10 year anniversary: Park City style
Take me back to Park City.
I could not think of anywhere better for Josh and I to spend our 10 year anniversary. Trying to pick a location was ridiculously and incredibly hard for us. He loves the warm weather, I love the cold weather. I would fly to Europe in a heartbeat, Josh does not care to fly over the ocean. Being that our anniversary is a week before Christmas makes it even harder. Do we try something more tropical and risk hurricane season, or do we go to the mountains somewhere and get caught in a huge snow storm?
I will say, we did come up with several middle ground options that I have on the list to explore someday, but again, Park City was perfect.
When looking, I wanted somewhere I could have some fun and adventure like hiking, skiing, or snow tubing. Josh really just wanted some place he could relax, possibly a spa and some local shopping. Have I mentioned how opposite we are? Not only are we opposite, we are both equally dreamers and realists. I would venture to say that being with someone for so long you could become more like-minded and so balance each other. While Park City is not the extravagant 10 year anniversary trip most would think of, it was perfectly fitting for the two of us.
I had checked the forecast for weeks in hopes that it would snow a bit while we were there. Day after day the temperatures looked like they were supposed to be in the 40's with rain showers. Whomp whomp.
We got there on a Thursday and it was a gorgeous sunny day. As we drove up the windy canyon road toward our resort all you can see are mountains upon mountain, gorgeous snow-topped mountains. We stayed at the Westgate Resort in the Canyons area. I would stay there again and recommend it to anyone. It was reasonably priced with ski-in ski-out right at the resort. Spa, pools, shopping and several restaurants to choose from, as well as a little Market that had all the odds and ends you could need. So, should you get snowed in... you would be just fine. ;)
There are plenty of shopping centers and grocery stores, and places to eat at right when you get in town, even a Whole Foods for us health nuts. ;)
Friday was our 10 year anniversary and we planned on getting a massage, possibly going to this neat natural mineral pool not too far from us, checking out the Historic Main street shopping experience in the heart of Park City, grabbing a bite to eat and Josh was pretty set on getting tickets to see a Jazz game. As I gazed out our window looking to the Mountains, it began to hail and the hail turned to a complete white out. We decided to still venture out and walk around main street in the snow. Even though we had rented a Jeep Grand Cherokee, we made it only a few miles up the road and decided to turn back and stay at the resort. The roads were crazy slick and the weather did not show any sign of slowing down.
So our plans changed. We walked outside in the snow in Canyons Village (which quickly became my favorite little place) we checked out the shops, watched the skiers, played in the snow a bit and then asked around for the best place to eat. We decided to get fancy and go to the nice steak house in our resort called The Edge. Oh my word. It was the first time we have had dinner at a top notch, super fancy restaurant with fancy silverware and a full out 7 course meal. The server kept asking us if "everything was to our satisfaction" and I kept asking him all my "silly questions". For real, I would say, "Im sorry, I have another silly question." Josh kept telling me I was going to get kicked out. If you go to Park City, please eat there, it is wonderful.
Honestly, we had plans to do all kinds of things the 4 days we were there, but quickly realized we were good to do about one thing a day and then just hang out the rest of the time and enjoy some peace and quiet, and I actually got to read more than I have in the past 7 years.
The last couple days we spent relaxing and exploring. We ended up going back to Main Street with all the fancy shops, galleries and organic coffee shops. I am so glad we went and took our time. Actually, we had to intentionally step into every store because it was so incredibly cold! If you go to Park City, you will not be disappointed to venture out to Main Street. The picture and art galleries are breath taking and I also loved the unique furniture and decor shops to draw inspiration for our home build this year.
On our last day, we got to visit with some family and then had our one day of skiing. Since it had been 12 1/2 years since either of us had been on skis, I did not know what to expect. Actually, I was more worried about Josh that I was myself. My Aunt and Uncle took us to the Brighton Ski Resort on a sunny 1 degree day. Once we built up our confidence on the bunny slope, we attempted an actual run. Josh did awesome (he kept loudly announcing that he was going to try out for the 2018 Winter Olympics) — the only trouble he had was with his knee that kept giving out since he tore his meniscus playing college basketball. The only trouble I had, was falling gracefully. My Aunt was so sweet to tell me that I kept falling nicely on my behind, and then my sweet and honest husband later told me that I looked like a train wreck coming down the mountain. I felt like a train wreck coming down the mountain. Truth be told, I panicked every time I started to really pick up speed and did not care how my body made contact with the snow.
If you are looking for a nice ski town, or even a place for hiking in the summer Park City would be a great place to visit. I loved the small town feel, cozy mountain aroma and the barns. So many picturesque barns at the foothills of the mountains. Christmas time made it magical with all the lights, the adorable tree farms and the random carolers around town.
I am glad we did not fill our days with stuff to do. Thankfully, we truly like each other. We are best friends and being together we got to talk about our dreams and the things God has laid on our hearts for the coming year. My favorite way of spending time together is laughing. This trip was the most Josh and I had laughed together in a long time. Not because we do not ever have time together, we definitely do and it is not something I take for granted, it was just different. This was not a trip we looked at as one to get to know each other again, but it was a trip that we got to spend just enjoying each other's company without the endless interruptions of kids and to-do lists.
2016 was such a great year, and some of my fondest memories are the one's where Josh and I got to escape for a bit and laugh together.
"I love people who make me laugh. I honestly think it is the thing I like most, to laugh. It cures a multitude of ills. It's probably the most important thing in a person."
— Audrey Hepburn
This is why I like him the most. He makes me laugh better, harder and longer than any other human I have ever met. He is a treasure and I feel so incredibly blessed to celebrate 10 years of marriage with that man and I am incredibly grateful we have Grandparents who take great care of our children while we are gone.
What were some of your greatest memories or best trips of 2016? Please share! I would love to hear about it. We're jumping back into homeschool full throttle this week and have some posts tucked away for on how to get through the middle of the year muck when it can all feel a bit dreadful and sometimes exhausting with the end feeling so far out of sight. I have hope for you, hang in there.
As always, I am glad to answer any questions or to find answers to questions for you on life and homeschooling. You can comment below or email me — Bre@HappyLittleMess.com — and follow my Facebook page or Instagram :)
Blessings to you all this 2017!
