Valentine's Snowboarding

This weekend Randall came up to JMU to visit me.  We had such a blast together.  I know it's probably sad to say that six weeks is really hard for me not to see him face to face in person, but it really is.  I don't know how all those military wives and husbands do it.  I'm not even married to him and it kills me.  I bow down to you all!

It was so great seeing him and celebrating Valentine's Day a little late!  He knows how to treat a girl.  He got me some beautiful flowers and some AWESOME balloons.  No one knows how much I love balloons but Randall.  I feel like I get them for everyone to hint that I really want them.  I know, it's strange, who wants balloons?  This girl!

I made him some yummy brownie cupcakes, trust me they were awesome.  I had never made any before, but it was fun experimenting.  They turned out great except they stuck to the cupcake liners, so next time I know to spray them a little more.

After exchanging gifts, we went snowboarding.  It was so much fun.  Hard, but so fun.  I am so proud of myself for actually getting out there and trying something totally out of my comfort zone.  Don't get me wrong, I love the outdoors, but sports are not my thing.  Never have been.

I've gotta say though, I was pretty awesome.  I was better than Randall to begin with.  He was not too happy about that!  He eventually got way better than me, but I'm still holding the first part against him.  I was better to begin with!

Throughout the night we got better and better.  I was good at the balancing and he was good at the stopping.  If we put our skills together, we would probably both be awesome, but unfortunately it doesn't work that way.

We stayed on the training/bunny slopes for the majority of the time we were there (about 5 or 6 hours). After a while we decided we were going to ride the lift up to one of the easy slopes.  It wasn't so easy.  We both completely wiped out trying to get off of the lift to being with and could barely make it down the slope.  I had to get off my board about half way down and walk the rest.  I was so frustrated with myself, but after practicing some more we decided to give it another shot.

This time we decided to go down a slope that looked a little bit easier, but was still rated "easy" by Massanutten's standards.  It began with a really steep hill, and I made it all the way down without falling.  I was so proud.  We turned down to follow the rest of the slope.  It was about 8pm by now and it was getting really cold.  With few people heading down this slope, the snow had turned to ice in some places.

I was going down the slope and completely wiped out, bouncing down the slope on my butt.  I bursted out into tears after the ice/snow knocked the wind out of me and I felt like I could not feel my legs.  I screamed for Randall to take the snowboard off my feet and he helped me get to the side of the slope so I wasn't run over.  I feel it's a tad inappropriate to post a picture of the bruise that fell left on my behind, but take my word for it... it's pretty horrible.  I'm pretty positive if I didn't have such a big butt and all that cushioning, I would have broken my tail bone.  Oh and the scarf I stuffed in my pants to help cushion all my falls probably helped a little, too.

Still, it is painful to sit down.  Despite this, I can't wait to get back on a board sometime soon.  I was afraid Randall was going to be awesome and I was going to suck, but that really wasn't the case.  He was better than I was, but I'd have to say I can hold my own on a board.  Well until I hit ice, that doesn't really work for me...

For those of you that live near Massanutten or have an urge to hit the slopes, check out their hours & rates.  It's not a cheap trip to make, but they do have some specials, too.  You can check them out here. I definitely recommend trying snowboarding.  It's not easy by any means, but is for sure something I will always remember doing in college.

This weekend was so great with Randall.  He's the best boyfriend I could ever ask for.  I mean really though, flowers, balloons, and we got to go snowboarding together?  Sounds awesome to me.

I love you, Randall!

Have you ever been snowboarding or skiing?  This was my first time on the slopes at all!  What was your experience?  If you have any fun stories, I'd love to hear them!