Friday, October 12, 2007

A word about thank-you cards


I have got to be the most horrible thank-you-card-sender in the history of the universe. That's a fact. It takes me forever to buy them, longer to write them and then eventually I end up thinking it's too late and therefore completely lame to send them. I promised myself that I would do better with the thank yous from our wedding. See, the thing is that I really am completely grateful...the problem is that I don't like writing just a quick 'hey thanks' and leaving it at that. No, I like to really think about what I am writing and I can't write something general for each one, it has to be personal. I'm just bad at cards, as all my friends can attest. So anyway, I am almost done writing the thank you cards from our wedding, but I am not going to lie, it may take a while for me to actually send them all, haha.

Nana is having her surgery on Monday. I really hate to be so far away from my family when all this is going on. It's hard to think that I'm so far away that I am completely useless when everyone needs me...or at least I like to think I could be useful.

I think I see a light at the end of the tunnel with this whole hunting business. This season has been a tough one, but I think I can count on seeing Jay a bit more in the coming weeks and then before we know it, season will be over. We are excited about our move to Oregon. It will finally feel like we are settling down, which is really all we want. I have to admit that I am going to miss it here. It's something to do with the wide open spaces and untouched beauty, as well as that small town feel...I'm really going to miss that. I'm also going to miss the zero traffic, heck there isn't even a stoplight until you get to Jackson. I'll miss the constant deer sightings, the quiet, the feeling that everything here is clean.

I am looking forward to working again, seeing a friend (Winter), friends for Elijah, and what feels like the official start of our future. I'm also just open to the adventure of it all...a new place, new sights, sounds, people, new things to learn, a broader perspective.

Ok, now time for some pictures :)

....Yup that is snow...



The expo was having some trouble starting due to a bad battery connector-thingy...big strong man fix! boogah boogah!


Ain't they cute? Jay was at that very moment through clenched teeth saying "this is so going on the blog". Do not be fooled, that smile is fabricated! Fabricated, I tell you!

And here is some random Elijah cuteness:




Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Oh my GOSH!

I can't even begin to tell you how freaked out I am! I found this Wikipedia Article today on a neurological condition called synesthesia. I had NO earthly idea there was a name for this and for the longest time I did not know that it wasn't normal. I thought everyone thought the same way, and I have only in the past few years begun to realize that it was just me. I stumbled upon an online conversation about this and nearly wet my pants when I read this article. THIS IS ME!!!!

Snow!





It snowed yesterday! It only snowed on the tops of the mountain, but still...it looked really pretty and I don't think it would take much more to bring that snow down to lower elevations. Most of you know I pretty much hate snow, but I am getting really excited, because this will be my first experience living in it, and I'm game to give it a shot. Mainly I am excited for Elijah, because He's never seen snow in real life! It will be fun to make snowmen with him and take him sledding and all that.

These pictures are from the hills (mountains??) right in front of the house. Elijah was completely disappointed when we awoke to clear skies and (albeit brusque) sunshine. It's already clouding over a bit again, so we will see.

By the way, as an unrelated side note and sort of an addendum to my last post (the "lemon bars are good for the soul" one) I wanted to add that lemon bars are not good for small children to have for breakfast! Just in case anyone was considering it. Yesterday morning while I was on the computer sending an email and drinking my coffee, Elijah found the rest of the lemon cheesecake bars in the dish sitting on top of the oven. I walked in the kitchen to refill my coffee and found the entire top of the bars gone and the middle filling part pitted with craters made by small fingers (the bars were layered crust then lemon filling then cheesecake topping)...I guess as Bill Cosby says that at least when you only have one child you always know who did it! He was literally zooming around all day and it was too cold for him to play outside and the car wouldn't start for me to take him anywhere (it's fine, but we need to fix the connection of the wire thingy to the battery thingy...don't mind the technical lingo) so needless to say I almost cried tears of joy when it was bedtime. Anyway, word to the wise, hide your lemon bars if you have children :)

Sunday, September 23, 2007

Lemon bars are good for the soul

Am presently sitting here with a nice hot mug of red raspberry leaf tea and a lemon cheesecake bar, and felt like writing for a few minutes. The lemon cheesecake bar was born out of a very cold day necessitating the need to bake and a deal with myself that I would take a nice long walk later. The walk did not come to fruition, so I settled on having a second lemon cheesecake bar. Not exactly the best moment of my dieting day. Haha, well at least they were made with low fat cream cheese, and I can walk tomorrow :)

Today was the first day that I felt - really and truly- cold. It was over cast and stormy today, but the rain kind of came on and off, so no biggie. The sun even came out for a bit (as they say in Wyoming "if you don't like the weather here...wait five minutes" apparently thats the saying, and quite accurate at that). Then while I was putting the lemon cheesecake bars in the oven, I heard the wind begin to howl and heard along with it, the distinct smattering of...something...rain? I thought if it was rain, it was raining really hard! It turned out to be hail, and the gusty wind blew off the top of our trash can into the neighbors front lawn. The distance felt formidable as I covered my head with the hood of my (rather ineffectual, it turns out) sweatshirt and dashed across the yard to retrieve it...OW! Those little pellets felt like beebees...really really cold ones haha! They blew under my hood and onto my face. Brrrr. It's calmed down now, but all I can think is how miserable it must be on the mountain where Jay is...that, and there will be no real archery hunting on days like today, meaning a longer stay for him.

So I have discovered, the thing about marrying someone you actually like (I mean in addition to love, obviously) to be with is that it's not a whole lot of fun when they are gone. I'm still happy I came here, and I don't generally have a problem being alone (well, not alone so much as sans adult interaction), but I just miss Jay when he is gone. For instance if something funny (or like yesterday-completely upsetting) happens, I want to tell him about it. I've actually taken to writing things down in little notes and whatnot and just giving them to him when he comes home for a day or two. It would be alot easier if there was phone service where he was...I forgot that there were places remote enough to not receive a signal haha. I actually thought we'd be able to talk on the phone! I'm such a city girl ;) But I am learning.

I'd love to hear from everyone, so if you are reading this, throw me a note :)

Friday, September 21, 2007

Horseback riding!



Jay took me riding a couple days ago. We rode for a couple hours on the same trail Jay takes when he goes up to high camp. I don't need to tell you how beautiful it was...I took lots of pictures to show everyone, but it just doesn't seem like the pictures are enough. They don't give the full impact of being there. It was great to be on a horse again, though after riding for 4+ hours, I was a little teeny bit sore.

The day before that, we went fishing again. The best part of that was that I finally got to see a beaver! He was huge too and I got to watch him for the longest time. So far I've seen lots of deer and the beaver and some specks that apparently were mountain goats...I still haven't seen a moose or an elk though.

Not much new other than that. Jay is gone again, this time he has bull elk archery hunters, so my guess is I won't see him for about 8 days or more. It's a little bit depressing (okay alot) when he leaves and gets me to missing everyone even more. Four more weeks and hunting season is just about over, so I'm just counting the days for now.

I found an ad for someone looking for childcare for their 2 kids, a 3 year old and a 1 year old. I may call and talk to them and see if that is something I could do...I mean, I wouldn't be making a whole lot probably, but it would bring in some money and give Elijah some interaction and I wouldn't have to pay for gas and childcare. The hardest part is that Jay isn't here for me to talk to about it, so I don't want to make any permanent arrangements. The downside is that I would still be lacking the adult interaction, but there may be more pros than cons, and I haven't been able to find much in the way of job opportunities yet.

Wish I could see everyone, I miss you guys!

Monday, September 10, 2007

Free at last


We got the Expo back! Yippee! I feel so...so....free :)
We got it back on Friday and it was perfect timing because Jay was finished with his hunters on Friday night, so Saturday we all went to Idaho Falls ('we' meaning myself, Jay, Elijah and Kenny) and did some shopping. We got Elijah some new clothes including a badly needed winter coat. Afterwards, we went to the salt river and did some fly fishing...well that's not entirely accurate...Jay and Kenny did some fly fishing. Elijah set himself to finding sticks to splash the water with and rocks to throw in the general direction of the water Jay was fishing in - thereby ensuring that any fish would be scared about a mile up river. I was busy scouting the banks for herbs. I found lots and lots of chamomile and mint growing wild. I actually did let Jay give me a fly fishing lesson, but fortunately didn't catch anything. If I had, I am fairly certain I would have dropped the pole while running and screaming. Jay did catch two fish, but they were teeny so he let em go. On the walk back to the car, I saw a muskrat, which kind of looked like a swimming gopher.

I really kicked myself for not bringing my camera, it was incredibly beautiful where we were. The sun was settling, and the way the light hit the hills and river was indescribable. We all felt relaxed and peaceful. One thing I love about being here is that when you just let yourself sink into silence, and just let yourself be surrounded by the quiet, you realize that even though it is quiet and so peaceful, you are at the same time surrounded by life and movement. I have that sense here more than I ever have anywhere else.

After fishing, we went to 'Tootsie's' for some pizza and her famous strawberry tirimisu (my verdict: leave tirimisu alone. It is delicious the way it is. Strawberries belong on shortcake). When we were leaving, we ended up finding a kitten. It was so weird because I had woken up that morning thinking about wanting a kitten after having a dream about one and (Jay can attest to this) the very first words out of my mouth that morning had been "I want a cat". Lo and behold, that night this little 'trash rodent' (as Jay calls him) practically landed in my lap. He is adorable, and Elijah and I are totally smitten. Jay on the other hand....well....he's not a big fan. We made a deal, if I see him by Wednesday morning I will give the cat away, if not...I get to keep him sans guilt. We are both happy with arrangement, so we will see what happens. Honestly though if Jay really doesn't want to keep it, I probably will just go ahead and find him another home, even if I DO win this little contest.

Today I took Elijah to town to run some errands and we stopped by the local library in Thayne. It is literally one-third of an average sized mobile home, but it is quaint and will have to do. We did check out some books, and they do run a really cute little story time every Monday morning, so I will be taking Elijah to that. After the library we had a picnic and we brought our nameless little kitten. I DID bring my camera this time, so here are some pics of Eli with the little vermin!




Friday, August 31, 2007

Themeless



Yeah that is a grasshopper...it probably seems silly to take a picture of a grasshopper for the blog, but there are SO many here, and I thought this picture turned out good.

I wanted to thank everyone for the comments, it means alot to me because I like to know that people are reading the blogs, and get feedback on what you thought :) Things have been fairly uneventful lately, the Expo is still in the shop. We were told we would probably be able to get it back Wednesday (two days ago), but apparently in Wyoming time at the start of hunting season, that means next Tuesday if we are lucky, haha. We like our mechanic though, even if he is leaving us without a vehicle so that he can go on a hunting trip. We are starting to get a bit desperate for it though, we need to take a trip into Idaho Falls so we can get some clothes for Elijah and some shoes for me. I want some hiking-type shoes, because I need something other than flip flops (I'd forgotten there were other kinds of shoes! haha) and I'm not so much a cowboy-boot kind of gal. Not yet! I also need to look for work, and Elijah is definitely wanting some social connections, he is used to having Micah around for that. I hope I can find a daycare provider/preschool that I like and trust, there aren't many choices around here. At this point I would almost prefer a mom with other kids that wants to do some babysitting.

Tonight Jay is leaving to go spend his first night at camp...he is guiding a hunt at low camp, his first hunt at high camp (High camp is like a 3-4 hour ride on horseback into the mountains) is going to be on the 8th. When he is up at high camp, I might not see him for like 6 days at a time. Right now though, he is going to be gone at low camp for a five day hunt, but he will probably come home one or two nights during that time. It's hard though, but I know it would be alot harder if I were thousands of miles away.

We are planning on taking a trip to Billings, Montana for a day soon...I happened to talk to a midwife there who started a midwifery school recently and is currently taking applicants for her apprenticeship program. She convinced me to come talk to her before I go to Oregon. That doesn't mean that we are not going to Oregon, but I'd like to know all my options, so I am going to check it out.

The leaves are starting to turn. When I look up to the hills, everywhere there are fiery little patches, I can't wait to see the colors in all their glory. I will try to get some pictures, of course...though I think it's yet another thing here that the pictures won't do justice to.

Here are some pictures I took of Elijah at the community playground up the road, and there are more on the flickr page.

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

My Friends

I was uploading some pictures, and I came across some that I forgot I had promised to email to Gretchen (Sorry Gretch...I'm doing it right after this, I promise!). Anyway, it's from the last night the five of us got together in California. We always have so much fun together, I miss you guys!

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Sunday, August 26, 2007

Update

Sorry for the long wait between blogs...the processor fan on our computer came unseated but now all is well and I am back for more blogging, ha ha. Got lots of new pics too! Jay took me and Elijah up in the canyon on the quad (which is ginormous and can easily fit the three of us). It was so beautiful up there, there was a little stream and wildflowers everywhere. This picture is of the boys checking out some kind of water bug. I was happy to keep my distance under the guise of snapping pics, heehee.

Here is one that I took of the view from where we were. It overlooks Star Valley where we live.

Some pics of Eli :)


And this is a picture I took of the wild choke cherries. The boys picked a ton of them awhile back as I mentioned in a previous blog (well actually they've got out picking them several times). Jack took those berries and made a choke cherry syrup which he gave to us. Last week we made pancakes and ate them with the syrup and it was Delicious. I've been commissioned to try and make jam out of them which I have not the slightest idea how to do. If Google does not fail me and I can figure it out, I'm hoping I can make enough to send some jars out to everyone...we'll see!
Not much else to report at the moment. The Expedition is still in the shop, and I have yet to see much interesting wildlife. We took Jacks truck into Jackson the other day (to get the stuff to fix our computer) and I saw some mountain goats up on the cliffs, but to be honest they didn't look like much because they were so far up, it just looked like bright white spots on the cliffs. I've seen a few deer and a bald eagle's nest but no eagle. Jay saw a mom and baby moose on the drive home from work the other day, and a big bull moose that same morning but so far I have not seen one. If I do I hope I can get a picture of it.

Oh, I do have a request though. If people are reading this, leave me comments! I want to know if you guys are reading these or not...if you dont know how, you just go to the very bottom of the post you want to comment on and it will say in small green letters '0 comments' - click on that :)

Miss and love you all!

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Cowboy Up!


Yesterday Elijah went out with Jay to go try and catch that mare again (apparently it was a real rodeo) and Jay taught Elijah how to oil a saddle and he got to play with the ranch dog and watch all the commotion. When they got home, this is what Elijah was wearing. I guess Jay figured he was teaching him to be a cowboy so he may as well look like one, so he took him out and bought him a cowboy hat and boots in the spirit of things. Out here though, the hat and boots do have a purpose. He's spending most of his time outdoors these days, and he can't do much in his flip flops. Gotta love the cowboy boot/spiderman undies combo, it can't be beat. Haha.


Saturday, August 18, 2007

Home on the Range


Sorry it has taken me so long to post, I wanted to get some good pictures of home in this blog but it's been raining for the past two days, so it's been difficult to get any good ones.

We got home Thursday night at about Midnight so I didn't get to see anything of my new home until the next morning. When I did, I opened up the door and was struck by bright sunshine, clean air, trees everywhere and about a bazillion grasshoppers. For some reason or other, there are grasshoppers everywhere right now, I mean literally thousands. They aren't really bothersome at all and they don't seem interested in invading the house, but you definitely notice their presence. Elijah of course was delighted, especially upon remembering that Auntie Sierra had just bought him a new bug catcher. After searching box upon badly packed box, we located the above mentioned bug catcher and he set right to work catching and accidentally mutilating grasshoppers.

After awhile we decided to "go into town" to get a bite to eat. Halfway there the unthinkable happened. The Expedition died. It stopped going into gear, making it obvious that it was the transmission. Our transmission was officially toast. We were shocked and stressed, but pretty thankful all in all that we didn't get stranded in Nowhereville, Idaho. While we waited for Jack to tow us home (it's pretty amazing what an F250 can pull) we got out of the car and said hi to the friendly neighborhood sheep we were conveniently stranded next too. We then strolled the street to say hi to some of "Jimmy's" horses after picking and eating some roadside raspberries. About four different people (two Jay knew and two he didn't) stopped to see if they could help and shoot the breeze a bit. I have to say it was the nicest stranded-on-the-side-of-the-road experience I have ever had.

Later that day we went out for a ride on the golf cart (everyone rides them around the ranch here) and rode around the golf course located near the house and creek just up the road. There are wildflowers everywhere, they are so pretty!

The next day Jack towed us to one of the local mechanics (whose shop is nicely located in the barn in back of his house and guarded by his fierce-looking tow headed tricycle riding four year old and about 8 assorted cats) to find out he could have it fixed in about a week for only $2100. Since that was a reasonable price compared to some of the other estimates we got, and since Jack has apparently "heard good word about him in town" we decided to stick with 'Freedom' Automotive.

Here's some Pictures I took on the drive over to the mechanic:

National Forest

You cant really see it but this field is covered in tiny purple and white wildflowers.

Jay took Elijah out for a ride on the quad and they found some wild choke cherries which they picked and brought back to me.

Elijah has been going with Jay and "Papa Jack" to try and catch an unruly mare that Jack bought and is trying to transport to camp with some other horses in hopes of getting her acclimated apparently. Anyway, Elijah got to ride a horse named "rony (Wony)", so he thinks he's a cowboy now.

We are really settling into things here, it's kind of hard not to. It's such a beautiful, peaceful place and I already feel at home here. I miss everyone already though.


View from the house on a cloudy morning

The inside of our apartment, as viewed from our doorway looking in. I've got more Pics of the house on the Flickr page I created (check it out on the right of the page) .

Thursday, August 16, 2007

The Road

We set out Wednesday morning at about 7:30, a little later than we originally planned. I woke up with a cold that got progressively worse as the day drug on, and in fact right now I am surrounded by tissues as I type this. Our trip was pretty uneventful for the most part, Elijah was so good we couldnt believe it. I think Jay and I complained more than he did, and he never even asked to stop to go potty or anything. Thank goodness (and Aunt Amanda) for portable DVD players, haha.

This is a picture of Southern Utah, right after we crossed the state line. Thank goodness, I was getting pretty bored of the Nevada scenery.


More pics of Utah, it was soooo much better than Nevada. Southern Utah is still mostly desert, but there is actually some green going on the more north you get. We spent alot of our trip going through Utah...as you can see.

Below are a couple pics of Idaho, it was just getting dark.



Here's some of the three of us around hour 9 of driving...


(Eli was multitasking...playing with his new pirate ship and watching a movie)
Jay after a giant starbucks coffee....he perked right up.

Me, upon discovering that I had missed the 'Welcome to Idaho' sign - I'd wanted to take a picture of it. I found out a few minutes later that I hadn't missed it at all and was much happier.

We got to Wyoming around 11:30, so it was too dark for me to see anything.

I woke up this morning and stepped outside wanting to take pictures of my first glimpses of Wyoming, but the batteries were dead in the camera, so I will have to wait untill tomorrow for that. I'll post all about the adventures we have had so far here, and let me tell you, there have already been some. I will say that this place is much more beautiful than I could have imagined, and I think we are going to be really happy while we are here. Elijah is beside himself with the freedom and all the new things he is seeing and learning.