Here's the story...

I've been working for Blair's Market for the last 20 years. That's not really a secret to anyone. And recently our lives have changed significantly. And really the only reason why some of you are wondering "Why didn't you say anything?"... is because of confidentiality. We are moving to Thermopolis, Wyoming. The Blair's Market group has now expanded to 3 stores and we have been asked to operate the Thermopolis store. It is quite an opportunity that we are very grateful for. We are excited and scared all rolled into one. The biggest cause for concern though is timing. We start on Sunday Nov. 16th, 2008.

Here is how the story goes... This store was owned by a man who worked really hard and stuck it out through some really hard times. He eventually got his store to be a good producing store and also got to the age of retirement. He looked for buyers (we looked at this opportunity then, but passed) and found a married couple who wanted a business of their own. Lots of unfortunate events began to come to the new owners, to put it mildly and they got in a pickle. Contact was made about a sale to the Blair's Market group... and the answer was a surprising "no sale". A few weeks later around the first few days of October, an actual offer was made. This time circumstances had progressed/deteriorated (depending on your point of view) to the point of addressing the cold hard facts. Fact of the matter was the new owners were in need of a big bucket to bail them out of their situation.

As it turns out at the time of the offer in October there was a 99.9% chance that this deal would go through and we would be moving to Thermopolis, yet at every step of the way from the time of the offer and eventual acceptance of the offer we had to beat the 0.1% monster to the ground. It was quite an emotional, physical and psycotic journey. One day the 99.9% wins and the next three the 0.1%.... back and forth untill Monday the 10th of Nov. That is when the actual agreements to sale were signed. And since the new owner's situation had changed dramatically a final ultimatum was given to be out of the store on the 15th of Nov.

So, here we are. We are so grateful and blessed to have this opportunity. Mindy is looking forward to working directly and closely with her hard headed husband. She told me at one point that she would never work for me. Now I am glad that she said that, because she doesn't have to work FOR me, just has to work WITH me! ha ha We may be living in a van down by the river for a while... but we will make it! We haven't found a place to live, so the search continues.

So, if you are traveling through, stop by and see us. We are right on the main street of town. We'll update more when we get settled.

Little Eric

A couple weeks ago Eric and I got to go to Tooele for a really special weekend. Our friend's Cole and Natalie adopted the cutest little baby boy you've ever seen and were finally able to make the adoption final . It was a long time coming for them with a lot of heart breaks along the way but the outcome was well worth the wait. After one adoption that fell through last November, we were thrilled when Cole called us in April and said that they were proud parents of a new baby boy named Eric. The next weekend we were in Utah to see the little guy for the first time. He was born premature and was so tiny we were afraid to hold him. Now he is the cutest thing ever and has a million dollar smile. It was so special to be able to witness them all being sealed together as an eternal family and bless Eric in church. Thanks Cole and Natalie for letting us be a part of your life--we are so happy for you!

Little Eric was all smiles (and drool) from the minute we got there.

Best buddies -- Eric and Cole

One happy family--little Eric, Natalie & Cole

On our way to Utah we kept hearing of this massive storm that was going to dump several feet of snow on us. Well as it turned out, Wyoming was where it decided to dump and we enjoyed pretty good weather aside from a little bit of rain. It made for some cool pictures though.

Small and Simple things...

Sometimes you have an experience in life that totally changes you. I have been pretty fortunate to have a recurring string of events like that. Good friends are truly something special and I am thankful for my friends Cole and Natalie. In February it will be 15 years ago that Cole accepted an invitation to go to a dance at the institute. And that was the start of the string of sprititual events that I am talking about.

Everyone seems to think that the person you introduce the gospel to changes and becomes better... in a way that is true. Actually what happens is the person who introduces the gospel has just as great a change in their life. Cole was already a great person, he didn't need me to bring him the gospel to validate that. He was already the nicest guy around, and really had the qualities of a great person long before he was a member of the church. He can attribute that to his great parents and their willingness to teach him the principles of being a good person from a young age. So my friend Cole who really had no idea that he was teaching me, quietly taught me ALL of the principles and ordinances of the gospel. My life was the one that changed because he taught me and still teaches me HOW it all works.

Every step of the way to Christ I have been there with Cole and he is such a strong example to me, leading me and teaching me of Christ and His importance in my life. Thank you Cole. God sure knew what he was doing when he lead you to the gospel. It was a 2 for 1 deal, Cole's life and mine, and that has impacted many lives since, making it one of the best choices of my life. I cannot take credit for any of it. I can only express my gratitude to God and Cole for taking my hand and leading me on a spiritual journey that will be even greater I suspect once this mortal life is complete.

You never know when it will happen to you. I know that. Thank you Cole and Natalie for the tribute in your son. He will know all the principles that will bring him happiness by looking at Cole for his example.

My Big Dog

Funny thing about this picture is you know exactly who is in charge. Dad thinks he is, but who actually ends up getting the sandwich? Ha Ha! It's probably happened on many horse rides and some of us actually remember Sam and his sandwich snatching ablities. Brio, the son of Sam, all though much gentler and extremely more subtle still manages to obtain the sandwich, where Sam wouldn't even let dad get a bite on some occasions!

This was just a particularly great ride. I had to capture some pictures of Brio doing what he does because he is 9 and I really want to enjoy every moment with him.

Morrison Jeep Trail

09/25/2008

Today I took our bishop on a wheeler ride up the Morrison Jeep Trail. I was trying to get him to like me so that he didn't give me a calling that sucks. We'll see if that works or not. Anyway, we had a great time! I popped a tire in two places, broke the front a-arm off the suspension, and about got arrested by ranger Jim... it was a rather successful day! Not to mention I found the new greatest place on earth... Deep Lake. So if you were keeping score at home, that means that I am racking up all the adventure points, and MacGuyver points count triple. I got a lot of MacGuyver points today since I crafted an a-arm for my wheeler out of a tube sock, fishing line and a gum wrapper:) Seriously people. Here are the pics...





This is the greatest place on Earth, Deep Lake. Clark, WY is located at the base of the mountain.

This is the veiw from the top of the world. I am showing you the veiw that doesn't suck. If I turned around and took a picture of the opposite direction it would be Montana!

Here is a familiar view for some. Heart Mountain.

So, if you want to see the greatest place on earth in real life, bring your tube sock, gum wrappers and fishing line and we can MacGuyver our way there.

Eagle Creek

09/20/08

Dad and I had the opportunity to go for a ride on the horses that lasted more than an hour! Not that the other rides weren't good... anyway... so it was a test, a physical test to see how long the old man could go! You know he just had a birthday and it was important to see if he could still swing a leg over a horse and go for more than an hour ride! HA HA

Well here is a picture and I would have to say that I look pretty good... even though I am saying it of myself!

09/21/08

Well Eric has finally convinced me to join the blogging community. He set this site up all by himself and thought that I should help him out so I'll give it a shot. We don't have any kids yet to brag up and show off so I guess our dogs will have to do for now--we think they're pretty great. We took a Sunday drive today and ended up at Lilly Lake which is up Sunlight Basin for those of you who don't know. It was so pretty up there. Fall is my favorite season so I really enjoyed it because all the trees are turning colors and look awesome plus it had rained recently so everything smelled really good. The dogs had a great time at the lake. They took off at mock 8 exploring everything and before we left there wasn't a bush that hadn't been peed on and a track that hadn't been sniffed. We saw some deer on our way into the lake but not much else until our trip home and then we saw a pretty big moose right on the side of the road. It was pretty close but Eric had to get out his beloved binoculars that he got for his birthday (the recent one where he turned "really old") just to make sure they worked properly. We probably looked like a couple of yahoos sitting on the side of the road looking at a moose through binoculars that was only a few yards away. Oh well, we thought it was pretty cool to see every hair on the thing. Later on when it was almost dark we saw a 6 point bull elk coming onto the road but he ducked off and ran down through the trees before I could get the camera out. It was awesome and I got a twinge of what hunting fever must feel like:) Here's some of our favorite pictures from the day.

This was at the top of Dead Indian. The wind was blowing like crazy but calmed down by the time we got to Lily Lake.

This is a view of Pilot's Peak - One of my favorites up Sunlight

The dogs wouldn't sit still for very long for a picture but we did get a couple.

Here's the moose. It looked a lot closer in person

Elk Fork Sept 5, 2008

So, Gina is in town, and that means that we get to hang out and ride horses. That is something that I really love, hanging out with my sister and riding horses. Me and Gina used to go all the time with dad before she was married and before I was married, you remember the days... when you had no worries and nobody to answer to, so all day meant all day. And there was nothing stopping you. Today we rode the Elk Fork trail. One that we have ridden about 1 million times... yet the trail is never boring or old... it always seems fresh and full of change. A lot like me each time I go there. Always changing and always full of life, no matter how dead I seem to the things that are going on around me. I have some really fond memories of that trail, and some memories that are a little painful. Jeff knows what I am talking about. It's a great trail to put the horses into a lope and today was no exception. For those who don't ride horses I hope that you have a release... something that will put your mind at ease and let you forget all about the troubles of this world, how bad your J.O.B. is or how your going to get out of the pickle you got yourself in. One of the things I enjoy the most about going with my dad and whoever else that goes is we always have more dogs than people on the trail. No rabbit is safe from chasing, no bush free from pee and no scent left untraced. It's got to be one of the most enjoyable things you can watch. We always have a "Lewis and Clark" expedition when we go, especially if Brio comes along. The only thing he hears somedays is the drummer in his head telling him to keep on prancing!

Dad finally got all hooked up with the new age products. He had a GPS... although he hasn't used it much, he will really figure out how cool it is when he loads this short trip into the computer and sees all the detail. He also has a new digital camera... so now watch out world... he's gonna be snapping pictures like a kid! HA HA.

I got my hat, got my boots, and got my gun... let's go ride!