seventeen years (belated)

Happy one-month-late moveiversary to us!  On 10/3/26, we celebrated having moved from Maine to Utah on that date in 2009.  I like to do a "year-end" summary at this point, as we count our "year" from October through September.  Am I a little late this year?  Yes.  Does it matter in the grand scheme of things?  Absolutely not.  Once again, our activities seemed a little separate, as A didn't ski and H didn't hike much what with A training for her big Half Enchilada hike.  But we still had dinner together almost every single night and the separate activities just gave us more to talk about.

October 2025 - Per usual, we started our "year" with a ten day Moab vacation (hikes, road rides, trail runs, beers); A finds a new Alta route to hike; final CSA boxes.

November - Watershed patio with E&K; Veteran's Day long weekend in Moab (minor surgery for M); ski areas begin to push back their opening dates; A's baking begins; Thanksgiving in Moab.

December - Locals holiday market at Wasatch Community Gardens; Alta opens with thin conditions but also the mustache compliments begin for H; A does holiday baking and wins a KitchenAid stand mixer at her work holiday party; H has to attend A's work holiday party; Christmas in Moab with E&K.

January 2026 - Terrible ski conditions continue; A successfully bakes a two-layer chocolate birthday cake for herself; both H and A get sick (not related to the birthday cake); MLK holiday weekend in Moab; dry January for both A and Alta; kestrel sighting in Dimple Dell.

February - Ermine sighting in Dimple Dell; A successfully bakes a foccacia and an olive boule; skiing continues to be terrible with no snow; unseasonably warm, resulting in patio beers at the Watershed; holiday weekend in Moab with A's cousin; first decent snowstorm at Alta (44") and a messy commute; A passably bakes baguettes (good for dunking in soup).

March - Another good storm cycle results in season's best conditions at Alta; A successfully bakes monkeybread; A's brother and buddies in town; Watershed patio with E&K; SLC almost hits 90F; weeds are already awful and valley trees bloom early.

April - Hawks return to the neighborhood; skiers mostly abandon Alta (except H); new hot water tank in Moab; desert wildflowers; first joint Moab road ride for H and A together (windy); slot canyon hike for A and M; temperatures plummet and ruin northern Utah's fruit crops; Alta closes with an 311" total; H is unable to ski closing day due to messy road conditions - oh sure, now it snows.

May - Spring vacation in Moab (hikes, bikes, trail runs, beers, etc.); hummus scones; Memorial Day weekend in Moab; so much weeding.

June - Seriously so much weeding; R and M are in town for soccer; H and A learn about Woodbine Food Hall and two new (to us) SLC dive bars; backyard oregano harvest; Pride Party at the Lesboasis; A goes to Maine for ten days; H and M go to Moab for ten days.

July - Wildfires; CSA begins (no stone fruit to speak of, so sad); Fourth of July weekend in Moab; A starts Half Enchilada training with new trailrunners; Wasatch wildflowers; watching the World Cup at bars; Pioneer Day holiday in Moab.

August - Wildfires; lots of triple digit days in SLC; A hikes at Alta and Bonneville Shoreline Trail/Corner Canyon; long weekend in Moab; Green River melons; twenty-fifth anniversary with Desolation Trail hike and Watershed patio.

September - Labor Day weekend in Moab with Marshmallow sitting; A hikes Bonneville Shoreline Trail and does a 14er (so to speak) in Millcreek, plus Alta; still hot and very, very dry.

So far the "year" is starting off with lots of rain (and we are trying very hard not to complain about it on the weekends).  Hopefully the trend will continue and the mountains will get lots of precipitation to offset this past year.  And hopefully it will actually get cold so the weeds stop growing over the winter.