Custer Battlefield

John & I visited the Custer Battlefield, now called the Little Bighorn Battlefield, almost 2 weeks ago now. We really enjoyed learning about the history of that fateful day for the US Army's 7th Calvary, June 25, 1876. We also enjoyed learning about the different Indian tribes, those who helped scout for the Army and those who fought against them. They have a memorial for the soldiers on Last Stand Hill and an Indian Memorial as well not far off for those who fought and died there. It's amazing to see the expanse of land and how Custer was "cornered" at the top of Last Stand Hill. You can just envision how it all went down. They have markers where US Soldiers and Indians died, and then there is a cemetery where many of them are buried, though Custer himself was buried at West Point. Unfortunately the walking path down through the valley was closed for the season so we weren't able to adventure away from the main portion, but we hope to get back to that another time since the Battlefield is not too far away from us (about 40 miles).

We found one memorial in the cemetery interesting because they had a little disclaimer sign posted in front of the memorial. The memorial was erected around 1900 or so, give or take, and it remembers those who died fighting the "hostile Indians." Well, apparently this phrase is no longer PC (politically correct), so they have a disclaimer saying it reflects the thinking of that time. Well, if I was in that time and Indians were trying to kill me just for traveling through or settling, I would probably call them "hostile" too, just as the Germans were "hostile" in WWII in killing innocent people. Now I certainly wouldn't use that term about the Native Americans now since they are no longer doing that (nor about Germans since I am one ;-) ), but sometimes it seems the level of being PC crosses into the category of trying to change reality.

Anyway, we enjoyed the national monument and would definitely recommend a visit to anyone else in the area...and then you better visit us too! :-) You can see more info on Wikipedia here too.

Arts & Crafts Fair

Tomorrow I will display my photographs at the local Arts & Crafts Fair. I've never done this before so I'm a little excited and nervous at the same time. Hopefully people will like my work. I really enjoy taking pictures and trying to be artistic with them when I can. I've had many people over the years tell me they like my pictures, so I hope people like them tomorrow and I am able to sell some at least. My brother does semi-professional photography so he's taught me a lot over the years but especially in the last few months. I still have a lot to learn but am enjoying the process. Wish me luck! :-)

I know, I know...

I haven't posted in a long time. Since I last posted my mom came to visit (early September) and drove my car out, I went to Great Falls for a pastors' wives retreat (early October), John & I went to Kalispell for the pastors' conference (mid October) and now I'm in Fort Wayne for a sign language meeting, Bach conference and to visit family and friends. All in all by the time I get home tomorrow I will have traveled 2500 miles in a car and 1800 miles in the air just in the month of October....wow. I'm keeping busy with photography, writing and keeping up the house. I've had my first photo published in the local (county) newspaper and one of my photos sold at a silent auction. I'm entering an Arts and Crafts fair this weekend so we'll see how that goes. I promise to try and be better about posting, even if it is something short and sweet. :-) Hope you are all well!

Absaroka Mountain Range

On Monday, John and I were able to travel to see the Absaroka Mountain Range about 3 hours or so away from us....with a tour guide even. :-) One of John's seminary classmates, Mark, grew up in this area and was home for a visit so he offered to show us around a bit. We left early in the morning to pick Mark up in his home town of Hardin, and we took Sarpy Creek Road which is the longer scenic route but we were told a herd of elk often migrated early in the morning through there so we hoped to see them. We didn't end up seeing the herd but we did spot a lone male in the distance so we saw one elk at least. We also saw many, many deer and antelope while on that road. I like to take that way when we have the time because I don't think we've ever gone through there and not seen some sort of wildlife. We got to Hardin fairly early and then headed out to the town of Red Lodge near the mountain range. Mark had a plan of where he wanted to take us but we found out the road was closed due to a mudslide so he went to plan B. He took us up another way and we went to Emerald Lake. It was so beautiful as you can see in the photo. We were the only ones there which made it so peaceful. We ate lunch lakeside and then pressed on toward the mountains. He took us to a trail that follows West Rosebud Creek up toward Mystic Lake. We hiked about 3/4 mile which I thought would be no problem....I forgot to think about the elevation and the fact that it would not be a hike on flat land. :-) We made it to an area near the creek where you can walk out on the rocks near the falls. The water was very cold and the water was rushing so fast it was hard to hear someone talking unless you were right next to them. You definitely wouldn't want to fall in to that water. We enjoyed climbing around a little bit on the rocks and just watching the falls. We took a lot of pictures and what Mark told us was true, it's hard to take a bad picture in that area. We were hoping to see a Bighorn Sheep somewhere on the mountainside but unfortunately we didn't...maybe next time.

After our mountainous excursion, we decided to head into Billings (a town of about 100,000 and the biggest town in Montana). John & I have been to Billings several times for shopping or visiting hospitalized members but we wanted to see more of the sights there. Mark showed us the bike path up on the "Rims" that borders the town. The nice part about the Rims is that they haven't put up all kinds of guardrails or fences to keep you away from the edge. I guess they figure people should be responsible and if they are stupid and get hurt then it's their own fault....the Montana way...I love it! Anyway, the view from up there is awesome and we had a lot of fun. After our short hike up there we headed to The Montana Brewing Company for dinner. We all partook of a good beef meal in honor of the ranching in the area. :-) It was a long but very enjoyable day, and it was time to head home. We took Mark back to Hardin and then of course used Sarpy Creek Road again on the way home and sure enough saw many more deer and antelope. We got home right around sun down.

The next day we had to head into Billings again (about 120 miles away) for a funeral for a local pastor that I actually knew when he was a student at seminary 10 years ago. I was glad to get a chance to see his wife again and other pastors in the area that came (some from quite a distance) to offer their support. John also used the opportunity to visit a member receiving health care in Billings. All in all we were on the road for over 700 miles in about 2 1/2 days so we were both pretty beat. It was nice to be out though and spending time with John and other friends. The sights were gorgeous and we can't wait to get back to the Red Lodge area in the future. I'd like to build myself up enough to have the endurance to do the entire 3 mile hike up to Mystic Lake which will not be easy with my knee. I'm also hoping to take my mom back to that area when she comes to visit in a couple of weeks.

After the literal mountain top experience of course is getting back to the grind of day to day life. I'm still struggling a bit to find my niche here. Everyone here has been great and very helpful, and the town has a lot to offer but I have to be honest and say that the transition has not been easy. I know why John was sent here, to minister to the people of Colstrip, but I guess I'm still trying to understand how God will use me here to serve a purpose. I'm sure in time this will be revealed as well. I just need to be patient....not exactly my strong point. :-) Hope you are all well and I think of you often!

Montana!

Ok, ok, I know I've been neglecting you all. My apologies. :-) We are getting settled in to life here in Montana. John & I had a nice trip out here and stopped in the Badlands in South Dakota and also stayed with some friends and did some fishing one day in Rapid City. While in the Badlands we came across a huge heard of buffalo that were crossing the road so we got some good pictures as we waited for them to cross the road. After Rapid City we went to Sheridan, WY to spend our 1st Anniversary and see the mountains around there. We tried to take a scenic route at one point and boy did we get it. We ended up on some Forest Service Roads up in the mountains that were really bumpy and we could only go about 10-15 mph. Basically they are ruts in the ground where cars have created a path and the rocks, etc. in the road are still there so you have to maneuver around a lot of ruts. I have lots of pictures to share so let me give you a small description of some of them. The first picture (above) is at the potluck following John's ordination, but now let's go chronological. The second picture is in Fort Wayne as we are getting ready to head out after the moving truck left. The next few pictures are of the buffalo in the Badlands just as the sun was setting. We were advised to stay in the car....and we did. :-) The sixth picture is of our friends in Rapid City. They were great hosts and it was good to see them....for those of you who are longtime readers of my blog, yes this is the same family I was with when I broke my leg and had that surgery out in SD. :-) We saw some deer in their yard there and some beautiful views in the Black Hills. Then it was on to Sheridan where we saw the big snow-capped mountains over 9000 feet in elevation....and yes, got lost up in them on the forest service roads where we saw about 2-3 other cars in 40 miles which took us about 2 hours....and yes, we had all that stuff loaded on our car when we did it. There was no turning around because we were just stuck in the middle of it by the time we realized this wasn't a good option. :-) However, we did get some great pictures. Pictures eight through twelve are of the mountains in the area west of Sheridan. I love the twelfth picture because it's right after we'd gone an hour on the Forest Service Road and thought we were finally back to regular gravel roads. It was a beautiful view so I got out to take a picture and was overwhelmed by the wonderful smell of wildflowers. The air was fresh and just smelled like flowers. You can also see in the picture the road on the lower right which became gravel for a little while.....little did we know that it would become Forest Service Road again before we got out of it all. We were relieved when we got back to the regular road and on that highway (2 lane) as we were coming out of the mountains I saw a male moose with his rack still in velvet heading back into the forest. I understand from those in the area that this type of sighting is rare so I was excited to see it. We got back to the hotel safe and sound...and very tired....and the sun was setting over the mountains giving us a beautiful view.







We left Sheridan and arrived in Colstrip on July 14th and the moving truck arrived the next day in the morning. We weren't completely pleased with the moving company but most things arrived ok. The guys who packed us up in FW weren't so good but the ones that unloaded us here were really good, so I guess it's a toss up. Anyway, we had a few things broken but the things I was most worried about that were irreplaceable all arrived just fine so I was happy about that. The house is very spacious and nice, and many members of the congregation did a lot of work on the house cleaning it up and stocking our pantry so that was great!

John's family arrived just two days after our stuff arrived and two days before the ordination. It was really nice to have them all here for John's special day. The ordination went very well and the congregation had a wonderful potluck following the service. There were 11 ordained men that participated in the service, and I was very happy that our friends from Rapid City and my friend from southern Minnesota were able to attend as well. So now John has been working at getting settled into his office and vocation, and I've been working on getting settled into the house and small town life. It's not been easy some days that's for sure because I miss my friends and feel very isolated, but I know it will get easier as I get to know more and more people and get involved in more and more things. The congregation has been very welcoming and they know what it's like to come to this town since they were all transplanted here at one time or another because it's a company town. I'm working on a schedule for myself so I can get into a routine, and will get involved in more activities and meet more people. It will be great and I'm looking forward to seeing what God has in store for us.

Chicago

John & I are finishing up with the packing and it's going well. The truck comes Thursday and we'll head out. Not sure what time of day yet. It will be a busy one I'm sure. We'll then head to stay the night with John's family in Illinois and then to visit some friends in South Dakota on our way out to Montana. We hope to get another day of fishing in while we're there. After SD we will head to Wyoming to spend our 1st anniversary just a day or two before we get to Montana. Since it's already been hard to find time to post on here and it will probably get harder since internet service will be sporadic beginning Wednesday, I thought I'd at least try to post something on our road trip. We'll begin at the beginning....Chicago. :-)

The first stop on our road trip was the Chicago area where I grew up. We stayed with a friend I actually meet here in FW but took a job there a few years ago. We were very grateful she let us stay with her because she just accepted another job in Ohio and was in the packing process while we were there. Thanks Lisa! :-) We got there on Saturday and went straight to a family gathering in my hometown of Rolling Meadows that my aunt and cousin put together. I was able to see all but one of my father's siblings who wasn't able to make it from Wisconsin. It was so good to see everyone, especially some of my cousins whom I hadn't seen in many years. I hope to get a chance to see them again soon though I don't think I'll be able to make the annual September reunion.

Saturday evening we headed to Lisa's and we all went to visit the IKEA store out there which was fun. We ate supper there.....good Swedish food. I really like that place and we found a few things we might mail order later. Sunday morning we headed to the Lutheran Church in Melrose Park with Lisa. She attends there and her pastor was a field worker at the church I attend here in FW back when he was a student, so it was good to see him and his family too. After we got a bite to eat after the service, John & I headed to visit some friends. First we went to see a former high school classmate of mine even though we weren't sure about the timing of the visit....her husband had a kidney transplant three days earlier but he was home from the hospital already and doing pretty well. He was able to visit with us, so the timing ended up ok and we were really happy to see them both to catch up since I hadn't seen them in a few years. Then John & I headed out to see one of my aunt and uncles again at their home in a far northwest suburb since they had invited us the day before at the gathering. We had a really nice visit again and got to see their new puppy...a labradoodle. Finally we finished out the day visiting my good friends Laurie, Bob, Mike & Kim for dinner. All four of them were in our wedding last year as: Matron of Honor, Usher, Junior Groomsman and Junior Bridesmaid. We were so pleased they could be a part of our special day. I've known Laurie my whole life and got to know her husband when they were dating and he rented a room in our house. We really enjoyed our visit with them and hope it's not too long until we see them again since the kids are growing so fast! Phew....Sunday sure was a busy day. :-)

Monday we had hoped to head downtown to the Chicago Loop so we could walk along Lake Michigan and look out the Sears Tower but it was kind of a crummy, rainy day so we decided to stay in the suburbs to see more friends and shop. :-) We found some fun buys at Lands End outlet and Woodfield Mall. We also got to visit some of my former co-workers from when I lived there and some friends from the youth group I was in during high school. I was sure to take John to Jimmy's to get an Italian Beef sandwich too...one of the best in Chicago. My mom went to high school across the street from Jimmy's (you can see it in the picture off to the left) and used to play hooky over lunch to get a sandwich. Then for dinner we went to Lou Malnati's for some Chicago style pizza with Lisa after she got home from work....mmmm. :-) So it was a Chicago food themed day, and it was a busy day even though I was kind of bummed we didn't get to go downtown. Tuesday we headed out in the morning to the Quad Cities to stay the night at John's mom's home. Just a quick stopover to pick up some things on our way to the cabin in northern Minnesota....we'd be back there later for a longer visit on the way back. In my next installment I'll write about the "cabin" experience....it might take a few posts actually but it sure was interesting. :-)

Vacation

Well, John & I are at the end of our vacation and we've had a nice time. We'll be heading home today to finish packing up the house before we head to Montana after a 3 week, 2600 mile jaunt. On our vacation we visited friend in Chicago, spent time at the family cabin in Northern Minnesota, visited friends in Southern Minnesota, saw my knee doctor in South Dakota, visited family in Iowa and finally visited family in Illinois (QC). It's been great to see everyone and I have so much to write about in our 3 week travels that I don't want to attempt to do it all it once. I will slowly post stories of our travels on here with lots of pictures that we took. I love taking pictures! :-) Anyway, here are a few for now and I will post more as the stories get posted. The first one is a picture of us in Duluth at Lake Superior. The second one is of the family cabin (accessible by boat only) in Minnesota where we spent the majority of our time. And the last one is of one of the beautiful sunsets we enjoyed while we were there. I will go into more detail on each soon as I go through our trip and share it. :-) Thanks to everyone who hosted us while on our trip and to those who took care of the house and yard while we were away.