What a birthday...

I have been really excited about this weekend.

Our favorite hubby/dad is celebrating his 50th birthday. Here he is, just a few years ago...

The family escaped to a wonderful condo in the Ogden Valley and skied Friday at Snowbasin. On Saturday we re-discovered our new favorite place Powder Mountain. Dean and I grew up on that mountain. Jocie added her touch with tons of fresh powder for her favorite ski buddy.

Cassandra made her daddy a Tarte de Pomme for the occasion. Don't you love her post-ski hat?

It was extremely delicious! The recipe came from Julia Child's famous cookbook. Love your culinary skills Cass!

Nothing like a french pastry after a full day of skiing.

The Chet man skied his little heart out for 2 days straight. The powder was 2 feet deep and he ripped his way through it.

Following 2 phenomenal days of skiing we had Dean's birthday dinner at a quaint little restaurant up Ogden Canyon called The Grey Cliff Lodge. The restaurant looked almost magical in a blanket of fresh snow.

Once a family home, the restaurant has been around for years

and is nestled next to the Ogden River. I love how my camera captures the snowflakes.

I know this is a big birthday and he would rather not have it...but I love this man. I love that he still skis like a 20 year old and acts like one too. I love how he can make me laugh harder than anyone else. I love that he "gets me" and is my biggest fan. I love that no matter what life throws at him, he is strong and unbreakable. I love that we found each other...in this whole wide world the two of us met and started a life together. And that is why I wanted this weekend to be so special...

Icicles...

The Grey Cliff Lodge is famous for their fresh trout. And the waitress will even remove the bones for you...it was amazing to watch her do it so easily.

The birthday boy and I... what a perfect ending to a perfect birthday ski day.

Back at the condo we had some chilaxing time. We played a little game I called "How well do you know Dean Garlick". Bob won...isn't that funny? Cass, Dione, and Chet were very annoyed at that.

Then we played Cranium... boys against the girls. It was total denomination by the girls. This is Dione's "you really think you can beat us" face.

Our fabulous friends Lori and Kelly stopped by for a birthday hello. Dean and Lori have been good friends for a long time. She gave him some fun travel skin care supplies and instructed him on the proper way to care for his skin now that he is older...that was fun to watch!

All weekend we worked on a new puzzle. Something the family likes to do.

The weekend was fabulous! The kids put together a 50th birthday surprise video for their Dad and it was absolutely awesome. Bob put in extra effort, pulled an all nighter and finished the video at 5:15 am the morning we left for the condo. Thanks Bob!

Happy Birthday Dean...we love you!

Here's to 50 more with you!

Are The Red Air Days Really Over?

Awww... January in Cache Valley... what a treat it is! We just had about 3 weeks straight of the weather phenomenon known in Utah as Inversion. Freezing cold temperatures trapped in a valley of haze and fog, while the mountains are sunny and warm. It was so bad this year, that for several days Logan was awarded the title of Worst Air In The Nation.

My camera sits idly waiting for something of color to emerge from the blanket of sludge. This is all I can capture.

The sweet birds that live through the winter in these trees won't even come out to sing.

One of the pine trees in the back yard looks like it has a heavy coat of fresh snow... not snow, just the dreaded heavy frost.

And then there's Izzy... wondering where her daily walks in the fresh air have gone. It's enough to make man and canine crazy...

So what to do...

how about fresh bread rising in a warm kitchen...

or a steamy bowl of lentil soup...

a fire in the fireplace... can you see my reflection?

Ding...timer's done! Fresh warm bread on the table. Goodbye inversion, hopefully for good, the storms are lined up for the week!

My Christmas Augenblick

Through a very dear friend, I recently learned the meaning of a beautiful German word. Augenblick means in a literal sense "eye blink". Figuratively, the word is much deeper and means "What I saw at that moment". I watched as my tender, young son unwrapped his long overdue "Jiggy quilt". He recognized each of his sister's t-shirts and his memories came flooding back. As he enveloped me in his arms I had my own augenblick that would define this Christmas for me.

Days later...this sweet boy would say to me "Mom I had a good Christmas!"...and that is just what I needed to hear.

I wonder what your augenblick was this holiday season?