Up, Up and Back Down

After two delays due to bad conditions we were finally able to go up on our hot air balloon ride over Park City, Utah today. We woke early in the morning to temperatures around -6 degrees and headed to the meet up place. We were very cold IN the van...but managed to bundle up and get to the launch site without freezing any limbs...

Once at the landing site we were able to watch them set up the balloon using 2 great big fans. Brrrrr.
After 10 minutes or so the balloon was 1/2 inflated...still freezing cold!

Finally the balloon was ready to lift off and we loaded into the basket with our guide. We ended up with 10 guests and a guide for our flight. Here's our crew from left to right: Libby, Jeremy, David, and Nina, just before lift off.
We were one of two balloons that went up...this is the other balloon, which chose to go straight up very quickly. We were glad of the more gradual ascent of our guide. It was a gentle, slow ascent up to 2500 feet above a snow covered Park City mountain view. It was beautiful!!



Here we are near the top of our ride...still smiling and enjoying the view. Not nearly as cold up in the air...strange, but true. There is no breeze when you are in the balloon since you go with the flow of the air. The burner, which emits 500,000 btus, kept us warm when it was on. But they were turned off for our descent and gradual return to land.
And after two almost landings we were able to land at a rest stop beside the highway. Our landing was incredibly smooth, with a 20 yards of skidding across the asphalt and then stopping in a snow bank. We quickly headed to the waiting warm van and watched the crew pack up the balloon. After a trip back to the car we enjoyed a lovely breakfast at No Worries Cafe and headed home. It was a wonderful experience...so glad we went.

Christmas 2009

What a wonderful Christmas we're having here in Utah. We spent Christmas Eve in Draper with Dave's parents. We had the traditional breakfast for dinner and PJs before bed. I think McKinley was the only one who didn't know what her present that night was going to be. Here they are for Christmas 2009:First thing the next morning we were up to see what Santa had brought for us. Our stockings were filled with goodies and a few games and toys for everyone. Then we were able to give our presents to Nana and Grandad and receive presents from them too.
After that we packed up and headed up to Park City where we had the rest of our presents under the tree at my sister's house. We were there with my Mom and Irv, my sister, her husband and her 3 kids and my Uncle Jeremy from England. It was a great crew and we had a crazy time opening (too many!) presents. The kids are all getting along so well and they seemed to be pleased with the gifts they got. It was so fun to see them open their presents.

I especially liked the girls tutus and wings that I found at a boutique in San Antonio. They are 4 of the cutest fairies I've ever seen. Another special gift was a handmade matching bathrobe from my mom to McKinley and me. They are sparkly pink butterflies with the softest lining I've ever felt. They are awesome.

After sledding the men took off to the sled hill (otherwise known as the road!) to go sledding. After bundling everyone up they were out for 2 hours while we cooked in the kitchen.

The dinner list included a deep fried turkey in Jim's new turker roaster. It took a little work to figure it all out, but eventually it was warmed up, the turket was dunked, and cooked in 48 minutes!

With many hands in the kitchen for most of the day we were finally ready for our Christmas meal. It included Leg of Lamb, Turkey, rolls, brussel sprouts, green beans, cranberry sauce, roasted potatoes and carrots...followed by lemon meringue pie, pumpkin pie, and ice creams! Wow...what a wonderful Christmas meal.
All in all a wonderful day!

Snow Walk

Today's adventure - a walk to the Moose Pond...with snow shoes! Those brave enough to go were Uncle Jeremy, Ethan, Grandma Libby, Grandpa Irv, Keegan, Denali and Evan.

After suiting up for about 20 minutes they were off with the 4 dogs for a nice hike. Grandma Libby had to come back with Keegan and Denali because the snow was too deep. The rest of the crew made it to the bottom and phoned up for a lift home. It was a successful undertaking...mission accomplished!

Mom's Birthday...59 years down!

On the 22nd of December we were all here to celebrate Mom's birthday! We started the day by making apple pancakes for her and then played a few games and had a lazy morning before heading down to SLC for a bowling pizza party! We had a nice lunch together at the Pizza Factory and then we all played a game of bowling. We had 5 adults and 7 children on two lanes. I'm happy to say that everyone had a great time...we all had success with the bowling...and I was not last (but very close to it!)

We finished the night with a triple chocolate birthday cake and a BYU-OSU football bowl game.

Happy Birthday Mom (grandma Libby!)

Progressive Christmas Dinner

On Sunday night the Smith family had it's annual progressive dinner....this time...we were here!! We started at the Harding home for appetizers, headed to the Smith house for salad, another Smith house for dinner, and finally the Cederlof's for dessert.

Unfortunately we added an emergency stop to Grandma Pearson's house. She was dealing with some awful pain and some of us stopped by to see her and so her grandsons could give her a blessing. After assessing the situation further it was decided that she needed to go to the hospital to be evaluated and to receive some pain management. After administering a blessing to her, she was taken to the hospital where she is getting treatment still. Our prayers go out to her.

Coordinating an event like that is always...well...an event! We were glad we could be here this year to share in the tradition. It's always so fun to see how well the big family all gets along. This year's total = 14 adults, 23 children. We missed two of the families...Carmans and Davenports, but will see them for the next event...New Years!

Old Time Christmas

Tonight we met up with our friends, the Thill family at the This Is the Place monument Christmas village. Our group of 20 people walked around the cute Christmas village and tried to stay warm. We darted in to a couple buildings for a craft and a puppet show. We rode the train around the village and down to the reindeer. We then ran over to the monument and played in the snow for a few minutes. And finally, we ate yummy cinnamon rolls, cookies and hot chocolate in the parking lot before heading home. It was a great reunion with one of our favorite families. Thanks Thills...we love you guys.

Evan's letter to Father Christmas...not sure how we'll get that mini go cart home to Texas from here??!!

We got the front car of the train for the ride back from the reindeer. Pretty cool (and cold) with the chilly night air.

Writing letters to Father Christmas....then you "send" them by throwing them in the fire and the smoke travels to the North Pole and is received by Father Christmas' fire.


McKinley liked playing in the snow. She threw a few snowballs at the cameraman...cheap shot!

Harlingen Heartbreaker

Austin and Ethan's soccer team advanced to the Western Districts as an undefeated team. The season had been phenominal and the kids had worked so hard. This was their 5 season together and they were really "getting it". We traveled 5 hours south to Harlingen Texas to compete in the Western District tournament. We we ready for our 3 games on Saturday with hopes of advancing to Sunday and on to state.

Our first game started at 7:30 in the morning, which meant an arrival time of 6:45am!! And it was sooooo cold. There was frost on the ground and my feet were numb within minutes of arriving. Not really fun. The boys were dressed in there under armor and running tights with hats and gloves to try and stay warm. Those running around on the field were the lucky ones!!

We played a great first game, posting a win 4-1. The second game was another story. When we arrived to the field we were surprised to see a team full of young men ready to face our 13 year old boys. They all (except maybe 2-3) looked years older than our boys. And they were good. Come to find out that the team we played would probably be 1 or 2 leagues above us in skill level excpet they don't have the money/time to travel as far as they would have to to compete. So they killed us. Our boys ran their little hearts out and gave it everything they had, but it was clearly not enough. They were outplayed and only managed to score 2 goals to their 7.

After that defeating loss the boys didn't have anything left for the final game that afternoon. Playing three games in one day is so trying, but to have the mental and physical drain from their second game on their backs was tough. We tried everything we could to boost them and encourage them, but they weren't able to "snap out of it" and ended up losing again to a team they have beaten before. With that loss their season was over.

Once the shock wore off the boys were able to see that they had had a wonderful season. They accomplished a lot and ended up 5th in the Western District's. Not many teams can say that!! So it was a good season...and now the boys have one more season together before they split the team, so they are determined to make it past Districts and on to State...Way to go Rangers!!

Just a note

So it's a little crazy around here...but I wanted to post so those who read this will know that we're still here....

December is usually quiet...in fact, I remember thinking it was not fair that everything was cancelled in December because people were "too busy". Library story time would end the beginning of December, dance classes finished up a couple weeks before Christmas for "a break", even friends stop calling on you in case you're in a holiday frenzy. And I was usually bored. It's no secret that I'm a girl that likes to be on the run. I like to have something on the calendar...to me that means I've got a purpose that day. I would spread out my errands to make sure I had something to do the next day.... And then my kids grew up and I took on more responsibilities...like a part time job, a room mom, the ward Activity chairman, and rural living!

So now I've joined the "too busy" bunch that wishes just something would fall off the calendar for a while. I find myself thinking, "when does dance end again?", or "do I really have time to go to lunch with XYZ?"

And add in the fact that we're leaving town for 2 1/2 weeks on Thursday. Monday and Tuesday I have a 2 day seminar to attend from 9-5, a Christmas dinner for work, and visits to make to all those friends I will miss over Christmas....and I live in the boonies. But living in the boonies is a whole 'nother post. That definitely has something to do with our house being on the market!

So that's what we're up to...probably as busy as the rest of you....but I wish you a very Merry Christmas!!

New Camera!!

For Christmas (a little early) we got a new fancy DSL camera....the Canon Rebel something. It's wonderful and complicated and easy all in one. I've only had a few days to play around with it, but it's amazing!! I've got a lot to learn and I can tell it's going to be great. Mostly I've just practiced with the focus feature and faces. I'm having fun with my close up lens. The clarity of the photos is great...a true upgrade from my point and shoot. Here's some of the first shots I took when I was playing around today: