Sweethearts and Snowshoes

One of the nice things about living near mountains are all the fun winter activities involving snow. Carrie keeps an eye on new adventures for us, and recently she discovered the sweetheart snowshoe hike. It's a romantic stroll through the snow and the woods and the mountains, just you and that special person and about 14 other people. With Valentine's Day in our minds, and love in our hearts, we set out for our fun adventure.

First, we met with the rest of the group, and then took the 30 minute drive up to our trail. We started to hike up into the mountains on a trail set aside for snowshoeing and cross-country skiing (no snowmobiles allowed!). It was uphill all the way. That meant that we, who had dressed rather warmly, were already rather warm about halfway up. I even had to unzip my jacket!

Now, of course, I cannot just get off the trail and not have a little fun. Armed with her camera for proof, Carrie caught me in this most unusual of snowshoe positions.

For all of you amateurs out there, DO NOT try that at home!

Just to show you how cool she is, my sweetheart snowflake also wandered a few steps off the trail to show off her modeling skills. What do you think? You'd buy whatever she was selling, right?

Really, we had a lot of fun. We have both gone snowshoeing before, but were reminded today of how much fun it really is, and how much beauty we are surrounded by out here. We noticed the pawprints of a number of different creatures (such as ermine, snowshoe hare, kangaroo rat, deer, and then from a moose or an elk, the guide wasn't sure), saw how the snow packs up, and got a pretty good workout.

This has become an annual tradition at the local nature center. We have gone on a sweetheart snowshoe hike before, and really enjoy it a lot. We got to interact with a few other couples from the local area, but really, we got to enjoy some beautiful landscapes that God made and so few people ever get to see. What a great joy that is!

Of course, we can't help but be a little silly every once in a while. You would never guess that from this picture.

Just a couple of cool people, out for a cool stroll through the cool mountains, enjoying God's cool creation. What better way to be sweehearts together?

Proud of my Spouse

Yes, I am very proud of my spouse. This past weekend, she decided to step out and try something new. Now, I have to admit that I am a big fan of trying new things. You never grow if you don't try something new, and you never know, you just might be really good at it. So the two of us do think of new things to do every once in a while. That's why I'm now a runner, and that's why you can now call her a knitter.

Yes, that's right. Carrie is in the process of taking a class on knitting. This past Saturday, she attended a 2 hour beginners class to learn. Their project is a scarf, which will end up about 35 inches long. So she went there on Saturday and, in spite of a bit of frustration over the weekend, is well on her way to getting the first 10 inches done soon. As I type, she's sitting at the kitchen table with her needles clacking away!

You might think that a scarf for a beginner might have one basic design. But in this case, you would be wrong. Not only is she learning how to knit, but she's also learning how to purl (that word just sounds funny to me, but I digress). Every four stitches, she changes back. Knit 4, purl 4. I think she does 36 stitches across, which means that she has 9 times on each row that she has to change her style.

I think she's supposed to learn how to make a keyhole this coming Saturday, as her scarf is supposed to be a keyhole scarf. I can't wait to see how well she does. She even just finished her last row in a mere 5 minutes!!!

What new things have you tried recently? What would you like to try that you never have before? And what's keeping you from it? Step out there and take your first step into a new adventure!

Tidbits, Odd Things, and a Bit of This and That

The Christmas tree is up. Our usual tradition is to put it up the day or two after Thanksgiving, but since we were out of town with some family commitments, we had to delay a bit this year. Right now, it has the lights, and the ornaments will start finding their way to the tree this weekend.

Carrie spotted a great deal for me over the past few weeks. I have a fairly large number of CDs in my collection that I rarely listen to anymore. She found a coupon to the local Hastings that gives you 5 extra dollars if you sell back 5 CDs. So far, we've had three such coupons, and I have made good use of them.

I have discovered a new favorite fruit. It's the asian pear, which has the taste of a pear, but the consistency more like an apple. We've signed up a few times for a local fruit and veggie pick-up, which has included these in our basket of delights, and I have truly taken a liking to these sweet delights!

Is it really December when you live in the mountains in the north, and yet it's still in the mid-40s outside?

We ordered some pants for me from L.L. Bean a couple of weeks ago. My size is such that it is fairly difficult to find my size in stock at stores. So we ordered a pair (getting a $10 gift card along with the order). I received them this week, and they fit great. Then, in the catalog they sent along with the pants, we found some more pants on sale for an even greater discount. Two more pairs should be arriving at our door soon!

I have maintained my running through the winter. It's very likely that I am in the best shape of my life right now. Though today's 8 mile run was one that I really had to push through.

As you can tell, my thoughts are a little random today. Maybe in the next day or two, I'll get back to you with one of my usual thought-provoking, laughter-invoking posts. Until then, may God be with you!

Worshiping in the Garden of Eden

Last weekend we had the privilege of traveling to Eden, Idaho for an incredible worship seminar. We weren't really sure what the seminar was about, but hoped it would provide guidance for a possible transition to a more contemporary worship service in addition to the traditional style we currently have.

Six of us piled into a van and hit the road at 6:30 am. Nice way to spend your Saturday, huh? Even though Worship Seminar, as it was called (real original title, huh?), was completely different than what we expected, it was so much better than expected. We dug right into the Bible and got to the heart of worship, talking about how worship honors God and is directed toward God. We learned about worshiping in spirit and truth and how our worship is ultimately for God and not ourselves.

We had a delightful time in Eden, and as we were making our way back home, made a pit-stop at a gas station called "The Garden of Eden." The name is a play on words with the town name, of course. But inside of the gas station, we were surprised to find this.

A serpant in a tree complete with glaring red eyes.

The tree was more than lifesize in the middle of the gas station. As you can see, people can even order their food and eat under the tree.

So if you ever happen to be traveling through the town of Eden, you probably won't find a worship seminar, but be sure to stop and check out their little garden along the interstate. Who knows, you may even find a fig leaf somewhere on the side of the road.

An Evening at the Art Auction

Last night, Carrie and I had another "first" in our married life. We attended an art auction with our friends S and K. It was held at one of the art buildings on the nearby campus, and since it was October 30, many of the people were dressed up in their Halloween costumes. We had never been to an art auction, so we didn't know quite what to expect.

We got there about half an hour early to be able to look over the merchandise, and let's just say that there was a wide range of talent that had been donated. I think some of the people even went through closets and drawers looking for stuff to donate. After picking out one or two things that we thought we should bid for, the auction room filled up, and the bidding got underway.

The auctioneer made the event quite enjoyable. He was a very affable man, who was able to crack a lot of jokes, some of which were at the artists' expense. One young man, in particular, had donated about 20 paintings, and toward the end, when the bidding on his stuff slowed down, the auctioneer made the comment that the market must already be saturated with his works. We couldn't resist joining in the bidding, though, and Carrie came away with a great deal on the following piece.

Also, since it was the night before Halloween, they also had a competition for the best costume. At the midpoint of the auction, the action stopped, and then the music started playing for all the people in costumes to come to the front and show off their costumes. Some were quite creative, such as the three people dressed as a banana, some bacon, and an egg. We both though the girl dressed up as Poison Ivy should have won, but someone dressed like Bjork, with a swan around her neck, ended up being declared the winner.