Wow! It's been a long time since I've been on here! Having a very relaxing day at home!!! Lots of changes. We've had renters for the last year and a half. They are great! They had a baby boy on Joe's birthday. Noah got his license and totalled our car the same day. Now we all have new vehicles. I got a 2009 Ford Focus Sedan, Noah a 1990 Buick Regal and Joe a 2004 Toyota Corolla. Now we need to sell the truck! Noah is taking classes to get his GED and has a part time job. Joe started working at Sportsman's Guide two weeks ago. I had a busy summer traveling and loved it. Next week we are going to CA/AZ for a week with our wonderful friends, the Kaehlers. Anyway, just wanted to drop by and say hi!

Well, we never did move.

I was diagnosed with breast cancer last Dec., but thank God it was stage one and grade one and treatment went very well. I think it was God's way of saying, "Stay in Mn," and I am ok with that.

My life has been full and satisfying since we moved back.

This Sunday though Noah and I are driving out to Dubois to visit and help my sister move back to Mn. Another good reason we didn't move out there!

So I'll get to visit! Yay!

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.