Do I count?

I have been visiting the Star Valley area for at least a decade now. I have been living here for almost two years. I'm getting a little irritated with feeling I don't count. As you enter the city here the population sign states there are only 100 people here. I know this sign hasn't been updated for decades. I was in Etna today and its population sign seems to be outdated also. When do I get to count for something around here? I don't even know who the Governor of Wyoming is. I know more about Idaho than my own State. We get TV on the local channels from Idaho (that's entertainment at it's finest). I feel at times that the State of Wyoming has forgotten the western half of its own state and the people who live here. Why don't we get TV broadcasted from Cheyenne? I would love to hear what is happening in my own state. I would really love to hear a weather broadcast including the Star Valley area on a regular basis. I don't want to offend any one here locally but I do think we need to make a statement and make our voices heard. I don't know who our local Mayor is. I did vote in the most recent election. I never even heard who won. Shouldn't our voices be saying something like "Take care of our population signs", "We can have tourism here too", "What are the officials in our area doing to help local shop owners?" These are just a few questions I have.
Maybe I should run for a government office.

Little People and the aging process

I have a granddaughter that will be having a birthday soon. We took a trip and went toy shopping for her already. It's always a joy to get my husband to visit Toys R Us. I have to wonder, why we spend so much time searching for the perfect gift. Shouldn't we just get them an old used piece of furniture? This way they could just jump on the furniture all day long. It would be their piece of furniture to do with what they want. I have never understood why it is so fascinating for children to jump on the furniture. I don't think furniture is magnetic but it sure acts like it when children are near. It is kind of like walking down the hallways and having to hold them up by running their hands down the clean walls. What is that all about? It takes children years to learn how to walk with just their feet. This is a concept that seems to confuse my husband all the time.
I don't remember jumping on the furniture when I was a child. My mother would have used brutal force against me had I done that. In fact, I don't remember ever enjoying playing inside the house when I was young. We loved to play outside. If my mother told me we had to come in and watch a movie on TV we would have thought we were being punished. Kick the can and Treasure hunts were much more fun. We could stay out till the sun went down (without helmets as we rode our bikes) and our mothers were not afraid for our lives.
I do understand we live in a different world these days and there are more people in the world that we need to be careful of. It is unfortunate that we have to worry about some of the evils that can harm children.
I wonder how the world will evolve in the next 20-30 years for children. What will play time change into? Kick-the-Can to Game Boys to What?

Hoot and Coot

So we were sitting in the hot tub last night listening to the night sounds. We heard an owl hooting and it was actually quite pleasant to listen to. I named the owl "Hoot".  Soon thereafter another owl started answering Hoot and then we were serenaded by the two owls. We were then listening to "Hoot" and "Coot". It was obvious the two owls were communicating to each other. With so much to do around here, Km and I started adlibbing what the owls were saying.
Hoot: Are you ready to go hunting?
Coot: Let me get the sleep out of my eyes. Give me 10 minutes
Hoot: I heard there's a little white rabbit around here.
Coot: Let's go get it
Hoot: What weapons are we taking?
Coot: Talons, Stealth
Hoot: I think the little critter might be sick. I've heard it is sometimes green and white.
Coot: Really? It sounds like that little dog in the green sweatshirt that lives nearby.
Hoot: Do you think it would taste good?
Coot: Filet Mignon?
Hoot: Maybe we should hunt for something else. I don't think that little dog goes out with out her human.
Coot: Are you going to talk all night or are we going to fly? I'm hungry.
Hoot: As soon as it's dark, I'll meet you at the tallest tree.

Seriously, I think we lost our minds for a bit. My Grandma was worried about me getting bored living here. I don't think I will let her know about this.
My Mother-in-law names the wildlife around here. Molly is the deer that has lived here for decades. All the grandkids look for Molly each year. Frisky is the squirrel that eats below the bird feeder. Willard is the snake that lives in the grass (I hate that thing). I guess it’s  okay if I have a couple owls named Hoot and Coot.

Children aka Angels

Today is April 14 and it is my Granddaughters birthday. It's hard adjusting to living with so many miles between family members. I'm very close to my family and I thought when we retired I would have so much time to spend with each one of them. We certainly have the time now but it's difficult to go be with them as much as I would like to.
We recently had the grandkids here in Bedford for a visit. My granddaughter Tessa was such a joy to be with. I especially enjoyed all the hugs she shared with me. Grandchildren are truly Angels sent to us straight from Heaven. I hope one day I am surrounded with our family members living close to us.

I've been blessed to get to know our neighbors the Hodges. They have children that I find fill a void in my life. I miss so many children from my home in Sandy. I look forward to the days when I get to see Nathan and Jacob's little faces. They are always so excited with what's new in their world.

Have you kissed and hugged your little child today? Do it.

Just burn it

It's funny living in a rural area. I've driven by a few places recently and noticed some old homes. One place that I took note of was an old farm home that was vacant. It stood across from a field that had cattle in it with some old barns on the property. The barns were fairly large and I figured at one point the farmer and his family probably lived in the home and had run a pretty good operation of running cattle. One week later I drove by the same home. It had burned to the ground. I was shocked. I wondered how this could happen.  About a month later I was driving with my grandchildren through Afton, WY on our way home and we noticed an old home on fire. It was strange. It was an old home so I figured that no one was living in the home but I still wondered how it caught on fire. That week we read the Star Valley Independent newspaper and an article had explained the fire in Afton. It was a controlled burn by the Fire Department. I guess if you don't need something around here you just burn it to the ground. I assume now that is what happened to the old farm home I saw earlier that month.
This morning I went outside to get my husband for lunch. To my surprise he had a burn pile in front of our home. "What are you burning"? He had an old cabinet he didn't need any more. So of course, just burn it.
He was so proud of himself explaining how he had a large fire with this cabinet. Once again, we have become one of the locals. What happens in your front yard?

What's in the BBQ?

You know what cracks me up? The answer is: Southerner's (Utahn's) complaining about the winter in April. I had no idea what the winter could be like in Wyoming until living here. I have lived in Fargo, North Dakota for 18 months. When I lived there I knew it was not going to be a permanent residence. I guess I looked at it differently then because I knew there was going to be an escape. The winters are very beautiful here. After the snow falls, the trees are so beautiful with new snow on them. I have taken so many pictures of the winter scenery. My husband has taken some great pictures as well. The sunsets are breath taking. We stop whatever we are doing most evenings just to get a look at the sunsets.

Living with us is our dog Harley. She is a Lhasa Apso. I think I brought the only true city dog with us. A neighbor of ours donated sod for us to get us through the winter and spring this year so my dog would have a "potty patch". My city pup will not use the dirt to go potty. When we first moved here I had to go buy her new red shoes so she could walk on the snow. Of course she wasn't going to get her feet cold when going outside.  She wears a green sweatshirt around the house and before going outside, if it is snowing, she puts on her brown leather jacket.
Our city dog can scare off any wild animal. Last night I took her out to go potty before bed time. As soon as she went out she was hot on the trail of an animal. The wild thing was in the BBQ. I grabbed Harley and we jumped back in the house. I'm not sure if we are afraid of our own shadow's living here because of all the wild animals we can encounter. I hollered for my husband and he came running and then shut the door with us inside. He thought it could be a skunk. Yikes! I hadn't thought of that. Just then a mouse ran across the snow in the backyard. That of course made us jump too. I told him I thought the thing hissed at us when I picked up Harley. I saw footprints in the snow where Harley usually goes potty. What was in the BBQ? We then thought to go to the other door that is 10 feet from the BBQ and throw snowballs at it. Maybe the wild thing would get scared and come out. We tried it but nothing happened. We went to bed still wondering what was in the BBQ. Was it the mouse? I couldn't sleep. We have seen mink, mice, voles, Coyote's, raccoon’s, skunk, wolves’, deer, moose, elk, and grandkids here. It's like we could open our own wild life refuge.
This morning I had to take Harley out to go potty once more. I made my husband go out to move the BBQ with me. What was in the BBQ? Answer: Absolutely nothing. I think it was the mouse. I wasn't really afraid.
It's a mystery what new animal we're going to see each day. Maybe we should make a contest of it.

Dear Deer

I awoke this morning early to my husband’s voice telling me there were 45 head of deer in the front of our home. Of course I had to jump out of bed, blurry eyed, grabbing a blanket to wrap around me to go to the window to witness the great event. It is days like this when you remember why this is our dream home. We left the hustle and bustle of the city life to enjoy the quiet atmosphere and simple pleasures in life. We watched the funny creatures for about a half hour. They wandered back and forth wondering where to go. One deer had only 3/4 of a leg. She stayed at the back of the herd but they all waited for her each time they wandered to a destination. I have a fabulous girlfriend living in Arizona. She often brags about the temperature being 80+ degrees right now. I envy how she must be enjoying living there. I still have approximately 24"-30" of snow on our property. However, I think the grass is greener in our neck of the woods today. I know we are expecting storms for the remainder of the week and it is snowing right now. I'm definitely tired of the winter and snow, but its days like this that make you want to curl up with a blanket and a good book and stick your tongue out at the city slickers.
My Daughter-in-Law was visiting us recently and asked me a question that has kept me pondering. It was her first visit to our new home since we finished it and took occupancy in October 2010. She was all excited and stopped and asked, "What do you do when you get out of bed each day?" I answered quickly with the normal response that I get up and start cleaning and the normal household duties. I have asked myself the question over and over. I now believe she had this great magical idea that we were living in a beautiful country home that city slickers dream of. She probably envisioned that I arise from my satin sheets in a beautiful silk gown, pour some tea and gather myself in a favorite blanket in the reading nook to read a book that gives me great knowledge that I could share with her. I feel badly that I disappointed her. Or maybe I feel sad that I am disappointing myself. These are some of the reasons we retired and built our dream home. Take some time for ourselves.... right? I have started getting up (neither in silk gowns nor from satin sheets) and I am taking the time to exercise each morning. I do feel good about that. This is also one of the reasons I started this blog. I have been talking about this for two years. I also want to write a child’s book. I want to start that adventure this summer. I'll keep you posted on how I do with that timeline.
I had an idea that I thought I would try. I miss wearing my high heal shoes. I have decided that each time I visit our local grocery store I am going to dress up with heals and lipstick. That should shock the industry here. I'm sure they will think I am a tourist for those that don't know me. For those that do know me I'm sure I will get plenty of strange looks. Maybe I'll try adding a hat or something. I'll probably just get mud on my shoes. If anyone has the perfect outfit idea, let me know. This town could use some spice. I certainly can't find all the spices I need at this grocery store. That's a new blog though.