First Time Sledding at Mt. Rainier

The kids and I ventured up to Mt. Rainier National Park this past Sunday to sled at Paradise.  I was a little nervous heading to the Park in the winter, hoping the winding road up the mountain wouldn't be covered in snow and ice.  Luckily, the road was pretty clear, though as required my tire chains are in my trunk.  I had practiced at home that morning and was successful, but that still didn't mean having to use them in "real life" would be fun.

The highway into the Park from the north is closed during the winter so we had to drive the long way around and head in from the south.  It was still a pretty drive.  As we gained altitude we left the fog blanketing the lowlands and were greeted by clear blue skies and a spectacular view of the mountain.

My choice in heading out there Sunday was in part due to the thought that most Washingtonians would be at home fixated on their TVs watching the Seahawks game.  That and it was supposed to be a sunny day up there!  I was right on both accounts - there were still plenty of people around, but not obnoxiously so!

Our day of sledding got off to a rocky start when the brand new sled I had purchased broke into several pieces on the second time down the hill.  Luckily, we were able to purchase two sleds at the Visitor Center, and for a very reasonable price!  Evey also had a few moments of grumpiness, but once she ditched her coat (the sun was quite warm and the temp was about 40) and we found her misplaced mittens, and stopped trying to sled down the biggest two hills, we had a wonderful time.  I don't think I've ever had so much fun sledding before!

This is a view downhill toward the Paradise Inn and the Tatoosh Mountain Range in the distance to the south.

Goofy little Zach in his snowsuit for the first time!

This was the best spot we found to sled!

I learned on this trip that, while not so far this season, normally more snow falls at Paradise than anywhere else in the lower 48 states!

Now I'm going to get sentimental.  A few times, I paused with purpose to soak in our surroundings.  The colors of blue, green, and white were so brilliantly bold.  The sun was warm on our faces and the air was cool and fresh.  Even though I was chasing the kids around, constantly picking Zach up off the ground, and in general trying to keep the peace, I did feel at peace.  Surrounded by such beauty it was almost impossible not to.  I read this quote from John Muir at the Visitor Center: "Of all the fire-mountains, which, like beacons, once blazed along the Pacific Coast, Mount Rainier is the noblest in form."

On our drive home, once we had descended to a certain altitude, I could clearly see the thick fog ahead waiting to re-envelope us in its misty haze.  I had lots of time to think, seeing as the drive was roughly two hours long, and my thoughts turned to comparing Mount Rainier and Mammoth Cave.  Mt. Rainier reaches over 14,000 feet into the heavens a short 100 miles from the Pacific Ocean while Mammoth Cave's passages twist and turn for over 400 miles beneath the rolling, green hills of south central Kentucky.  Both are majestic and unseen.  Sure, on many days we can see Mount Rainier, but there are more days where she remains entirely hidden in clouds, sometimes clouds of her own making!  I guess it's apparent that both caves and mountains fascinate me, a balm to my soul.  Their beauty and mystery call to me in an almost indescribable way.  I think perhaps it's that I can't separate my heart from what they are ... nature?  We are all part of it, from the tiniest of pine cones to the largest of caverns.  From sweet newborn infant feet to the aged eyes of an elderly man who has seen so very much in his life.  There are no words.

Time To Get Fit

Due to some familial peer pressure, I decided to officially join a gym, Maple Valley Fitness.  My mom has been going to the gym, albeit a different one, for a long time now and back in November Jeff joined Maple Valley Fitness.  Since I had made an unofficial resolution for 2014 to get my butt seriously back on track I decided to go with it.

We're both seeing personal trainers now, although I'll probably just see mine a handful of times so I can learn what things will help me the most and then maybe I'll make follow up appointments throughout the year.  According to my evaluation last week, losing about 12 lbs and gaining lean muscle are what's on the table for me to get healthy.  Since I'm blogging it, it means I refuse to fail!  I am, however, not brave enough to post any before pictures!!  I am tracking my weight and measurements weekly though.  Perhaps if they make me happy I'll post those in a few weeks!

I am really enjoying our gym so far.  The people there have been friendly even though I still feel awkward when I'm there.  I've never been a gym rat ... but I'm getting used to going.  It's especially nice that they have a kids room so we can bring Evey and Zach along to play.  Both Jeff and I are going three to four times a week.  Onward and upward!

Hello, 2014!

Oh yeah, I have a blog, ha ha!  Thanks must go to my dear friend Ralph for reminding me that not everyone is on Facebook and that some of my distant friends (and family) may rely on this for updates about our lives!  So, here goes.  We quietly welcomed in the new year this year, not that past years were very elaborate or exciting! We let the kids stay up to watch the New York Ball drop and then at our midnight we watched the fireworks display all over the Space Needle. Hands down, the Space Needle show wins, at least as far as watching it on TV goes!

The first time we set foot in Washington was mid-February last year so it's almost been one year.  We'll have been officially living here for one year on March 29th.  Since my last update, we drove to Arizona and back, and I flew with Zach to Kentucky.  Both trips had their trials, but were well worth it to see family and friends!

Autumn in Washington was beautiful.  There are enough deciduous trees here in the "lowlands" that we get to see the colors change still.  I heard it was a drier Fall season than the area has seen in awhile, and that worries me sometimes.  We need the rain here, to keep our ecology healthy.  Climate Change 101?

Speaking of Autumn, Evey started first grade this year at Lake Wilderness Elementary School.  She is doing very well, her reading skills have improved vastly since the start of the year.  They are learning about Australia this semester which should be fun!  Grandma has been to both Australia and New Zealand ... maybe one day I will go, too.

Our next big trip will happen in April when we all fly back to Illinois for two weeks for my brother and Melinda's wedding!  It will be great to see everyone living there and lots of family coming in from all over the country.  I'm sure it will also be a bit chaotic, wanting to spend time with so many different people over a relatively short period.

Ahh, dear Illinois ... of course nature decides to dump two and a half feet of wonderful snow the winter after I leave!  I am jealous of all that beautiful white fluffy stuff they got.  However, I am not jealous of the brutal cold that tagged along with it.  It has been in the low 40s here most of winter.  We did get a wee bit of snow a couple times.  The Friday before winter break we got "enough" snow that schools closed down!  Here are a couple images.  Granted the folks around here aren't used to a lot of snow, this still makes me giggle.

Another state comparison ... when there's no snow in Illinois in the winter, the land tends to be fairly drab and brown.  Here, it's still incredibly green.  Also, I can safely say I have seen more fog in the last few months than I have ever seen in my whole life!  I've been obsessed with exploring since we moved ... both on foot and vehicular.  Here are some recent hiking adventures we've gone on.

On one vehicular exploration trip I took the kids out near the northwestern edge of the Mt. Rainier National Park.  We didn't make it to the Park, but that didn't matter anyway because this entrance is closed during the winter.  I turned around when the wind and rain combined with the mountainous road began to make me feel uneasy.  My tire chains have not yet arrived so there's only so far up I can go in altitude.  Before reaching that point though, we had crossed a scarily narrow bridge over a deep chasm!  Good times!

Here's a parting image of Mt. Rainier from another hike we went on, in relation to our house and the mountain.  Maybe I'm weird, but I like to see stuff like this!