Last Day of Class

I don't know if you can see them, but when I went out to the garage to get in my Jeep and drive into town for my last day of class with the Korean teachers, I heard the strangest sound.  I went outside and looked up, and there were hundreds of Canada geese flying overhead.  I yelled to Noah to come outside, and gave him my camera (I was taking it with me to class for a final class photo).  He was able to snap a few shots of the birds flying overhead...don't know if you can see them that well, but here it is anyway.  They just kept coming in waves and waves.  Hundreds of them.  And were are so loud!  They honk constantly as they fly (all of them at the same time!)  You'd think they'd lose their voices!  It was really cool...had to share!!!

Even though I'm not teaching at the college anymore, I was lucky enought to get to teach one class to the Korean teachers this semester.  I did an Intensive American pronunciation course with them, and as is my long-standing tradition (unbroken in 25 years!)  I took an all-class photo on the last day.  These guys really didn't want to do it, but I appreciate the fact that they humored me.  Here we all are:

YAY!!!  We finished!!!  (Can you spot me without my buckskins on?)

Waldo's Christmas Present

Waldo was such a good boy this year that Santa came extra early with his Christmas present.  Poor Waldo is such a big guy, he always hang off of his dog beds.  So, Santa brought him a nice, new Jumbo Dog Bed from the Sierra Trading Post.  Here's Waldo right after I met Santa outside & brought his new bed inside for him.  I made him lay down on it, and you would have thought we were going to beat him...he didn't like it at all!!  However, about an hour later, he was all snuggled down & we haven't been able to get him out of his new bed ever since.  He doesn't even come upstairs to sleep with us anymore...he prefers to stay downstairs in his new bed.  So, needless to say, this present was a big HIT.

And Alfie thinks it isn't too shabby, either!!  Isn't that CUTE!!!

Shooting After Thanksgiving

The day after Thanksgiving, we invited some of the Korean teachers to our house for some food & shooting.  Most of the teachers traveled out-of-state over the holiday weekend, but some got snowed in, so we thought they might like to have something to do to take their minds off of their ruined vacation plans.  Here's a photo of David with a couple of spent shells.  Noah had given them to him to take back to Korea  as souvenirs (a lovely idea), but I was afraid it might lead to unpleasantness at the airport, so David decided to settle for a picture instead!!

Thanksgiving 2010

Thanksgiving Dinner was a quiet affair this year (as always), just Noah & myself.  However, as I enjoy cooking a Thanksgiving meal, we had quite a feast:  turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, orange praline yams, apple pie & my homemade dinner rolls.  Delicious!  And dig that view!!  Not too shabby.  You oughta come and join us next year...you're always welcome!!

Love,
Buckskin

Jack-o-Lanterns!!

Shirleyshot came up for a visit during the fall, and while she was here, I hooked her up with a Korean conversation partner.  (My company trains English teachers from overseas who come to the US to study for 6 months at a time).  Shirleyshot's conversation partner was Sophie.

One day, Shirleyshot invited Sophie over to the house to carve some Jack-o-Lanterns.  Sophie came along with two of her friends:  Eunjeong & Sunny.  After a very brief pumpking-carving tutorial, the ladies got to work making some great Jack-o-Lanterns (by the way, all of these pumpkins came out of my garden):

After the Jack-o-Lanterns were finished, it was our turn to try something new:  Korean pumpkin pancakes.  I've got to tell you now, I'm a FAN!  They were delicious!!  Here are some shots of the ladies at work in the kitchen:

What a fun afternoon!!  I'll never forget it!!  Thanks, ladies!!  (Oh, by the way...you can see the back of Shirleyshot in the photo above.  She never let me take her picture the whole time she was here, so you've just got to take my word for it that she was even here!!)

More Hunting

Another day, we went hunting in the truck to the North Fork (of the Shoshone River) which flows out of Yellowstone.  We were hunting elk again, but never saw any.  We did see a large number of antelope, however, and here's a pretty good photo I was able to snap of a nice buck.

It started raining while we were out, but after a brief squall, it started clearing quickly.  Next thing we knew, there was a beautiful rainbow over the reservoir:

And then the clouds started rolling away behind the mountains.  I don't know if this photograph can really capture the beauty & the vastness, but here goes anyway:

And that pretty much concluded that hunting trip!

Hunting in Meeteetse (October 2010)

It was a beautiful, warm fall this year...but unfortunately, the beautiful weather made for very poor hunting conditions.  Noah did not bag a single animal.  We've got no meat for the winter this year--so very sad.  But that's not to say that Noah didn't do a LOT of hunting.  He did.  He just wasn't successful at bringing down any game. 

One evening, I went along on a trip to Meeteetse.  We were hunting for elk, but we never saw a one.  We did see a few deer, who took one look at us & ran for it.  Stopping every now and then to see if we were still there:

We hiked for several hours, but never saw any other animals.  We even went up into a steep draw trying find something, but no luck:



Even though we didn't find any elk, we still had a great hike.  We didn't get back to the truck until almost dark, but it was a lot of fun. 

And that's all I have to say about that! 

It's me!  Buckskin Lily!!

Sorrry...Been Really BUSY!!

Wow!!  Sorry it's been so long, but I've just been super busy & haven't taken the time to sit down and work on my blog since September!  That's really bad...can't believe it's been 3 months!!  Well, I've just downloaded all the pics from my camera, and am planning to spend the next few hours catching up.  I hope you all enjoy and that you have a VERY Merry Christmas!!!

Lots of love,
Buckskin

Buckskin Lily Turns 49 (again!!)

Yes, it was that time again--my birthday.  September 23rd seems to roll around more & more quickly every year.  But it wasn't so bad.  49's OK...I should know, I've been trying it out for several years now (we won't mention how many).  Our friends, Ken & Connie, were here visiting from California, so they got to celebrate with me.  I got a new electronic keyboard (the musical kind) & had my favorite meal of Alaskan king crab legs for dinner.  It was wonderful & I was stuffed.  Here I am posing with my cake (I made it myself, I might add!!)  It was really a very nice birthday...wish you'd been here to party with me!!  Until next time...

Lots of love!! xoxo
Buckskin Lily

Cowboy Fashion Show at the Heartland

Sorry for being so tardy in updating my blog, but you know how it goes...work, work. work (and play, play, play!)  Doesn't leave a WHOLE lotta time for blogging.  However, I do have a couple of updates for you all.  First of all, I was lucky enough to get to participate in a cowboy fashion show at the Heartland Assistied Living facility in Powell, WY last September the 18th.  One of our shooting pards, Lizzie Marie (that's her to the left of me in the gorgeous red ballgown--that she made herself!!), organized the event & the rest of us showed up and had a blast.  The photo above shows the whole crowd after the show was over.  From the left you're looking at Angel, Y Rose, Buckskin Lily (I've been practicing my posing--can you tell??), Lizzie Marie, Camp Cookie, Lucky Bill, and Yakima Red.  A wonderful time was had by all.  After the shin-dig wrapped up, we all headed over to Hansel & Gretel's for some french fries & conversation.  A great day all the way around!!

Sincerely,
Buckskin Lily

It's Noah's Birthday (Again)!!

I can't believe it, but I've been at this blog for over a year now, because this is the second of Noah's birthday's I've reported on.  We had a quiet day at home...but per tradition, the birthday person got to name their favorite dinner.  I made Noah chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, garlic green beans, and chocolate cake.  Here's Noah setting to the cake all by himself.  I think he would have eaten it all if he hadn't been so full of steak & potatoes.

He'd already opened his present in the morning & I actually surprised him this year!  YAY!  That's a hard thing to do.  Here he is ripping into the package:

And what was it?  A new range box!! How exciting!!  Now Noah has another project to work on (he doesn't have enough yet)!!

Well, that wraps up the festivities for this week.  Buckskin's birthday is next week, so look for more exciting news then.  Buckskin's also going to be appearing in a cowboy fashion show at the Powell Assisted Living Center this weekend.  Exciting doings!!  I'll have all the details for you soon...keeping watching.  Until then..

Lots of love,

Buckskin

Buckskin & Noah at the Shoot & Toot

Hi, ya'll.  Noah & I decided to head up to Logan, Montana last weekend to shoot with the Gallatin Valley Regulators at their 1st annual Shoot & Toot.  If you don't know what a Shoot & Toot is, neither did we--it's a combination cowboy shoot & chili cook-off.  Here's a shot of Noah & I before the lead started flying.  It was a bit nippy when we started out, but the day turned picture perfect.  It was clear, sunny and about 71 degrees without a breath of wind.  Couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day or a more beautiful setting.

When Noah got up to shoot his first stage, he was going great.  He cleaned up with the rifle, but after he took his first pistol shot, he grabbed his eye & started whining.  He finished the shooting string, but missed three shots & had trouble with his shotgun.  When it was all over, he claimed a bug had flown into his eye while he was shooting.  It was an original excuse, anyway.  Here's a picture of his "bug eye."  Looks OK to me!  He wasn't able to muster much sympathy from anyone...maybe we're just an unfeeling crowd... don't know...

At the lunch break, everyone sampled the chili & then a vote was taken.  Here's our elk & antelope chili with extra chili powder:

It didn't get a single vote, but I thought it was good!!!

Not to worry.  I won something, anyway...another 1st place.  Yeah, I know...ho hum, another 1st place.  Here's a shot of me with my award & a nice wideshot of the pretty country around Logan:

And here's a close-up:

Well, that's all the news for now.  Until next time!

Love,
Buckskin

Noah Shoots Legends at Cajon (California)

We're not in Wyoming anymore!  Noah takes a 2nd in Senior Duelist--the competition's a lot stiffer in California than it is up here in Wyoming & Montana.

But he did manage to take a 1st in Long Range Rifle.  Way to go, Noah!! (Are his eyes opened or closed?)

Here's Guy Wolf, Molly McRuger & Noah...where's RJ?  (Is he taking the photo?)...& why is Guy Wolf mocking the vertically challenged?  Hmm??  Short people have feelings too!

And where is Buckskin Lily, you ask?  She's at home in Wyoming...working!!  Isn't that special???  No worries...I'll be there next year for sure!!!

Well...I'd tell you all about everything that went on, but I wasn't there...so all I have to go by are these photos.  Hope you enjoy them.  I'll write again as soon as something interesting happens around here.  Hey, we're going to Billings tomorrow to pick up the new furniture for the basement bedroom!  That's exciting!  I'll put up some photos once it's installed.  Talk to you all soon.

Love,

Buckskin

Good-Bye, Suzy-Girl

I'm very sorry to report that my very dear friend of nearly 11 years is no longer with us.  She was the smartest girl I've ever known.  She never met a stranger. She had so many friends...here she is with Peter, her lastest buddy (SO cute together!) last month:

She loved to ride on anything...golf carts, quad runners, horses...you name it!

 

She didn't really know she was a dog, she thought she was a human:

She was a crazy clown & always ready to go for a walk (or a run!)

She was also a champion relaxer:

But most of all, she was the sweetest dog ever! 

You were one-of-a-kind, Suzy-girl.  There'll never be another like you...we'll miss you always.

Love,
Your Mom & Dad--Buckskin & Noah

Noah & Buckskin Celebrate Their 9th Anniversary!!

Here's Noah driving us to Chico Hot Springs in Montana on August 18th to celebrate our 9th anniversary with a little hot tub soaking and gourment dining.

We decided to take the scenic route up the Chief Joseph Highway, through the NE gate of Yellowstone, then north out of Gardiner to the Hot Springs.  This is a shot of a peak in the Beartooths from the Chief Joseph Highway.

We passed by this herd of buffalo just outside of Mammoth Hot Springs in Yellowstone (not bad for an out-the-window shot!!)

Took us about 5 hours to get there (with a stop for lunch in Cooke City, MT & a rather lengthy traffic delay in Yellowstone), but it was all worth it once we arrived.  Here's our "room"--they call it The Caboose--for obvious reasons.  It was quite swank & had a great view.

Here's a view of the inside from the front door--the decor was Victorian brothel all the way...

And the view from the other direction.  There was also a large, luxurious bathroom addition off to the right.  It had an amazing tub...

In fact, it was so amazing, Noah had to try it out (I've never seen him in a bathtub in the 12 years I've known him), so I HAD to get a photo.  However...

He wasn't very cooperative, so this was all I got!

We got dressed up & had a very, very nice dinner at the restaurant.  After our food settled a bit, we headed out to the hot tubs, though they were a little bit disappointing--lots & LOTS of kids--all screaming and having a ball.  But I was looking for a bit of peace and quiet, so we decided to call it a day.

The next morning we had breakfast in the restaurant (bacon!!), toured the kitchen garden, & then I had a fantastic massage before we headed for home.  On the way back we headed north to the I-90, so we could stop in Big Timber to visit the C. Sharps factory.  Here's Noah outside:

After that we headed to Billings for a stop at Sheel's & lunch at Fuddrucker's, then it was back home for us & back to work for me the next day.  But it was really nice to be able to actually celebrate ON our anniversary.  Next year it'll be the big one-zero, I CANNOT believe it!!  Time really does fly when you're having fun!!

Well, that's it for this time.  Don't know what exciting events are on the horizon, but I'll keep you posted.  Noah's been down in CA since Tuesday:  visiting friends & family, shooting Legends of the West at Cajon & then it's off to AZ for dove hunting.  He's supposed to be back next weekend or so.  I got to stay home & work...Lucky me, huh??  Oh, well...someone's gotta pay the bills!!  :)  Talk to you all soon....

Love,
Buckskin