Targhee!!!

We finally made it to Targhee for some amazing skiing!  Jake grew up going there every year with a big group of family and friends.  Like for reals, every year from when he was 4 til his mission.  A lot of the same people still go every year.  Talk about a long-standing tradition!  My dad would be proud;)  Jake and I went once when Zack was a baby, so 13 years ago.  So pretty much I've never been there because that was like a lifetime ago and I essentially remember nothing.

On the way there we stopped at Big Jud's outside of Rexburg.  My 20 year old college stomping grounds.  When we pulled up to the super small whole in the wall in the middle of nowhere Jake said, "Is this what you were expecting?"  Yes it was.  Gotta love little Idaho towns.  And little food joints.  It had been redecorated since I last went (shocking) but otherwise it did not disappoint.  The amount of tater tots that came with the kids meals was like a normal adult portion.  Jake made the mistake of getting a large fry and there was no way anyone could eat all of that.  We didn't let Zack get the Big Jud special (1lb hamburger), but I'm sure he would have finished it easily.  They now have a Big Jud's Double - 2 lbs of meat on a hamburger.  Nasty.

The skiing was amazing, especially after the lack of snow in Utah this year.  I love that it's a small resort - 4 lifts.  Sometimes Park City is a little overwhelming in it's hugeness.  The first day everyone but Jake did lessons.  The kids all did a full day.  Their lessons were good I think, but I have to admit that I didn't notice much of a change in their skiing ability.  Well, take that back, Kate showed improvement.  Everyone else not so much.  Jake talked me into doing a half day lesson.  I have to admit I kicked and screamed a bit.  I really didn't want to, but I finally did to keep the peace and as usual Jake was right (I hate that).  I ended up having a private lesson without paying the big bucks, which was awesome.  My teacher was amazing.  She taught me some really good things and I felt like an amazing skier with her.  My amazingness lasted the rest of the day, and then I started slipping back into old habits.  I'm still fighting the back slide, but at least I know what to focus on.  Every night we hung out in the lobby of the lodge with everyone.  The adults got to chat and the kids got to play games together.  A definite win-win. 

Friday was just a good ski day.  Our family skied together the whole day and it was awesome.  The kids did great skiing for that long.  I can hardly manage that, so I'm impressed.  We got some fresh snow in the afternoon, so it was pretty good skiing.  At one point we went to the top of the mountain and couldn't see anything.  The snow was white, the sky was white, and it was super disorienting.  We slowly made it down (after convincing the kids to stop crying and keep moving) and then we stayed off of that lift.  It was pretty cloudy the whole time we were there, so although we were in the Tetons I never got to see them.  Bummer.

It snowed all night Friday night so we woke up to a foot of fresh powder.  We were checking out that morning, so we got the car loaded up in record time because Jake was determined to make it on the first lift.  Miraculously he got his wish.  We were in line waiting for the lift to open.  The snow was amazing.  Knee deep powder.  Poor Sage was really slow because the snow was over her legs.  She was a trooper though and made it down some really tough stuff.  We only skied til like 1:30 that day, and it's a good thing because my legs were exhausted.

On the way home we stopped with some friends at a diner in Pocatello.  We had a great time visiting with them.  I love stopping at random food places in small towns.  In between Pocatello and Ogden the roads were horrible.  Snow packed and slow driving.  We managed to make it home safe though.  We were all dragging the next day because we skied our guts out.  I love that our whole family skis!  I'm so grateful Jake works hard so we can do such a fun activity together.  It definitely makes the winters more enjoyable!

Prepping our skis for the big trip!

Sage being Sage

Big Jud's deliciousness

The girls playing games together

Sage eating s'mores in the plaza

The best visibility we had the whole time we were there.  Beautiful!