Jackson Hole and my big fat lie.

Jimmy, my mom, my brother and I are going to Jackson Hole...  You would think I would be thrilled.  It's obviously beautiful there, and with our tropical winter in GA this year, I have been craving snow.

I've actually been to Jackson Hole.  When I was 18 my dad and I went on a Father/Daughter photo trip out West, and it was our first stop.  My dad is a really amazing photographer, and this trip together was my high school graduation present. It was such a nice time to spend with my dad doing what we love.

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See, here I am petting a horse (I'm secretly terrified of horses) and holding a camera.

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Blayne in front of a mountain.

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I wonder what I was taking there?

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I remember this was the first place we went when we got into Jackson Hole.  We were looking for some sort of souvenir or something.  I think maybe my dad got a hat?

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One of the coolest things we did was to going paragliding.

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I took this photo right after we were in the air.  I wish I had more photos of that.  It was amazing, and one of the most adventurous things I've ever done.

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My dad and I had such a nice time.

I'm sure you are thinking, "Ok, so what's the problem?"  Well, here we go.

Jimmy is really great at skiing.  He went to college in Colorado and worked in Jackson Hole.  He's skied his whole life.

I have been skiing since I was about 9.... but, in my brother's words, "I'm just not very athletic."

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Which is fine when you're with your family, but not fine when you've led your boyfriend to believe you're "a skier."

Eager to impress Jimmy, on our first date I totally talked up my abilities.  The conversation went something like this:

Jimmy: "Oh yea, I lived in Jackson Hole...  I really try to go out there 3-4 times a season."

Me: "I've been to Jackson Hole.  Great skiing there"  <---  more of a white lie... wait for it....

Jimmy: "Oh, you ski?"

Me: "I LOVE skiing!  My family and I go all the time.  We really love Aspen, but last time we went to Deer Valley because my brother was working there."  (I am CRINGING that those words actually came out of my mouth... but still only a half lie... the LOVE part.)

Jimmy: "Oh cool.  Are you good at skiing?"

Me: "For sure.  I've been skiing since I was little, and I just can't wait to get out there every Winter.  You can't keep me off the slopes." <-----  TOTAL and complete LIE.

Whoops.

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Well, here we are on the cusp of our trip, and I've begun my backpedaling.

Phrases such as,"Remember how I said I was good at skiing?  Well, I MAY have slightly exaggerated my abilities," and "When we go to Aspen, I don't exactly ski AJAX... I'm more of a Snowmass/Buttermilk kind of girl," have been spilling out like beans.

Luckily I have been talking up my other abilities, such as:

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Sandwich eating and cappuccino drinking  (Possibly the worst picture ever taken of Kate and me --->  also hysterical.)

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Drinking beer after a "hard day on the mountain"

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Getting on and off the lift (I have this down to a science)

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Photographing my friends and family during lunch breaks

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Hot tubbing

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Going out to eat

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and snowmobiling.

I am pretty much an expert at all the parts of skiing that don't actually involve skiing.

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Hopefully Jimmy still loves me when we get back...

Wish me luck.

To read the exciting conclusion to this story please click here.

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