set up. When he and Hannah were walking towards the gazebo Hannah told him they couldn't go in there because the people still had there stuff in there. She hadn't noticed it was stuff for her. His friend took pictures with a real camera so we will have to wait to see those pictures but his sister got this with her phone.

I had been waiting all day to hear from her! They had reservations for dinner at The Cheesecake Factory so they headed to dinner. I got this picture from her on her way there.

This weekend was stake conference. Justin and I have a tradition of going to the adult session Saturday night and then out for Chinese food afterwards. Well, since it was on YouTube this year we ordered food for delivery before it. Nathan got to join us as he hadn't left yet. Just as conference was starting Hannah and Jacob showed up so we didn't get to finish it. They were both very happy and couldn't stop smiling when they got to our house to show us and tell us about the day. Justin and I are very excited for them. Now to start planning everything! I guess my new car will have to wait a bit longer since we have a wedding to pay for.

Sunday was Valentines Day. We did wake up to our first real snow. Nathan had gotten home at 1:45 am and said the roads were a little slick but he made it ok. 

Everyone got a little box of chocolates. We had conference at 10 so the boys got to sleep in a little longer. We watched the movie Soul as Hannah's Sunday movie pick. It is a Disney animated movie that came out this year. She borrowed Jacobs Disney Plus account info as we do not have Disney plus. I hear the movie was cute but I have to admit I fell asleep through most of it. For dinner Jacob came over and we made our traditional mini pizzas. 

Isaac and Nathan's

Hannah and Jacob's

Mine and Justin's

I made everyone two dough balls. For Nathan's second one he made a calzone.

The pizzas tasted way better than they look in these pictures. Rylan came over later again. It is his last Sunday night to spend with us before going to boot camp. He checks into his hotel next Sunday night in Salt Lake and flies out Monday morning. Justin gave him some "fatherly" advise before we went to bed. We will miss him while he is gone! I know the boys will really miss their weekly Magic games and anime movie watching.

Brown snow!

 I feel like each week goes by so fast lately. The first of the week was pretty normal. All of us working and the kids doing school. BYU-I had told Isaac he could take block classes to replace the class he could not get money back for after he dropped it. He got a call this week saying that he owes money for those block classes now! Ugh. Those people need to communicate! 

Monday Justin got a text from Jacob asking him if he could come over Thursday or Friday to talk to him about something. Hannah worked those two nights. It was pretty easy to figure out what he was wanting to talk to Justin about. He came over Thursday. They headed to Justin's office. Justin left the door open so I would be able to hear most of what was being said. They had a good conversation. Justin asked him a lot of questions. He and Hannah have the next few years pretty planned out. They came out about 20 minutes later so Jacob could tell me. He was so cute. He was super excited and could not stop smiling. We talked for another 20 or so minutes and then he left to be home before Hannah got off work. Hopefully, he can keep it a surprise that he was here. Justin said he was going to try and joke with him a little but found himself getting super emotional. Looks like we will be having a wedding sooner than we thought! Justin and couldn't be happier about it. Jacob is a good guy and we know he will do all he can to make Hannah happy and safe.

I had Friday off. I went to play volleyball for the first time since the one time I played in November. I had fun but could tell I was going to be sore. It started snowing but nothing was sticking. Later that afternoon it started really coming down. I had an appointment to give blood so I needed the car that night so I took Hannah to work. As we drove the snow looked yellow/brown on the windshield and we both thought it was really weird. Unfortunately, my iron was too low and I couldn't give blood. I forgot to have my hamburger last night! Justin had asked me to pick up a pizza from Curry Pizza on my way home. As I drove I had to use my windshield wipers and fluid about every 20 minutes to keep my windshield clean so I could see out of it. Sure enough, the snow really was brown. It was so gross.

Saturday morning Justin and I took Hope out for a walk and we got to see what the nasty snow left behind. Everything was covered in a gray clay-like dirt. Roads, sidewalks, stair railings, cars and now Hope. I hadn't planned on giving her a bath but she got one! 

My van looked the same. Justin and Isaac took theirs to the carwash but the wait was over 40 minutes so I'll take mine another day. On the news the meteorologist said that it was caused by gusty winds from the west desert. The dust gets suspended in the atmosphere and combines with the snow as it falls. 

That evening Justin and I picked up my free box of cookies from Chip and drove over to Kelly and Thomas's house. They have been redoing their roof and changing the roof line and we wanted to see the progress. We had planned on only knocking and giving them the cookies and talking for a minute on the porch so we took Hope with us. They wanted us to come in a stay for a bit though and didn't care that Hope was with us. We had a really nice visit with them. It was so good to see them!

Sunday we got to go to church in person. It was testimony meeting and there were some really beautiful testimonies shared. It was so nice to be able to be there in person and feel the Spirit they brought to the room. Afterwards, Justin was set apart in his calling as primary teacher for the 11-year-old kids. I had planned on tacos for dinner as it was the Super Bowl but everyone said they couldn't wait that long so we had a late lunch. Justin and I watched the Boise State vs Nevada men's basketball game. Boise lost. Then we all gathered and watched the Super Bowl in the basement. Of course everyone was now hungry again so I made a couple frozen pizzas, put out some cheese and crackers and popcorn and candy and lemon bars that Hannah had made earlier. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were playing the Kansas City Chiefs. Tampa Bay won. Rylan came over a little bit later and the boys were playing Xbox as Justin, Hannah and I went to bed.

Yellow Fork Canyon

 Poor Hope was still in pain for a couple days this week. I called the vet but they couldn't get her in until next week and I didn't want to pay for an emergency visit. I bought her some doggie aspirin and that seemed to help. By Friday she was acting totally fine so I will be able to cancel that appointment. 

It snowed on and off all week but nothing more than an inch ever stuck. That is my kind of snow! Pretty but doesn't leave a mess on the roads and dry when me and my kids need to be driving on them.

Work was crazy busy the end of the week. I guess everyone decided they needed to try the cinnamon roll cookie before we sold out. Poor Hannah had to make and roll a batch herself on Friday night because it was so busy the other bakers were needed to help run the front and make sure cookies were getting in/out of the oven. I don't know exactly how many cookies one batch is but it is huge, over 200 for sure.

Friday morning Tammy and I went to see if the mountain near us got enough snow to snowshoe. Yellow Fork Canyon is only 25 minutes from us in Herriman. At the trailhead there wasn't enough snow so we headed out with just our hiking boots and poles. It was a little slippery and icy the first bit of the trail so poles were very useful. About a mile in we totally could have used snow shoes. Less people going that far up meant not as much packed down and also the farther we went the deeper the snow. We turned around about 2.5 miles in as we were starting to sink. It was a good workout!

The little creek runs right by the parking lot at the trailhead. 

You could tell someone had come down with cross country skiis cutting a path along the trail.

Nathan was asked to be a shift lead at work. This means he will have more paper work and maybe a little less heavy lifting. When it goes into effect he will also get a nice raise to $25 an hour. On Saturday he asked me to go shopping for some new work boots with him. He needed to get some with a carbon toe for more protection. I think that is what he called it. It doesn't get as cold on your feet as a steel toe does. He said he almost dropped a very heavy package on his foot one night and it could have been bad in the shoes he was wearing. We also wanted to get library cards and haven't had a chance yet since they had been closed for Covid and don't open until 11 on weekdays. That is too late for my work. It was fun to be back in a library. I haven't been in one for years! It was such a big part of our lives when the kids were little. The kids still talk about our weekly visits to the library and Pizza Hut after when we lived in Tucson. I remember most taking my kids plus Gideon and Ryanne every Thursday for story time when we lived in Boise and I watched them while Shayla was working. They were so cute. Nathan was bummed that they had all the tables/chairs blocked off so people couldn't just sit in there. He had hoped maybe he could go do homework there once a week to get out of the house. Maybe after we see how the vaccine does they can actually open it back up. After the library we headed to Smith and Edwards. He new exactly what boots he wanted. It was fun to see him struggle with purchasing such an expensive "need" versus "want". It is much easier to put the money down on a knife or gun, ha. I was a little surprised at his choice. They were not what I was expecting. I was thinking lace up work boots. Here are his Ariat work boots. Apparently, they are super comfy and really good quality.

Hannah, Justin and I finally finished the Where's Waldo puzzle. It took forever and I don't really care to ever to it again. Plus, it had three missing pieces!

We had at-home church this week. It was Nathan's turn to pick a movie. We watched another anime one called Your Name. It was good. A little weird in places but a much happier ending than the others he has picked for us. Hannah went to dinner at Jacob's grandma's house. I had made a roast, potatoes and gravy, corn and sweet potato biscuits for us. We ended the week the same as last week, with Rylan and the boys at the table playing Magic and then the rest of us going to bed and them staying up to watch their anime series they are trying to finish before Rylan leaves for boot camp in a couple weeks.