Jason In Jasper

We had the best treat ever, Jason surprised us with a visit.

So we tried to think of activities that he would especially enjoy.

The morning after he arrived (12:10 AM flight) we jumped in the

car and headed out to Jasper, I knew that Chris and Jason would really

 enjoy taking pictures.  We've heard that it's gorgeous in the wintertime.

I sat in the back seat so the two of them could talk.  It was heartwarming

to hear them catch up and just visit with each other.  We stopped in

Hinton and ate a sack lunch then headed into the park.  That's

when I started looking for wildlife and picture opportunities.

This is the first one I spotted.  I saw this from the road and

could see some real possibilities.

Wait for it. . . . 

There it is, gorgeous!

Look at that mountain in the background, breathtaking.

Yes, you're seeing it right, he's out on the ice, taking pictures.

I kept telling him, "it's your camera".  It wasn't deep, but it's COLD!

And it would defiantly ruin his camera.

Will you just look at that picture, the trees, the mountain, the frozen

river, amazing!

Yes, he's still out on the ice.

Just across the street was a stunning green lake.  I guess it's a lake?

Look at that color and cracks in the ice.

And yes, he's out on the ice, again!  This would be a lot deeper.

I couldn't watch, I had to go back to the car and besides, it was freezing.

I'm not going to comment on every picture, just take a look, and 

enjoy the wonder.

When we drove into Jasper, we went straight to Athabasca Falls.

These are the mountains around the falls.

I could hardly believe my eyes, it was so beautiful.  Enjoy!

Chris and Jason were trying their best to make me crazy.

They actually climbed over the fence at one point, to get the

perfect picture.  That's when I walked away and started to

cry, I could just picture them falling to their death.

Sorry, that's just the way I am.

A little french snow man, complete with mustache.

I can't believe a shark can survive in this cold water, see his fin

coming out of the water?

Still after that perfect shot.

I think I got a few perfect shots of my own, if I do say so myself.

Groundhog's Day

Happy Groundhog's Day!

We had a busy day, but we were able to spend the evening together.

I made Chris sit down and watch Groundhog's Day with me.

I love this movie, it's one of my very favorites.

ZLC-Be Mine!

Another ZLC rolls around, just in time for Valentine's,

so of course that's the direction I went with lunch.

I started with the tables.  I set them with napkins,

Valentine plates, rolls, butter and layered jello salad.

pink lemonade and strawberry milk

red pear and cranberry green salad

the tables looked lovely, I'm sure the elders will notice, and agree  

I added cups of valentine chocolates

The meal consisted of green bean casserole,

pink mashed potatoes and swiss steak.

The elders seemed to enjoy the meal, 

even if I did dye some of the food for the valentine effect.

Our leadership is getting really young, because of all the new missionaires.

I guess I have to teach these new leaders some manners.  I never had this

problem with the elders in the past.  

This group didn't even clear their plates, napkins and cups from the table.

And they left a mess on the chairs.  I expect more from my missionaries.

Dessert consisted of fresh strawberry shortcake with pink cake.

Besides serving lunch to 16 people, my other job is to take pictures

of the group with 15 different cameras.  And this is the hardest job.

I can never get them to take this part seriously, there is always one

that pulls a funny face.  I can see at least two.  I try and see if I can catch
them off guard and snap a picture before they can be silly.

I told them on this one that I wanted a serious face, it almost looks painful.

And this one, well no holds barred!

Crooked Creek

The missionaries have told us for months about these amazing donuts,

at this little off the road place between Grand Prairie and Valley View.

The area is called Crooked Creek and the little general store shares

the same name.  It's actually run by mennonites.

This time we remembered to stop and check it out for ourselves.

We almost missed it, if you blink, you would miss it.

They even had a few snowflakes and hearts hanging in the windows.

I took a few bites before I remembered to take a picture.  They were

pretty good, you could tell they were freshly made and the glaze had

a hint of almond flavor, I liked that.  I was being a good girl and only 

had one, Chris only had one too, donuts that is.

He couldn't help himself and bought a pan of these, they were still warm.

He ate two before we made it back to Edmonton.  I just had a little taste,

luckily I didn't care for them.  Whew!

Log Roll

Road Trip!

We jumped in the car on got on the road early this morning, 

to head up to Grand Prairie for interviews.

We pass these trucks loaded with lumber all the time on the road 

to Grand Prairie, going both ways.  I know of at least one lumber mill

on the way, with as many trucks as we pass, there must be more.

I took these really good pictures out the window, from our car.

It's pretty amazing how many trees they cut down, and you 

wonder what it is all being used for.  Houses, furniture, paper?

-25 Degrees

This morning we drove to Red Deer, for interviews.  The temperature

read -25 degrees celsius in the car, but with the wind chill, 

we hit a record low, (at least for us) of -38 to -40 degrees. 

Whoo hoo, that's even colder than on Christmas morning at -32 degrees.

I wanted to experience that record cold at least once, "mission" accomplished.

Utah Snow

And this is back home in Utah.   This is what the kids

are having to deal with this winter.

Brad came out of church to find his car covered, and only

after a couple of hours.  The flakes are huge.

Heather took pictures one morning of our house, 

they really got slammed last night.  I know it's devastating

to them, but I find it breathtaking.  She said, "aren't you

glad you not in Utah", between you and me, oh yes

I wish I were there, to take in the magnificence.

There's nothing like the peaceful silence after a snowfall.

The snow is getting hard for them to shovel and throw

up on the heap.  This shows how deep it is getting just

from the regular snowfall.

This is Heather's car at their apartment.  This is from one storm.

That's a lot of snow.  Where to put it all.

She might clear it off her car, but she won't be able to pull 

out of her parking space.  It will be too deep.