The Storm Family

Kitchen Remodel Update...

2012-02-02T08:07:00.000-08:00

In the last 3 1/2 weeks we have been working hard on the kitchen.

This is the progress so far!

Lights - ~~10 recessed lights installed, pendant over the sink installed~~

Cabinets - ~~trimmed, primed & painted~~; put them back together and add hardware; get glass cut for the 4 that need it

Walls - ~~painted, outlets moved down the wall~~, touch up paint

Ceiling - ~~hole from old light filled and painted~~

Floor - ~~laminate and particle board pulled up, some hardy backer laid to start tiling!,~~ finish hardy backer and tile

Baseboards - install

Appliances - install a gas line for the stove; put them in and hook them up! (I can't wait until we get to this part!!)

We've had so much help from everyone and really appreciate it all! We should start tiling Friday night and could possibly finish Saturday! Then next week we will put the kitchen together. (Yay!!!)

Pictures to come... I will keep you on the edge of your seat until then!

Side note: People here refer to the area that we live as 'out of town'. It's so funny that we now say things like "I'm going into town." when we go to the grocery store or work. We laugh at ourselves when we say it because it's only actually 7ish minutes "into town"! But there are a couple benefits to living out of town. I've already told you about the view. I think because we didn't grow up here we appreciate it much more then people that have seen it their whole lives. This morning you couldn't see anything but fog and snow ... but when we pulled out of our driveway this morning there was a bull moose walking down the road! Another one of the benefits of living 'out of town'!

Our First Home!

2012-01-19T09:12:00.000-08:00

On Jan 4th we moved into our house!

Since it was a foreclosure it was a long process, but well worth the wait.

The best part about this house is the neighborhood. (and the view... but I will get to that later :)

Before we even moved in we had neighbors inviting us over for dinner and offering to help us move in our things. On Wednesday, we backed up the trailer with all of our stuff and it was unloaded within 30 minutes. It was amazing!

Right after we moved in we got to work. Our first project is the kitchen.

This is the before picture... the after picture will come sometime in the next month.

I can't wait to see it completed!

And finally.. Bill's favorite part of the house.

Which is ironic because it isn't even part of the house.... the shop!

Oh the fun he will have in there doing all our projects. But he can't wait!

And my favorite part of the house is the view. The morning after we moved in we looked out our back window and saw the most amazing sunrise over the mountains! It was so beautiful!

I will post a picture of it as soon as I can because it is amazing :)

Like we have told most of you already.... we can't wait to have visitors now that we have the room!

An Idaho Christmas

2011-12-25T22:07:00.000-08:00

This year we spent Christmas in Idaho.

We went out to cut down our tree near Mesa Falls.

Every year we do this we have such a hard time finding a tree... hence the Charlie Brown tree :)

We made a gingerbread house with our friends Val and Kendon. We tried to make it look like our new house.... but it was a bit difficult. You can still see some similarities!

Val and I structured the house while Bill and Kendon worked on the trees, fence, and snowmen in the backyard.

the final product!

Bill was so proud of his little snowman :)

On Christmas Eve we went to Jackson for dinner and to see the lights. It was freezing outside so we went to the Wort Hotel for some hot chocolate and cider.

It's always so beautiful there!

Christmas morning we opened presents and then made sausage won tons and mint chocolate chip pancakes.

Bill wore this all day while he was in the kitchen!

For dinner he made asparagus, twice baked potatoes and huckleberry salmon! It was delicious!!

We look forward to this meal all year long :)

Us and our Charlie Brown tree!

Merry Christmas to all!!!!

Surprise Visitors!!!

2011-12-13T20:43:00.000-08:00

Our great friends Shaun and Jenny came to visit us this last weekend with their 3 ADORABLE little boys! They were moving to Washington from Wyoming for Shaun to get his PhD .... and decided to stop by and see us on the way! Oh- and did I mention that the newest member of the family came into the world 1 week ago?! So we got to meet cute little Benson for the first time and he is such a good baby!

Whenever we see Riley I always make him 'cupcakes' for breakfast. They are really huckleberry muffins... but he doesn't know the difference :)

This time he helped me make them by pouring ingredients in the mixer and putting the mix in the wrappers. It is so fun that he is growing up and can interact!

We weren't sure if the boys would be afraid of Bill's beard or not.... but surprisingly (unlike our last visit) no one cried! Brecker is such a cute toddler and laughs all the time! He also LOVES his new baby brother!

Jenny and Benson. Doesn't she look great for having a baby a week ago?! She is such a great mom and her boys are always so happy! I don't know how she does it all! Hopefully one day she will share her secrets and teach me all she knows :)

It was such a quick visit but it was wonderful to see them.

We've never been to Washington so now we have an excuse to go visit!!

Elk Hunt 2011 .... Holy Cow!

2011-12-04T16:50:00.001-08:00

Warning: beware of blood!

(I've learned I have to put this after I posted the bear pictures!) :)

It is sad that I have become immune to that!

Bill shot a cow.... elk that is!

Ty and Bill went out hunting on Saturday they both got one with a muzzleloader! And they're huge!

This is Bill & Ty and his elk.

And the bottom picture is with Bill's elk.

This completes his hunting season for the year.

Just in time for the holidays!!

2011 Deer Hunt

2011-11-06T16:16:00.000-08:00

Bill and his friend with their 'trophies'!

OK.... so maybe they aren't trophies... but they are glad to have the meat!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T19:56:00.000-07:00

We finally got around to carving our pumpkin... on Halloween while we waited for trick -or- treaters.

I sketched it out and Bill carved... and it turned out pretty good!

I was wondering why people don't light their pumpkins in Idaho... and we soon found out.

THE WIND!

It blew right out!

We only had 6 trick-or-treaters.... and they all came at once :(

Bill was sad he has to eat the rest of the candy :-P

Happy Halloween from the Storms!

Visitors from Ohio!

2011-09-26T19:55:00.000-07:00

Last week was such a fun week!

My parents drove out from Ohio for their summer vacation and

we did so many fun things while they were here.

.... but I won't overload you with ALL the photos... so here are the highlights!

We went to the Rexburg Farmers Market on Friday night to get some veggies for dinner and apples for a great apple crisp my dad made in the dutch oven when we were camping.

We also came home with kettle corn, local Idaho honey, corn and some fresh bread.

Friday night we had an evening with Bob Ross!

We played one of his painting videos on the TV and each had our own palates and canvases to paint.

It looks so easy to paint a 'happy little tree'.... but it's deceiving!

We laughed at ourselves the entire time :)

On Saturday we went to the Tetons to hike and camp. It was beautiful as usual.... but something we didn't expect to see were all the fall colors. It was awesome!

This was the view from our campsite at Jenny Lake.

We took a ferry ride to the other side of Jenny Lake to do some hiking for the afternoon.

It was a beautiful day, about 75 degrees and sunny.

We couldn't have asked for better weather!

At night we cooked some hot dogs over the fire and my dad made an

awesome dutch oven apple cobbler!

Some of the beautiful colors we saw.

On Sunday we woke up, my dad made a great warm breakfast and we packed up camp.

Then my parents headed off to continue their trip to the Badlands. It was sad to see them leave but we had such a great time!

While Bill is hunting....

2011-09-10T18:17:00.000-07:00

I am in an unusual situation... Bill and I are pretty busy during the week with work and piano and lesson plans etc. and dinner is the last thing I want on my to do list at 5:30 or 7:30!

However on the weekends I'm slightly... how do you say it.... bored! (hunting season... remember?)

So I found a solution!

... A website called Once a month mom!

It's wonderful! You cook all your meals for the month on one (very long!) day, and then just pull them out as you go. It's a great website with a bunch of options for food, grocery lists and labels for the food.

So... I went shopping.

I've never had a cart so full it was hard to push!

12 hours

4 loads in the dishwasher

18 meals later ....

12 lunches, 16 dinners and 8 breakfasts in our freezer.

So far the meals have been great to eat and convenient to have during the week!

Teton Horseback Adventures

2011-09-03T16:46:00.000-07:00

For Christmas last year Bill got me a horseback ride in Teton National Park,

so last weekend we cashed in!

Despite the sprinkling rain, we had a great time!

Bill on his horse Stanger.

Stanger was a mustang and kept hitting Bill with his tail when he asked him to go faster or slower. He had a little attitude... but was a good horse!

Me riding Cricket.

Cricket liked to freak me out by randomly galloping when we were going down hill.

Our ride was two hours long.

We ascended to a hill to see the Tetons, (which was the only time that they were actually visible),

and when we came back down we forged a river!

Bill and I at the top with our horses.

I had to hold on to Bills horse because Cricket kept going backwards down the hill.

We had a great time horseback riding!

Needless to say, now Bill wants horses! He says 'They would be great for hunting season!'

I'm pretty sure if we can't have dogs in our apartment the manager wouldn't let us keep horses here!

After our ride we went to see an old cabin with the prettiest view!

It would be amazing to see this view everyday out your window!

We're just glad we can go there on a day trip!

4 wheelin'!

2011-09-02T20:39:00.000-07:00

I had never been on a 4 wheeler before so Bill and I went while we were looking for huckleberries one evening after work.

It was so fun... Bill even let me drive!

We didn't find any huckleberries because everytime Bill wanted to stop and look I made up excuses to keep riding and looking for them somewhere else :)

(don't worry... we picked some another day!)

It was fun being lost in the back trails for the night.

Thank goodness Bill always knew where we were..... I sure didn't!

And, of corse, a beautiful Idaho sunset at the end of it all.

Great way to end a great day!

Ohio Summer Vacation! Part 1

2011-08-02T20:29:00.001-07:00

It was so great to finally see this sign after 29 hours of driving!!

We made it home in time for Jack's high school graduation party :)

Jack and his friends at the party.

He is going to the University of Cincinnati next year and studying law enforcement.

We got to see so much family while we were home and it was great!

Bill being tackled by Kevin, Grace and James.

Fourth of July Fireworks

We had to go to Mama Santa's in Little Italy for some pizza.

My dad, mom and grandma haymond at Mama Santa's

Bill LOVES this pizza!

Jack and I

My parents and Bill and I went to Put-In-Bay for a day. We took the ferry over. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shinning and there was a light breeze.

We had perch sandwiches at the boardwalk.

We also went to the National Park on the Island.

Perry's International Peace Memorial.

Of course we had to get our passports stamped!

What we didn't know about this National Park is that it is the

ONLY International Peace Monument in the United States.

That is why they fly the Canadian, British and US flags in front of the Monument.

To get around the island we rented a golf cart and drove it everywhere.

It was my dad's favorite part!

All the golf carts on the Island are named so you can tell yours from everyone else's... and ours was named Garfield!

Bill and Grace.

We went to the Indians game.

Bill actually got to go twice, one with my family and once with his.

They lost both times... but it was still lots of fun!

The big project... tearing down the basement walls in the old house.

Bill and Mike worked for awhile down there when they were home and got a lot done!

On a Food Network show called "Man vs. Food" there was a place called Steve's Gyros.

It is located at the Westside Market in Cleveland.

Bill, Mike and their parents decided to go try it out for lunch one day and they said it was great!

Eating at the Westside Market!

Bill also spent some time with his grandparents down at the farm.

His family has so many great memories down there and he goes to visit whenever he gets a chance.

Scott, Beth and Heidi with Bill.

Heidi is so cute and so sweet! There is hardly a minute when she's not smiling!

Ohio Vacation! Part 2

2011-08-02T20:29:00.000-07:00

After I went back to Idaho, Bill got to spend some more time with his family!

Indians Game #2 with Mike, Becky, Scott and his mom and dad.

Bill and his dads favorite.... White Castle!

Everyone at the game!

For Diana's birthday the whole family went to the buffet.

On the way back to Idaho Bill and Mike made a couple stops along the way. They went to Steve and Colleens in Indiana....

..... Tom and Staci's in Minnesota ....

... and finally Devin and Missy's in Nebraska.

They went to a park to fish with the kids and Mack caught his first fish!

Miss Molly... so sweet!

Bill and Mack with the frog Devin caught.

Molly and her uncle Mike.

She didn't mind touching the frog at all!

When they finally made it back to Idaho, we had to take Mike to Big Judd's Restaurant. It was another place that was featured on Man vs. Food.

And you can see why!

It's a 2lb burger!

haha... no Mike did not eat the entire thing.

The 4 of us split it! (and it was still A LOT of food!)

All of us outside of Big Judd's

On Saturday we went down to Salt Lake to see John and Michon and their family.

We had a great time with them and it was great to finally meet their newest arrival... Spencer!

4 of the 8 kids!

It was great because Bill got to see ALL of his siblings on the trip!

It was an awesome trip overall with all our family!

We had a great time visiting all of you!

Valentines Day in Jackson Hole, WY Flashback

2011-07-24T14:23:00.000-07:00

For Valentines Day this year Bill, Chris, Katie and I went to Jackson Hole.

The first day we got there we went cross country skiing in Teton National Park.

We all had VERY little experience, if any at all, cross country skiing.

We took our time and enjoyed the beautiful views!

It was such a pretty day and when the sun came out it was warm!

Oh... and we all fell. ALOT!

The snow was so deep and when you tried to get yourself up you sunk even further down.

It was hilarious!

And if you didn't fall down yourself then you fell down laughing at someone else falling down and trying to get back up!

We never lost Bill because he wore a bright orange hat :)

These pictures never get old :)

That night we stayed at the Rustic Inn.

After dinner we spent some time in the hot tub.

It would get so warm that you'd have to sit out in the cold to cool off.

The boys papmering themselves in the room.

haha.

They are going to kill me!

We left the next morning after an AWESOME brunch buffet!

The next morning we took a drive in the mountains to look at the beautiful houses up there.

It was breathtaking!

Maybe one day... :)

On our drive I spotted a bull moose!

This is Chris standing on the back of the truck with binoculars looking at the moose.

If you look at the bottom of the picture you can see a reflection of Bill doing the same!

We had such a fun weekend and made a lot of memories!

Idaho Bear Attack!!!!

2011-06-16T22:23:00.000-07:00

While walking through the woods of Idaho with Chris, a black bear (whose color was actually brown) jumped out of a tree onto me for what they call a human rodeo. Fortunately the bear didn't make it the full 8 seconds because I gave him the whoopin of his life. Yeah that's right...Bear vs. Bill = Bill wins...everytime. Well this time, but future bear rodeo enthusiasts beware!

No, no, your not crazy, there is a geo metro in that picture that we not only took hunting, but also stuffed a bear in the trunk wrapped like a burrito in a tarp . I'm pretty sure that's a first.

1st camping trip of the summer

2011-06-08T20:49:00.000-07:00

We decided to take off to Teton National Park this past weekend for our 1st camping trip of the year!

The weather was beautiful! 75 during the day.... and a little chillier during the evening.

This was the beautiful drive into Jackson Hole. Bill and I love to go there every chance we get.

Since it's only 2 hours away, we've kind of made it our close to home 'vacation destination'.

The little bullwinkle moose we saw while driving.

Bill can spot elk like noones buisness and Bill calls me the moose spotter.

We are a good team :)

For dinner we made chili dogs and corn over the fire.

Good camping meal!

This trip we traveled more north to Colter Bay and saw Jackson Lake.

It had a beautiful view!

Oxbow bend.

At dusk we went to Jenny Lake to enjoy the evening.

The views are just breathtaking!

Classic national park pic!

Before we left Sunday we went back into Jackson Hole to enjoy the square. Bill and I found a new log furnature shop that was fun to walk through! And of corse we stopped at the rock shop to see the new fossils and rocks that they had.

On the drive back we went through the Palasades.

It's been fun to live so close to these scenic places and enjoy God's beautiful country!

We moved!

2011-06-07T21:11:00.000-07:00

We moved to a condo a couple weeks ago and our new address is:

860 south 5th west no 14

still in Rexburg

We love our new place!

While we were moving in, Bill realized that you can see cows from our front window! A first for us!

Well... that and the fact that we now have a garage!

Don't be a stranger!

Memorial Day in Wyoming with the Harris Family!

2011-06-07T21:02:00.000-07:00

For memorial day Bill and I drive to Wyoming to spend the long weekend with Shaun, Jenny and the kids.

What was supposed to be a camping weekend turned out to be loads of fun at the Harris household due to the bad weather.... everywhere!

Riley LOVES watermelon!

When we would eat and sit at the dinner table he would randomly say

"Bridget's so nice!" & "Bill's so silly!"

He's such a sweet boy!

On Satuday Jenny and I went to some garage sales and found this grill brand new for $5!

Shaun used it to grill for us all weekend!

Saturday evening we went to the Rec Center for some swimming.

It is a huge place with slides, lazy river and a huge inflatable 'iceburg' that you could climb up and slide down. Shaun and I tried it out at it was a thrill!

Bill and Riley at the pool

Brecker is almost as big as Riley!!

Jenny and Brecker at the pool

My little buddy!

We had a great time... and the best part was that we weren't camping in the rain and cold!

Excited for summer!

2011-05-15T16:23:00.000-07:00

This post has two purposes...

1. To show pictures from Shaun and Jennys fun trip to visit us a couple months ago... &

2. Because we are so excited to go camping with them memorial day weekend!

They have been such great friends and we can't wait to have yet another fun camping adventure with them!

This is just one of the summer adventures we are going to have.... the other mainly being a trip back to Ohio at the end of June/ beginning of July!

It will be such a fun summer and we will get to see many of you and can't wait!

What it means to be FAMILY

2011-04-19T19:05:00.000-07:00

Family is the most wonderful thing that God has given us. There is no other place that brings us such happiness and love then when you are with family!

At the end of March I was so lucky to be able to go home and be with my family.

Keith was between chemo treatments and felt so great... so we had lots of fun together that week.

We played mario, went to YOGA, watched A LOT of 'The Office' and did some scrapbooking.

(Yes... scrapbooking!)

We went out to eat and went to the hospital to have his blood checked a couple times. I also got to meet his doctors which was really nice!

On Saturday Andy, Keith, my parents and I went to the zoo and had a great time! It was a beautiful day and Keith felt great so we walked around and got to see a lot of great things... and just spend time together. It was so nice.

Keith, Grandma Haymond and I at YOGA 3 weeks ago.

My mom and Keith wrapped under the quilt!

Grandma and Papa Corcoran and Keith with the quilt. Tuesday night after YOGA the quilt arrived and we gave it to Keith. He loved it!

The square my parents made for Keith.

I LOVE this square!

The square Bill and I did. I love this picture of all the kids!

The square Jack (and Scout) did... Keith LOVED this square!

Andys square for Keith... ahh... brotherly love! :)

Keith and his sweet sunglasses he got in the hospital from a cancer survivor who works at the sunglass hut.

Keith, my dad and I on the train at the zoo!

Keith and my dad (and a Tiger!) at the zoo!

Me and my skeeter :)

It was so cool to see a bald eagle up so close!

Silly Jack :)

Us with the quilt when Keith recieved it.

The next morning my mom woke Keith up and asked him how he slept. His answer 'covered in prayers!'.

I am so glad he had the quilt the 2 weeks that he needed it the most.

Thanks to everyone, especially Karen Joyce, for all your help with it!

He knew how much he was loved and knew more then any of us the strength of family.

I will miss him so much. His tender spirit and his sweet smile.

I know he is smiling down on us now.

There's no place like home for the holidays!

2011-01-11T20:12:00.000-08:00

Bill and I were so happy to be able to go to Ohio and be with our families this Christmas!

Here are some pictures from our trip!

Heidi opening presents on Christmas morning. She was so excited, but disappointed that everything she opened was 'stuck' because of the packaging!

Christmas Eve with my family. We had a GREAT prime rib dinner that my mom made (and the boys devoured!) and continued our tradition by watching the Muppet's Christmas Carol.

Grandma and Grandpa Corcoran at our 'tacky sweater party'.

(Bill was still wearing his!)

Me and my mom :)

While I was there Jack got his acceptance letter to the University of Cincinnati!

Despite that he is now my rival for life... I am so proud of him!

New Years Eve we went to the zoo with Scott, Heidi, Kevin, Grace, James and Grandpa.

It was such a nice day outside so we had to take advantage of it!

Later that night we had a sleep over and watched Despicable Me, ate ... yet another... FANTASTIC meal and played games. What a great way to welcome in 2011!

While we were home Bill turned 26!

Happy Birthday, Love!

Scott and Heidi at the zoo

On Tuesday we went to see Jack wrestle in a tournament with Andy and Taylor.

He won both matches!

Our Summer!

2010-08-21T11:50:00.000-07:00

Hello! We've had a great summer out here. When the weather finally got nice we got to go out and do some fun things! Our favorite summer activity is always visiting Yellowstone. We are so lucky to be so close and take advantage of it every chance we've got! We've already been there three times this year and have seen two bears, lots of elk and bison and also some mountain goats!

When Chris' mom came out we all went and got to see Old Faithful for the first time this year...

it's still faithful!

Our good friends Shaun and Jenny had their second baby Brecker at the end of July and he is a cutie just like his brother! They moved yesterday to Wyoming for graduate school and we are sure going to miss them and watching their kids grow up!

My friend from work, Denys, turned 30 this year and she had a luau so I made her Shirley Temple and Pina Colada cupcakes!

Just last weekend Bill's brother John and his family were down in Utah for a wedding so we went down to see them for the day. It was great since we hadn't seen them for almost a year!

Bill reading to Rachel

Me and Lauren

Ok- so I have a confession. I am technically on vacation (which is probably why I have the time to update this!) And Bill and I had planned to take a trip to Yosemite for the week. We were all excited and ready... when Bill discovered something last Friday afternoon. Before we get to that surprise..... Here was our modified 'Staycation' that lasted a whole 24 hours. haha. It really was fun though!

We rented a teepee about two hours south of us at Downata Hot Springs.

Then the second day we drove up to Lava Hot Springs and rented some tubes to float the river. It was so fun! We floated down three times. The river has some white water with a couple little water falls about 2-3 feet which makes the float pretty exciting. After the first time Bill got a little confident and hit one of the falls right on! I was behind him and saw him hit the bottom of the falls and flip right over! All he could do when he got back in his tube was laugh! We laughed the rest of the way down the river.

It was a fun little vacation

So back to the reason we didn't go on vacation!

Bill discovered a teaching position availability on Friday afternoon at the Middle School here in Rexburg for Earth Science. Talk about the Perfect job! (Besides the fact it's not in Ohio!)

He applied and then went in to talk to the Principle on Monday morning and they scheduled an interview for Thursday morning at 9:30. He went in to interview and at the end of the interview they asked him if he would take the job if they offered it to him. He said YES!

And then the principle tossed him the keys!!!

When he got home he couldn't wait to spread the news!

I am so proud of him!

We hope everyone is having a great summer too!

Bills says hello....

2010-05-17T20:29:00.000-07:00

.... and goodbye to the facial hair!

Since graduation(which I still need to post pictures on) Bill has been rebelling against shaving since now he doesn't have to for school! So he grew a full beard for about a month.... and then it was time to shave. This was his favorite look while shaving it off.... but it too had to go!

I have to say... I am partial to the clean shavin' look! :)

Easter Weekend

2010-04-06T20:49:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Bill and I went down to Salt Lake to visit some friends and attend a session of Conference. So we left the 3 inches of snow and a blizzard for the 45 degree weather of Utah! (I know ... it's pathetic that we find that warm!)

Saturday afternoon we stopped at Corys house, one of Bills old mission companions and hunting buddies. Last year Cory and Bill went hunting like mad men up in the moutains of utah for days and got a mule deer... so Bill wanted to teach him how to cook it. It was great and everyone loved it!

Later that night we went to the Everill's house. On Easter Sunday we continued our yearly Conference breakfast tradition with them and the Torres'. We Brian's awesome pancakes and Rob's Mexican breakfast burritos. It's so fun to see them every year and hear the guys talk about the good times they had on the mission!

All they do together is laugh!!!

Then Bill and I went to the afternoon session of Conference. It may be one of the last times we can go while we are out here so we had to take advantage of it!

That's the Mormon Tabernacle Choir in the background. They were awesome!

It was a wonderful way to spend out Easter!

The Latest....

2010-03-21T14:50:00.000-07:00

Well, Bill has been busy at work with student teaching and it has really paid off! He had to present a work sample portfolio of a weeks worth of lessons and analysis last Thursday to a board a school and recieved perfect reviews! He has been working so hard to get as much out of this experience as possible - and it makes me so proud of him!

However.... that means a lot of 'free time' for me! And I have kept myself very busy!

Cupcakes, cupcakes and more cupcakes!

Last weekend I catered a wedding with my little cupcake buisness... and it was so fun!

I made these for Bill's class for St. Patricks Day. They were mint butercreme frosting with chocolate cake! (I think they were primarily for Bill.... but thats ok!) :)
Bill and I made these little cake plates too out of candlesticks and glass plates! And I made some interchangable flip flops because I can't wait for summer!!! (this is what happens when you are cooped up in rexburg!)

Bill has one more week of student teaching and then graduation!!! We both can't wait so we can take advantage of this nice weather we are about to have here!

Sleigh ride to see the elk in Jackson.... plus the elk that came to see us!

2010-02-28T18:53:00.000-08:00

For Valentines Day Bill and I went on a sleigh ride in Jackson to the elk refuge there.

It was such a beautiful day! They took us out to a herd of 300-400 elk with some pretty massive bulls. Needless to say Bill had a great time! His trigger finger was on fire the entire ride!

On the drive up to Jackson you have to go through the Teton Pass, which is known to be wicked in the winter. But since it was such a beautiful day, and since there wasn't that much snow, the drive didn't take any longer then usual!

This is the picture of the drive up the pass.

There is a steep drop off the the right but you can't really tell because of the wall of snow!

Last Saturday Bill and Chris took a trip up to Bozeman, MT to take a look at an elk mount,

which according to Bill was 'better than the pictures!'

In other words... he HAD to have it!

So after a brief scare of not being able to fit it in the minivan to bring back to Rexburg, it made its way into our apartment!

The mount is a 7 x 7 and possibly a record book bull.

Rocky, the Elk, is currently residing in the bank until we can find more room for him on a wall in our next place.

Bill has found his second love with this elk!!!!

(yes... he still says I am his first!)

In other happenings, Bill has one month left of student teaching and will be graduating April 9th!

WOO-HOO!

Then we are on to bigger and better things... which all have yet to be decided, but hopefully will include moving from Rexburg!

It has been great to be here for the last couple years. I have had a great job, and Bill has received a wonderful education. We have made great friends here and it has been really nice to be near some family.

Hopefully our future endeavours will bring us closer to most of you!

And if you hear of any jobs that might interest us - don't hesitate to let us know!

Our Idaho Christmas

2010-01-07T20:37:00.001-08:00

It was a memorable Christmas this year since it was the first away from our families together - but we enjoyed spending it together... in our pj's and snuggies! (thanks to my mom!)

Bill's earth science club decorated a tree to display at the school and it turned out really neat even though they didn't win anything for it. You can see it has a sun on top, warm and cold fronts, pressure systems, storms and lumps of coal under the tree. I thought it was really creative!

Since we had so much fun cutting down our own tree last year we decided to keep up with tradition and go back to Targee National Forest. Chris and Katie went with us as we searched for the 'perfect tree' ... and then 1 1/2 hours later settled for the best we could find! But the view wasn't too bad and it was a beautiful drive!

It was a very snuggie christmas!

And it was a smokey christmas too! Bill pulled out the fire extinguisher for it's maiden voyage during a oven fire and it did the trick! Good thing I saved the money bread!

(notice our pretty tree in the background! Not bad!)
And finally Bill playing with the Christmas toys!

We got a fun nerf game that shoots at a floating target from Bills parents. Needless to say it was opened immediatly and a large part of our entertainment for the day. Who says you can't get toys when you're grown up!?!

And he got a green astronomy laser pointer that he couldn't wait to try out! After the fire and smoke in our apartment it was the perfect time to beable to see the beam of light nomatter where you pointed it!

We had a great Christmas together, the most quiet we will probably ever have! But we missed our family and can't wait to hopefully be home later this year!

Lost Camera :(

2009-08-05T21:22:00.000-07:00

well- Bill took his big trip last week out to Challis for the independent study he is doing through the school and on one of his big hikes the camera disappeared so unfortunetly there are no pictures of his adventures. :( But he does have some great stories from the trip that he will have to share with you. He got to see a mountain goat up real close, helped some stranded people and became one with nature. Think of the most desolate place and that is where he was in Idaho! Not much of anything except rocks... which was perfect!
Hopefully we will get a camera soon so that we can keep posting pictures on here. As for now- this will have to do!

Off trailing in Yellowstone. And let's just say that we weren't the only 'storms' on the mountain!

2009-07-22T18:55:00.000-07:00

Bill leading the way 'off the beaten path'.

This was a very memorable trip. We hiked up to see the most beautiful view of Yellowstone from the most north western corner. We could see all the way from Yellowstone to the Tetons when we got to the top. Unfortunetly we also saw a storm over the Tetons heading our way.

We headed down the mountain about 20 minutes only to realize we were going down the wrong ridge! So- back up it was, after climbing it once... we went back up! And trying to beat a storm!

Honestly, we were scared to say the least being 9000 ft up and all!

We headed back up... and fast. We got to the top and then started going down the right ridge when it started to rain and lightening not too far away. Quickly... and by a miracle... we found a cave that the two of us barely fit in.
We stayed in there while the lightening storm passed- about 45 minutes - and then finally headed, very steeply, down the right ridge. The whole trip took 6 hours and who knows how many miles! We were sore for days.

On the top of the mountain... before the storm.

The cave we found to hide in during the 'incident'

The calm after the storm. There was a double rainbow- it was beautiful!

A petrified tree about 50 million year old.

This is my fake 'get me the heck out of here' smile.

We still had a couple miles to go and were burning daylight.

Me at the top. We came from the green valley in the center and hiked 2000 ft up to the top!

Quote of the Day

2009-07-22T18:20:00.000-07:00

Bill: (out of nowhere) "I'm not proud of myself."

Me: 'What did you do?' as he holds up an empty mini cupcake container.
Me: 'How many were in there?'

Bill: 7?

Maybe it's time for me to choose another hobby.....
Nah!

The second 'half' of the summer...

2009-07-22T18:07:00.000-07:00

So while I was on the half marathon kick I emailed someone in the wellness department at work about CCB sponsoring me for another half marathon in August. I emailed them the beginning of June and hadn't heard back from them so I thought that it was a no-go! Right?

Wrong.

Today... TO MY DISMAY (since I haven't ran more then 3 miles since the last half) .... I got an email affirming my sponsorship. CRAP!
Which means that I need to get my butt back in shape and start running again.
All I can say is that it's a good thing that Bill is now done with school for the summer so he can run with me :)

Freedom Isn't Free

2009-07-15T20:01:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, Andy recently joined the National Guard and left for Leaders Training Camp early this month. He is at Fort Knox until the beginning of August and so far this is the only picture we have of him. (thanks mom!)
My little brother... all grown up. I am so greatful for his service to our country. This picture humbles me and is a great reminder that our freedom is not free! I am so proud of him!

Yellowstone

2009-07-05T12:30:00.000-07:00

We hiked off the marked trails through these thick little pine trees to the ridge in the distance. We then hiked about 3/4 of the way up that ridge to some Native American obsidian quarries. It was really cool.

This is some of the obsidian by the quarries. It has been found as far east as the mississippi valley.

This is a stone we found that the Indians used to quarry the obsidian.

We found four tools in total that the Indians used to quarry the obsidian. I found the large one on the top. You can tell they were used as tools because 1. They are not obsidian or rhyolite which are the only rocks that should be found on the slope and 2. You can see the striking surface they used on the tools. The rock is worn in those areas. They fit perfectly in the hands. It was really cool to see the quarries and find the ancient artifacts. Unfortanely they lay up there just like you see in this picture. My teacher was supposed to contact someone from the national parks archaeology department to let them know where they are so they can do something with them.

It was a beautiful day to be in our classroom and learn about all the features in the park.

Arches National Park

2009-07-05T12:18:00.000-07:00

Some of the Wildlife Pictures

2009-07-05T12:02:00.000-07:00

A pretty black bear that was right off the road.

A cow and calf moose.

A Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep.

More Bighorns.

A doe deer.

Go to the older posts(yellow print on the bottom right of the page) to see my fossil forest pics.

More Fossil Forest Pics

2009-07-05T11:55:00.000-07:00

Recent Fieldtrips

2009-07-05T11:19:00.000-07:00

My class hiking up a small spatter cone at Craters of the Moon National Park. You can see the moon just above the cone.

Hidden Falls by Jenny Lake in Teton National Park.

The Tetons from the east.

The Tetons from the west.

Me standing by a 50 million year old fossilized tree in Yellowstone Park. It was a pretty sweet fossil forest. There were mostly little stumps sticking out of the ground. This one was the largest and most well known. In my Historic Geology textbook there is a picture of it as well as many other textbooks. There are 52 forestes (spanning 300,000 years) that were buried one on top of the other by volcanic ash and other volcanic material. There's no trail to get to this place so it's not well known to the public. It was a beautiful hike and we even saw a grizzly bear across the canyon.

Way to Go

2009-06-14T15:49:00.000-07:00

Success!

2009-06-13T11:00:00.000-07:00

Me and my running buddy Denise after the race. We trained together for the last 3 months and she is such a powerhouse! She finished in 2 hours and 17 minutes! Way to go Denise!

Julie and I ran together most of the race, until the last mile or so. It was great to have someone there running with you and pushing you up the hills. We both wanted to stop, especially at the end, but ran the entire thing!

The finish line... YAY! It was such a relief to get here!

The marathon runners started an hour before us and ran the last 7 or so miles with us as well so the clock was really for them. For my time I got 2:19:23!

24 Hours!

2009-06-12T06:51:00.000-07:00

Holy Cow am I nervous!
In 24 hours I will have completed the longest run I have ever done!
Here is the course...http://www.dammarathon.com/pdfs/TDM%20Half-Marathon.pdf

I will post tomorrow with pictures! (If I'm still alive!)

Cupcakes!

2009-06-07T19:39:00.001-07:00

Here are some cupcakes that I made today. It'd been fun trying different recipies and learning how to use fancy frosting tips to create designs! (And Bill has really enjoyed being my taste tester :)

Yellowstone in the Spring!

2009-05-16T21:16:00.001-07:00

It was a beautiful day to go to the park. All the animals were out and about and there weren't too many people there!

While driving there was a pretty bad traffic jam... which can only mean one thing.... BEAR!

The buffalo were everywhere!

We saw a bunch of elk too.

This was probably the coolest part of the day. Right when we got to the park, only a couple miles in, there was a buffalo that had just given birth about 6 hours earlier. We stayed around for awhile to watch the baby stand up and eat... he was so little! Its amazing how much and how fast they grow!

2009-04-21T17:29:00.000-07:00

Picutres of the porch glider that Bill made this last week. He's got talent!

Next item on his list to make: nightstands!

2009-04-19T13:43:00.001-07:00

Our trip to Craters of the Moon National Monument

2009-04-19T13:21:00.001-07:00

This week is National Park Week so to start the summer off right we headed to Craters of the Moon National Monument. It was a beautiful day... about 55-60 degree weather. On the drive out there we passed a couple buttes and a whole lot of nothing. It's humbling sometimes to realize that we can be in the middle of nowhere in less then a 20 minute drive in any direction!
The park wasn't very big at all but it had a 7 mile loop drive that we took where you can get out along the way and take hikes to see the different sights. One of the pull offs had an old valcano you could hike up and look inside. Another, the tallest one in the park, you could hike to the top and see a great view of the entire park. I learned about the different types of basalt rock and ways that lava flows when a valcano goes off. (Bill already knew most of it from his earth science classes). So it was like having my own private tour giude in the park! My own Marva! (haha)
It was a fun trip!

Bill starts classes up again for summer semester this week and he's actually looking forward to it! He's taking a field expedition this summer where he takes day trips like this twice a week and then some longer trips on weekends to collect rock samples and learns about different geological creations. It will be great for him! During his week off of school Bill made a log glider. It's like a porch swing but it glides instead of being hung from chains. He has a real talent with creating things! We'll post pictures of it after he stains it.

As for me, I'm training for the Teton Dam Half Marathon on June 13th. I'm starting my 3rd week of training this week and so far so good! I run 4 days a week and rest 3. Last week my longest run was 5 miles while this week I'll have to run 6 on Sautrday. It's been a lot of fun actually and a great challenge for me!
Have a great week! We miss you all and would love to hear from you if you get a chance!

Winter in the Buuuuuuurg

2009-01-12T18:03:00.000-08:00

Long time no write.... looks like not too much has changed in 2009! I figured now that we are doing the porker-corcoran challenge people might click on this and read it so I should update.

Bill is back and school and Im back to work. Im teaching 2 piano lessons now and am looking for more students because I love it!
We bought a 20 gallon tank for our salamanders this weekend so they could have room to grow! They love to dig and hide themselves under the dirt and its fun to try and find them all when we pass by!
We teach the 9 year olds sunday school at church and they continue to crack us up. This past week we played the telephone game where one person says a phrase and says it in the ear of the next... and the next... etc. Bill says 'Green bears like to eat gummie bears in the northwest forest of Idaho.' to which came out the other end. . . ' something bikinis?' Who knows!

3 weeks til home!

2008-10-21T20:02:00.000-07:00

Hello! I cant tell you all how excited I am to come home next month... I really miss Ohio in the fall! Leaves are changing here too... but weve also had some snow and frost already.
This last weekend my roommate from college, Sarah, came to stay with us. Bill was gone on a field trip to Utah for geology so Sarah and I went to Yellowstone and the Tetons for the day Saturday. We saw a grizzley bear (from far away) and some elk and she got to see Old Faithful for the first time. We also got to catch a view of the Tetons right as the sun was setting as we headed into Jackson Hole. It was magnificent!
2 weekends ago was mothers weekend at the college and Diana and Bills aunt colleen came out to spend the weekend. It was fun to go to speakers with them and have them out here as well!
Bill's rock collection has grown tremedously! This past trip he came home with loads of fossils and even a dinosaur bone. Its amazing the rocks we walk by every day that are probably thousands or millions of years old!
He is also trying to get in as much hunting as he can in the middle of all his school work. He hasnt gotten anything yet but there is still some time.
We'd love to hear from you all! I dont think ive ever been so excited for Christmas... and you KNOW how much I already love it!
Enjoy the beautiful fall weather and I will see most of you soon!

Fall is coming!

2008-09-04T21:19:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone! Its getting colder here in Idaho in the mornings and evenings and Im not looking forward to the upcoming weather. We have both enjoyed summer so much!
I am however excited to say that I am coming home November 7th-14th! Bill was lucky enough to go home last weekend and had a great time with family and friends. He is now hunting elk up in the mountains and we have plans to go white water rafting on saturday. It should be chilly... but fun!
While Bill was gone I got some projects finished in our apartment and also had the chance to work a booth at the Idaho State Fair. I served baked potatoes with some people I work with for a Kiwanis booth and got to walk around and enjoy the rodeo and horse races as well. It was a fun time!
Bill starts school on Monday so its back to 'normal' for us after this weekend.
Its great to be hearing from everyone! I can't wait to see most of you in November! It can't come soon enough!
Love, Bridget

Huckleberries!

2008-08-07T18:25:00.000-07:00

Last week Bill and I went to pick huckleberries in an undisclosed location. In other words, Bill has an 'in' from a guy at work that has lived here his whole life and knows a great place to pick them! It was a very successful trip! We got about 2 gallons of huckleberries in approx. 5 hours. (Which is really good concidering how small they are!) We are excited to learn how to make jam and syrup!
Tomorrow we leave for our trip to Tetons National Park. We will only be gone the weekend but it will be lots of fun hiking and sitting by a campfire. I am going to miss summer terribly when it is gone! In Target the other day I saw that they already have holloween decorations out! Its ridiculous!
We will be sure to put up pictures from the trip when we get back. Enjoy your weekend!

Pictures from this summer

2008-07-27T18:15:00.001-07:00

2008-07-27T17:24:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from this summer. I forgot to add last time that Bill went to the Grand Canyon with his geology class. (I was really jelous!)
We are also planning on going back to Teton National Park in 2 weeks to do some hiking and camping.
We love summer here!

Summer in Idaho

2008-07-20T19:17:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone! Its been quite awhile since I have written last but things have been so busy here! The weather has since gotten nice and we take advantage of it every chance we get!
Bill finished his semester last friday and is very ready to take 7 weeks off of school. He has also decided on majoring in geology education and loves it! I can tell that he is finally in the field he needs to be in. Its been great when we have gone places too because its like having our own tour guide!
I am still loving my job and dont mind going every day. The bank as a softball team that Bill and I play on and even though we arent always winning... we havve a great time. Last friday we played 2 games. We won one and lost the other.
Since memorial day we have gone to Yellowstone and Teton National Park. We also made a trip down to Utah to visit Bill's cousin for a weekend. My mom came last week and we had a great time together! It was great to show her around and explore Idaho... and just spend time with her!
One of our favorite things to do recently is to go to the sand dunes that are about 20 minutes away and make a bonfire there with some friends at night. They also introduced us to a new campfire cooking recipe ... roasting starburts! Its so good! Its great out there because the stars are really clear and its just beautiful. There is so much natural beauty that you almost cant take it all in! And its different depending on which direction you go. (my mom pointed that out).
I will post some pictures as well. I hope everything is going well back home. We miss you all and cant wait to see you at christmas... we are getting our tickets to fly home this week!
love, bridget and bill

Jim Brickman and Kelly Canyon

2008-02-26T19:00:00.001-08:00

2008-02-26T18:30:00.001-08:00

Valentines Day

2008-02-17T13:18:00.000-08:00

We went to see Jim Brickman on tuesday and it was a great concert! He is a wonderful pianist and had a violin player and vocalist with his as well, along with the Teton Chamber Orchestra. Bill and I thought that the whole show was very entertaining and not quite what we expected... it was better!
Its been great to get emails from people back home! It sounds like everyone is doing well... always good to hear!
Well I should get going. I still dont know how to put pictures up but Ill keep trying.
We are having Scott and Beth over for dinner tonight so im going to go clean up the house while bill starts cooking! :) (dont worry... ive done my share of cooking over the past couple weeks so I get a break today!)

Ice Fishing!

2008-02-10T16:41:00.000-08:00

well hello from the snow filled state of Idaho! We have had 10-12 ft snow piles next to drive ways and on the sides of the streets.... there is no other place to put the snow when it falls! In Island Park, not far from us, there was a state of emergency because the piles of snow were so high on the roofs- they were afraid of them caving in! The goods news is that a warm front has come in - 30 degrees- and the sun is out so some of it is melting slowly! :)
I have spent the last week trying to put up another slide show of our ice fishing trip- but for some reason the pictures wont load. So I will keep trying. The trip was nice though. We went to Ririe Lake and Bill and his brother and friend had their poles and fished. Beth, my sister-in-law, and I basically sat there and tried to keep from freezing. We had fun playing games and making fun of the guys when their lines would get tangled or whatnot. They didnt catch anything but it was still fun. Bills favorite part was using the ice pick to make the two holes in the ice that they fished out of. What a task!
It was beautiful there. We saw 8 bull elk on the side of the road and 2 bald eagles! Idaho is beautiful in the winter!
Work is still going well for me and Bill is doing well in his classes. Chemistry is his hardest subject but he has done well.
For Valentines Day he surprised me and is taking me to see the Jim Brickman concert in Idaho Falls! It should be awesome!
Thats all from here! I will write more often- promise.
Let me know how everyone is doing out there- its always good to hear from you guys!
love, bill and bridget

2008-01-26T13:07:00.000-08:00

Not to much excitment this week in Idaho. It was nice to have the day off monday from school and work. Bill and I went to Idaho Falls and shopped and returned some things. It was a very cold day but we still had to make a stop at Reeds Dairy (on a farm) and get some of their famous ice cream! So we met his sister Missy and husband Devin there for a little treat. :)
I had meeting at work on Friday morning to learn about setting up new accounts and everything that goes along with that. It was very informational and I feel like I am learning so many things there. I still love my job and most of the time it doesnt really even seem like work! My boss also took me out to lunch at this place called Bajio.... its like a chipotle of the west. YUM!
Bills school is moving along and he is doing well in his classes. Classes are hard since they have implamented the 13 week semesters.... teachers have to shove all the tests and homework into a shorter period of time... but Bill seems to be doing well with it.
Thats all from here!

Our Apartment Pictures

2008-01-21T11:47:00.001-08:00

2008-01-17T20:12:00.000-08:00

I wanted to first off say that I will have pictures of our apartment on here soon... I just have to actually take time to take the pictures when our apartment looks nice. (so hopefully saturday after I clean!)

Ive been at my job for four days and I LOVE IT! The people I work with are just great and I learn so much every day- its wonderful! We throw around a plush football when the bank is slow and work well together when we need to get down to buisness. They have already noticed and poked fun at my 'toe thumbs' .... so I guess they feel comfortable with having me there. And I feel comfortable being there! (plus the 2 men I work with love hunting and want Bill to join their thursday night bow league so he would kill me if I left!)

Bill is burried in school work at the moment. Since the semesters are only 13 weeks long, the teachers get right down to buisness from the beginning. He has 3 major projects due for tomorrow and hes only been in school for 1 1/2 weeks!

Update on the frogs: they are still alive! They like to scare me though and float at the top of the water and not move for awhile.

Furniture update: We finally get mattresses tomorrow night!! the days of sleeping on an air mattress are finally over! (well for now atleast!) yay!

Weather update: VERY COLD! no- i dont think you understand. They closed school the other day because they thought it was going to get down to -20. It only reached -9. What a warm day!

Again, I promise Ill put up pictures.... this weekend!
Its been great hearing back from everyone. It sounds like everything is going wonderfully there!

2008-01-11T20:48:00.000-08:00

We have FROGS! On wednsesday Bill started classes. He is taking 14 credit hours and that will occupy most of his time. He might even start working at the University Press two times a week, so he will be quite busy as well!

I am starting work on Monday and am very excited! (I have been bored here a little bit since Bill went back to school.) I will be working full-time at Citizens Community Bank as the Head Teller. It should be a great job and the people there seem really nice and fun!

On Thursday we got pet frogs! They are really little and live in the vase that we got for them. They actually dont move very often, only when we feed them. But they are fun to have around!

Furniture update: We finally have a kitchen table and a free desk and coffee table! And this weekend we are picking up the couch that we bought! Its all coming together nicely.

We made it to Rexburg, Idaho!

2008-01-05T19:57:00.000-08:00

Well, two days and 2,013 miles later we are finally here in Idaho! On friday we moved into our apartment and were happily surprised. I had an interview friday and got the job at Citizens Community Bank as the head teller. I will start sometime next week and Bill starts school Wednesday so we have one week to get everything together in the apartment. Today (Saturday) we found some great deals on things we need for the apartment! We found an almost brand new tv stand for $30 and an inexpensive couch that doesnt smell! Then we found the deal of the year on a 4 month old queen matress set that was origionally $750.... for only $150!!! Bill tried it out first and fell in love with it... and without even asking me he splirted out " We'll take it!!" I have to say... it is very comfortable!
We will be posting pictures of the apartment soon!