GRIZ BABY!

This post is dedicated to the cutest little Griz Baby in the world, my Niece Nia!
Happy New Years to everybody and especially Nia who is celebrating her very first New Years!
Thanks to April for the great picture!

December 2008

Sitting here in Madras for Christmas I'm finally taking the time to update this. Kyle and I were able to spend Christmas with my great aunt, uncle, cousins, parents and sister. It was nice to have this holiday here in the house that I grew up in as it may be the last one here. My dad was offered a job in Ashland, OR over 72 other applicants. He and mom have decided it was time to move on and retire somewhere else. They are looking forward to the challenge of a new job and living in a bigger town. He starts in early january as Ashland School District's new maintenence supervisor (facilities manager). Mom will continue to work here until they sell the house, which may be a challenge with the economy the way it is. So, after 13 years they are saying goodbye to Madras. We are excited for them, though it will make our drive 4+ hours longer.

Meanwhile, I'm busy at work and looking at applying for a permanent silviculture position with the forest service in Plains when I get back this week. Kyle and I will head back in to the office on monday. Dale and Lauren are meeting us tomorrow in Madras and will be driving back to Montana with us for a visit. We are really looking forward to showing them the house and Plains. Wish we had another week of vacation! :)

Happy Holidays!

Wedding Plans

We have wedding gift registries! We chose three places to register: Bed, Bath and Beyond, Sears, and Cabela's. So far we have begun the BBB, and Sears registries, but not the Cabela's yet. They are by no means completed and will likely change some in the months to come.
Other than that, I don't have much to report. The autumn weather is great, and we are both looking forward to this hunting season. I hope everybody out there is doing well, and we look forward to hearing from you.
Kyle

Summer Update

Wow, Its been a really long time since we updated this page! Sorry about that...
A lot has happened so far this summer. "Our renters" finally got out at the end of June, and we moved into the house over the Fourth of July. Thanks very much to Kathy, Gary and Bailey for the help. Since then we've been working on getting the place up and running, and getting our selves organized in the space. Part of that was getting the internet connection up, which is why the page was so over due. We've also been working on gathering firewood and huckleberries in the hills around Plains. As my sister April put it, we are like squirrels gathering for the winter. The fire season for us has been very slow. A very big change from last year, and a mixed blessing as it has been nice to have free time for moving in. Also we've gone floating several times. Floating the Clark Fork River is a main past time here, lots of fun.
We are looking forward to a seeing George later this summer, and anyone else who would like to visit!
I guess that's all for now, hope your all doing well. Kyle and Whit

Weekend Update & House Pictures

The biggest thing to report is the birth of our baby niece Nia! We are very excited and very happy for April and Joe, the pround parents.

It was also great to see so much of Whit's family and mine, as well as my good buddy Nels and his girlfriend in Sacramento. It's always fun to take time to visit good friends and family, no matter how long the drive.

After our week long road trip to CA we both had to hit the ground running. Whit's job at the Forest Service looks to be very busy, with lots of overtime already. Things are also picking up for me as the nice weather dries out the muddy hills. I am trying to hold on to the last few weeks of spring though, as summer fire season will be here very shortly, I'm sure.

Today we visited our new house (only the second time we've been there). It was great to see everything again, and notice all the little things we missed the first time. The big news for this

week is that "they" upped our closing date to June 12th. If all goes as planned the current renters will be out and we'll be in by the begining of July. Its hard to go see it and then leave and go back to my current rental, but soon we can begin moving.

We are both very excited to be moved in and show off the new diggs, so everybody will have to come visit!

Take care, KJ

Whitney Graduates!

This weekend Whitney is Graduating from UM!
Not only did she complete her degree in four years (a difficult task) but she also is graduating with high honors, and was the only Forest Resources Management senior recognized by the president of the University in a special ceremony today. Whitney's family is in town to support her this weekend, and we are all very proud.
Next on the list after graduation? Moving out of Missoula!
KJ

2nd Street

I have news!
Whitney and I have a house under contract! We still have a long ways to go in the buying process but, with luck we will be moving into the new place in mid to late July. Stay tuned for pictures and updates in the future.

A day in the life…

Tuesday was the first day I have taken both dogs to work with me. Sheridan rides along frequently, but up until now I have not considered it safe to bring Rosco to work. I decided to give it a try and am glad to say he did very well. On the way to the job site, both dogs dozed in the back seat, but Rosco was a little too excited to sleep completely.

We got there and the dogs came along while I worked. They both had a great time playing in the snow, and got completely covered by snow before we were done.

I hiked them quite a ways out and when we headed back Rosco was having trouble keeping up so I carried him most of the way back to the truck. Sheridan helped me do a few more things while we were there and once I finished up my work both dogs settled in for the ride home.

On the way back near Lonepine MT, we spotted a flock of swans coming to land on the Little Bitterroot River.

Until next time, Kyle

Mid March

Whitney enjoys sewing and quilting and has been working on this "Old Maid's Puzzle". This quilt when finished will be king size, the largest she has made yet. Whit guesses she has spent over 100 hours cutting, arranging and sewing the blocks together. To a guy it seems funny to take a big bolt of fabric, cut it all up into little bits, and stitch it all back together again, but she likes it!
The other day I thought to spread the quilt top on the carpet to take a picture. Once I got it spread out, the dogs decided to help the project by running over to lay on it. I decided to take the picture anyway because they do enjoy helping!
Happy Spring - Kyle

Rosco finds the tennis ball

The other day at lunchtime I was playing with the tennis ball with Sheridan in the back yard. This may not sound that exciting, but it’s a great way to exercise both dogs at once since Sheridan chases the ball and Rosco chases Sheridan. We have done this a lot in the past few weeks, and after a little while of this Rosco got brave enough to steal the tennis ball! He held it up proudly and was charging around with it. Before Rosco joined us, when any other dog came near a Sheridan toy, you could bet on a fight breaking out. But to my surprise Sheridan did not attack him; she merely watched him (looking amused, I thought) and waited for me to return to the game. I was really impressed at his gumption to steal the ball, and her ability to let him play with it. Now the game has a second layer as every so often Rosco gets the ball and streaks off across the yard with it!

Later that night I was sitting on the floor with the dogs, and Sheridan was playing with the Quail toy. This is another situation where a fight would have been expected. She has always been super protective of her toys and would not permit any other dogs near them. On this night, as Rosco watched her rolling around and chewing a wing he slowly got closer and closer until he finally grabbed hold of the other wing and started backing up like a crab. It was a stand off, with the quail suspended by the wings. I was laughing too hard to do much, but I did manage to get a poor quality picture of the event. Again I was very impressed by his spirit to grab the toy while she was chewing it, and by her for not biting his face off!

I’m not sure what this all proves, but it sure is fun watching them learning to live together. KJ

Two Weeks

Tonight is our two week aniversery with Rosco! He continues to enhance our lives with many fun times and challanges too. Walks twice or three times a day, pee breaks at 2 and 5 every morning, and constantly keeping us on our toes are just a few things going on around here. Sheridan seems to be taking it well and Rosco follows her everywhere, like a little brother does. He has a very strong play drive contantly galloping off to find new things. On that note I am impressed at how fast he is already. Rosco also loves to chew on rawhides and recently found one of Sheridan's old deer legs in the back yard to keep him busy. That's all for now, KJ

Rosco and Sheridan

Kyle took a couple good pictures of the little guy and Sheridan, so here they are!

He only sleeps like this during the day though. Night time he is ready to play! But he is getting better and last night he only woke up once! Which is a big step and one that Kyle and I appreciate.

Rosco the Shetland Sheepdog ('Sheltie')

Though Kyle and I have discussed getting a puppy in the future, neither one of us planned on bringing one home last night. I am sitting here typing this blog with one hand because little Rosco is napping on the other. I wonder why he is so sleepy? Possibly because he kept us up all night whining and howling (its like I bought a wolf)! I knew it was going to be rough though, and its worth it to have his companionship and playfulness.

I found this little puppy at a local pet store on tuesday and fell in love. I hung out there for the next two days until Kyle could come meet him and his little sister. Neither of us have ever bought a puppy from a store, let alone bought a puppy. I looked into his breeder who actually owns very few dogs, and the pet store workers all own pets through her. It is a small family run business and her puppies are all very healthy and happy.

Rosco is a 10 week old Shetland Sheepdog; meant for herding like another dog we know and love. I have had my heart set on a husky since I can remember but this little guy changed that idea pretty quickly. His breed is very loyal, good with children, energetic, and smart! Sheridan was here to meet the little guy and she seemed excited for a pal! She doesn't realize how big she is in comparison. Her idea of playing still consists of running him over! I think they will get along excellently and he will be a great addition to the family.

My camera is on the fritz but pictures will be posted shortly!

91st Forester's Ball

This weekend our main activity was the 91st. Forester's Ball.
For any that don't know, the Ball is a UM forestry students tradition dating back to 1914. It is the second oldest tradition on UM campus, behind the Grizzly football team. The ball is a two night fund raising event, that provides scholarships to the forestry students.
Whitney has been busy with putting this together for months, serving as a member of the committee. Her sister Bailey flew in from Az. on thursday night to see the event and help with all the last minute jobs. I got into town on Friday having attended a foresty conference in Coeur d' Alene, Id. for a couple of days.
As the ball got under way on Friday night, we were very surprised to find Whitney's parents Gary and Kathy there! They had been hearing about this event for a long time from Whitney and decided to make a surprise trip out to attend. It was really great to see them, and they enjoyed seeing what all the fuss is about. Kathy, Gary and Bailey attended both nights and headed home to Or. and Az. this morning.
As for me, I enjoyed particiating in the Can Can dance once more, and had a great time both nights. It is a great time to see other forestry alumni and catch up with folks I don't see often.
That's all for now - KJ

Heritage Hall

The Heritage Hall at Fort Missoula. http://www.nrhc.org/



We first found out about this beautiful building when we attended my friends Court and Sarah's reception last year. The extensive lawns, and large wooden dance floor really impressed us and we decided this would make a great place for our big day.

First Post

Welcome!

This is the first posting of our blog. Whit and I decided to create this blog as a place to post thoughts pictures and updates, on our lives in western Montana and our engagement together.

Our first bit of news is that we have decided on a date and location for the big day! Our wedding will be on the 6th of June, 2009 at the Heritage Hall at Fort Missoula, here in Missoula, MT.