Fires, Fall, Fun!

Life got a bit stressful there for awhile with our local fire. These are not my photographs - I was busy working. A friend, Dave Cernicek, who boasts of the ability to take great iPhone pictures without getting distracted (obviously he's not kidding either) allowed me to print and use these amazing images.

Last Sunday, Michael and I got away for a wonderful ride on our mules. Here is Gus, the mule I have great hopes for! Fall color is magnificant this year and it was truely a much needed and sensational day!

I love this picture of Michael and Sassy's ear. He was working on a self portrait (next image). Both pretty funny!

Promises of a long weekend (Friday off), a hike with an amazing friend, a morning hunting and some down time have me anticipating the weekend. We're still dry, but the mornings have been damper and the days simply stunning. Fall is amazing here. Some final photos for your viewing!

silly self portrait!

A Whirlwind Two Months

Here's a quick look at what we have been up to since April 1, 2012! Phew! Life is full, life is good!!

If you click on that funny button in the corner, you'll get the full screen slideshow! Enjoy the weekend!

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And Then There Were Three!!

Michael has been talking about how this would be a good year for him to get a puppy; being around home, working on the addition and all. Funny how easy it is to make something happen when you start thinking about it! Suddenly, things fell into place and a new puppy was ripped away from his other 2 brothers in Ririe, Idaho and brought to his new home in Hoback. He has already peed on the floor and attempted to chew whatever he can get his sharp little puppy teeth on - excluding Sally or Butch - none are very sure of each other yet.

The name floating around right now is "Smoke", but the jury is still out! Enjoy springtime!!

I Wanna Go Back to Brooks!

Thanks for sharing your pictures, Addie! What a great weekend we all had!

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Cutter Race Weekend!

Another great two days of Cutter Races hosted by the Shriners! Great friends, great food, great horse racing! A dollar or two lost, a dollar or two won!

Happy Birthday Addie!

Thank you Addie and Doug (and happy birthday, Addie - look how great you look!) for giving us a reason to spend the night at Brooks Lake Lodge, spend a weekend doing some amazing snowmobiling, and seeing this lovely place we call home!! Hope you enjoy this picturesque slide show - get it to go full screen by clicking on the box in the lower right corner with all the arrows! Happy Winter to you All! PS Yes, those are wolf tracks! PSS All pictures taken with my iPhone (except one with time and date)

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What a Dumping of Snow!

Winter finally came to Jackson Hole and more is to come! We got at least 3 feet in a short span of time. Michael lost his hay shed....sad face. Here's a picture. It's hard to capture the enourmousness of it all!

Goodbye 2011!

2011 was a good year. Next year's resolution - try to update Blog site more often!! Here's a slide show of some of my favorite 2011 images. All the best to your and yours in 2012!! Click on the box with the four arrows in the bottom right corner to see full screen version. Enjoy!

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Oh My, My!

One case canned peaches!

One very big sunflower!

Newly Appointed!

Big news for me - I have been appointed by the Governor of Wyoming to serve as one of five members for the Governor's Fire Council! Here's proof!! Click to see Governor's letter

What does this mean? Well, a couple of trips to Cheyenne, for sure. Getting to know some new people, learning new things and having something that looks really good on my resume!! As they say, that and $5 will buy you a coffee in Jackson!

Just like eveyone else, our summer has been filled with non-stop activities! We are enjoying lovely fall weather although it is very dry. I must share this great new recipe with all you fellow bakers - it is amazingly good!Recipe Here

At last, I close with a picture of the Red Rock Fire. Both Michael and I have had the opportunity to be up on this fire. Always good to do that once or twice a summer.

August 2011

I have been nudged to update this site, and rightfully so. Once again, a summer with too many projects. Big morning plans got nixed when a call came in for a medical assist. Here is a great picture Michael took after he called the helicopter in.

This afternoon, a grass fire is right out our friends' door, Doug and Addie, and I start to think about my wildland gear and if it is all ready. They should be alright, unless the wind direction changes, and even still, they have good wet space around their ranch. Our grass here has dried out and there is plenty of it to burn now.

The following slide show will compare the garden and greenhouse from earlier this year. Brussel sprouts do well here, as you will see! Ending picture is the cherry jam I've worked on all day thanks to my friends Butch and Marsha letting us pick their sour cherries.

Just to make sure we don't worry about being bored, this Thursday friends Gary and Diana arrive for the big birthday bash on Saturday. How cool that we will not only celebrate Michael's birthday, but Gary's too!! And, of course, Kenlyn's as well. Should be a good party! Hope you are all enjoying your summer too!!

Flying High!

What an amazing flight over the Tetons. Record snowfall for this time of year. These images followed by some July 2 garden shots! Addie, check out your greenhouse! And look, Dad, the lettuce is growing! Enjoy!

Goodbye Pop, You Will Be Missed

The Kinzer Family and friends gathered June 17 to celebrate the full life of Kenneth R. Kinzer, my grandfather. "Pop", as we called him, died in April and would have turned 97 on June 16 this year. Check out these pictures from the trip!

First one is a picture of Pop taken in 2006. I was so lucky to be able to see him on Illinois visits! Next up, and from left to right: little brother Mike, sister Kristen, Linda, me, and Dad after the service. Then two pictures from Dad's garden. The lovely row of lettuce is a heirloom lettuce from Italy. I'm hoping it will grow in Wyoming! Then a picture from Diana's yard, followed by Mom's yard filled with hostas and then her posing in those hostas! The next picture is my 101 year old Aunt Ione (Pop's sister) and her lovely daughter Carol. Then a few others thrown in for good measure! I had a great time over the long weekend touring gardens. It is a hot and humid place back there, but plants sure grow there!

Meanwhile, back on the home front, summer came. We are not going too flood to badly, so it looks at this point. There is garden work, yard work and horses needing to be ridden! Better get at it!!

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.