Breaking more records!!

My apologies to those of you who actually look forward to my blog posts - I took a hiatus for many reasons. First, I found myself really struggling to create newsworthy & entertaining entries as we were "between seasons," here in Jackson Hole. I took some pictures that gave evidence of the impending winter season - but nothing that would really make you say AHHHHH!


Horses even get ready for the winter here!

 The colorful leaves finally did succumb to the wind and rain showers and the weather changed from beautiful to boring (not yet winter, but not fall either...I will just call it "blah").  I was fortunate to have planned an extended Thanksgiving visit to KC right when I started thinking that "blah" was not my kind of weather. Hence my second reason for not blogging - I was busy enjoying family and friends in KC! Thanksgiving was wonderful in every way - both kids came to KC; spent lots of fun time with family and friends; and I even spent some quality time at Nordstrom, Target, and the stores @ Town Center. And we also enjoyed some delicious KC BBQ (Oklahoma Joe's, of course)....the perfect cure for "blah!"

Derek & Ashley with a happy Grandma & Grandpa!

 Enjoying a night at the Country Club Plaza.


I LOVE my Mom - so much that I will even post
a terrible picture of myself with my eyes closed!!!!

We returned to Jackson Hole and it was like I had flown into a whole different world than I had left. In the 10 days that I was gone the entire town had been transformed into a winter wonderland. We flew in late at night and endured below zero temperatures as we trekked through the snow on the runway into the airport (no such thing as jet ways out here - go figure). But I woke up to a beautiful sunrise:

I'd like to somehow take responsibility for the record breaking weather that we have been enjoying since we moved here (call it coincidence if you like - but I am starting to feel somewhat responsible)! We experienced record-breaking warm weather throughout the fall. The unseasonably nice weather allowed Jackson Hole to post record breaking tourism numbers in the National Parks, hotels and restaurants throughout the fall - and more importantly, it allowed us to enjoy so much outdoor activity and experience things beyond our expectations. And now we are experiencing more record breaking news....I will just suffice to say that we are very lucky to have made the move west this record-breaking year and also give thanks to God for creating the perfect scenario for the "Nelson's Big Adventure!" Here is what the ski reports had to say about opening weekend last weekend:

Jackson Hole November 2010: Biggest Opening in History
In an unprecedented move Jackson Hole Mountain Resort announces the wall to wall, top to bottom opening of the mountain, this Saturday the 27th of November. Never before in the recorded history of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (JHMR) has so much snow fallen so early with totals snowfall tipping the 118” mark. We are calling it Snowvember, to be followed by Deepcember. As one of the biggest storms in recent history continues to rage in Teton Village, the mountain is preparing to open all lifts including the Aerial Tram and the Gondola. This will be accompanied by the opening of all major runs including the Hobacks and Lower Faces. Jerry Blann, JHMR President adds “This is the beginning of a season without equal in Jackson Hole history. We anticipate being able to open the entire mountain in November—this has never been seen before.”

Some things for us to celebrate:

• We completed ski fitness last night - a feat beyond what you could imagine...please send Advil and ice packs! Looking forward to the reward of pain free skiing this weekend!
• Hanukkah! Yes, it is already here. We have not unpacked the Menorah as of yet, but we are celebrating none the less. Our gifts to each other - ski helmets :) Better safe than sorry. Bet you can't wait for the attractive pictures of us "en helmet" and then "helmet head!"
• Bella (our dog) got her first elk, albeit it was just a leg. She will surely be the only one in our family to do anything remotely close to conquering wildlife. Our neighbors were dog-sitting for us and took Bella into the National Park to cut down their Christmas tree. Bella ventured off and came back with an elk leg! They let her bring it home to show us. UGH, you should ave seen my face when my neighbor handed me the leg in a plastic bag. Unfortunately, I  "accidentally" mistook the bag for garbage and threw out Bella's prized possession on garbage day (at least that is the story that I told Bella).



Bella's big prize!

• Bella has also conquered cross country skiing - twice (our amazing neighbors took her while pet-sitting...they are wonderful). So now I HAVE to get out there & cross country ski soon! It is so cool to see people ski down our street and on the paths through the ranch - the weather doesn't keep anybody inside...it just brings them out in different forms! I must say that I don't look too adventurous taking my dog out for a walk on a leash!
• The weather is something that I keep mentioning, but it is worth celebrating! We came back to below zero temps, I thought that the thermometer was broken, but it has rebounded back into the mid 30's, which I now consider a "warm day"



Is this REALLY the temperature??



Warming up nicely!

Our weather here has been the same as Overland Park the past few days - we just have a bit more snow, mountains, skiing etc!

So we head out on Saturday for our first time skiing in Jackson Hole. Keep your fingers crossed that we come back in one piece (or at least capable of doing a blog entry)! It feels like we are going on vacation, from our vacation - I can't wait! The mountain has gotten a ton of snow this week and is supposed to get 8-16" more today - yahoo! This was the picture of the day on the Jackson Hole Mountain resort website today - I guess when they say they have powder skiing out here they really mean it:

AHHH, Life continues to be GOOD in Jackson Hole!