Happy New Year!

 (published 1/30/24)

    We rang in the New Year in our new house! I thought it would be a fun way to celebrate but I was hesitant to push it too much because Cat was working until 10:00 on 12/31 and had to be at work again at 6am on 1/1. But when we talked about it, she was the one who wanted to make sure we went to the new house. She figured it would be nice to have a few memories of the house she won't be living in for a while, or perhaps at all (since she'll be going on her mission over the summer and we will probably move in in May at the earliest). I thought that was a great way to think about it.

    It was after 11:00 when we left our current house with lots of blankets, a few card games, two bottles of sparkling cider, and some decorations/accessories. We had some time to hang out before we watched the midnight ball drop on my phone. We hurried outside with empty bags for "Fill it up! Fill it up! Fill it up!" then cleaned up and left. It was short and sweet, but memorable for sure.

    For our New Year's New Adventure experience, I thought it would be cool to go on a sleigh ride. There were several options in the Park City area but all of them ran in the evenings. I looked and looked and finally found Thurston Farm all the way up in Morgan, UT which started at 4:30. That meant we could enjoy not only the scenery, but also see the beginnings of the sunset.

    We invited Andy's family to join us and they were excited about having a little adventure together too. It worked out great!

    Todd Thurston, the teamster, told us about how his family has been on the same land for generations, and showed us the houes his great-grandfather built and a barn that had been standing for generations until last year's record-breaking snow. He also told us how his father was injured when working on the farm at the age of 8 and how some of his grandfather's customers suggested he use Clydesdales instead of thoroughbreads on his farm because they would be better to work with, and 6 months later 2 pregnant mares were shipped to Morgan via train. That was in 1936 and the family has been breeding Clydesdales ever since. The horses pulling our wagon were descendents of those original horses - brother and sister Jack and Jackie.  

    Our ride fell toward the end of a weeks-long dry spell, so instead of a sleigh ride through beautiful snowy fields, we actually went on a wagon ride along a muddy road, with the remnants of November's snow all around us. It was still beautiful though, and you can't beat the serenity of winter.

Oh, Luke. Even the dog is smiling.

    After our wagon ride, we all went to a barbecue restaurant the Thurstons recommended to us called The Smokin' Boxcar. The best part was The Train Wheel dessert - a hot doughnut topped with a scoop of ice cream, chocolate syrup, and whipped cream. Unfortunately they only had one left. We also got a few orders of The Train Tracks, which was the same idea but instead of a doughnut there were two small churros on the plate.
    The ride home was entertaining because Cat and Liza were having a hilarious conversation in the back seat of the Tesla. I heard topics including breast implants, tattoos, liposuction, social advice from Cat, and more that I wish I could remember but can't. We finished out our night by watching Johnny English when we got home. A fun way to start the new year!