Carving Pumpkins!

So last night Travis and I carved our first pumpkins together.  We didn't do it last year for some reason, but I decided that we needed to this year.  We had so much fun!  We will definitely not miss another year if we can help it.  I had forgotten how much fun scooping out the "guts" and creating your pumpkin's face can be!  When we were all done it was great to see them all lit up.  I cannot wait to light them on Halloween for all our trick or treaters to see.

A Beautiful Surprise

So this morning we woke up to beautiful snow!  I love it and I was so very excited for our first snowfall of the year.  I know some people might think I am crazy for that because we'll have a lot more to come, but there is just something so special about the first snow of the year.  It makes you feel like a little kid again when you wake up and see it on the ground, I would have felt even more like a kid if I didn't have to work today and got to stay at home and enjoy it!  Oh well.  I just thought I'd share our beautiful snow with you this morning.

lemonade

So today while making myself some lunch, Travis had already finished his and had come back into the kitchen for something else.  Meanwhile, he had left his lemonade on the coffee table, which George our cat can jump up on.  I just happened to look over to see George enjoying Travis' lemonade.  He is so crazy, he will eat or drink anything!

End of Summer?

Summer has already left us here in Wyoming, or so it seems.  Ever since I got back from North Carolina on Thursday it has been cold and rainy.  It feels so much like fall that I have already put out fall decorations!  I have had my heat on since I got back too.  Crazy.

I went to North Carolina on the 27th of August for my friend Rebecca's wedding.  She got married down at the Outer banks, it was beautiful and the weather was great!

Also, when I was home I got to see my brand new nephew, Logan Vann.  He was born on the 26th and I was so glad I got to see him and meet him.  He is so precious.  I love going to NC to visit all my family, but this past time was just so busy it flew by.  Now I'm already looking forward to Christmas!

Now I am at home alone, Travis had to go to Portland.  He is starting his Master's program at a school up there.  I can't wait for him to get back, we haven't seen very much of each other lately since I was gone for a week too.

Anyways, I think I might go light the fire place and drink some coffee and enjoy the rest of the afternoon relaxing.

ROCKY

On Tuesday, Travis and I picked up a dog in our neighborhood that had no collar.  He was so well behaved and Travis really wanted to keep him, but we had to find out if he belonged to someone.  So Travis took him to the pound and they took our information in case anyone called for the dog.  In the meantime, Travis took the dog back home and let him meet Sadie.  They really hit it off and they looked so happy together.  Travis really wanted to keep the dog.  

It was later in the afternoon when the owner finally called and said that the dog's name was Rocky and that he would be by to pick him up shortly.  It turns out, Rocky only lives about 3 houses down from us and apparently he gets out a lot.  So maybe if we are lucky, Sadie will get to play with her new friend again.

Summer Vacation

I just got back from North Carolina and it was great!!  Unfortunately Travis didn't get to come with me, but he'll get to in August!  I was only there for a week, but it was so much fun.  I helped out with the Tour de Kale, we went to a wedding, and then went to the beach!  It was a packed week and I was glad to be back home.  It was so nice to see my family and get to hang out with them.  It was just a great mini-vacation!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

I know that I should be thankful for all the rain we are getting, but I'm just ready for summer to get here!  It is only in the high 40s, low 50s today!  Travis has some friends visiting and they went to Yellowstone a couple of days ago where the high there was only 44!  Luckily though, they saw some grizzly's, moose and  big horn sheep, along with some other animals.  So that's good!  Today they are in our mountains where it is snowing and stuff!  Crazy huh?  It's already June 5th and it's still snowing in some places near us!  Well, I guess that is just Wyoming!  I'll just be glad to get to North Carolina in a couple of weeks to experience some real summertime weather!

The Wild West

So today, Travis and I had the opportunity to really experience what life as a cowboy is like.  Us, Levi and Clint went to the Mackey's Ranch (a couple in our church) and helped with the branding of cattle.  It was so much fun!  We branded almost 150 calves.  It was like we had stepped back in time and it was just so nice to get away and out into the country.  We got there and right away got to work.  The guys helped hold the cattle while they had everything done to them and I had to keep tally of them.  We did about 100 cattle first and then had lunch.  It was so nice to finally have a warm day to sit outside and eat lunch.  After lunch we had to wait on the real cowboys to round-up the other calves, so we had about an hour to relax and check out the place.  Travis helped bottle feed a calf, we played with the dogs and laid under the trees in the grass.  It was great!  Then we started to hear all these cows mooing and knew that it was time to get back to work.  We did the rest of the calves, which was a little more interesting because they were a little bigger, they had more fight in them when they were roped.  It was a sight to see!  We finally got all done at about 4.  We were hot, tired and sunburned, so we decided the best way to top off a day of branding and wrestling cattle was to go to Dairy Queen.  It was a great day and one that will not soon be forgotten!

Crazy George

Our cat George has recently found some new spots in our house to take his naps.  Just today I caught him in the clothes hamper, I really don't know how he got in there!  And just a few minutes ago I was on the computer and he jumped up on the desk and climbed into the basket I have for our bills.  He is so crazy.  I knew that he was getting on the desk and he usually just naps in front of the computer or something, but I do believe the basket is his new favorite spot and I thought that he was just so cute in it that I needed to share!

Where's Summer?

So Friday, it was cold and rainy here, Saturday, we woke up an there was snow on the ground, Sunday, it was in the 70's and today I had to wear my winter coat to work.  We are having some crazy weather here and  I cannot wait for it to warm up and stay warm!  It has been kind of depressing, but hopefully it will be normal soon.  I was so very thankful for the beautiful day we had yesterday though.  We went on a walk and then had friends over for a cookout.  It was so much fun!  We have to take advantage of our summer-like days while we have them!  

Where has all the time gone?

It has been two years today since I graduated college, I can't believe it has already been that long!  A lot has happened in my life in these two years.  I graduated and moved back to North Carolina where I worked and lived with my parents, which I am so grateful for now.  That was the last time I got to spend a lot of time with my daddy, who has since past away.  I will always cherish those months I got to be with him.  I try to tell people to spend time with your family and don't take them for granted because you never know when they will be taken from you.  When summer was coming to a close in 2006, my family went to the beach and Travis came a long, and on August 1st, 2006 he asked me to marry him on the beach!  During the time of our engagement, Travis lived in Alabama.  While there, he was offered to come interview for a job in Gillette, WY.  We went to Wyoming in September to interview and decided this was the place for us.  Travis moved to Wyoming in November and began to work at High Plains Community Church.  He returned to NC on Christmas Eve to stay until we got married.  By January 20, 2007, we were married, another big day for me that I will never forget.  We went on our honeymoon to Savannah, GA for only a few days, and then headed back to NC to pack a U-Haul truck to move across the country to Gillette, WY!  By January 30th, just 10 days after we were married we were in a totally different place, but we knew that Gillette was where God had called us to go.  Yes it was hard to leave my family, but God has blessed us with a wonderful church family, and He has provided for us in tremendous ways.  I have been blessed with some great friends here and I know that that is God's doing also.  

We got to go to NC for vacation this past Summer and during that time we went to the beach yet again with my family.  This was the last trip that we would take as a whole family, and  I am so glad that we got to go home.  This was the last time I would get to be with my daddy while he was still alive and I will never forget that trip!

We had to go back to NC in November for my daddy's funeral.  It was so very sad, it was the first time my heart had truly been broken.  But God is so good and all those years of praying for my daddy's salvation had paid off and in the end I know that he was right with God and that today he is in Heaven with Him!  He is so blessed!

Now it is already May 6th, two years later, I never knew that my life would take all of these turns, but in all of it I see God's perfect will and I am so glad that I get to be a part of it!

Garage Sales and Rabies Shots

So this morning was packed full of things to do.  To start the day off I went with one of my friends to a garage sale at an antique store.  At first, I thought that it was kind of lame because there wasn't much to look at, at then I discovered a whole big area full of great stuff that  I didn't even know was there!  My daddy would have been so proud of me for getting up early to go to this thing!  But anyways...I found a great antique type writer, which is something I have been wanting for quite some time and a cool antique rocking chair.  I was so excited that I found these things and I got such a great deal!  My sister Mary asked what Travis thought about me buying these kinds of things and I told her that he just trust me and knows that I will make it into some great accent piece to decorate with.

After the garage sale I came home to help Travis get George and Sadie ready to go to the rabies clinic at the pound.  They were so good there, we were both proud of them.  The whole thing was kind of crazy though.  We got there around 10a.m., and the line was already so long, it was just packed full of people with their dogs and cats.  It was craziness!  While in line, the people behind us had a couple of Corgies, who were not used to being around other dogs really, and one of them bit poor Sadie!  I was not very happy about that, but she was fine.  Anyways, we ended up standing in line for only a little over an hour and they were great!  They were pretty tired this afternoon though, as you can see in the pictures.

SNOW!!

We are Southern's living in the Northwest and we thought we were used to the weather here, but this week, our views have changed, we'll at least mine.  It started snowing on Wednesday, April 30 and today, Friday, May 2 it is still snowing!!!  I know that in Wyoming snow is like rain and we need it, but it still doesn't make it any easier, especially when your family in North Carolina and Texas has to comment on how hot it is there right now!  At least when it snows this late in the year it melts pretty fast.  I just cannot wait for it to warm up and finally stay warm for a few months, until then I guess I just need to be thankful for the beautiful snow and how it will make it look so lush and green around here for the summer.