House O' Sullivans

Sullivan family tradition dictates that we drive to a golf course on 7th East, near our home, on the day after Thanksgiving and purchase a Christmas tree.  This tree lot is run by some guys that come down from Kalispell, Montana every year with their trucks full of Noble Firs, Douglas Firs, and some scrappy looking Lodgepole Pines.  Historically, we've picked out Noble Firs most years, but this year we picked out a scrappy Lodgepole.  A scruffy man at the lot informed us that the Douglas Firs are carefully manicured into a perfect cone shape each year at the tree farm proper, but the Lodgepole they cut right off the mountainside in a contract with the Forest Service to thin the trees.  Ours definitely looks like it rolled right out of the forest. Zeke, searching for the perfect tree We decorated our little Lodgepole as soon as we got it home. This is what you can get for $44--all the way from a Kalispell mountainside--not too tall, but lots of charact...

Thanksgiving brought all of my siblings together (minus Nate) along with their spouses and children.  Additionally, Jenny, Vilma, Jose Luis, and Aki were in town.  Kristen hosted us all in the "glass room"--the new sun room that she added onto the back of her house.  Thanksgiving meats abounded.  Kristen worked up a ham and a turkey, both delicious, and I contributed another turkey.  I found a recipe that looked amazing--over-night brine soak, fresh parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme (JUST like the song), INJECTED butter and garlic.  How could I go wrong?  My yummy turkey, ready for carving at the feast Jenny and Newel peruse the selections.  Yes, there is an orange, carrot shred jello-o on that table. Anni digging into the feast H.B., doing what REAL Whites have always done The sun room was the PERFECT place for a family feast Sophie, Zeke, and Hallee Here is where the improper comes in: H.B., acknowl...

The week before last, the mountains called and we answered.  Newel, Karen, H.B., the "other" Karen, Jenny, Vilma, Mary, Kristen's kids, and all of the little people were game.  Although the big snow had melted out of the valley and the foothills looked snow bare, we drove to the gated section of Millcreek Canyon and found plenty of snow for an afternoon of intense sledding.  The Floridians braved the snow with tennis shoes and leisure footwear.  I don't think that Jenny even had any gloves.  Those Floridians are tough though.  After abandoning our first sledding site in search of safer run up canyon, we found a perfect hill that we worked and graded to cover the largest death traps (boulders).   The run was fast and only got faster the more we packed it, each rider terminating closer to the river's edge.  Eventually the sleds projected straight into the river and Newel and H.B. had to stand guard at the water's edge to stop the wild sledders from...

The foot and a half of snow melted, and amazingly we have blooming flowers scattered throughout our gardens.  Below freezing last week, near 60 degrees today.

Last week after the big snow, the kids wanted to go sledding, naturally.  We went down to Ben Franklin Park (aka Scott Avenue park) and did as many runs down the hill as we could before the sun set over the Oquirrhs.  The sledding hill there is small, so Soph and Hal could hike back up and do as many reps as needed unassisted.  Perfect!  Sophie and Hallee mostly soloed and Zeke and I two-manned it, although when Casey Bert arrived (I tipped him off about our location) we ALL piled into one small sled for a wild ride.   Hallee with HER sled (blue is her current favorite color) Our sledding bookended the time we spent on the snow-covered playground.  We were dressed for success, so intrepid we were. Zeke, and Sophie pile on top pf Casey for a ride down the hill Last Tuesday, we met several of our homeschooling friends at Evergreen Park (a weekly tradition) and created this amazing snow fort.  Hallee hadn't eaten her lunch, so after ...