http-equiv='refresh'/> Tin TeePee/Log Cabin: June 2015

Monday, June 29, 2015

Good To Be Home

Flying to Nashville and back was a trip without incident—that’s always a good thing—planes were on time, I had good seats and good books to read.  Speaking of good books—The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd was one of those books I couldn’t put down.  On Friday I had a two hour plane ride to Minneapolis, a three hour layover in the Minneapolis airport and another two hour flight to Nashville.  That’s a whole lot of reading hours—I usually people watch but I was so into this book—loved it!

Sunday after arriving in Billings I made a quick stop at Costco for fruits and vegetables then headed home to my cowboy and one happy little dog!  Like much of the country Montana is hot and dry—we have no air conditioning as we seldom need it.  Last night I was thinking we needed it!

Today was catch up time—submitting hours and expenses, laundry, giving all my outside plants a hearty drink.  Michael kept everything watered well while I was gone—he’s a good husband!

We’ve had three peony bushes planted for years and never a peony.  The newest bush planted about three years ago finally has ONE peony—a beautiful, pink one!

DSCN1157 and the columbine are gorgeous as always although with this heat they are starting to disappear.

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Due to the heat I am sure, we have these nasty little “sticky flies” which do their best to get in your ears, up your nose, behind your glasses—just about the most annoying little buggers!  The flies were making the horses frantic this morning so I grabbed some horse treats and the bottle of horse insect spray.  I didn’t even have to catch the horses, they just stood perfectly still eating their treats and let me spray them as if to say, “AHHHHH, that’s better.” 

Nashville was fun but it’s good to be home, too!

Saturday, June 27, 2015

Nashville

Remember last October when I accepted a consulting position with a medical device company?  There hasn't been much call for my services until the phone rang earlier this week.  The original company had purchased another medical device company.  Circumstances suddenly required the training of more personnel, enter my friend Elaine and me.  Nashville is hosting the annual APIC (Association of Practioners in Infection Control) convention and employees of the company were available to do the training.  Elaine lives in Nashville and I flew in Friday.  

It's been a long, long time since I attended one of these huge conferences--culture shock coming from population deficient Montana!đŸ˜€Saturday afternoon Elaine and I learned about securement devices from April--one of the employees of Griploc--she was so personable/enjoyable!


It's a short trip, Sunday I fly home to the cowboy and Emmi.  

Thursday, June 25, 2015

An Adventure

IMG_2333All loaded up and ready to roll before 8am this morning—we were heading to Blue Lake with Sarge and Sarah.  Most years we can’t even get close to Blue Lake this early in the season—snowdrifts.  The locals (such as the cowboy) say you usually can’t get to Blue Lake until after July 4.

P6270076This photo was taken June 27, 2011 when our friends Gina and Rollie were here—we tried to go to Blue Lake but were stopped by this snowdrift about nine miles shy of the lake.  Today—no snow on the road, lots of snow melt water running everywhere and lots of puddles.  Plus it was even dusty in places—not good this early in the summer! 

It was a glorious day spent with good friends!  Sunny skies with a few clouds now and then plus enough breeze at the lake to keep the mosquitoes away. 

IMG_2341Callie runs for a while then rides for a while—Emmi just rides and yips at Callie!

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The ride to Blue Lake from where we unloaded the ATVs was 43 miles round trip—bone jarring rocks and mud puddles, up and up we went—the scenery makes up for the roughness!  Soaring mountains, wildflowers, green, green grass, and the smell of evergreens in the air—gorgeous!

IMG_2356Pilot and Index Peaks located in Wyoming but still in the Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness area.  IMG_2389

Blue Lake is located in the Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness area.  After miles and miles of unbelievable rough riding you arrive at the end of the road—there is a foot/horse path down to the lake.  The lake is as the crow flies less than 12 miles from the northern border of Yellowstone Park—you are out in the middle of nowhere—literally.  Can you imagine our surprise to arrive at the trailhead to find not only a Toyota FJ Cruiser but a PORSCHE!!!  As in Porsche SUV but still—who in their right mind would bring that kind of a vehicle up that road??  These people were from Minnesota and Tennessee—they had tents and gear everywhere and were enjoying themselves immensely! 

IMG_2364Still a little ice on the late and lots of snow drifts.  IMG_2372

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Callie enjoying the snow!

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We are indeed fortunate to live in such a place aren’t we!  Tomorrow I am heading to Nashville, TN leaving the cowboy and Emmi at home holding down the fort.  Just a short trip, I will be back home Sunday—attending a training session for the company which hired me back in October, 2014. 

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Summer In Montana

On the way home from town late this afternoon we saw a doe with a just born fawn—the baby was suckling and mom was cleaning him/her—first fawn we’ve seen this season.  It’s as if the Montana weather knew June 21 was the first day of summer—our temps are warming up and this weekend we may see 90—let’s hope not!

The fly fishing shop in Big Timber changed hands over the winter and Saturday celebrated their “grand re-opening” by having the Sisters on the Fly group visit bringing some of their vintage RVs.  “Sisters on the Fly” is the largest outdoor women’s group in the United States with currently over 6,000 "Sisters." This membership-based community supports women in their journey to get up, get out and become more adventurous!”  from the Sisters on the Fly website.

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Finished quilting another quilt yesterday and today we took Nat to Livingston to the audiologist to be tested and fitted for new hearing aides—it’s amazing the newer technology available these days!  My Daddy was terribly hard of hearing due to multiple ear infections as a child when no antibiotics were available.  When he married Mom in 1954 at the age of 25, he all ready wore a hearing aide—it fit in his shirt pocket and a wire ran to the ear mold—technology has come a long way!

We are planning an exciting adventure and I’ve got a work trip approaching rapidly—life isn’t dull around here for sure!

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Sunday, June 21, 2015

Happy Father’s Day

Nat drove up the Boulder today for the first time in a long time—we enjoyed a spectacular lunch of beef filets, garlic mashed potatoes, melons and homemade chocolate/espresso ice cream.  We spent time reminiscing and visiting—it was wonderful—today you would never know Nat is 93 years old!

IMG_2317IMG_2322Nat read on the blog that Michael was creating a “thumb” for the excavator and asked to see it in action.

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My dear Dad has been gone since December, 2002—there’s hardly a day goes by I don’t think of him and miss him greatly.

CCI06212015_0001He loved his grandchildren—here he is with Trenton and Clayton—Trenton turned 21 this year.

CCI06212015He loved plowing the garden with a horse or mule!

CCI06212015_0002And he loved visiting with family—my Mom, brother Ross and Mick, the Australian shepherd.  I’m thinking I should have fired my hairdresser in the next photo! Smile

TopDaddy Mom and Me

And then there is my dear husband Michael—he too is a Dad to Lonn and Shannen—and I happen to think he is a good Dad!

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So, Father’s Day with joy and with sadness—a good day in Montana. 

Friday, June 19, 2015

Computer Stuff and A Quilt

Not long ago Rick posted about a free Windows 10 upgrade.  Not one to be adventuresome when it comes to computers—I like same ole same ole—I let Rick’s post slip my mind.  Well, today this little window pops up on my lower taskbar—offering me the free Windows 10 upgrade.  I must have been feeling brave as I reserved my free upgrade—wonder how long I have to worry about it now???

Remember the photo of the five grizzly bears I posted a couple days ago?  I took that photo from our local news station Facebook page.  Last night at Nat’s I was making some changes to Nat’s iPad and clicked on the blog—there were only three bears in that photo from the blog on his iPad!!!  What in the world???  I had my iPhone with me—clicked on the blog—that photo had five bears!!  Nat said, “I read what you wrote about there being five bears and just thought you couldn’t count because I could only see three bears!”  When we got home I used my iPad to access the blog—only three bears again—what’s up with the iPads?????  Weird!

In the spring of 2014 Paulette hosted a quilt-a-long.  I all ready had the book which contained the pattern—Winter Solstice—and quickly gathered the fabrics.  Then Mom had her accident and the quilt-a-long went by the wayside.  Well—I finished that little quilt last fall/winter and today I finished quilting it—adorable!

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For those of you dreaming of Alaska travel take a look at the blog, Riveted.  They are traveling to Alaska aboard their 2013 Nordic Tug 34—the photos are stunning and the writing very entertaining.  When not at sea they travel in an Airstream—thus the blog’s name—Riveted. 

IMG_2171Found these two photos on my older Canon when I was taking quilt photos today—these were taken in early June when we had more snow on the mountains and the chokecherry trees were blossoming.  IMG_2172

Wednesday, June 17, 2015

Grizzly Bears and Traveling Salesmen

On June 9, Ashley Southworth and her husband were driving back to Cody from Yellowstone at around 6:30 p.m. when they spotted this incredible sight.”  from KTVQ News Montana

5 Grizzly Bears off North Fork Highway. Photo by Ashley SouthworthWould you not love to see a sight such as this?   I lived near Cody before marrying the cowboy and made the drive up the North Fork Highway to Yellowstone Park many, many times—looking for wildlife.  Once I did see three grizzly bears foraging for food alongside the river—back in the days before digital cameras—but never five at once and standing up.  Amazing!!!

Anybody remember traveling salesmen??  Well today I participated in a sort of “traveling salesmen” roadshow.  The company which manufacturers the brand of longarm quilting machine I own, APQS, has a van--

IMG_2301in which Mark and Josh travel the US doing their own kind of roadshow.  They book a meeting room in a hotel—send out invitations and set up five different APQS machines.  These guys have this down to a science!  They also ask the local sales representatives such as me to attend.  So, early this morning I was off to Butte, MT—160 miles one way.  Mark and Josh give a presentation then allow participants to try out the machines.  I enjoyed getting to see the latest and greatest models—plus I got to play a little too! Smile

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I made a quick stop at the grocery store in Livingston.  Back home I found the cowboy moving dirt and one little lonesome dog!  It’s good to be home!

Monday, June 15, 2015

Summer Left

It’s summer isn’t it—the wildflowers are blooming--

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everything is immensely green--

IMG_2294and the birds are eating me out of house and home—So, then, why did I have a fire in the wood burning stove all day and why did we wear jackets for our walk???  The clouds hung low all day and the temps hovered right around 50 degrees.  I brought my tomato plant and all the flowers inside last evening and there the pots have stayed today!

After our garage sale on Saturday we have new found space in our pantry/storage room downstairs in the basement.  I spent the afternoon re-arranging that space, alphabetizing my canned goods, etc.  It’s amazing what you find when cleaning—a jarred spread of some sort with an expiration date of 2012!!  And that wasn’t the only expired thing I found! 

Emmi and I took a late afternoon walk and were coming up the path down by the creek—now that I’ve seen this particular photo I know Emmi heard the critter before I did--

DSCN1150I was talking to Emmi trying to get her to pose for a photo when I heard thrashing in the brush, limbs breaking and a huge whitetail deer jumped (and jumped high) out of the brush less than four feet from where I was standing.  The stupid thing almost landed on top of me.  Scared me to death—I screamed, loudly!  My heart was pounding—I was sure I had been about to say hello to a bear! 

The little garden is coming along—radishes and spinach are up and I think I can see tiny carrots peeping out.  I’m sure the garden is wondering where summer went, too!

Saturday, June 13, 2015

A Successful Garage Sale

For the first time the town of Big Timber hosted a community wide garage sale.  Michael and I gathered a pickup truck load of “stuff” and headed into town way too early this morning.  We had steady traffic from 8am until almost noon when the sale ended.  We were very, very happy with the proceeds from our truck load of stuff and we brought home very little.  The weather was perfect, we sat and enjoyed the sunshine for most of the morning.  Sometimes Emmi kept us company and sometimes she went inside and spent time with Nat.

We saw people we hadn’t seen in years and speaking of people we’ve not seen in years—I called my massage therapist and found out how really, really long it’s been since I’ve had a massage.  Gayle has gotten married and had a baby—I didn’t even know and her baby is seven months old!!!!!  Obviously I need to get out more!

My sister Ann and her husband Danny have a huge garden.  They planted about 30 pounds of potatoes and today harvested about 500 pounds!!!  Looks as if they had lots of help from their own grandchildren and their adopted grandchildren!

Tonight we enjoyed a spectacular evening in Big Timber with friends having dinner at the Grand—We are so fortunate to live in a community such as this with friends so special!

Thursday, June 11, 2015

Busy Days

The cowboy is still playing with his toys moving dirt although we did take a trip to Billings yesterday—I was in need of a haircut.  We enjoyed a fabulous lunch at Jake’s—have any of you tried a jalapeno salad dressing—it’s probably a “ranch” type dressing with jalapenos added—very, very good! 

Our yoga group now meets one day a week at Nancy’s just a mile up the road from our house and one day a week at Julia’s (our instructor) house north of Big Timber.  Today was at Julia’s house and my friend Kathy rode along with me.  Anyone who thinks yoga is “sissy” or not much of a workout doesn’t have Julia for an instructor!  Yoga was hard work today! 

The warm temps have the grass (and weeds) growing by leaps and bounds so I spent the afternoon on the riding lawnmower—saving the weed whacking for another day. 

Michael and I are still collecting stuff for Saturday’s garage sale—I hope it ALL sells and we don’t have to bring anything home!

OK—men—you don’t have to read the rest—I am going to talk clothes.  I have a terrible time finding jeans to fit—I am tall, 5 feet nine inches but it’s not just the length, it’s the overall fit.  I absolutely hate those low rise or even medium rise jeans—so, I am looking for suggestions—what brands do you ladies prefer??? 

And that’s it for happenings here in Montana the last couple days.  Did our Montana tragedy make your local news stations—a man shot his wife and three small children then shot himself in the tiny town of Deer Lodge, Montana—tragic and sad!

IMG_2256-001These photos were taken on our Monday drive over the Beartooth Highway.

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Tuesday, June 9, 2015

Back At It and a Promotion

After our spectacular drive yesterday, we were both hard at work today—there’s a lot to do on 40 acres in the summer time!  I did take time for a yoga class this morning with Julia, Nancy and Judy.

Michael spent the day moving dirt and late this afternoon he retrieved an old lawn mower I had in another life—and succeeded in getting it to run.  You see—Saturday we are having a garage sale—yes, I know we are nuts—after the last one we survived several years ago I swore never again but off we go.  It’s a community wide garage sale in Big Timber with close to 20 participants and we are taking stuff to Nat’s—we live way too far out in the country to have a successful yard sale.  I did some gathering and pricing today—I’m trying to do this in stages and not get too stressed!

Let’s see, what else did I do today—the usual—laundry, garden watering plus I gave Ms. Emmi a bath and haircut. 

IMG_2234What’s up with all you rhubarb haters out there??  You’ve obviously never had my rhubarb crisp!  Paulette with a few hints from husband Rick even made one today!

While reading Al’s blog the other day the title of another blog along his sidebar caught my eye, “Book Review.”  The book being reviewed was Following Atticus:  Forty-eight High Peaks, One Little Dog and an Extraordinary Friendship

I can’t say enough good about this true story—the dog is a miniature schnauzer like Emmi and the story of the bond he shares with his owner Tom Ryan is heartwarming, amazing and very entertaining.  Tom Ryan is a writer and owns a newspaper in New Hampshire—he and Atticus (named for the character in To Kill A Mockingbird) decide to start hiking after completing a hike with Tom’s brothers.  The hiking becomes a passion both for Tom and Atticus and evolves into hiking to raise money for cancer causes.  I was fortunate to find the book online through my local library as an audiobook—I listened as I cleaned house on Saturday and weeded flower beds on Sunday—this was one book I was sorry to finish! 

John, Laci and LoraOur grandson-in-law, John received word today that he has earned a promotion—Technical Sargent in the USAF—he earned this promotion in much less time than it usually takes and we are extremely proud of him! 

Wow—who turned up the heat in Montana—it’s way too warm for this early in the year—89 degrees today!!  Should be cooler tomorrow.

And—happy, happy birthday to our dear friend Rollie—who just happens to be celebrating his birthday on that ole off shore drilling rig!

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