New Year's in Idaho

Since we didn't get to see my side of the family on Christmas, Spencer decided to take some time off work so we could go to Idaho for a long weekend and to ring in the new year! We planned to go through Logan and see Spencer's brother, Tom, on our way to Blackfoot. But what we had planned and what actually happened ended up being two very different things.

What we had planned was to leave Wednesday, December 29th, after Spence got home from work (around 5). Tom had tickets for Spence and the 3 boys to go to a USU basketball game so we booked a hotel for the night. The babies and I were going to check in to the hotel, relax, order Chinese food from Mandarin Garden, then pick up the rest of the family when the game was over. We'd enjoy the Chinese food then head for a dip in the pool.

Here's what really happened: Spencer called me around 11 and said that it looked like there was going to be a blizzard and he wanted to get an earlier start so we'd make it to the game on time. I was teaching piano lessons until 12:30 but thought I'd be able to get things packed and ready to go by 2. Spence walked in the door at 1 and we started packing. We did not leave our house until 4...blame it on the fact that we are now a family of 7 and more people=more preparation=more time! We started the drive to Logan just as the snow started falling. We figured the 1 1/2 hour drive may take us more like 2 hours. It took us 2 hours just to get to Kaysville! Another 2 hours to get to Logan! Harrison is a fabulous traveler but Madi is not so great. I ended up sitting in the middle seat with them and put Cam up front just to try and keep her quiet. The snow and icy conditions were horrible which made traffic horrible. At one point we were driving down I-15 and suddenly we were going sideways. We finally pulled in to our hotel at 8 pm, checked in and were just so glad to be there that we didn't want to leave (not to mention that the game was already more than half over). Gavin came down with a random virus where he just didn't feel good. He was fevered, his throat hurt, and his legs ached. So Spence, Cam, and Owen made a quick trip to the store for some medication. Uncle Tom came to our hotel and visited with us until 11. The boys were thrilled to see him and they didn't want him to leave. The next morning we enjoyed a continental breakfast and then took a drive around Logan to show the boys our first home:

We drove past Mandarin Garden:

Past Charlie's Icecream:

And then stopped at the Shuttle to visit with our previous boss & coworkers:

The drive to Blackfoot was relatively uneventful after the previous night and we were so happy to get to Granny & Grandpa's house in the regular 2 hours. Granny got a ukulele for Christmas and was quick to teach Cam a chord or two and sing a few songs (with Madi's help).


This was the first of many football games that was watched:

Some of us stayed up until (almost) midnight to welcome 2011. (Madi & Grandpa went to bed around 10, Harrison went down shortly after, Granny & I fell asleep around 11:30, Spence & the 3 boys watched a movie until midnight.)





Other highlights of the trip were
1- lunch with Dan & Krissy & their boys,
2- visiting with Gerod & Rebecca & kids,
3- playing Mormon Bridge with Ryan & No'el, Granny & Grandpa,
4- lots of fun and games with Abbie, Avery, and Jette,
5- a tour of my cousin Marie's gorgeous house
6- a visit with cousins Megan, Ashley, and Amber at Aunt Susan's
7- lots of lounging and relaxation!!!