Throwback Thursday: Christmas in Montana

I don't want to do more than one post in a day, but Christmas on the beach reminded me of another very different Christmas we have celebrated.  Back in 2014, we drove up to Montana to spend Christmas with my Uncle Jay, Aunt Crys, cousin, and my parents.  It was so much fun and magical.  And I was sick the entire time.

Look at that untouched snow for a white Christmas!

The drive up was beautiful and dry.  No snow in site until we hit the pass to get to Bozeman.  I was able to enjoy the beauty of nature as we drove through Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana without being anxious about the road conditions.  It had just started snowing in Bozeman just before we arrived, but it was pretty light.  We went to church that night with my aunt and uncle to watch my cousin perform in the Christmas program.  My parents didn't arrive for a few more days.


We had a few days before Christmas to do some shopping, attend a party my aunt was hosting, and check out some sites.  We also checked out a Goodwill store, which is probably the best stocked store I've ever seen.  Lots of brand new clothes with tags for really low prices.  We bought swim suits so we could go to a hot spring.  That was fun, but I remember being shocked by how many ladies felt comfortable changing out in the open in the dressing room.  At the hot springs, they had a tiny cold pool that guys would jump into occasionally.  I don't think I ever saw a woman get in. 

On December 23rd, my parents arrived.  They arrived just in time for a horse drawn sleigh ride.  It was so magical, and I was extremely sick.  Other than that, the timing was perfect as the company had finally been able to switch to the sleigh over the wheeled carriage the day before.  It had been a very dry late fall and winter for Montana.  We were pulled through the snow and stopped at a barn for hot chocolate, snacks, and a roping show.

Look at the huge sleigh and big, beautiful horses!

Our group... us southerners were cold.

The guy doing roping tricks invited the kids to crawl into the circle.  E loved it!

On December 24th, the guys took the kids sledding in some areas with snow.  This was the only activity I passed on as I wasn't feeling good.  I really tried to keep going, but I did hit a wall.  My Uncle Jay had even gone goose hunting that morning and prepared it for us that night.  I tried a small bite as I had no appetite, but it was one of the best things I've ever eaten.  It felt very old world Christmas to have goose at Christmas time.  That night, it started snowing!

The kids sledding.

Snow coming down!

Christmas morning gave me my only true white Christmas ever.  It was beautiful!  We did all the typical Christmas morning things of opening stockings and presents.  Stephen even tried to go for a run as he was in training for a half marathon.  I don't think he made it very far because the snow was up to his knees and mostly uncleared thus far.  Instead, we got dressed in ski gear (that I had bought at Goodwill) to go skiing.  It was the first and only time my boys have gone skiing.  J was too young for the group lessons, but we were able to sign E up.  He was the only registrant that day, so he got private lessons for the price of group lessons.  We watched some of his lessons and copied some of the tips to help J.  Neither left the bunny slope, if I remember correctly, but it was so much fun to watch them skiing.  Stephen, my mom, and I rotated through who stayed on the bunny slopes and who did actual skiing.  My dad and Uncle Jay did run after run as fast as they could.  I think they had fun.  And I kept the ski tags on my kids jackets until they finally outgrew them.  I love those ski tags!

Stephen trying to run through the snow.  He ran down the middle of the road to take advantage of where cars had driven.

E with one of his presents.  We were very into Phineas and Ferb at the time.

J trying on some 3D glasses.  I love looking at old pictures and seeing him and his chubby cheeks.

E skiing with his instructor.

Stephen skiing with J.

Stephen and mom ready to go down the big people slopes.

My turn on the big slopes.

My uncle with a great view of the scenery.

Now beat up, but the cherished ski tags all the same.

It was time to leave the day after Christmas.  We had 2 days of driving back home and the snow was still coming down.  We headed out early for a potentially long trip.  It was a loooooong trip.  Montana was fine.  E got sick in the car from most likely motion sickness and keeping the car too warm with all our coats on because it was a one and done episode.  The roads in Montana were kept clear, and I could enjoy the frozen trees.  Poor Wyoming was not so lucky.  My aunt was sure that Wyoming would have their roads clear, but they had gotten ice.  It was slick and windy, and we maxed out at about 40 mph the whole way.  I even had Stephen slow down when 40 felt too fast.  As soon as we hit Colorado, the roads were cleared again.  I think it was just enough warmer in Colorado with less wind that the roads were just wet.  We made it to our hotel where I crashed pretty hard as I had a fever at this point.

Frozen trees in Montana

A frozen creek in Montana

The next day we had a pretty uneventful remainder of our trip home.  There was snow in Oklahoma, but nothing like what we had left behind.  I'm not good with driving in snow, so I was grateful to get home (and grateful to Stephen for driving the entire time).  With my anxiety about driving in snow, it's pretty nice to know that's not a fear here in Oman.