Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Snow Day



Randy and I pulled over to play in the snow and look at an icy river after spending our second day skiing. I've never made a snow angel in such deep and powdery snow- yummy!

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Rocks Rock.


There is too much to talk about, too much to see. Hurricane is less than an hour drive from Zion, the Red Cliffs, old mining sites, abandoned mills with green and blue rocks, and Babylon Trail (The Sin City for silver miners) which has petroglyphs!

I have waaaay too many pictures I want to post and talk about and I'm not sure how to organize the entries from the past few days. I'll just start with these photos from yesterday's adventure with Randy's marmy.
The road at Red Cliffs is super sandy and easy to get stuck in. The earth is so soft and is a lovely shade of burnt orange. :) I found lava rocks, flint, and a "rock taco" at this site. The weather was gorgeous and the mountains were easily visible all around us- perfect picture taking condition.

Old mining spot. We were able to stand on it and look down the hole but couldn't see the bottom.
Nearby is a small cemetery with crosses marking several "unknown" graves from the 1800s. One man came all the way from Ireland.

I hunted for treasures at this old mill for at least a couple hours. There were bright blue and green rocks everywhere and some really old glass pieces mixed in. I started with a peanut can and quickly filled that up. I think I earned Michele's respect as a beginning Rock Hound at this location.

Tomorrow Randy and I go skiing again.
I have a huge rash around my mouth from our last skiventure (Randy named it my RashStache) and my knee is a little achey but other than that we are ready to return, with warmer socks and a neck/face protector for me!

Thursday, December 24, 2009

I'm dreaming of a.......

So Randy got a raise because he is an awesome teacher. (And got Teacher of the Month in December- woo-hoo!) Because of this raise, we decided to try and ski while in Utah. Because of this ski-venture, my amazing roommate/former Whole Earth employee decked us out in some rad gear. Really nice pants, helmets, goggles, and gloves- we were set!

Despite one near-death, life-flashing-before-eyes experience of sliding on an access ramp prior to turning on 4-wheel-drive- I would highly recommend skiing at Brian Head Resort in Brian Head, Utah.

Recommended to us by Randy's family friend, Brian Head is only an hour and a half drive from his abode. We took his brother's 4-wheel truck which ended up saving our lives during the trek up the mountains.

This ski location is known for having short lift lines and reasonable prices, something that we definitely encountered while there.

I'm not sure if there were less people because of the holiday (not likely) or because of the harsh-ish conditions driving up to the slope, but I was amazed at the amount of people there and the space we had while on the slopes. Four-wheel-drive or tire chains is a necessity to get there, unless you want to drive 5 miles an hour and swallow your stummy the entire trip.


Anywho, Randy and I arrived safely and because some of the more advanced lifts were down we only had to pay half-price for the lifts and rentals. Awwwwwesome.
The longest lift line was less than 5 minutes and the snow was perfectly powdery.

It was cold, and my hair turned to icycles. It was hard work, Randy and I made the misetake of trying one blue and I spent over 15 minutes trying to put my skis back on after losing them in a face-plant. I'm not complaining though because had we never tried and failed that course, we never would have known that the powdery snow was higher than our waist. It literally swallowed me.

This was a beautiful skiing experience. We will try to go again if my aching body and sore knees have recovered.



A Little House in Hurricane, Utah

Here are some more photos of Hurricane and the abode that Randy's folks live in.
I am taking it easy, cooking a few dishes for tomorrow and resting my sore body because every muscle aches from skiing...Even my fingers under my nails.

Mr. Duck.

Mocha.

Stonework all done by Randy's mom.

Stones all found and collected by Randy's mom. She has buckets and buckets of beautiful rocks of every type and petrified wood.

Backyard Treasures.

I've had a taste of why this town is called Hurricane- you can hear the wind howling outside at night.

It's nice and cold here but the sun is shining, exposing the many reds in the rocks and burnt orange soil, subtle reminders of Austin. :)

Off to peel eggs...
Merry Christmas Eve!


Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Utah Part 1

Day One of Utah Vacation:

Gambling in Nevada for the first time after leaving the airport. (Ten whole dollars turned in to dust in less than 10 minutes)

Hurricane, Utah. Home of Randy's folks. I love me some pomegranate trees, and they have three around their abode.

I have met three of Randy's four brothers, his "wicked" funny mom and pop, the family dog Mocha, and the pet duck.

Randy's mom took me on a quick tour of Zion. We saw the Virgin River and drove part of the Switchback. Dramamine has served me well.

I feel lucky to have my very own rock hound (Randy's mother) to show me around. She gave me a box to store all the goodies I find while here, I wish I could carry on the flight some of the beautiful boulders I have already encountered.

Michele is an amazing collector of antique and rusty treasures. She builds stuff..... out of rocks and stuff.... And is quite the eccentric lady........ And we have twin cameras.

Every time I go outside (or walk around inside), I find more interesting and beautiful things to look at. Not too shabby of a vacation, I'll say. And tomorrow Randy and I will drive about 2 hours and go skiing all day.....Weeee!

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

I've Been Slackin'

But I've been craftin'....

Due to lack of time and my dead money tree, there will be fewer (but more crafty) presents for friends and family this year.

While away from the Blogiverse, I have been sick, resting, stressing, crafting, and preparing for my upcoming adventures. On Saturday I will be heading home to Odessa and then to Utah for the first time in my lil' life with the boy to visit his semi-homeland.

I cannot share what I have been making since I will be giving them to some of the readers, but I can show you what I planted in my bathroom! (My going away present from Central Market to myself)
It was a little scary how fast this thing bloomed- like an alien, it was.

And I can show you my awesome paper star that Shaela taught me to make and is now the primary Winter decor in our abode.

The stars served as awesome decorations for my housemates Hanukkah Party last Saturday, where I got to see my very first Menorah lighting. It was beautiful.

I'm very lucky to have such grand roommates. And because of them I have tried Latkes and Matzo Ball Soup! Hoorah!

Latkes, served with applesauce and sour cream


Dradle, of course

I hope you all have safe travels and stay warm over the Holly-Days! I will be posting many pictures of my travels.
Until then....