This past Christmas we spent in Utah with Doug's mom's side of the family. Doug's mom's sister, Jeni, and her family (Jordans) hosted the family in Eden, Utah. I finally got to have a White Christmas! We had an awesome trip. I liked getting to know everyone better, since I hadn't had much time to hang out with them when I met them at a cousin's wedding, and at our wedding.
No sleep!
I slept for most of the hour and a half flight. After we landed we got a rental car and drove up to Eden, about an hour and a half away. I slept for most of that car ride too. When we got there we went to the Jordan's house for a bit before we were shown where we stayed. Such hospitality! We got to stay in a friend's timeshare. It was sooo nice. Fireplace in the room, beautiful view of the valley, washer and dryer, and a kitchen! Jeni also borrowed a jacket from a friend for me to wear for our trip. So thankful for that! The first night we hung out with the Jordans and played a DVD version of Family Feud, which had really weird answers!
The next day more family came. The Whites arrived form Mammoth and had driven all the way out there. Kyle and Ryan (both were in our wedding) and their parents were there. And Kyle's girlfriend, Joy, was with them too. (We reallly like her).
Hanging out at the Jordan's house
We found a hobbit house! Don't know why it was there...it was in front of someone else's house which you can kind of see in the background
Joy and Kyle in the background. It was soo pretty there!
Waiting for the show to start!
Some of the fireworks. It was foggy out so we saw a lot of bright clouds haha.
After the show we went to Ogden. They have a Christmas Light Town set up in a park. There were lights everywhere. And different companies and families put together playhouse dioramas (that's the best way I can explain it). Some of them were really cute and some of them were really creepy (to be demonstrated in a bit)
You can see some of the houses in the background
Sooo pretty and Christmas-y
See? Creepy. Hansel and Gretel...hmm.
We got some hot chocolate to keep warm
There was a train in this one. And you would start it by pushing a button. Reagan would've loved it
The next morning we went to Powder mountain to ski and snowboard. I was going to learn how to snowboard but decided I didn't want to hold Doug back. I wanted him to be able to hang out with everyone and not be stuck with a beginner. Plus, there weren't bunny slopes on the mountain (not like at snow summit and Big Bear). And it might have been just me, but their greens were like our blues. I hadn't skiied in about ten years though so I was a little worried about that too. But it came back to me pretty quickly. I just followed my instincts.
It felt like we were on top of the world
Doug took pictures of the view all around. We were told that you can see four different states from up there, but we don't know which ones are which.
Us at the top of the mountain
Ok, I didn't take a picture of him after he fell. Haha we were waiting for the rest of the group at the top and he was hanging out. That's one thing that I'm jealous for. Snowboarders get to sit down whenever they want!
Us at the bottom of the mountain
The sun was setting as we made our way down to the lodge to go home. Soo pretty.
I feel like this picture doesn't do it justice at all!
The family in their ugly sweaters
On Sunday most of the cousins hit the mountain again. But we were sooore. Our bodies were in shock from using muscles that haven't been used in a loong time. So we made it a lazy day. We went for a walk. We had wanted to build a snowman, but the snow was too dry and wouldn't pack. So we couldn't even have a snowball fight (Although that didn't stop Doug from trying!). Then we watched the football games, I worked on a project, and we relaxed before going to have more fun times with the family.
The pond. When we started the walk you could see the mountain behind it. But the clouds moved in.
The grass at the side of the pond was all crystallized
I love winter trees, especially when they're covered in snow. These weren't at the time though...
Ok, so see those two spots in the snow? They're deer! I couldn't get the camera on fast enough, but they're there! We were walking across the meadow and all of a sudden they ran about 40 feet in front of us. It was amazing! We had seen them earlier standing on the side of the road, but seeing these animals in motion is always incredible
My handsome husband :) It started snowing while we were out there. I was stoked! Beyond stoked actually. I love falling snow.
California couple in Utah. I look like a Russian.
I love winter trees. Did I say that?
It finally started sticking a bit to the ground!
I love snow filled trees
John's a San Clemente man and was excited to use the window scraper :)
Clouds covered the mountains a lot of the time we were there. But it was still so gorgeous. So still and silent
Doug and I like to do puzzles. This is no secret haha. Aunt Jeni had bought a puzzle for people to do that was 1000 pieces. We were determined to finish it before we left. (We weren't the only ones that worked on it though. Almost everyone helped!). And we did finish it. Ten minutes before we left!
The view of the mountain that was right outside of our window. This was the view that we woke up to every morning!
We rode down to Salt Lake City with Doug's cousin Dusti and his girlfriend Candice. It was a lot of fun hanging out with them. Doug really wanted to see the Temple while we were there so they took us there. Dusti had never even been before! It was a lot smaller than we thought it would be, but when you keep in mind that it was built in the 1800s it's really impressive!
The temple with the reflection pool in the foreground. The reflection pool was pretty! There was a nativity in the middle of it (That's what the white shapes are)
We went to the airport and got checked in. We went shopping for a Chrsitmas Ornament to represent our Utah Christmas. Doug's mom also got us an ornament to remember our Ugly Sweater Party. I love it!
I had to work the night before we left doing a floorset and didn't get off till 5 in the morning. I came home, showered, and got ready to leave. Sleep deprivation and miscommunication resulted in me forgetting my coat at home :( I had it on top of my suitcase, but had to open it to put our toiletries in. Doug grabbed my suitcase for me, but we both forgot about the jacket that was sitting on top of it. Ooops.
Our friend Andrew gave us a ride down to the airport (Thank you!) and we were off! We didn't have to get radiation or a groping. I saw that half the lines went through the regular detectors and half of them went through the xray machine. So we chose the regular detector line. We did that on the way back too.
We met up with Doug's mom and her boyfriend, John, at the airport. We got breakfast (Cinnabun) and then we were ready to board.
I slept for most of the hour and a half flight. After we landed we got a rental car and drove up to Eden, about an hour and a half away. I slept for most of that car ride too. When we got there we went to the Jordan's house for a bit before we were shown where we stayed. Such hospitality! We got to stay in a friend's timeshare. It was sooo nice. Fireplace in the room, beautiful view of the valley, washer and dryer, and a kitchen! Jeni also borrowed a jacket from a friend for me to wear for our trip. So thankful for that! The first night we hung out with the Jordans and played a DVD version of Family Feud, which had really weird answers!
The next day more family came. The Whites arrived form Mammoth and had driven all the way out there. Kyle and Ryan (both were in our wedding) and their parents were there. And Kyle's girlfriend, Joy, was with them too. (We reallly like her).
Hanging out at the Jordan's house
We got a little restless so we went for a walk through the nearby neighborhoods (Which weren't there ten years ago)
It's cold!
We found a hobbit house! Don't know why it was there...it was in front of someone else's house which you can kind of see in the background
Joy and Kyle in the background. It was soo pretty there!
That night (Christmas Eve), we went to Snowbasin Resort to watch a torch parade and fireworks. Santa was also there for the kiddies giving out candy canes.
Having fun in the gift shop.
Waiting for the show to start!
The Torch Parade. They skied down holding flares. It looked really cool
Some of the fireworks. It was foggy out so we saw a lot of bright clouds haha.
After the show we went to Ogden. They have a Christmas Light Town set up in a park. There were lights everywhere. And different companies and families put together playhouse dioramas (that's the best way I can explain it). Some of them were really cute and some of them were really creepy (to be demonstrated in a bit)
You can see some of the houses in the background
Sooo pretty and Christmas-y
See? Creepy. Hansel and Gretel...hmm.
We got some hot chocolate to keep warm
There was a train in this one. And you would start it by pushing a button. Reagan would've loved it
The next morning we went to Powder mountain to ski and snowboard. I was going to learn how to snowboard but decided I didn't want to hold Doug back. I wanted him to be able to hang out with everyone and not be stuck with a beginner. Plus, there weren't bunny slopes on the mountain (not like at snow summit and Big Bear). And it might have been just me, but their greens were like our blues. I hadn't skiied in about ten years though so I was a little worried about that too. But it came back to me pretty quickly. I just followed my instincts.
On the ski lift.
It felt like we were on top of the world
Doug took pictures of the view all around. We were told that you can see four different states from up there, but we don't know which ones are which.
Us at the top of the mountain
Ok, I didn't take a picture of him after he fell. Haha we were waiting for the rest of the group at the top and he was hanging out. That's one thing that I'm jealous for. Snowboarders get to sit down whenever they want!
Us at the bottom of the mountain
The sun was setting as we made our way down to the lodge to go home. Soo pretty.
I feel like this picture doesn't do it justice at all!
We went home and got cleaned up before going to spend Christmas night with the family at the Jordan's. We were instructed to wear ugly sweaters :) We bought some on ebay for the occasion. I figure that we'll have many more ugly sweater parties to come. Doug had already worn his a few times to parties that he went to and to youth group.
We did a mug exchange and then played Family Feud again. It was the adults verses the seniors. The adults won :) Although we were cracking up when the seniors got the category: Things senior citizens buy in bulk. Classic.
The family in their ugly sweaters
On Sunday most of the cousins hit the mountain again. But we were sooore. Our bodies were in shock from using muscles that haven't been used in a loong time. So we made it a lazy day. We went for a walk. We had wanted to build a snowman, but the snow was too dry and wouldn't pack. So we couldn't even have a snowball fight (Although that didn't stop Doug from trying!). Then we watched the football games, I worked on a project, and we relaxed before going to have more fun times with the family.
The pond. When we started the walk you could see the mountain behind it. But the clouds moved in.
The grass at the side of the pond was all crystallized
I love winter trees, especially when they're covered in snow. These weren't at the time though...
Ok, so see those two spots in the snow? They're deer! I couldn't get the camera on fast enough, but they're there! We were walking across the meadow and all of a sudden they ran about 40 feet in front of us. It was amazing! We had seen them earlier standing on the side of the road, but seeing these animals in motion is always incredible
My handsome husband :) It started snowing while we were out there. I was stoked! Beyond stoked actually. I love falling snow.
California couple in Utah. I look like a Russian.
I love winter trees. Did I say that?
We decided to go back in, but I took a video of the falling snow.
We monitored the parking lot to see how much snow fell
It finally started sticking a bit to the ground!
We couldn't stop looking at the snow falling outside. Plus we had a nice fireplace going and mugs of hot cocoa. It was a perfect Sunday afternoon.
I love snow filled trees
John's a San Clemente man and was excited to use the window scraper :)
Clouds covered the mountains a lot of the time we were there. But it was still so gorgeous. So still and silent
Doug and I like to do puzzles. This is no secret haha. Aunt Jeni had bought a puzzle for people to do that was 1000 pieces. We were determined to finish it before we left. (We weren't the only ones that worked on it though. Almost everyone helped!). And we did finish it. Ten minutes before we left!
The view of the mountain that was right outside of our window. This was the view that we woke up to every morning!
We rode down to Salt Lake City with Doug's cousin Dusti and his girlfriend Candice. It was a lot of fun hanging out with them. Doug really wanted to see the Temple while we were there so they took us there. Dusti had never even been before! It was a lot smaller than we thought it would be, but when you keep in mind that it was built in the 1800s it's really impressive!
The temple with the reflection pool in the foreground. The reflection pool was pretty! There was a nativity in the middle of it (That's what the white shapes are)
We went to the airport and got checked in. We went shopping for a Chrsitmas Ornament to represent our Utah Christmas. Doug's mom also got us an ornament to remember our Ugly Sweater Party. I love it!
The ornament that Doug's mom found
This has nothing to do with the trip, but this is the other ornament we got this year. I found it in the bookstore and thought it was fitting. Places we've both been. Even though CLU didn't work out for Doug.
1 comment:
Awesome.
A wonderful first white Christmas!
Thanks for sharing.
Nana
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