Back in MN

As much as I LOVED being out in Dubois, Noah and I came back to MN after 6 weeks there. We weren't finding a place, and Joe and I didn't want to be apart anymore. I'm really happy to be back. I LOVE my family and friends. We're going to wait until after the holidays and re-group and see if moving is really what we want to do.

Life in Dubois

Well, we've been here about a week and a half. Noah is settled in school and is on the football team. They have their first game this Friday. I got a part time job working at a fitness center. I start next week. I've just been doing normal stuff, along with a little organizing of my stuff. I had to get out some warmer clothes yesterday, cause it was chilly! Yesterday and today I have been a little lonely and homesick. Joe is flying out tomorrow for the weekend. Yeah!!! We did go camping over Labor Day Weekend at Double Cabin Nat'l Forest. It's about 25 miles from Dubois, but takes about an hour and 20 minutes to get there. It was fabulous; gorgeous scenery and great company. My sister's friends had a camper and it was great, especially when it rained Sunday night and Monday morning. We did lots of hiking. No house yet, but the floors are done in our MN home. It'll be nice to have our own place with Joe here too, although we greatly appreciate being able to stay at my sister's house. I'm off to get a library card! Bye!

Headin' West

Talk about a slow move! And our house still isn't ready to list! BUT...Noah and I are flying out to Wyoming tomorrow so he can start school there on Aug. 27th. We will be staying with my sister in Dubois. I'm looking forward to it, although I didn't have peace with leaving until last Sat. This week has been full getting together with family and friends. Yesterday and today, I've been a little more emotional about it. But then I figure I'm only a plane ride or car ride from MN. I'm not even packed yet. Thankfully our flight doesn't leave until late afternoon. Most of my stuff is already out there, but Noah needs to bring a lot of stuff. Joe will stay in MN doing more things on the list. Hopefully it won't be long before he can join us in Wyoming. He will be flying out to visit us frequently. Wyoming or BUST!

Update on Barbara

I got another email from my friend Ann about Barbara. She is doing amazingly well! She is up and about and even gets out once in a while. Her doctor said she is the only one to survive past the intubation surgery. I am so thankful that she is improving, although she is having chemo for the lung cancer and has lost all of her hair. I have a sister who makes chemo caps and she is going to send her a couple. I hope to see Barbara when I am in MN later this month. Thanks for your continued prayers for her.

Can't Sleep

It's 12:45 am MT and I can't sleep. Too many late nights and sleeping in. Although Friday I was up at 6am MT and up and at 'em all day, although I felt exhausted. Joe's flight out of Jackson was at 9 am and it's an hour and a half drive from here. And I am not a morning person, but I do try. Noah and I went to the 4th of July parade in Dubois. Then at night we went to the scenic overlook to watch the downtown fireworks. It was very cool! Except for the man parked next to us who was singing (very badly) to his ipod. I thought it was kind of funny. I just hope he made it home ok! Today we enjoyed God's beautiful creation. We went just east of town to Trail Lakes Trail. We were going to walk up to the waterfall, but my hip has been very sore lately due to bursitus. So we walked down by the river instead and Noah and Fergus (my sister's dog) had fun going in and cooling off. Then we went to a lake in this area (Whiskey Basin) and again, Noah and Fergus went in. They walked more than halfway across the lake and it only went up to Noah's waist. It was just a beautiful time enjoying the wonders of Wyoming. It was kind of funny when we were leaving. I started driving and there were a couple of big rocks on the ground that we were driving over. It felt like we were going to tip over, so I backed up. Then I put the truck in 4 wheel drive for the first time and took off again. It was still kind of scary. I was like, Oh Jesus, help us! But we made it just fine and now I know how to use the four wheel drive.

A Helping Hand

This afternoon Noah and I went to the Scenic Overlook at the west end of town to do some hiking. We were almost to the top when we saw a woman walking down. She put up her hand for us to stop and said she had locked her keys in her vehicle and asked if we had a phone she could use. She had AAA so she called them on my cell phone. They said they'd be there in about an hour. She was really glad we showed up so she wouldn't have to walk all the way to town for help. We drove to the top and I talked with her until help arrived. She was on her way through from Maryland to Oregon where she was moving to. It was a neat experience that we went up there when we did. It's a pretty remote place (kind of like most places out here)! Noah did a little exploring while we were there and saw things dumped up there...a tv, vcr. etc. Pretty sad that people can't respect the land. We also saw a lot of animal carcasses on the side of the road on our drive last night. Noah checked it out and they'd been shot and dumped. Lots of different animals, antelope, wolves, buffalo. Another dumping place in the midst of beautiful landscape. BTW, the views at both of these places is simply BREATHTAKING!!! The mountains and the red rocks...Gorgeous!

Hard news

That was the title of an email I received today telling me of a beautiful, intelligent, and vibrant woman that I know who has been treated for breast cancer the last five years and it has spread to her lungs. She just had surgery to keep her lungs from filling up with fluid. She has 3 young children 8 and under. Barbara is also a very talented singer.



I know Barbara from a play I was in last fall, "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" at Steppingstone Theatre in St. Paul. She was one of us three "church ladies." Her daughter was in it as well. The church ladies have a special connection because there's no one quite like us!!!



I am deeply saddened by this news, especially being out here. It has made me re-think moving away from my family and friends. Do I really want to be away from people I love deeply, and have something happen? I will be contemplating this, in light of the "hard news."



I will be very sad if Barbara loses this battle, but I am fighting for her through prayers and asking everyone I talk to that believes in miracles to pray.



Live on Barbara! You are loved!

Life in Wyoming!

BTW, it felt like home when we arrived.

The weather has been beautiful! Sunny skies with puffy clouds, 80 degrees or so.

Monday morning Cindy and I went to a water aerobics class, then out for coffee. Her friend Julie (visiting from MN), Cindy and I went shopping in downtown Dubois. Julie and I went for a long walk, then at night we went to a chuckwagon dinner and show. The singer was great; played old time westerns.

Today we went to Lander, about 80 miles away. A town of about 4000. Dubois is a little under a thousand. We went to lunch, shopped and then went to Sinks Canyon State Park. We hiked up to a waterfall, except I only made it about 3/4 of the way up. So Cindy, Julie and Noah came back to where I was waiting in about 45 minutes or so. By the time they got there, it was cloudy, cold, raining, along with thunder and lightening, and we were NOT prepared. No rain jackets or anything. I can see how people get taken unawares and in trouble. I was very happy when we got back to the car, safe and sound.

Tonight we had another great dinner and met some of Cindy's friends. Noah made a campfire after dinner and we enjoyed the nice, cool evening. I'm tired tonight and think I will sleep very well!

Free and Easy Down the Road We Went!

Noah (my 15 year old) and I left MN on Sat. 6/21 and drove to Rapid City SD. Noah did really well! Thank God for portable DVD players and $5 movies from Walmart! The only incident was a bird hitting the windshield hard! But it didn't crack or anything.



I had bought a Taylor Swift cd before we left home and listened to it at least 5 times on the way out. It was great!



Sunday we drove through the Big Horn Mountains (hwy 16 south of Buffalo WY). It was beautiful! Although I made a mistake by not stopping for gas or the restroom in Buffalo. By the time we got to Ten Sleep, the gauge was a little bit over 'E' and I desperately had to go to the bathroom. But thank God we made it!



We got to my sister's in Dubois at 8 pm, just in time for a great dinner!



I'll post separately about since we've been here.

I did my playlist last night and I was really excited! Check it out! Make your own for FREE! I love music!!! I love it when computer stuff works. Not so thrilled when it doesn't!
I also went through some stuff and packed for moving. Peace friends!

Slow going

Today has been a long day. And I didn't accomplish one thing toward moving. Oh well, tomorrow is another day.

Getting ready to move

We've been wanting to move since May of 2007 from Minnesota to Wyoming and our house still isn't on the market. My husband, Joe, has been working diligently, but what I've done has been very sporadic, due to health problems and procrastination. I feel like this week, though, we've reached a point where it won't be long before our house is ready. I'm actually going out to Wyoming for 3 weeks later this month. I'll be staying at my sister's house while she's in MN. I'll also have the opportunity to look at some homes there. It will be nice to see our dream become a reality. So if you're working toward a goal or dream, don't give up. There's hope! What helped me is to ask myself, "What can I do today toward moving?" Those little things add up to big things and before you know it, you're where you want to be!