Snow on Snow on Snow (Plus Big News)

Lately, our Salt Lake home (affectionately dubbed the North Pole) reminds me of the carol In the Bleak Midwinter.  "Snow had fallen, snow on snow on snow."

We have had so much snow!

It's gradually concealing the evidence of our (non-alcoholic) bubbly

Best part of all?  A rare snow day.  We didn't get out of pajamas for the entire day, except for when we tossed on snow pants over the top to shovel or play.  It was fantastic.

On a warmer note, this also happened in our family.  I'll let the pictures reveal the secret.

In case you can't read the caption, it says, "Back to Lyon, France--September 15-30, 2020.

We are so very excited.  In one sense, our decision to purchase tickets to Europe was extremely impulsive.  Some amazing fares became available, and we had to act quickly.  In another sense, this trip has been a very long time in coming.  Our year in France is such an integral part of our collective family history; we talk about it all the time. 

Talia and Brooklyn in 2009

It's been more than a decade!  We are long overdue in sharing this with all our children.  With Annika being seven, this seems the perfect time.  They are all old enough to remember (and hopefully appreciate) the experience.  While I feel a bit irresponsible pulling them out of school for so long, we will manage.  Truthfully, I feel like our family really needs this time together.  Before we know it, they will be grown.

Best part of all: we will likely take a road trip to see our favorite Lithuanians, the Vedeckis family. There are so many amazing places and countries to see along the way!  Let us know if you have any recommendations.  :)

She's Better Than You, Babe. Or is it Gorgeous.

Yesterday most of our family headed up to Brighton for a beautiful day of skiing.  We missed Brooklyn, but she was busy competing in Science Olympiad.

There may not have been fresh powder, but the snow was still good, and I loved the sunshine and warmth.

Eli and Talia, waiting at the lift for the rest of our group.  These two love to ski fast!


As for Annika, she adores skiing through the trees, and is pretty darn good at it too.  As she was nimbly navigating down a steep slope, I was a bit hesitant following after her.  A man called out, "She's better than you, babe!  That girl has no fear."

I'm not quite sure how I feel about being called Babe, but found it amusing nonetheless

Jason similarly had a recent catcall experience.  As he was biking to his studio class (he teaches adjunct in the spring), a homelesss woman called out, "Biking sure is doing amazing things to your body.  You're gorgeous!"

Agreed.  Now to all women in the world, hands off my man.  ;)

Annika's Seventh Birthday

Happy 02/02/2020/Groundhogs Days/Superbowl Sunday!  Out of all of these, I think the palindrome date is the coolest.  But I want to blog about something even more special--Annika's seventh birthday!

As the baby of the family, Annika's birthdays are bittersweet for me.  I rather wish she would stop growing and stay my little girl a little longer.  Alas, despite my repeated requests, she has informed me that she can't.  In fact, she even explained how she has to grow up so that someday she can have her own babies.  Hello, grandma.

We often celebrate Annika's birthday with overnight baked french toast in honor of the breakfast we enjoyed on the day she was born.

Then it was off to school.  Innie loves her first grade class and her amazing teacher, Ms. Blank.

Annika's class made her the cutest cards filled with pictures of the things she loves best.

This year was a "family party" year for Annika, so we came home and started preparing for the celebration.  Annika had requested a Chinese New Year theme, so we made homemade ramen and fortune cookies.

When I asked Annika what would make her birthday special, she said, "Playing with Ruby."  Guess it was a very special day!

"Heavy heavy hangover, thy poor head. What do you wish with a bump on your head?"  Does anyone else find this ritual strange?  Having not grown up with it, it still strikes me as quite odd. I tried to google it to learn more of the origin, but all I can figure out is that it's kind of a Utah thing. 

Hmm...whatever could be in this interesting package?

Annika's tights may offer a clue.

A hermit crab!  Two actually.  For months (years?), Annika has been begging for a pet (See exhibits A &B.)

"Can we have chameleon?  We would never find it because it would be camouflaged.  Love, Annika"

"Get a lizard, Mom and Dad.  I will catch the food.  Love, Annika."

While she would have preferred a lizard, these hermit crabs were about the lowest maintenance creatures we could come up with.  We've named this big one Tamatoa and the little one Sebastian.

Annika is delighted.  Yesterday we went skiing and she told everyone on the ski lifts all about her new pets.

After presents, it was time for cake.

May all your dreams come true, sweetheart.

Unfortunately, here's where the happy wishes end.  Immediately after cutting the cake, Annika turned ghostly white and said that her stomach hurt, leaving her cake completely untouched.  We bade Ruby a quick farewell, then Annika threw up all over the stairs.  What a bummer of a way to celebrate your seventh birthday.  At least the sickness held off until after her party.

Beautiful Annika, you are creative, inquisitive, perceptive, and above all, happy.  You fill our house with fun artwork and fun creature facts.  But most of all, you fill our home with smiles and snuggles.  Our family wouldn't be complete without you.  We love you so much, Cheesestick!  May seven be a year of learning and adventure.

Crystal Hot Springs

So very sleepy!  I'd better keep this brief. 

Today we went to Crystal Hot Springs, about seventy miles to the north in Honeyville, Utah.  It was fun...and a little bit lonely...and a tiny bit creepy.  The creepy part is that apparently a woman died there a week ago.  We're not really sure if she had health problems that caused her to drown or vice versa, but either way it's a little eerie.  The big pool where she'd been swimming was closed.

The lonely part is that it was only Talia, Eli, and I.  We had the day off of school (hooray!), but Annika has a stomach bug.  We thought she was over it until she threw up again this morning.  Brooklyn volunteered to stay home with her, but it was still disappointing to leave them behind.  We made a special point of telling Annika how she might have been bored since the slides were closed and the water wasn't very deep, but the truth it that I think she still would have loved it.

The fun part was that the pools really were unique.  I loved how warm they were, especially with the contrast of the chilly winter air to cool you off if needed.  Apparently the mineral content is higher at Crystal Hot Springs than anywhere else in the world.  So salty, but without the sulfur stench. Whether due to the season or the recent tragedy, the pools weren't crowded at all.  We had plenty of room to stretch out, float, and relax.  While we didn't stay overly long, it really was enjoyable.

Next step: come back as an entire family.