Spring Break Ski Trip 2015

For the third year running, we've been able to travel up to Salt Lake City, stay with family friends, and have a blast skiing.  Skiing is one of our favorite activities because we can do it together.  I match him run for run, until the end of the day, when I go to the little coffee bar and wait for him to come back from going down a few Black slopes or through the trees!

A break from school has been long-awaited this semester, as it's Adam's toughest load of courses.  He had Friday off, plus the following week, so we left JAX on Thursday afternoon.  There aren't any direct flight from JAX to SLC, so we booked a flight that went through Dallas.

I realized on our way to the airport that our flight was delayed by 30 minutes, and with only 50 minutes in between the flights that were in different terminals, I called the airline and chatted with them.  They confirmed that we would miss our flight, so they booked us on a new flight the next morning, and we got to see Papa, Mom and Anna when we stayed in Dallas for the night.  (I swear I did not plan this!)

Once we got to Salt Lake City, we rented our car, got our ski gear and set out to our family friends, the Apgars.  They are quite the hosts, and welcomed us with fajitas, chips and guacamole and margaritas.  A Texas welcome!

We skied Saturday at Brighton, which is one of the smaller ski resorts in the area.  One of the things we love most about coming to SLC is that you can choose a different place to ski every day!  Brighton allows snowboarders, so there were a few to contend with, but we both later agreed that this was our favorite of the two days of skiing.  Saturday night, we joined the Apgars for dinner out where their friends were playing in a band.  It was a fun night listening to live music of good cover songs from the 60s and 70s.  Glen thought it was fun to play the "Who sings this" game, but I didn't get a single one of them right.  Ha!

SLC has not had much snow this year, so that was kind of a bummer, but we made the most of it and enjoyed "spring skiing," as they call it, which is a completely different feel than our usual January/Winter skiing.

Sunday we skied Alta, and it was 58 degrees at the mountain base, and 43 at the top.  Suffice it to say that they weren't ideal conditions, but again, we made do.  Alta is steeper and has a tougher terrain.  We had a fun day, but preferred Brighton.

Dad introduced me to this ski app called Ski Tracker, and it was cool to see how we skied in Alta!  I forgot to start it until after I'd done three runs, but it still gives a good picture of our day.

  

We'd planned on skiing Monday, but with the snow conditions the way they were, it didn't take much for us to rethink that plan!  We slept late, visited the Olympic ski museum and had lunch in town.  Adam hiked later that afternoon and really enjoyed it.  I really enjoyed hanging at the house, working just a bit and watching a movie.  We're both happy doing our own things, too!

Tuesday started bright and early at 4 a.m. for us, as it was the only flight that day that didn't involve going to California first, before coming back and heading towards the East Coast.  (The joys of using airline miles!  But hey, we got free flights, so...the joy of using airline miles!)  We made it back through DFW and had plenty of time to make our connecting flight, and arrived back in JAX today about 3:30.  It was a long day of travel, but we sure enjoyed the trip, and coming home to Rye Dog was quite fun!

My friend Becca stayed at the house with him and also brought her dog, Nugget.  She's all of 7 pounds, and they are good little buddies.  Her family lives about two hours south, and she was already planning on making a trip home this weekend, so she took Rye with her.   Their family lives on 4 acres, and Rye thoroughly enjoyed his very own spring break with a cow dog, a lab and even a cat!

Adam's got the rest of the week off, but has a few tests to study for next week.  Here's to a relaxing time for him and a short work week for me! So grateful for time off to spend together.  I can see the end of the semester in sight.  Seven more weeks to go!

Finding my Sweet Spot

I have some major catching up to do from the 4th quarter of 2014, but I did want to pop in to our blog today and write this down so I don't forget it.  I told Adam tonight at dinner that today felt like I'd found my sweet spot.  Today I was able to do the things that I'm best at, all in one day, right here in our community.

It's as if, after eight months of living in a new place, I can say, "Ok!  This is why I'm here!"  And I'm grateful for it and don't want to forget it.  So it's with a grateful and humble heart that I write these things down.

Church Meets Social Media
First, I went to a meeting at our church here in Jax.  Our pastor had asked me if I would come in and talk to the staff about how to utilize social media effectively.  I prepared a presentation and came in ready with suggestions and best practices for their social media outlets.  (It's a service I offer to my paying clients called "The Vault."  It's definitely business, but it makes me giggle to have such an official name.)

It was cool to be taken seriously for my job.  (I know that the people who hire me take me seriously, but because I don't see them in person on a regular basis, it's always a bit of a surprise to me.)  I love our church, and I love helping them out.  The staff is very cool, and I enjoy being around them, so that was a great way to start the day.  (Plus they had donut holes.  #winning)

Then I came home to work from home, which I love, and got to check off several items on my to do list.  Feeling productive is invigorating!

Social Work & Fighting the System
There are a few of us at church who have taken this lady named Kathy under our wing.  She just started coming to our church about four months ago and came up to one of our pastors after the service to ask how to become a Christian.  We've been working with her on studying the Bible, social cues, and my good friend Becca helped her get a job at Publix (my favorite grocery store).

We've celebrated each step of the way with her, and it's amazing to see how unconditional love can be lapped up for the first time.  Kathy's nearly 60, and she's had more than her share of tough situations in her life.  To top it all off, her mother has Alzheimer's.  I have a special place in my heart for families dealing with dementia and Alzheimer's.  I know firsthand that it is a horrible disease.

I've been working on getting Kathy's mom some care, as Kathy isn't quite "all there" to do it herself, plus I've seen that it's incredibly draining to be the sole caregiver for someone with that disease.  Today after spending two weeks on the phone making calls, I was able to get her on the waiting list for funding for a nursing home facility.  A social worker has been to their home, and she is currently in adult day care while Kathy works.

It was such a huge victory, because working through the system is a complete and utter nightmare.  I cannot imagine how someone without resources (like a computer and internet, which I completely take for granted), can get any sort of access to care.  And yet the waiting list is long, so obviously someone has figured it out.

We have support from our church and several people there, it's just a matter of calling, filling out zillions of forms, having the doctor fill in forms,  and being persistent.  It has taken a ton of time, research and effort, but to fight for someone who otherwise doesn't have a chance makes my heart sing.  To make headway in such a ridiculous system felt like such a win, even if we have a long ways to go and many obstacles ahead of us.

  

Celebrating the Birthday Guy!
And finally, I was able to put together this wall of card for Adam's 30th Birthday!  I thought having this happiness to come home to would be a great way to celebrate the last night of Adam's 20s.  I had so much fun checking the mail these last several weeks as I waited for friends and family to send birthday cards.  And the mailman delivered!  I love celebrating in a meaningful way, and I think this definitely hits the spot.  Out of the 60+ people I emailed, over half responded, which is a huge win in my book!  Adam's opening up a few at a time and savoring them all.  Each card makes us both smile and laugh.

(Rye is so smart, he showed Adam which card was his, and even wrote out a little message!)

All things considered, it's been a great day, and I hope I can continue to find ways to create days like this in the future.  And to have one of these days at 28, and not after I retire (ha!), is pretty encouraging, wouldn't you say?!