Fishing Derby 2011

What an amazing day for the Ice Breaker Fishing Derby!! Michael's boat team was made up of himself, Jason Wright, and Kevin Watkins. They caught some nice fish and enjoyed the south end of Jackson Lake. I fished with Ben Petersen and Bob Morley. Benni caught the winning fish for the derby, a 29.6 pound lake trout. Here are pictures. What a beautiful place we live!!

Jason's laker.

The winning Team!!

The lovely Teton Mountain Range - still a bit snowy!!

Danny Bess's boat caught two big fish for second place in the Derby. Both weight over 25 pounds!

Maybe It's Really Gonna Be Spring!

I know. Most of you have cut your lawns several times and your gardens have long since sprouted - I bet some of you have plants setting some kind of fruits!! Well, our long-awaited spring has arrived and we are darn sure glad about it! Here's some pictures from the home-fort taken just minutes ago. Raised bed planters made of culverts works well. Michael says they cut real well with a SazAll! I see their longevity being much better than wood planks. Everything will be covered - the weather says 27 degrees Thursday night! Yikes!!

Haven't figured out where to put these two yet. Below are some planted.

And the pretty fountain corner. Yes, that is a hanging basket filled with cherry tomatoes. And yes, they are blooming, some have even set fruit, but I got it at the greenhouse on Saturday!! I will be gaurding it viligantly from the dreaded frost!

Hope you are enjoying your spring season and have a basement to go to if a tornado shows up! Have you seen our mudslide?
Click here to see the land slide. Most likely, soon to follow, flood pictures!

One Foot of New Snow!

This yard art bird ain't too happy! We awoke to a foot of new snow this morning! Amazing, wet snow piled on top of everything! It's really quite lovely if you're not sick of it - most people are way over it now. Cabin fever has become contagious and is now affecting many people in our area. I witnessed a shouting match the other day that was a direct result of cabin fever. Ugly business there. It's still snowing. We live in such an amazing place!!

Bird feeders.

Fire Academy & Weekend Fun

The National Fire Academy, Emmitsberg, Maryland. Brick walkways thread through the campus. On the bricks, names of firefighters killed in the line of duty. We students are all reminded in our journeys across campus of our mission in the fire service to help prevent these line of duty deaths. Walking these pathways is riveting, somber, and profound.

I was there for a two week class on the stuctures and systems for fire protection. Much learning ensued. The weekend between was AMAZING!

Mom flew in from Illinois and we packed the weekend full of fun. Highlights of the weekend include the following: First and foremost, getting a DC cop to rip up a ticket that he had just written and put under the wiper of our rental car, getting to and from successfully without getting lost or mugged to the Capitals hockey game on Friday and the Kennedy Center for a symphany on Saturday using the Metro, a tour of Mount Vernon Saturday morning and a delightful side adventure to Old Town Alexandria for a wonderful Thai lunch. Sunday morning we found the FDR Memorial and got out of a DC parking ticket!

Mom next to FDR

The Kennedy Center
On our walk to the Kennedy Center, I snapped this photo of the open court yard area at the Watergate Building.

Winter in Wyoming

While some of you watch your snow melting away, ours just keeps piling up. More snow forecasted for the week ahead. You gotta love it to stand living here!!

Cutter Race Weekend!!

What is referred to - and certainly is - the biggest tailgate party in Jackson, the Shriner's Cutter Races, finished this afternoon in light snow flurries and thundering hoofs! What a great weekend!

This year's challenge was to build a "camp" that Roy Chambers, turning 85 in a few days, could cozy up in and enjoy this 40th year of Cutters Races. Michael pulled out all the stops; the hunting camp wood stove, a EZUp tent with sides, the Weber grill, Mr. Heater, and good old country music for Roy. Why he liked it so much, he came both days!!

Thanks to the great crowds, the Shriner's Hospital should get a nice bit of money. The saying for the race, "The Cutters run so the children can walk." What a great way to raise money! Here's a few more pictures from the weekend.

Looking forward already to next year!!

Ya Ain't Havin' Fun Until You're Stuck!!

photo by Addie Hare

Thanks Addie!!

A Beautiful Winter Day!

Friends Mike and Amy won a snowmobile ride with the company Michael works for and when the day came to go riding we said, "okay, we'll take you!!" And what an amazing day we got! Starting out chilly at 11 degrees, temperatures climbed to quite comfortable. We headed up to Togwotee Mountain and found new nooks to explore and great snow to ride. Lunch at the beautiful Brooks Lake Lodge, my original place of hire in Wyoming, and a great ride back to the rig and trailer. It was a fine, fine day. More pictures follow.

Such a handsome husband I have!!

For Those We Love

Yesterday morning, I jumped in an ambulance to help be part of the treatment of 15 people for carbon monoxide poisoning. The extended family was celebrating the holidays together in their large home north of Jackson. The furnace man came to service a heater that was not working properly, started feeling bad, recognized the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning, fetched his gas detector, immediately notified the family, instructed them to call 911 and got them all outside into clean air. Jack, the furnace man, was the hero of the day.

As an emergency responder, events like this tend to shake you up a bit. You start thinking about the ones you love and how tragic yesterday could have turned out and how you would never want it to happen to those you love. Make sure you understand carbon monoxide and if you don't, call Michael or me. Make sure you have a carbon monoxide detector - at least one - installed in your home if you have a fuel-burning appliance.

Here is the link to the news article. Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, deadly gas. Thinking of all those we love!

Click here for news article

Merry Christmas to All!

Wishing you all a safe and joyous Christmas. Here are some pictures from my afternoon cross country ski trip. We're certainly having a white Christmas!

Thanksgiving Blessings!

What a nice visit back to Illinois! My Dad's father, Pop, at 96, Mom (who would rather I not mention her age!) and me on Thanksgiving Day at the LaSalle County Nursing home after a really good Thanksgiving lunch. We had great visits with family and friends. I regret not having taken more pictures. Would have liked one of Dad and Linda, Kristen & Mark, Mike & Liz - guess I was too busy eating chicken wings! And since when does eating a half pound of wings translate into gaining two pounds of weight?? I also missed getting one of you and Gary, Diana. You'd think a past pro photographer would do better....

Got word of a Lewis family get together up at the new place out by Starved Rock. Here's a funny picture of Michael and Mom taken in the Adventure Park while we were trying to figure out how to find the Lewis Family.

Dr. Lewis, his wife Nancy, behind them John, Mom, Bob, Me, Bob's wife Laura, John's wife Sue.

So many blessings this Thanksgiving. We made it through Wyoming in a snow storm just ahead of Interstate 80 being closed for the rest of the day. Phew!

Eggs-tra-ordinary!

The new Aracana chickens are laying now - and look how beautiful the eggs!

It's a real November day in the mountains. This morning's low was 17 degrees. A skiff of snow dusted the walkway. Vetran's Day. A day to thank those who serve. A day off for us government workers! Breakfast with Micheal Shane and, well, a day off! Michael T. always has plenty of puttering - old Red (his old red pickup)is presently dead with an unknown electrical issue. I may bake a little, take the dogs for a walk. We gather up the processed elk this afternoon and wings and beer with Seth. A day off. Mmmmm, how nice.

Life is good.

Scott's Visit

For those of you whom might not know, killing an elk with a bow is a very difficult task! Michael's brother, Scott, had the incredible experience last Monday on a north slope in the Gros Ventre Wilderness on a very steep slope at 12:35 in the afternoon. I made the right choice to take that day off work so I got to be part of the event.

What do you do with a big bull elk eight miles back into the wilderness? You pack him up on your horses - not an easy task on a sloped hillside - and hope they can make it up the steep slope! Once atop the ridge, all we had to do was to get back down it and make the 8 mile hike out! Everyone slept well that night.

Other activities peppered Scott's visit.

Like a couple of days spent fishing on Jackson Lake!

Yes, that's Butch enjoying the day too!

I can't believe more of you don't come out to visit!

We so enjoyed spending time with you Scott. It was a day to remember the rest of our lives; I'm so glad I could be part of that amazing day!!

Good Times for All!

Thanks Addie for the amazing cake and great picture of Michael and Kenlyn!! A great time was had by all. How can you go wrong throwing a party with 40 pounds of Alaska King Crab, 5 gallons of Snake River Lager, and a pile of great friends?? The afternoon and evening turned lovely and we all were most thankful for that turn of weather!

The kids had a great time too!!

How lucky we are to have so many good friends!! The table was full of food. It was a great party!!

After the nice, long weekend, we look forward to the arrival of Michael's brother, Scott. He joins us for ten days of bow hunting, seeking the elusive wapiti (elk) with his bow.

The weather has turned fall. It's lovely during the day. Night time temperatures dip below 30. The zucchini gets covered nightly and is still alive. I'm not sure why we even bother actually!! I've pulled about 6 zuchs off the plants. Next year, I'm putting carrots where the zucchini lived. The row of sweet, succulent carrots was well worth the planting. And not one day over 90 degrees this year. How perfect of a summer is that???

Other news items: the flies are stupid and plentiful right now. My fan tail fish seems to have gotten over his swim bladder disease and frolics around the aquarium with the other gold fish. The dogs are great; starting to grow their winter coats. I haven't introduced you all to Methuselah the mule, because, ultimately, we probably should lead her to the killing hole so she doesn't have to suffer during the winter. She's very old. Rest of the horses are doing well. I should get Hot Shot back in the next couple of weeks.

Enough for now. Stay safe, enjoy the fall and celebrate your friendships!!

Weekend Away!

Ah the weekend! And a long one, at that! We got in the truck, found a sitter for the kids, and headed off to Hailey, Idaho to witness the Erin saying "I Do".

Blessed by amazing weather, the two made their vows in a beautiful mountain-spiked meadow on Friday afternoon. Weddings are such good reminders of what being married is all about! Thanks for the invitation, we had a great time!!

Found out today, that we came close to not making it over to the wedding. A 14,000 acre fire closed Highway 20 through Idaho for several hours; fortunately after we had passed through. By the time of our return, yellow grass had transformed into black, scourched earth and water tenders poised at several pull outs.

Got home to find out it had rained over a half of inch while we were away. There was enough time to make a pass through my raspberry patch last night and ended up with a fat gallon of the plump, delicious berries! I have so many this year, I'm making raspberry vinegar!

Michael got to go play for a day on a local wildland fire. After the rain and the predicted cool weather this week, that fun is most likely over for the season.

Big birthday bash for him on Saturday. Anyone wanting to make the trip is invited! We'll have a case of king crab to cook and a keg of beer!

Summer Speeds On!

Wow! Summer is crazy this year, isn't it? Recent rains have quelled local forest fires; that will take some of the pressure off. Town is alive with tourists. The traffic is at its worse in Jackson Hole right now. The gardens are at their best! I have zucchini blooming and brussel sprouts brusseling!!

The young chickens have yet to start laying. Every day I peer into their laying boxes seeking that first small egg, but alas, only the older three are producing an egg here and there.

Hot Shot Joe is off for a month's of training that I got when I bought him. I'll be trailering him today. Methuselah got moved to town with her other friend Mia. There is lots of good grass; she is gaining more and more weight.

Michael is off to help with a pack trip. He'll be back home on Wednesday and then we have the annual fire department picnic. Argh. We will all be glad when it is finished.

I have had the opportunity to fill in as Duty Officer now two weekends in a row. What a great way to learn some things! I am delighted to have the chance.

Michael's brother Scott is headed out early September to try to slay an elk with a bow. How nice to have him and maybe Stephanie out for a visit!

I am finishing up with two online classes and starting two more! Why not throw a few more irons in the fire, right?! Bring it on!!

Have you heard about the earthquakes? What's shakin' today, Addie??!!

Catching Up!

They say the folks who need a vacation the most are those who have just returned from a vacation! I can relate! Michael and I have spent the week catching up. As the flies start biting, we are all appreciating the fact that our pack trip was bug-free. Amazing luck on that factor!

This is a picture of one of the seven dogs along this year, Lily. She is now 13 years old and gets confused easily. After wandering off with another group the first day, not keeping up well on the second move, Lily got ugraded to the panyard seat atop a very gentle mule. She was quite content there, as illustrated!

The country of the Gray's River was green and lush and lovely. We traveled near and drank from clear, mountain streams. There were spots with hillsides of flowers and 10,000 foot passes still holding snow. (No reports of giardia yet!)

Our camps were peaceful and relaxing. This year's motto, "We're on Vacation, Remember?!!" was a good mantra to making ourselves relax and not be in quite such a hurry. Still, moving days require lots of saddling, packing, wieghing and tieing up of loads when you've got 25 head of stock!

Noteworthy this year was the quantity of amazing cookies aboard. The Judge's wife, Barbara, cooked up a remarkable 18 pounds of cookies for our trip. My favorites were the delicate, melt in your mouth sugar cookies. I'm hoping for the recipe!

And to supplement all those cookies, Cyndie and Susie baked up delicious desserts, just in case none of us had eaten enough cookies from morning time breakfast coffee, to brown lunchsack cookie packs topped off with afternoon snacks. We eat well on these trips!

Upon our return, we had an extra day to wash the pile of dusty, dirty laundry and were able to throw together a quick meal to share with visiting friends Terry and Mary from Vashon Island, Washington. What a treat to see them on their way through after their successful photography workshop in the beautiful northern part of Yellowstone National Park!

Back on the ranch (as they say!), Michael is putting the last two metal sheets on the roof as he finishes that week-long project - which will be great to have complete! The seven Trumbower/Clay stock have plenty to graze on around here now. The grass is tall and green. Next post will feature images of our newest addition, a mule named Methuselah who is about 25 years old; our rescue project! The chicken coop has seen a change. Before we left, we gave away the rooster and four hens. A new rooster, new hen and our four chicks that were posted on this site in a US Postal Service box (which, of course, has been returned!) now frolic around the extended yard space. He is a handsome rooster. Any ideas on a name for the lad?