My 50th Christmas Dawns And I Post All the Pictures

I haven't been keeping a record of all my Christmases, so this being the 50th one isn't hugely significant, but it crossed my mind this morning as I woke early and put on some music. I am back in Utah, where I would have spent my very first Christmas, so there's a little symmetry for you, but other than that, the only thing to remark on this morning is that it's a White Christmas, which doesn't happen too often in Maryland. I woke at 6 am and heard the plows out, which means there was fresh snowfall in the night.

On the road in Iowa

We've been in Provo and Springville, Utah for the last week or so, after a fairly trouble-free drive across the country. We had attempted Interstate 80 and had no problems all the way across to western Nebraska, then got word of a storm that caused closures all across Wyoming, so we rerouted at the CO border and headed down to Denver via I-76 and onto I-70 over the spine of the rockies. It was definitely a beautiful drive, especially at sunset, when we hit the passes. I'm glad we made it over and into the relative flats of eastern Utah before dark, then through the Uintas via Spanish Fork Canyon and to the home of my second son by about 10:30 on the night of the 17th. In a stroke of perspective, my husband arrived by plane at almost the same moment, having left MD that afternoon.

Sunrise over Iowa

Wild skies and golden fields in Iowa

Driving west through Nebraska

Everyone is looking forward to Star Wars

Over the high passes we go.

Snow was blowing, but the sun was shining and the roads
were mainly clear. 

The week has been spent getting ready for celebrating, taking every possible moment to talk to and connect with my family, and getting to know my granddaughter and two new daughters-in-law better. I've had a few brief reunions with friends who live here, which has been really nice. I wish I could see all the people in Utah that I love, but alas, that's never going to happen in one trip. We've also had some good food times with everything from Czech pastries to chocolate.

Can't wait to go back here on our next pass
through Utah! 

One of my favorite things about the valleys of Utah is the
way the setting sun shines across to the mountains in the East. 

Biggest pizza I've ever personally seen. Good too. Very Fresh.
From The Pie in Salt Lake. 

Visiting with my nephew and his wife near the U of U, where
he's in Pharmacy school. 

Just one of those moments to treasure. Oldest son and dad
cooking for the rest of us. 

This little one adores Sam and Madison. 

And they adore her back. 

Not a pretty picture, but it was fun to be right next to this
new temple in Provo. When it was the tabernacle, I got to
sing there while I was in college. 

Seen in Target. Brennan Rasmussen, who served an LDS
mission in Baltimore and spent time in our home and
congregation. 

Next stop on the food tour was Taste, where one can find
great chocolate, vinegars and oils (as well as wonderful decor).
It was so interesting and delicious to learn more about flavors
and ingredients. 

And then get a crazy selfie outside.

We went to Spanish Fork to see a really nice
drive-through light show. 

Then met up for Concrete Mixers at Culver's. And all my
people together one last time. Johnathan and Kristen headed
to California for Christmas the next morning. 

I'm particularly introspective this morning as it also marks the last time an Eduknit post will go live. For about the past 2 years, I've been running an internet knitting business with my dear friend and partner, Gwen Bortner.  I'm pretty proud of what we accomplished, and I'm pleased that we got the subscribers we did. We had some wonderful, faithful people for whom I know our efforts were valuable, there just weren't enough of them to make it a viable business, so we are closing our virtual doors.

Gwen and I are going our separate ways in terms of our professional endeavors, and that's an adjustment that has already started. I absolutely adore having her be part of my almost everyday life; it will be interesting to see how our interactions will modulate. She's such a good influence on me, I hope we'll be able to still share some projects. I'm going to play with her next week, so it's by no means any kind of end, just a shift, and that little bit of unknown just makes me think. I am really proud of what we produced over these past 2 years. We jumped in with both feet, learning as we went, and we did some good work. You can see small samples of it here.

Now it's time to open the gifts, see the wonder of the day through the eyes of a two year old, and keep in contact with Lisa, who is bringing her littles to live at my house on this very day. Later, we will get to Skype with Evan in Argentina, which will definitely be a highlight of the day. We'll have an hour to talk and it will be awesome. After that will be a spectacular dinner, hopefully a walk in the snow, and our last hours together before tomorrow, when Eric goes home, Jeff and Ashlyn head to her folks, and Sara and I head to Arizona.

Merry Christmas, 2015!