Ice Fishing Days

 Saturday morning proved to be a beautiful blue bird day... And the fishing wasn't bad! Lynae and I brought breakfast out to the men hard at work. Some coffee, tea and blueberry muffins.

A new life to be....

What happens when you don't control your own life? Amazing, wonderful, unthinkable things that would never happen to you in a million years. Like falling in love in 10 days of meeting someone.

This was the first photo ever taken of us. 

3 weeks later, here we are acting like gangsters. :) 

And gradually he started to show a sweeter side.... a side that makes me smile inside just because.

But the happiest day was when he asked me to marry him and be his wife. I said YES!! This happened like any other couple getting engaged. I dared him! And that's how we got engaged :)

North Fork looking across to the train tracks and graffiti that's been there forever.

 A waterfall across the train tracks.

Roasting by the fire

Freezing cold, fully clothed sitting in the sauna
Beautiful sisters and Wonderful Friends.

Sweet little....

It is so obvious that we have a problem with the lack of children in this household (no I'm not volunteering to alter the situation any time soon) but with that we have an uncommon amount of photos of the Dog. My niece. Whiski. 

The most amazed....

There is something to be said to be proven wrong. It's a good feeling! For my diatribe of being an Unromantic Scrooge? I have undergone a full 180. Valentine's Day is my favorite Holiday now.  

The quick run down is I was thrown a HUGE surprise 30th birthday party where girlfriends flew in  with their families and ALL conspired against me to fly Dustin in. I've never been so surprised in my life. I'll get into the story someday, but not now. 

Monday rolls around and the really really short version is Dustin and I got ENGAGED!!!!! I'm so happy, so thrilled, excited, amazed, and beyond words! I most likely will take a hiatus from posting as I have an event to plan. (insert HUGE cat-eating grin here)

A wonderful, sweet, life changing and prayed for event.

When: August 5th, 2011

Where: the Lakehouse

The rest of the details: I'm too overwhelmed to know.

BUT I'M HAPPY!

Learning

We are always learning.

And I'm learning to be thankful for this.

I am of a mind that wants to KNOW stuff. Lots of stuff. Completely unrelated stuff. What does sewing and couplings have in common anyway? Answer: Nothing. I only know what couplings are because I've had to help dad put them on hoses after ripping them out of tractor without unhooking them. Oops. I even went to the John Deere shop to get them. So I know what they look like and purpose thereof.

I just don't know any of my "curious george" interests well. I like, I look, I play but I don't always understand them or know the intricacies of the item. Say this camera. I love this camera. I know it's amazing, it's beautiful, it just feels right when I hold it. I've connected with it, we have a bond. I have books that I've bought, borrowed and have been given about this camera.... but do you think I take the time?  Not too much. When I go to look at it, I suddenly remember the pattern I just have to finish knitting or sewing. Or the new recipe I just have to try. Most times I'm just too exhausted. I really do not like this tiredness and not sure why I have it. Part of the reason is I'm ADD and the other part is it takes a memorizing mind to remember what setting needs to be at what location/setting/light etc. Same goes with my photo editor. It's such an amazing program I'm scared of it! Okay not really, but it's rather daunting.

But for 4 days now, EVERY time and without fail, I have not had my camera with me going to work and I have missed captured moments.

*I saw a Jeep Cherokee in the middle of a lake. Fishing. Okay the people in the jeep were standing by it fishing. The Green Jeep looked like it was stoically defying traffic by boldly being where no car should think of going. Perhaps it was daring other cars to go where no Jeep has gone before...

*I saw this a couple weeks ago, but saw it again today. A 20-something guy crossing the street in a winter coat, jeans, hat and........ flip flops. He must be an import. Definitely a photo op.

*2 days ago I saw a homeless man wrapped in blankets on the street waiting for the light to change so he could cross. He held his gloveless hands around his body to keep the blankets around him. He also cradled an unzipped backpack in his arms. It was really cold about  -10F. I really really wanted my camera for a profile photo of him with his breath coming out in short puffs and the cars and trucks whizzing by. He looked like aloneness and cold was a part of his being, almost like he was comfortable in it. I sincerely wondered what he was thinking.

*Yesterday was AMAZING. It was SUPER cold. So cold dad says the cows give ice cream. It was -22. The River was steaming- it looked surreal with the mountains covered in snow and the peaks tipped with a brilliant pink and purple of the first sign of sunrise. It was beautiful. Coming back home I drove into a sunset where the sky literally boiled in the west with purple, pink and tinges of orange.

*It's 12 degrees today and the frost on the trees and demure grey tones of the earth and air were captured by a bald eagle flying over the Flathead River catching an updraft. The wings were spread and he just looked happy. Cars were flying over the bridge and he didn't care, he was in his element. 

So lessons in learning. I need to carry my camera with me. Maybe my Pre-Mother-in-law can take over the photo editing. Dustin calls me his PreFiance. So, thus!

Norman Rockwell

Norman Rockwell is one of my favorite artists. This photo at present seems to describe life because the days are so short when Dustin comes to visit! And there is never enough time when he's around!

    

Little Sunday Time

Self portrait

This is Tony, my awesome brother who is giving us directions and how to's in the kitchen. He is good at this. He's gruff, he's funny and I love it. Not that I listen to him, but he returns the favor and doesn't listen to me. It's a good time!

I'm not sure what is going on here... Lynae finding Tony's hunchback perhaps. In disgust she says, That's your SPINE!

Mom trying on my new glasses and she couldn't see herself in the mirror! Hilarious!

Dustin is so IN with the family. He plays 'bears' with Whiski. It's her favorite game.

Little Whiski is Soooooo tired. And cuddly.

Weekend of Warm

We had everything from rain to shine the two days we spent filling up the basement. It was hard work but great fun to spend with Dad and Dustin. I think filling up the basement with 4 chords of wood will get us through till April and then we'll have to have another wood gathering. 

In order from L-R. elevator, truck, Dustin, chomper and pickup

One of dads many inventions. Elevator to process the wood without having to handle it one more time. Still do though...

Showing the sleet and rain we had. Dad running the chomper. It didn't occur to me to get photos of it working. :( 

Dustin is having fun. We were soaking wet and cold and he still smiles!

He's so tough.

I missed the moment, but the elevator kept jamming. I was running the controls and dad came back, wrenched a crow bar off the side of the chomper and runs up the elevator saying, "let me take care of this thing!" He fiddled around and low and behold it worked!


Below, Dad in his element and handsome boyfriend smiling

Thertie

So. A blog is to jot thoughts. And on this jot, it's a filing of a complaint. A grievance that I can't get out of.

Seriously. I have never been so close to a particular birthday. 30. Thirty years of age. Three score years. Thartie The 3-oh. Thirty. In about 2 weeks actually. It's not a word I can really wrap my head around. The worst of it I have been teased about this day since I turned 27 and announced to my mother, more of a lament actually: "MOM! I've never been so close to thirty!" I swear I'll be 92 and still have that panic tinged, edgy loud voice that only works with the word MOM!
And my mother, being the incredible woman she is, paused for a half of second and says to me with a no-duh dead pan look, "You're Right"

Since that day, it's been announced at regular intervals. By my siblings. By my dad, my mom and those that have heard the story. Seems that all of them find a perfect excuse around the dinner table to tell company...
"Carmyn guess what! You've never been so close to thirty before!"
"OH! Wait. Right now!"
"And again!"
"Wow you're so close! No, closer!"
"Again and Agi- Again!"

It's like they were waiting for that moment for me to make that statement so they would have some appropriate blackmail. This is not what I had meant at the time. I was just amazed that I was no longer in my early 20's which is not something I had considered would actually happen. I knew it would, don't get me wrong. I was just thinking it would happen to someone else. That I somehow had the elixir of youth? Who knows. But for 3 years now I've been teased of this comment and in 2 weeks I will have done it. Like achieved Something. Great. Awesome. Waking up to one day and achieve a milestone of 10 decades? What, waking up the other 364 days a year each year was not enough??!

Birthdays are weird. I've never liked them. Maybe I did until I was about 26, then it was over for me. I lied. I liked them until I was about 10. Now I'm being asked what I want to do to celebrate? I don't know what I want! It's a birthday. The day before Valentines Day which is the only holiday that I really don't like at all. And Christmas. Okay, so I'm an Unromantic Scrooge. However, no V-Day has ever been a good one, so maybe if I go to bed on the 12th, I'll wake up on the 15th and all will be well! I'm not complaining (maybe a little bit) or wanting sympathy (seriously none), I'm just stating my opinion. Who dreamed up birthdays in the first place?! and even worse, who dreamed up Valentines' Day. Preposterous. I broke up with a guy on Valentines' Day once. It wasn't very nice, but then I don't pretend to always be nice.

It would be awesome to be somewhere in a city shopping and milling around and sight seeing- just a vacation! Eating good food (would be trickery cause of this GF stuff now) but nonetheless a change of pace now and again never hurt anyone's outlook. However, time off is a problem, and all the girls of mine are working or have their own plans with their significants. It's especially a problem when you have Mr. Wonderful who is 700 miles away and takes a little more than 2 days of the weekend to see him because I like him and want to spend more than 48 hours with him. Plus he just left a couple days ago and i don't think He can get time off again so quickly. (I know.) Valentine's Day is around the corner. It's best to not have expectations. Cause I really really REALLY like him and no matter what, if he brought me broccoli for a flower, I'd probably still think it was adorable. (Weird)

Anyway, I feel better now. I don't have all the things that people chalk up to being thirty- house, hubby, 12 kids, 72 loads of laundry per day, a mangy dog, kittens, 30,000 acres of wheat in the field, bread in the oven, a dinner party to plan for 22, house to clean, the rugs to wash, the panic that the cows and horses got out again, running lunch to the harvest crew, getting the pivot unstuck.... OMW! Sounds like so much fun!!! (except I'm never having kids, just for the record) But, Thirty is probably do-able. They say lots of good things happen when you're thirty. It's got 365 days to prove it.

PS Don't make any comments to Mr. Wonderful Re: Broccoli. He would totally try it.
PPS I wonder what other comment my siblings will trip me up with now after this "you've never been so close to 30" phrase has been closed....

Bread? No. Chocolate? No. Coffee? No. How does one Live?!?!????

So, I won't make mention of this again, but I'm pretty sick. And no one knows what's going on. I'm on a battery visits of Doctors- every doctor. From MD's to homeopathic and all in between (except Voo-Doo) that's too far fetched for me. Do what you will, but the thought of someone dancing a jig/salsa/inuit/jitter dance on a toothpick while I walk over hot coals and they have me swat a balloon in a northerly direction isn't my idea of healing.

I'm finding out that one of the major issues is I'm unable to eat wheat, including and not limited to: bread, Crackers, muffins, pie... Problem? Oooooh Yeah. I LIVE for bread. . It's too bad the bread lives in me. Literally. I cannot digest it. And so it sits there, and the only way out is, um... yeah not fun.

So anyway, it makes life VERY interesting. Like who would have thought soy sauce has wheat? And why does canned food, pretty much all canned food (not that I cook much with canned food, but a Cream of Mushroom does have its uses! And tomato soup, sauce and sometimes canned tomatoes) have wheat in them? And the saddest of all? Those amazing truffles at Trader Joes? Or the truffles found at Costco? Off limits. Forever.They're filled with wheat. And I can't eat breakfast which is my very favorite meal of the day. I'm on a hunt for a 'legal' sourdough starter. And experimenting with pancakes. I love pancakes.And waffles. And bran muffins. I found legal bran muffins. Too bad that  a packages costs $5.96 for four. I will persevere and figure out how to make it from an ingredients list posted on the back. People say well just by the gluten free mixes. I say No. I will learn how to make it myself. Thank You. I have too much of my economical mother in me.

                                            The Plus Side? You ask if there is a plus side.......
**Well, I enjoy cooking. And this is an entirely new life recipe now. A new challenge to make things really       fabulous and yummy. There is a lot of experimenting going on, but who would have thought that chocolate chip cookies are AMAZING with buckwheat flour and quinoa grain? Seriously, we've eaten them all. My family loves them. My boyfriend? Skeptical at best!
**I  no longer feel like I'm 900 pounds. People think I'm ridiculous complaining that I'm fat all the time.    Well, you are what you eat I've heard and when it doesn't digest in your body? Fat happens. So that's relief   there.
**I drink a TON of water. Probably a gallon per day. Literally feel like I'm drowning, but water cleanses.
**I'm off caffeine which I do not like at all. I never knew one could miss coffee so much.....but I feel better
**Makes you loose weight. Pretty much without trying. It just happens and I don't have much to loose.
**Never ever using a microwave. (Yes this is actually a Plus) Food tastes better! Even reheated on the stove tastes better.
**..................... give me a week. or Month. Or a year. I'm only on day 5.

Nonetheless, I have found a fabulous blog.  glutenfreemommy.com

It's beautiful, simple and totally do-able. The thing that's interesting to get used to is the flours. To make bread involves 4 or 5 different kind of flours or starches: potato starch, tapioca flour, sorghum flour, sweet rice flour, millet or buckwheat.

I'm just glad to have a point of reference to go from. When I gather recipes that are tried, true and yummed, then I'll start on a cookbook which has always been one thing I've thought would be fun to do. WITH photos. None of this stuff without pictures now....  So here's a picture.

photo courtesy of glutenfreemommy.com

Siblings

I love how attentive whiski is and Lynae is just sitting there "thinking about it"

Uncle Tom H at Boring this year. Special time!

Out in the canoe with one of my beautiful sisters

Tony and I. He's always SO excited to see me!! haha

Lynard Skynard with her blue blue eyes and quick wit.

The temp was COLD- somewhere in the minus but we're well bundled!