5 months and counting....

We have been living in WY now for 5 months!?!  So...we're not simply on an extended vacation?  Sometimes its hard to wrap my mind around the fact that we really.did.move.  And life has marched on.  So here's the quick update:
Spring has arrived in Pinedale (did you know spring songbirds will sing through a snowstorm?)

This pic was taken from our back kitchen window, on Mother's day.




 And from our front window, the sun setting...through the falling snow...


Our yard on Mother's Day. Inside, we were preparing and thoroughly enjoying a scrumptious turkey dinner.  :)


And, the next morning....

It has been very rainy/windy. I haven't had as much good horse weather as I would like...but work has kept me quite busy anyway. The Winds seem to get a new blanket of snow on their peaks every few days.

The road up to the Winds viewpoint has finally cleared....

The parking lot at the viewpoint...

The peaks in view, and their names...

And the second highest peak in the Winds, Fremont Peak at 13,745 ft.

We finally purchased our very own lawn mower and weed trimmer to take care of the yard.  We haven't owned our own "lawn gear" our entire marriage.  The lawn was mowed for the first time yesterday!  We are the only ones on our side of the street who have mowed the lawn. Seriously. I'm pretty sure our next door neighbors have no intention of mowing, either. But the deer will probably eat it down...

Below: our new mower! And you'll notice the border collie racetrack that goes around the house...*sigh*  We try to get her out as much as possible...

And Aaron using the new weed trimmer!

 L mowing the "lawn"

The kids had their spring choir concert last week. Both O and L accompanied their choirs and nailed it!  I was the beaming mother in the audience...cheering for my kids as though they were rock stars--because they are.

The kiddos, just before their middle school Spring Concert!

O sang in a quartet...

...and accompanied another song.

L was the only 6th grader to accompany the choir. He's awesome. :)

In fact, O was just called and sustained to be the new WARD CHOIR ACCOMPANIST.  Wow. Our cute little choir director knows about as much about leading a choir as O does about accompanying one...but the choir is great, so I'm sure we'll all learn and grow through the process.  :) O was also just set apart as the new Miamaid president, which she was quite happy about.

L was selected to attend an all-state choir for 6th graders...and the concert will be held in Gillette, WY...about a 7 hour drive from here. Maybe we'll visit our friends in St. Louis since we'll be so far east...

I have been asked by my boss, the PAC director, to take on another fitness class. Not yoga, but the "mature adult" class--the senior citizens.  I accepted and have been going through the training/class and I love it!  It is such a blast to spend time with these people.  Not to mention, the exercise is great for me. Sponsored by the Arthritis Foundation, it's gentle and low-impact but challenging enough for where I am with my old injuries. I am learning a great deal.  My yoga classes are going well.  The other yoga instructor moved away, so I have taken over her classes until the end of the month. My bosses at work are telling me they hear wonderful things about my classes and that my class is "well-loved".

Below: the leisure pool at the PAC

And the track, lobby, and climbing wall...

Aaron is doing well at work, his case-load has certainly picked up.  He teaches classes at the jail once per week as well as teaching groups and one-on-one clients. It is challenging for him, but he hasn't missed working in retail even a little bit. The tricky part is he has to accrue his vacation hours...so we have had no paid personal leave, and won't for awhile. Which means for vacations, we will need to stick close, and keep them to the weekends.  

The horses are loving their 30 acres of grass pasture (on a ranch of 300+ acres) and Cruize is finally starting to fill out--at least a little.  Rio just recently re-injured his stifle, tho, and will be out of commission for at least a few weeks. :(   I have sat on Cruize numerous times, but haven't yet asked him to walk out. Probably this week.  We love having a horse trailer, and are looking for/hoping for a truck soon.

O captured this photo all on her own...she has had a photography class and loving it. She is, however, the only girl in the class...

 Big sky country , here at the ranch where we board the horses...

A view of Fremont Peak from the ranch...

Another view from the ranch round pen...

The horses are loving all the grass!

Another view from the corral...

And on Memorial Day, (yesterday)--I rode Cruize for the first time! Just walked around the round pen. He did great! My friend/yoga student/ horsemanship student rode him as well. :)

Aaron and I entered the Mile-High challenge at the PAC back in March. We finished at the first of May, and Aaron tied for first place (most routes climbed). He had to climb 110 routes, for a total of 2.5 vertical miles--on the LAST DAY to do it. And guess who belayed him?  Yep. I got a small blister from it, too...but it was so worth it to see his accomplishment. I took 3rd place, at 205 (a little over a mile) routes total. I didn't think I could ever climb again after my horse accident, but I did it. And loved it.

Now, for what you are dying to hear about...the hiking/wilderness adventures! With the snow melted (though occasionally still falling) we have had the chance to do some of the lower elevation trails.  We LOVE it. All new country for us.  Which will be in the next post.  :)