Proof of the fun!

The first video is on top of the wall, dancing to the parade music.


Dancing from Sarah on Vimeo.

Going on the spinning sled for the first time.


spinning from Sarah on Vimeo.

Winter Carnival in Quebec

We pulled up to the Canadian border, handed the officer our passports and told him that we were heading to Quebec. He looked at us like we were insane and said, "I'm going to tell you what I told your friends up there . . . Good Luck!" It was 12:00 AM and Quebec was another 3 hours away.

After a not so restful sleep, we bundled up for the 14 degree weather and headed out to see what Winter Carnival had to offer.

This is 13 of the 18 that went

There were ice castles . . .

. . . with ice slides . . .

. . . and snow tubing with rafts that could fit up to 15 people.

We stopped to try out the Putine (fries with cheese curds and gravy). It wasn't my favorite but people love it in Quebec.

We even tried the frozen maple syrup on a stick (I can't remember what the fancy name for it was). It was DELICIOUS!

There were plenty of exhausted kids being pulled behind sleds . . .

. . . and even dogs being pulled behind sleds.

The carnival fashion was the best! The little girl was my favorite. She looked like she belonged on another planet!

That night, after dinner we headed up to the toboggans. We sat 4 people to a toboggan and raced each other down going almost 50 mph!

Then we climbed to sit on the wall that overlooked the city. We had the best view of the night parade from up there. We didn't realize just how deep the snow was until we got to the top and sank in up to our thighs! It was was worth it though to be able to see one of the coolest parades ever.

We also had a great view of the ice castle all lit up.

We couldn't get enough of the human foosball. Imagine three adults strapped to a bar, having to work together to move, falling all over the place, trying to kick a soft white ball in the direction of their goal. It was fantastic!

The outdoor dance party was a riot! We decided to start a chain and dance our way through the crowd of people. Somehow I was elected to be the leader and let me tell you, it's a miracle I didn't come home with a black eye. I was running into people, shoving people and even managed to separate a couple. We died laughing when I stopped the chain and the 20 or more people who had jumped on didn't know what to do without their leader.

Quebec was such a beautiful place and the carnival was a total blast. I only touched the surface of all the amazing things we were able to do and see while we were there. If you ever get the chance you should absolutely go. Just remember to dress warm!

You are Awesome!

My roommate Jen sent this gem of a video called Validation to me yesterday. Watching it last night, I couldn't help but smile! It made my whole night that much better. Take a little time, watch it and have the best Valentines Day ever!

Thanks again Jen, You are GREAT!

"I'm so Excited and I Just Can't Hide It!"

It's a long weekend and I can't wait! To kick it off right, I'm going to The Boston Ballet's Black and White. Jiří Kylián (don't ask me how you say that) is the choreographer and is suppose to be amazing . . . and a little crazy too I think. I can't wait to see his crazy genius play out on the stage!

FYI: Boston Ballet is the first company outside Nederlands Dans Theater to perform "Black and White". Kind of Cool!

Then, I'm off to Quebec Canada for Winter Carnival!!!

It's going to be cold, It's going to be crazy and it's all going to be in French!

What will you be doing this nice LONG weekend?

I'm a foreigner?

Last night for FHE our ward had a Korean culture night. We all met at Spencer's home (he's from Korea) to have a lesson and to partake in some real Korean food and partying. I went, excited and ready for my Korean experience.

We had a lesson on different cultures and the benefit of being around so much diversity. One boy raised his hand to share his experience.

He began by saying that he was born and raised in Boston and that he served his mission in Idaho. I fully expected him to say something like, "So my first experience with another culture was when I traveled to . . ." To my surprise what came out of his mouth was nothing like that at all. Instead, he said, ". . . and let me tell you, Idaho is more foreign than France or Italy or anywhere like that." He went on to say that the people there were completely foreign as well!

WHAT?

The few people in the room that knew I was from Idaho kept looking at me and laughing. All I could do was laugh right along with them and shrug my shoulders. What do you say when someone says you're more foreign, and the place you come from is more foreign than somewhere where they don't even speak your language? Too funny!

Windblown

I know you are all probably so sick of me talking about skiing but I can't help it. I love it, and last weekend I went with a super fun group of friends to New Hampshire for a skiing adventure.

(Adam, Jen, Leilani, Camilla, me, Kaylynn, Brenna, Carie, Savannah, Juliet, Eric)

Going down hills was by far the most fun for me this time. We had a lot of first time skiers and it was hilarious to watch everyone try to maneuver down the hills without toppling over. This was a look we saw quite frequently on Juliet's face.

As beginners we participated in a suicide mission . . . go down the black diamond (hardest trail) hill. This thing was unbelievably steep and curved at the bottom. The wedge didn't work very well to stop us because we were on nothing but ice. As you can see not too many of us made it down with out wiping out once . . . twice . . . and maybe even three times.

A few of us decided to have ourselves a little race across the frozen pond. As you can see, some of us got a little too excited and felt the need to get to know the ice a little better. (the second tracks from the left are mine . . . yes, I fell too.)

Savannah had us all laughing as she made the most of her fall.

We had such a good time and played so hard that I don't think a single one of us had a problem sleeping that night. The next day at church was full of sore muscle conversations and laughter over things that happened.

Winter Love

(Chen Ying, Sarah, Anna)

I love winter! I love the cold weather, the warm clothes, the fire place (not that I have one), the hot chocolate, the scarves, hats and gloves, the snow and even the ice every now and again. If suddenly tomorrow we were thrown into spring, I think I would have myself a little break down.

Maybe I'm weird but I LOVE WINTER. This winter has been especially exciting as I've been getting out and trying my hand at winter sports. Last weekend I checked down hill skiing off of my list of things to do.

(Chen Ying)

(Anna)

We went up to Pat's Peek in New Hampshire, took a ski lesson and had an absolute blast. I caught on quickly and only fell once when a snowboarder, who was just learning, came crashing into me from behind. It was so funny to be on the bunny hill watching all the screaming adults as they flew down the hill completely out of control.

The scariest part for me was this thing they called the magic carpet. You lined your skis up, stepped on and it pulled you to the top of the hill. It was like those moving walk ways at the airport. I was so afraid I was going to fall or not get lined up right. A number of times they had to stop it because someone would only get one ski on.

Once we got a little more comfortable we made our way to the bigger bunny hill. It was steeper, longer and so much more fun.

Kenley was kind enough to let us borrow some of his ski gear. I may have looked like a monster coming down the mountain but I was warm!

(Sarah and Anna)

It was a lovely, wintry day well spent.