Snowshoeing

I started 2016 off with a bang.  Not literally.  I actually spent New Years Day in the Vegas airport working on my computer, and then finally back to the great state of Washington.  But the next morning, my friend called and wanted to try snowshoeing, so of course I was in.  Two days in, and already I was off on a new adventure.

I learned that snowshoeing is super fun!  I probably won't be venturing out on my own any time soon (uh, snowshoes are $$), but a nice beginners hike was right up my alley. 

We hit the road pretty early (I'm talking early for a weekend...maybe 8am) to try and beat the crowd, but outdoor people are morning people.  Although we missed the high traffic time, there were still a bunch of people that had the same idea as us.

There were hundreds (just a guess) of cars trying to park in a lot for about 15 cars, so everyone was parked along a narrow road, which left one lane of traffic for two lanes of cars getting throw.  With an icy road and big and small cars, it made for an interesting/stressful parking experience.

But ohhhh the snowshoeing fun!  We hit up Gold Creek Pond, because according to lots of online sources it is a good beginners hike for snowshoeing.

It was picture perfect in every way.  Snoqualmie Pass has gotten feet and feet of snow this winter, and had just had a fresh snow dump the week prior to our visit (up to 210 inches of snow had fallen as of Jan. 2nd), so we were standing on a good amount of snow on our hike.

The hike itself wasn't too long- maybe half a mile to the trail and about a mile around the lake, so probably 2-2.5 miles total.

Once we got to the pond, I kind of forgot that the pond would be iced over.  I don't know why I expected to see water.  A few people were out on the ice, but I didn't trust it enough to venture that far, especially since there were parts that weren't iced over at all.

The PERFECT day to be outside.  I was wearing 8 layers of clothing, so I wasn't too chilly except toward the end.

That's the bathroom hahaha

It was a little cloudy in the mountains when we were there, but that just made it more beautiful.  I definitely want to come back here in the summer when the snow is melted and the sunshine is bright.  The trail is wide and a great quick getaway to escape to nature.

LOVED it!  I'm so lucky to have friends who are up for these day hikes.  I still need to learn my hiking safety tips and I need to get my backpack packed with the 10 "hiking essentials" so that I'm a safer hiker.  That's my next outdoor goal!  

Catching Up- Christmas 2015

I was more than ready to wrap up my final week of school for 2015 and run out of the building at full speed for break.  It was MUCH needed.  I had been fighting a sore throat and feeling crummy for the last week and a half of school and ended up sleeping until 11am on the first Saturday of break and then moved to the sofa to lay around for more.  (Fun fact:  Teachers always get sick over their breaks.  Every.  Single.  Time.)

I was determined to NOT be a sicko on a plane and while snuggling my sweet little Squishy niece.  I literally laid around all day and battled it out with the plague while watching every Christmas movie on the Hallmark/Lifetime channels.  For the most part, this process worked.  I spent the evening packing and was ready to hit the clouds by morning.

So I was able to spend a good chunk of time back in the Midwest visiting family, friends, and even a good amount of snow.  I spent HOURS in restaurants chatting and at houses visiting and it was wonderful to see "my people".

But mostly, I got to spend time with Squishy on her first Christmas.  This little cutie is full of smiles, squeals, and a LOT of spit-up.

Just call me the baby whisperer.

Telling Santa what she wants for Christmas.

After Christmas Mass

She cracks herself up.

It was pretty wonderful.  Nothing beats quality time with friends and family!  

The Usual

I don't want to leave any super fun details out, so here are the final two things we did while my parents were in town...both were things I've blogged about before, so I just took them to explore the usual haunts.

Snoqualmie Falls:
We were able to check off a big tourist "must see" and made a detour on the way home from Leavenworth to check out the falls.  Since it was winter-y, there were icy paths and many of them were closed, so walking around was limited.  However, with all the recent Seattle rain, the falls were in full force and it was still a cool place to stop and check out.  This time there was enough water to see a little mini-waterfall.  Ugh, nature is so cool.

Chihuly Museum:
It was my third visit to the museum, but I still love the glass art out here and it really never gets old.  They were doing demonstrations on glass making that day which was pretty interesting.  Here's a picture of me looking super tired.

Seattle Gingerbread Village

Happy New Year!  I have two "resolutions" this year.

1.  Go on adventures.  Blog them.  Keep in touch.  (Is that three?)
2.  Cook good food.  IDK, I'm a bit of a foodie, so I also plan to check out a bunch of Seattle restaurants.  I'm working on a Zuppa Toscana soup right now, so this goal is full speed ahead.

That's about it.  They are more just things I want to be better about than actual resolutions.  I am also going to the gym more, but that's less of a resolution and more of a "I should get back into a routine now that I live here and it would probably be nice to fit into all those pants I moved across the country plus the gym is less than a mile away".  Being new just isn't an excuse around here anymore!!

Lots on my plate right now.  National Boards submission window opens in a few months, and I have a lot of writing to get done.  I am working on my first rewrite of my classroom unit component, and will be beginning my video component in February.  The *goal* is to have both of those components submitted by mid-May and then take the test in June.  Then I will lay around in the sunshine all summer before beginning the final component in the fall.

I'm also working on my application for a week long technology training this summer and it's a bit of writing and reflection, so this weekend is a lot of quality time with me, my computer, Starbucks and a few National Board friends.

Also, I'm trying to be a better teacher.  It's an ongoing process.

I do have a few fun updates from the past month!  My parents visit out here was really wonderful and I think they had a good time.  (Right, Mom & Dad?!?)  They might even come to visit again sometime.

We visited the Seattle Gingerbread Village.  This was my first time visiting the Village at the Sheraton downtown.  We conveniently parked at the convention center on a lovely/chilly Sunday morning and were able to stop by right away.  We waited in a line, but I think we still avoided a pretty major crowd by popping in first thing.  This year's gingerbread theme was Star Wars, and the houses were pretty neat.

Tiny Space Needle!

Afterwards, we explored the usual Seattle hot spots- the market, Space Needle, and Seattle Center.  I love this city!