Pumpkin and Spice

Today was my ski day. I'd been feeling like I was wasting a tremndous oppertunity- free lift tickets. I'm not much of a skier, so I'd been reluctant to go out with the girls at work, since most of them are great skiers, and like to do the moguls, bowls and double black diamond runs. I'm strictly a green runs kinda girl, so I didn't want to keep them from having fun. However, Katya, one of my friends at work, is also new to skiing, so we decided to plan a ski day, where we could go out, ski green slopes, fall on our butts, and no one would care!

Her boyfriend, Chris, came too. He's a ski instructor, so he's very patient with whiney newbies like me!

Our day started at about noon. (One thing I love about Katya is that she understands that a girl needs her sleep! Haha!) I hadn't eaten any lunch, so I grabbed a quick bowl of turkey chili before we hit the slopes. The resort is kinda famous for this chili- it's excellent, really. Lots of chunks of turkey, corn, beans... very yummy. I like mine with a teensy dollop of sour cream.

It was windy and snowy all day today. It wasn't too cold- until we got on the lift! Without the mountain and trees blocking the wind, it was freezing! The landscape was so gorgeous, though, and from the lift, it was easy to really appreciate the view. The trees were beautiful, covered with the fresh snow, and the snow falling all around. Very lovely.

We took the lifts all the way to the top of the mountain (I got to see the cabin my treats go to every morning!) Chris took us down several runs- he was great. I can get a little... fussy... when I'm uncomfortable, and I'm not always good at pushing myself physically, but Chris was a total saint putting up with me. He also challenged Katya and I with tougher runs than I might have tried on my own, and taught us some new techniques to improve our "game".

A side note- it was so cold that my ponytail froze! The snow had melted on it, then froze it into solid locks!

At one point, we went down a green slope, but because of all the snow and wind, the slope had developed some mini-moguls. I was so terrified of those bumps, and I wasn't at all convinced that I could do it. Chris worked us through it, and taught us how to handle bumps, and I made it down, only falling twice! (On that run- I fell much more than that!) At first, I didn't understand how to ski the bumps, and I went over one, and caught some air! Like actually jumped! So scary!! I landed, though, and made it several feet before I lost my balance and ate it. After that, I did much better. Kinda.

After a couple hours, my legs were screaming! I work out at the gym and all, but skiing is a totally different muscle group. My calves, my knees and my quads were so painful and tired they were shaking, and I barely made it down the last run... I kept telling myself, "if I make it down this run, we can get on the lift and take the lift to the base! Just make it down this run!" But my legs just wouldn't do what I was telling them- it took me forever to get down the hill- I felt so bad for Chris and Katya. I felt like the slow, fat kid. When we finally got to the lift, I was so relieved! It felt so good to plop down on the lift and let it take me down the mountain. On the way down, we had the most fantastic view of Park City- it looked like a little storybook village tucked into a mountain valley. So cute!

At the base lodge, we changed out of our boots into our regular shoes, which was the most glorious feeling ever! Then, Katya and I ran up to the bakery and grabbed us some much deserved apres-ski cookies! Double-chocolate chip for Katya, snickerdoodle for Chris, and a lemon bar for me! (Free cookies are a mega-perk of working in a bakery!)

 When I got home, it was so fabulous to take a hot shower and change into my flannel lobster jammies. All in all, it was a good day, but I am sore and pooped tonight! Whew!