Chilly.

The snow and temperatures have fallen here lately.

We're talking single digits cold.

So cold, that the beautiful white snow has not melted off a whole lot.

The first morning after the first real snow, I think we all slept in a little bit.  As if we were insulated more than normal, cushioned in cottony whiteness.  

We have a lot of walkways, and cement that need to be kept free of snow, and I found myself worrying about how we were going to stay on top of it. . . 

Jeff did buy us two shovels so that two of us could work together.  First time we have ever purchased a snow shovel. 

Our neighbor J.A. used to just put out his shovel if it snowed in Durham, and we would take care of our small walkway and his and be good to go.  In Denver, we just used a broom to keep snow away from the apartment door.

So yes, our first shovel purchase in relation to snow.  But, so far, the neighbors have been taking care of the major part of the walks and driveways.  They either use a tractor and blade, or a four wheeler and blade and make snow removal look like a ton of fun. 

Granted, it's much easier to cover my husband in snow using a shovel than it would be with a four wheeler, I can see the value in having an ATV.

I keep finding myself waiting for the 60-70 degree days to come back in a few days, but for some reason, I think they might not make another appearance until March?

I'm thinking I might have to find some great snow pants and gear that I absolutely love to wear, and learn to embrace the cold and snow:  sledding, skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, we are going to become good friends I do believe. . .   

Thanks

The day before Thanksgiving:

As tradition would have it, the day before Thanksgiving is reserved for pie making at our house.  This year, we had a LOT of people scheduled to join us (all very exuberant pie eaters) and so, I was worried I  might not have enough pie tins to do the job right.  I started with the traditional-crust-y pies:  Pumpkin, pecan (Jeff's favorite), cherry (Grandy and Charlie's favorite), peaches and cream (this year's experimental pie, it was all right, not sure it will be a repeater), and a last minute addition of a cran-apple, (my Benjamin let me know that was his favorite, and so I put it in the very large pan there to the left which is not actually a pie pan, but I think it worked all right)

Then, these wonderful little ladies stepped in and helped make very fine graham cracker crusts for the:   Two rocky road pies(Grace's favorite, or maybe it was the banana cream?), avocado (Jeff and Lily do the filling of this one, and it's her favorite), Banana cream pie (apparently a favorite of my family which I didn't know until talking to one of my siblings and then deciding that I would make that one in a 9 x 13 inch pan instead of a pie tin), Coconut cream (I think this was my favorite this year).  And then a few more pies came with family members. 

Family began arriving into the late evening . . . 

The big day:

 For anyone who wanted to, we put together our own little 10K.  (Okay, so I thought a 10K was 6.1 miles instead of what it actually is 6.2, but we were pretty darn close!)  Jared got up and at 'em with us, and we enjoyed a nice morning run.  He and Jeff took off at a sprint at the end.  They didn't know they needed to add a little more distance than just running to the house for the full, ahem 6.1 miles, but they did pass the girl who was ahead of us, so they felt accomplished. I finished up the distance by tacking on about .3 miles more.

We prepared the turkey, ham and all the rest of the fixing, or they arrived with family and friends as the day progressed.

We had 32 guests for dinner, and all were related except for Troy's roommate who joined us, and a couple wonderful friends from North Carolina who were in town for the holiday and able to join us:  Charlie and Tyler.  Everyone was hungry when it was time to eat, which always make everything taste even better.  

 

The food was great, but the best part was getting a chance to spend time together. 

I love that these sweet cousins get to see each other more now!  

Even the newly weds made it up from Arizona.  

After the food and some of the pies were enjoyed, it was time for some games and silliness.  

Jeff told Anna if she didn't win the hand of pit, she would have to do sick cat.  I was a little surprised she did it in front of so many people, but it was priceless!

After Thanksgiving dinner:

In the days that followed Thanksgiving, we had a few things to keep us busy:

Olivia absolutely loved her Uncle Daniel.  She wanted to read with him, be fed by him, basically be as near him as possible.  I thought it was pretty sweet. 

We had to take in some shopping, weather it was window shopping or for real, fun either way.

 We took everyone to Sacred Gifts which is powerful and beautiful.  I love original works of art, if you get a chance, you should check out this free exhibit.

 And, since we were on campus, we too, everyone to see Jeff's building.  Why not, right?  And, it's full of fun things to do, so added bonus.

 And, a Boster family get together would not be complete without a white-elephant exchange!  I'm pretty sure these were the greatest hit.  Someone pointed out that Joseph looks a lot like Magnum P.I. with the stash . . . who knew?

In the morning we did yoga . . . 

 

 And even had nice enough weather for a fun bike ride outside.  Joseph was a good sport to wear our Benjamin's helmet for safety, even though it was on the small side.

The evening we spent in Salt Lake at IKEA (some had never been) and Temple Square.  The lights were beautiful, but I think half the state and their relatives decided to go up then, too.  It was incredibly crowded! 

Sunday morning we sang prelude for our ward.  We just gathered around the piano like we were caroling, and I thought it was lovely and relaxed.  

We sent everyone home with a few sweet potato pancakes in their stomachs, and then started to clean up . . .