Introducing...

Alright, here is goes.  I am starting a new blog, a supplement to this blog, not a replacement.  My new blog with follow my year long challenge of no shopping...
I was hoping to be further along on the design and personal content before I wrote this post, but I just didn't make it!  With that said and understanding that the design will probably change a few more times, check out my new blog!  http://www.lifewithoutshopping.com/... and wish me luck!! :-)

At Christmas Time

Right now it's snowing my favorite snow.  The perfect Utah dry snow that sparkles in the sun as it falls through the sky then lands on the ground snowflake still intact.  It crunches under your feet as you walk, but don't walk through it!!  It ruins the smooth almost magical palate.  As a little girl I used to go crazy when people would walk through our front yard and ruin the beautiful snow dusted landscape.  I would insist that we play in the back yard or a friend's yard as if the snow was a piece of art created just for me (see my craziness started young). Growing up in Utah I remember very few Christmas's without snow, a few with so much snow we couldn't even leave the house and many perfect Christmas days with the sun shining and the snow sparkling.

2009... hasn't it been quite the year? Good and bad; we have seen, felt and lived through it.  As we find ourselves only hours before the Christmas holiday, as we prepare for friends and family and the celebration of the season I hope we remember the true meaning of the holiday.  I hope we remember the gift of Christmas isn't wrapped up in presents. The gift of Christmas is Jesus Christ.  Oh how grateful I am for Jesus Christ, his life, his service, his example.  

Wishing you a safe a very happy Christmas! (...whether you have snow or not).

The Falls are Frozen!

For the last couple weeks Oregonians have been enjoying beautiful blue skies and FREEZING temperatures!  Oh boy do I love winter clothes, but winter temperatures... no thank you! 

The temperature dropped so much that Multnomah Falls froze!  When Deneal and I heard this news, we thought that was a sight that we could not miss.  Saturday, after a CRAZY new workout which may or may not be discussed later, Deneal and I thought we better hurry and see the frozen water before the constant threat of valley snow actually came to pass and the city shut down.

Now, let's discuss this adventure. Not once did it cross my mind the kind of seriously freezing temperatures it would take to freeze a 620 foot waterfall.  You see, that same day the Columbia River Gorge (where the falls are located) was experiencing an Oregon mistlike rain. Putting all this together, one may have come to the conclusion that those same freezing temperatures may also freeze this mist that has fallen on the roads and all walkways.  But NOT US!

About 15 miles from the falls driving on 1-84 we were stopped by cops as they cleared a 7 car crash.  We wondered to each other how this happened as we passed the scene hoping that everyone was ok.  Minutes later my car began sliding into the left lane, back to the right and into the left again. Black ice had gotten us the best of us - tricky! If you know Deneal or I, you are now thinking... I bet they were screaming while telling each other the best way to stop the sliding.  In fact, it was quite the opposite.  I did my best to correct the sliding and slow the car, Deneal calmly told me she was going to put my car in neutral.  We ended up back in our lane sucessfully avoiding any car crash!  Woo!  The rest of the trip happened at about 35 mph with hazard lights.  Finally we made it to the falls - it was incredible! We even slipped and slid our way to the bridge in the middle for a closer look.

Originally we had planned to have lunch at the falls, but after we froze our buns off and given the close call on the way out, we decided we had better get back as soon as possible.  We arrived home safe and sound - disaster adverted, adventure totally worth it!  The snow still has not arrived, but the sun is gone, the rain is here and the temperature back up!  Happy Winter!