Christmas!

Hopefully, I will get some pictures of our Christmas time. We were able to go down on the 24th to see my family and got there in time for an excellent meal at Historic Fort Vancouver. The food was great!! i loved it all except for my pumpkin creme brule. We definitely decided it would be nice to go back next Christmas if we are down there. I still think about that meal. T liked it so much, he ate his steak and half of mine. Whew!

On Christmas day, Mom made us some stuffed french toast before we opened stockings. It was tasty, and we had a nice time and relaxing morning. Then we went to my bro's house and hung out for awhile, and after a tamale lunch, we went sledding with the family. WE had so much fun! I love sledding and am looking forward to getting my own. The girls really liked sledding with Uncle T. We had a snowball fight, which I lost spectacularly. We ended the day with a meal of lamb, potatoes, green beans and delicious dessert. All of the food was so good while we were down there. HOpefully, I can get some pictures to put on here. It was really nice to see family as well. looking forward to going down again!

Snow Pictures

My snowman

Snow!

We have had quite a bit of snow. I took a picture of the top of my car to show how much we got over night. It has been really fun, but I wish I could have found a sled. T had to go to work so I played in the snow by myself, as can be seen above. I made a little snowman right outside our window so we could look at him. WE were hoping to go snowshoeing but it didn't happen.

Burt

This bald eagle, we've named him Burt, lives in a field near our apartment. He just hangs out in his tree, and today we saw his mate up there with him. You can see them from a ways out and whenever we are on the highway we check to see if he is there.

Travels with snow

Yesterday, T and I helped a friend move...in the snow. It was fun and interesting. She lives on the top of quite the hill. Even in 4WD we couldn't get up the total hill or across another big one (kids had been using it as a sled run and it was really icy. T managed to shovel everything out enough to get all of her stuff out and the truck up to the top of the hill. J treated us to an olive garden linner and it was so tasty!

Adventure in snow

Today, I had a snow adventure. Here in WA they don't do anything to any road but the main ones and the highway. So, I was able to get out of the parking spot...some nice guy and a friend gave me a good push (I was blocking the whole driveway when I got stuck.) I made it all around town...no chains or sleds or tires available for purchase. Sad... I really want to go sledding, but I'm kind of picky. They didn't even have saucers, which I may have been tempted to purchase if they had any, even though I am not fond of them at all. I would love to get a real sled someday. Anyway, the first time I tried to get home from the grocery store, I got stuck halfway up the hill to the apartment. So, I parked in this lot and walked the groceries up. then, I went and did the rest of my errands...and decided I would try getting up the hill one last time. I made it up...barely, but then it was interesting to get back into a parking space. i am closer to the car next to me than I would like. I''m going to wait until T gets home with our snow chains.

Found: a job

WOOHOO! I found a job working for a cafeteria group that has about 5 different outlets. It has been pretty fun. I've been making espressos, cashiering, working the grill etc. I Like it!

Snow!

I am currently watching snow fall and it is beautiful. I got out of work before they closed the whole base down. I have gotten a quick course in snow driving and don't think I will go out and drive again today unless I have to. They don't have the stuff to properly clear roads here which is interesting when they get snow every year. It really is beautiful.

Grey wolf trail

Snow Hike

Over the weekend, T and I went to Olympic NP to go hopefully snowshoeing, but there wasn't quite enough snow, so we went for a great hike down the Grey wolf trail to where you have to ford the river. We scoped out the river crossing for future reference. I think the water would be cold.

Thanksgiving meals

We had a fun Thanksgiving. We celebrated with two other couples in a potluck of sorts. The food was good, and none of us had to be by ourselves. Later that week, we went and celebrated Thanksgiving with a guy T knew from work. That was an experience. We had some great fried turkey (very moist, not oily at all), and some potatoes and carrots and rolls. Frying the turkey was an experience...the fryer was borrowed and it had holes in the bottom, so we added extra oil and kept throwing sand on the stuff that dripped out so it wouldn't ruin the driveway. Lots of fun and meeting new people.

Seattle

When we went and watched cyclocross, we also went briefly to Seattle and visited Pike's Market. Always fun!

Cyclocross

I have never heard of cyclocross, but it seems to be pretty popular up here in the North. It is like a road/mountain bike, and the races take place off road- grass, gravel, and include obstacles you have to get off your bike and carry it across. We went about a month ago to one and it was pretty cool. It was a lovely sunny day as well. We went with our friends J and D.