Yellowstone Update

More news from the Stone.

* A lot of my favorite people are leaving for the season - photographers, animal watchers. I might see some again in September. For now, they are getting out of dodge before the real tourist season hits. Unfortunately, they will be replaced by silly, stupid and annoying tourist. People who ask me how they ended up at Canyon, if the road is really closed, where the restrooms are, if they have to prepay and why we don't keep trash cans outside. Sigh.

* I said goodbye to one pair of photographers yesterday. They are headed to the Tetons for awhile and then to Michigan. They told me how to find them in Jackson so that I can come say hello if I make it that far south. They also told me where to find an osprey nest (see below).

* There is an osprey nest located north of Tower. I haven't made it up the pass yet, to find it for myself, but I hear it is near the interesting rock formations just north of the falls. You take one of the pull outs and then look down into the canyon. The photographer told me there is a hoo doo down there and the nest is directly on top of it. You can look right into the nest and see the mother sitting on her eggs. As of yesterday, the eggs hadn't hatched and you could watch the father bring food and feed the mother osprey.

* I can't remember if I've mentioned the ice climbers on here yet. They were the first deaths of the season in the park. In May, 2 twenty-something guys from Bozeman came to the park to ice climb silver cascade. When they didn't show up for work on Monday, a search quickly discovered their bodies in the canyon. It appeared that the ice column broke as they were ascending. I've never ice climber and don't claim to be an expert by any means but climbing ice that late in the season and have a very mild winter just doesn't seem to be a good idea.

* Another strange occurrence (and perhaps the 3rd death of the year) was another twenty-something that left his care at the Hellroaring trail head and disappeared. From what I've heard, they haven't been able to locate any evidence as to his location. He was a marine back from Iraq and suffering with PTSD. Many are assuming he took the Hellroaring trail in order to commit suicide. There is a variety of locations on that trail that are cliffs overlooking the canyon.

* We had a recovery recently of an RV that went off the road near Norris. I've heard they had to move over in the lane in order to avoid an 18-wheeler than was over the center line. As the did this, one of their tires went off the road and took the rest of the RV with it. There was actually no damage to the RV. It stayed upright and just needed assistance getting back onto the road. The mistake cost them close to $1500.

* Speaking of 18-wheelers in the park, last year there was a griz just south of Canyon. A few of us were on our way back from hiking around the Canyon and stopped to watch him. Of course, there were tons of cars stopped because he was so close to the road. He ended up wanting to cross the road. He was in front of a car and about to step out when an 18-wheeler speed by - nearly hitting him. I don't think the truck even hit his break to pass all the cars and I'm positive they never saw the bear. The bear had to raise up on his back legs to avoid the truck. It was super annoying.

* I was wrong in my last post. I mentioned a griz being hit in the park near Canyon. I read an article that it was a mama with 3 cubs. Rangers hiked into the back country and didn't find her dead so they believe she survived the hit. Unfortunately, that information was in an article about another griz getting hit that did not survive. That griz was on the west side of the park and it was a hit & run.

* Most of the tourist we meet are nice and interesting but others are just annoying. A few tourist we've had in recently:

~ One guy told me I look like Picabo Street
~ A foreigner came in, looked all around the store and then asked if we had any snacks. It's a gas station - show me a wall that doesn't have a snack.
~ A French guy came in asking if we spoke French. I told him a little but he then said, "a man, a man" and had the non-speaking French help him look at something on his car.
~

All for now.

More from Yellowstone

Thought I would write a quick blog about the happenings here. No photos this time but hopefully I can get some uploaded soon!

* We had our first bison hit of the summer on 5/23. I hate when they get hit. Of course, the cars that hit them are toast after but, generally, the bison are pretty bad off too. They often are so injured that Park Service has to put them down.

* A bear was hit more recently. It was a grizzly. I heard he was able to limb off the road but didn't make it in the end. I think he was actually put down by Park Service but I'm not positive. I hate when people aren't paying attention in the park - and are typically driving too fast.

* 7 wolves took down an elk near the Blacktail area - between Mammoth & Tower. A kill is always a great time to see the animals. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see these wolves. I never have much luck with wolves.

* There is a mama black bear and yearling hanging out near Tower. There was a mama and cub in the same place last year so I suspect it is the same pair. Recently, the two were hanging out fairly near the road. Of course, there was a huge jam of people watching them. While they were there, a diesel truck drove by and scared the yearling up a tree. He climbed up a fallen tree and wouldn't come back down. I wasn't there but saw photos of the mam standing on her hind legs trying to get him down. He wouldn't budge. The mama ended up leaving him in the tree and walking over the ridge. I suspect he eventually got down and found his mama.

* There is another black bear and cub near Tower. She has been spotted between Calcite Springs and Tower.

* On the Canyon side of Dunraven Pass, there's been a griz mama and 2 cubs. She's been putting on quite a show for the public. She is often near the road and creates huge jams.

* I brought 7 dresses to Yellowstone. Yes, that's 7 more dresses than you need in a national park. Fortunately, I got to wear one recently when I went to the Old Faithful Inn for drinks with the girls. It was a really fun night.

* There was a roll over near Lake a couple weeks back. The car ended up about 40 feet off the road. Thankfully, the driver was fine.

* There has been a couple pantie incidents. One night, Dan was cleaning the women's restroom and found a pair of dirty panties in the "treasure chest." (Treasure Chest = tampon/pad collector.) Another morning, Gregg and I were walking to the station and came across a pair of panties laying on the ground outside the women's restroom. They were covered in blood. It was great fun finding and picking up bloody panties.

* I got to see a Great-horned owl in the Mammoth Village. She had a nest there and I've heard has 2 owlets. I wasn't able to see the babies but got a good view of the mama. I think I got a good photo too. I'll post as soon as I get it uploaded to my computer.

* I got to see a raven's nest on the cliff at Golden Gate. It's a huge nest but took me quite awhile to find. Some photographers told me about the nest (and the owl's nest) but even knowing where it was didn't make it easy to find. I wasn't able to see any of the birds - adult or babies - so I need to go back soon. I've heard there were 5 or 6 chicks. Though chicks is the correct term, I prefer to call them ravlets.

* About a week ago, 3 wolves (the Canyon Pack) dug out a coyote den. I heard they dug all day and got all the coyote pups. It's sad but I guess it is nature. At the end of the day, only one wolves was left digging and 2 coyotes ended up chasing him off.

* I think I already mentioned that there is a grizz with 4 cubs. She frequents the Swan Lake, Golden Gate, Hoo Doo area. Thankfully, all 4 cubs are still with her - though one of the cubs is much smaller than the other 3. I haven't actually seen them yet but get frequent updates from my photographer friends.

* I talked to some photographers today and they told me where to find a mountain bluebird nest. It;'s very close to our dorm so I'm hoping to look for it on the next nice day. It should be a nice walk.

* It's been raining forever! I've heard it has rained 24 days int he last month. It is sucking. There is even more snow in the forecast for tonight. I am so ready for some sunny days.

* After a very raining morning, yesterday afternoon was actually a little nice. I decided to drive over Dunraven Pass in the afternoon. It is one of my favorite drives in the park and also leads to some of the prettiest parts of the park. I got rained & hailed on as I drove over the pass but it was nice once I got to Tower. I ended saying hello to my co-workers at the Tower Station and then climbing the hill behind the station. It was a really nice walk and I got to see a huge variety of things while I was up there. There was a HUGE bison patty and tons of elk poop. There was literally no where to step without stepping in poop. The entire hill was covered in poop - from old & white to new & brown. It was crazy. I also saw some old rusted tin cans, some very pretty wildflowers, several bleached bones, some ground squirrels and a Mountain Dew bottle. Of those things, something seems very out of place. Not sure why someone would litter in a national park. I brought the bottle back down the hill with me and it is now in the trash. I also saw a very pretty sparrow on the walk. She was brown with a red bill and black & white head. I need to look her up.

Another Weekend in Yellowstone

Another week has pasted in Yellowstone and I'm having as much fun as ever. It's my Sunday and I've spent it relaxing but thought I should make some time to catch everyone up on the happening at Canyon.

May 13: This was my last Sunday and I spent it driving to West Yellowstone for groceries. It was nice to drive the park on a pretty day and get to see the animals. I was able to see several bison calves and, of course, a ton of adult bison. I also saw an eagle out near West Yellowstone. I had hoped to see the eagle. They have a nest out that way but it was empty when I passed. Actually, the eaglet was probably there but not the adults - at least not in view. Then, just a bit past the next, I saw the eagle flying overhead. They are always so fun to see.

I didn't do anything in West Yellowstone except buy groceries. I spent another hundred on the groceries but got a lot more than last time - and still stayed (mostly) on the diet. On my way to and from West, I had to wait in the construction area. I took a book because I knew I would be sitting for awhile Even though there is a wait, it is much better than last year - when the road was totally closed. As I came through the construction on my way back, I saw a school bus. I quickly grabbed by phone to snap a photo for Clayton. Speaking of school buses, last week a school bus broke down on the south end of the park and had to be towed out. It was full of kids at the time so I'm sure they loved the excitement.

May 14: I worked with our new crew for the first time today - my Monday. Our new people are Sarah, a 21-year-old girl from Arkansas (who has a pet rat) and Dan, a 63-year-old guy from Pennsylvania (who has been RVing full time for 12 years.) After work, Sarah and I took a drive because she doesn't have a car and has never been to the park. I took her from Canyon to Fishing Bridge and then to Lake Butte. It was a really nice drive. We got to watch a bison walk through snow - and often fall into it. The lake was beautiful and still frozen. On the way home, we stopped at the Fishing Bridge dorm and I introduced Sarah to all the cool kids down there.


May 15: Just work.

May 16: Today, I worked a split - which means I open and close but have a long break in the middle of the day. During my 3 hour break, I made spaghetti for the dorm. It was only 4 of us eating that night - Wes, Sarah, Dan and me. Dan lives in his RV but I asked him to come over for spaghetti. It was a fun night.

May 17: More work and then some fun. At work, a cute redhead came into the store with his girlfriend. He was 20ish and made me think of how cute Clayton will be when he gets older. I also had a guy buy beef jerky and may me with 16 half dollars. Before he paid me he asked, "Do you need some half dollars." Which made me think, "when does anyone ever NEED half dollars?" Of course, I took them. After work, Sarah and I went for another drive. This time, we went from Canyon to Fishing Bridge and then on around the entire lower loop. I wanted to go in order to see the damage from last year's fire. It was the Arnica Fire and ended up burning close to 11,000 acres. It was interesting to see such a recent burn and we saw a ton. On our drive, we also went to the Old Faithful dorms to see the cool kids down there. On the way back north, we got to see the cutest baby bison. There was a group of bison with 6 babies. They were galloping around, head butting each other and otherwise being awesome. Further down the road, we got to stop and let a HUGE bison walk down the middle of the road. He walked right by us. We could have reached out and touched him - but then he might have rammed our car.


May 18: My Friday! I worked until 4 and then took a long nap. I got a good laugh at work because my friend wrote about seeing a tourist chased by an elk at Mammoth. The guy was inching up to the elk - for who knows what reason - and when he was about 2 feet away the elk went after him. The guy ran and then did a tuck & roll behind a trash can. I can picture the entire scene and it makes me laugh every time. A customer came in and told us about an injured elk. The elk had been attacked by a wolf and taken refuge in a pond between South Twin Lake and North Twin Lake. The wolf got her leg. After she went into the water, the wolf waited near by in the woods. The elk ended up dying. I assume the wolves feed on her for awhile. Then a bear came along and drug the carcass out of the pond. He feed on the elk until park service decided to remove the carcass. I'm guessing they thought it was too close to the road - causing traffic and danger.

May 19: Saturday! I slept in, read and then showered. Then I headed to Mammoth to pick up Kelly Jo. On the way to Mammoth, I saw a bear. When I got KJ, we went to Gardiner to have dinner at Helens. We both had bison burgers and they were delicious. We left there stuffed - but still got ice cream for the road. We headed toward Tower with our ice cream. I wanted to go to Tower because Wes had seen a great grey owl there the evening before. On our drive, we saw 2 griz, 1 black bear, and a moose. It was a really fun drive.


May 20: I slept in again today and then had lunch at the Canyon Soda Fountain. My friend, Jackie, is one of the managers there. It was a pretty good lunch - cheeseburger and fries. Clayton would have loved it. After lunch, I took a few things to the post office, hung out at the station for awhile and then back to the dorm. At the dorm, I listened to some music while making corn dip. Once the station was closed, Caleb made chicken tacos. Then we all had tacos and corn dip for dinner. We also got a new person today. It's a young guy from Utah. I'll be closing with him tomorrow.

I have better photos but I'll have to add them later. My new laptop doesn't have a slot for the memory card of my camera. I also have a great video of the bison in the snow. Watch for that to be added soon. More later!

Getting to YNP

May 4: I let myself sleep in again. It was really nice. Shortly after getting on the road, I decided to take a scenic route through the Bighorn National Forest on 14. It was a great decision. On 14, I climbed a mountain pass - all the way into the snow. On the way back down, I went through Bighorn Canyon which was really amazing. Quickly after exiting the canyon, I stopped in Shell, WY, at Dirty Annie's. It was time for gas and lunch. Shell is a tiny town. The station let me pump gas before paying - and when I went in to pay, they asked how much I had pumped. It's an honor system. Pretty crazy. From Shell, I headed to Greybull and then north on 310 to Laurel. In Laurel, I started heading west to Gardiner, MT. Gardiner is the gateway to the northern entrance of Yellowstone. I had plans to stop in Gardiner for the night but decided to head onto the dorm at Canyon. I made it to Canyon before dark and had a chance to see all the snow I would be living in.

May 5: Caleb and I drove to Gardiner this morning to check in for the season. On the drive from Canyon to Gardiner, we saw a wolf at Norris and a wolf at Obsidian Cliff. My first bear and wolf sightings of the year. Once in Gardiner, I had to take a photo for my employee IDs, fill out paperwork and get my uniform/linens. When we finished there, we went to lunch with Mike and Lorri. There isn't a ton of choices in Gardiner so we ended up at Subway. After lunch, we visited the fourplex Caleb helped build over the winter and then grocery shopping. I spent $90 on groceries and didn't get all that much. We headed back to the park after getting groceries. Caleb went to work and I unloaded groceries and unpacked.


May 6: I started work. It was a 10 - 6 shift and I got to start remembering the system. It was pretty uneventful. I picked up on everything fairly quickly - after a 6 month hiatus.


May 7 - May 11: More work. Not too eventful. There was an avalanche at Sylvan Pass one day that closed it down for 18 hours - no one was hurt. A car hit a boulder near Obsidian Cliff. I skyped with Clayton, Jean, Lara and Ellie. Clayton showed me a ton of forward rolls during our skyping. I got a call from K.P. that made my day because he had told Ashley that he LIKES me. A griz mama and cub was sighted several times near Obsidian Cliff. Traffic in the park has picked up - but not that much.


May 12: My Saturday! I spent most of the day in bed - sometimes sleeping, sometimes reading and sometimes online. I also washed clothes, showered and shopped for dinner at the station. The best part of the day was skyping with my family again. This time, Clayton was playing in his little swimming pool - while I was surrounded by snow. It was fun talking to him and seeing Ellie (who is now smiling.) I had plans to go to Old Faithful for bingo but couldn't get my butt moving. This evening, I watched TV online and hung w/ my dorm mates.

Tomorrow: I want to find the mama and cub near Obsidian Cliff. I have to get some groceries - maybe in West Yellowstone. I plan to swing my Old Faithful to say hello to all my friends working there. Update coming soon.

Yellowstone - Summer #2

It's my second summer in Yellowstone. It's great again.

I want to blog again but I don't want it to take too much time. I haven't decided how to do this, yet.

For my first blog, a summary of my trip & my first days in the park:

April 29: Tilley (Jean's dog) woke me up about 5:30 because she wanted to sleep on the couch. Lara & I were already on the couch so there wasn't room but I let Tilley get on my stomach. She got comfy and back to sleep but I couldn't get back to sleep. I read some news on my Crackberry. Before long, the others were getting up and it was time to get on the road. Leaving Clayton was the hardest thing ever. I cried, Jean cried, Lara cried and Clayton looked at us like we were crazy. It was an easy drive to Amarillo - other than being tired. On the drive, I realized West/North Texas isn't that bad. It isn't my preference but it's pretty in its own way. I especially liked the fields of yellow flowers and the windmills. The only bit of excitement came in my last couple hours. After stopping for gas, I noticed a blue van behind me. Every time I changed lanes - he changed lanes. I pass a car - he passed the car. I move in front of the car - he moves in front of the car. At first, it was just annoying but as I got closer to my destination, I knew I needed to make sure they van didn't follow me to the hotel. I was already thinking that I could have my GPS direct me to the closest police station. The exit comes - and the van exits too. I drive past the road for my hotel and continue to the next light. From there, I turned right and the van continued straight - back onto the freeway. I don't know what they were thinking or why they exited and then got straight back on the highway. The End - of this day.

April 30: I stayed in my comfy hotel bed for too long. After dragging myself from bed. I headed to Erie, CO, to visit my cousin Lauren - plus Kareem and Brighton. The drive to Denver wasn't bad - until I reached the traffic in Colorado Springs and Denver. Once I got to Erie, I got to see my cousin & Brighton, check out their adorable house and relax. Later that night, we went for Tibetan food - which was awesome! We also had some cheesecake before hitting the sack.

May 1: Lauren & I went treasure hitting early in the morning. We went to a ton of garage sales and a thrift shop too. We both found a lot of goodies. I got some old kitchen stuff - a potato masher, garlic press, egg beater and iron skillet. I also found some old books. While we enjoyed our shopping, the boys did some fun things of there own. We hooked back up in the afternoon, all super tired. We brought in dinner and went to bed early.


May 2: We all went to The Original Pancake House for breakfast - and I fell in love with the coconut pancakes. Then Lauren went with me to finish my shopping for the park. That afternoon, we all went for a drive in the mountains near Boulder. It was sunny when we started but snowing as we got into the mountains. It was a beautiful drive and a great way to spend an afternoon with family. That night, we grabbed dinner The Dark Horse (I think that was the name).


May 3: Unfortunately, Kareem had to work but Lauren, Brighton and I went for Ethiopian food for lunch. It was a great last meal before getting on the road. After lunch, I had to say goodbye to Lauren and Brighton but made plans to see each other soon. That day, I drove from Erie, CO, to Sheridan, WY. It was a shorter drive in mileage which allowed me to take some slower freeways and still make good time. Instead of staying on the giant 25, I got on 287 in Fort Collins and took it to Laramie. It was so nice to get away from the traffic and 18-wheelers. The speed limit was 10 miles slower but it was totally worth it. From Laramie, I took 487 to Casper - again, staying off the major freeway. Once in Casper, I had to get back on 25 to Sheridan.


To be continued...

Notes Found Thrifting

I went thrifting at the Goodwill Outlet story today. I really like this story. They have about a dozen bins strewn with books. There is no order or reason but that makes the hunt fun. Plus, I always find interesting notes. Today was no different. I found 2 different notes today. One note was just laying in a bin and the other was tucked inside a book. I think they are both interesting and thought I would share.

First, the note I found laying in the bin seems to be one page from a letter written around 1989 or 1990. That doesn't seem that long ago but it does make the note about 20 years old. I think it also shows how much times have changed with computers because just a few years after this note this same info would have been written in an email instead. There isn't actually a date on the note but the writer mentions a murder. I did some research on the murder and think I found the one he was discussing. Here is the text of the note:

"Getting ready on a Sunday afternoon. Wife came and said Mrs. B called and wants you to come over she's having trouble with Emmit. That was a laugh. Mr. Milketoast in a sweat. We worked for the same utility. I drove the 2 1/2 blocks, found Emmit sitting in the backyard under a tree, a sweet look on his normal calm features. Mrs. B was hysterical. Emmit! Tell Mr. Houts what you're going to do! He looked at me no different than when we ran into each other at coffee break. "If Ray starts to bother me and bug me tomorrow I'm going to tell the S.O.B. to get the F.H. out of my work area!"

I just thought Oh D---! We were going over to Ming Dynasty in Hanford-- twenty-two miles! Ray worked for years at the bench next to Emmit was promoted to boss the meter shop. Recently. Ray was a dud, too.

I grabbed a chair and got up in Emmit's face. Emmit I've known you about eleven years now. I like you. Our kids have grown up together! Take my word Emmit - don't do this! We can't help you through the union. Our jobs here are good pay for a small town. You've got a good job that won't even be on layoff. What are you Emmit - fifty? Don't do it!

Next day - mid morning a fuming Ray marched into the Super's office with an angelic faced Emmit trailing. They took him downtown and a week later, terminated. Mrs. B was livid - with me - the union. Turned out she has to go to work. When I left a year later Emmit was pushing a broom in an elementary school. No credit union, pension - job security. Seems to be genuinely happy. Mrs. B still blames all.

Another Emmit in New Jersey left a good job, came home to a great house, calmly dispatched two daughters - wife - his mother. Lined them neatly in a row on the ballroom parquet, secured the house, drove 30,000 miles took up AKA and lived free for 18 years.

At his trial he sat with a patience on his dear face. One of these hand wringer T.V. shows talked to him in prison. He likes it!

And poor Maj. MacDonald out at Bastrop. His wife and two babes attacked by hippies!

Minister Rainey at Fort Worth. His wife a vegetable. All sweet people.

Mild as Jersey milk.

Nobody looks or listens to them!

Pity!"

Now the other note, this one is written on an envelope and was tucked into a book about Eleanor Roosevelt. The book was titled, Eleanor: The Years Alone and was published in 1972. I suspect this note was written at the same time. It seems to have been written to a general audience - not addressed to any particular person. Maybe it was intended for the next owner of the book. Who knows? It reads:

Maybe a dozen women in my time really impressed me. Some were:

1. My grandmother Henryetta Boyd. Born 1866 - Lewisburg Ten.
2. Ethel Barrymore
3. Eleanor Roosevelt
4. Ethel Waters
5. Rosalind Carter
6. Marilyn Monroe
7. Anne Franke
8. Harry Truman's Mother

Etc.

With excpt. of R.C. rest led troubled lives. But each were real women. Quality!

Eleanors' worst fault. (Marrying a momma's boy.) (Not turning beautiful until late in life.)

First Sale!

I went to bed last night feeling a little uneasy. I was thinking about my plans to be a reseller and wondering if I could really make it work. I was having second thought. This morning...I woke up to my first sale. It got be excited again. I sold the book Celia Garth. It was published in 1959. I paid $.99 and sold the book for $22. There are some fees for selling books on Half.com but I should make a $20 profit. Not too bad.

What Was Clayton Doing?

He is probably naked b/c his clothes got dirty & I was being lazy.
But he likes being naked so I don't feel guilty.
He is looking at his parent's wedding photos.


Playing at the park.
He is probably coming down the stairs to get me.
He likes me to get "stuck" on the slide.
Then he comes and helps me down.


Naked again - probably for the same reasons.
Reading books and looking for school buses in them.
He loves school buses!


Taking a relaxing bath before nap time.
After shampooing, I like to brush his hair while he distracted in the bath.
He gets annoyed with hair brushing when he gets out of the bath.


Playing on his laptop while we run errands.
We probably went to Sonic while we were out.
At Sonic, I get a Diet Coke w/ Lime and Clay gets a water w/ lemon.


First thing in the morning, watching cartoons.
Here he is watching Tom & Jerry.
This episode is about a baby that he thinks is really funny.


Eating breakfast at Rudy's BBQ.
Clay gets two egg & potato tacos.
He only eats the inside of both - with ketchup.
The ketchup is actually BBQ sauce.
This time I got 2 pigs in a blanket.
When I showed them to Clay he said, "Poop!"


Shopping w/ me at Goodwill.
He found this 99 cent school bus really quick.
It kept him entertained for the rest of the visit.
Remember, he loved school buses!
He also got to get a bunny and a book.


This is his reaction to walking to the parking instead of taking the car.
At least that is what I thought.
He kept saying, "car, car, CAR."
When I said, "no, we're walking" he threw himself on the ground.
Lara reminded me later that he might have wanted to ride in his toy car.


Looking for bugs at the park.
We had seen tons of doodle bugs on the sidewalk as we walked.
At the park, he wanted to keep finding more.

Thrifted Dishes

(Not my photo.)

On my way to Jean's house tonight, I stopped by a Goodwill and a Salvation Army. I found a few good things but I think the dishes are my favorite. It was a 24 piece Taylor Smith & Taylor set for $12.50. This set is from the mid-1960s and is called Boutonniere Ever Yours. I think it included: 4 dinner plates, 3 small bowls, 4 dessert plates, 4 teacups, 4 tea saucers, and 3 serving dishes - plus two other things I can't remember right now. Aren't they cute!

Marshmallow Puffs

I was browsing crafty blogs a few night ago in search of project to do with Clayton. On one blog, I was intrigued with a recipe. Clay and I might not make these together but I know he will be plenty happy to eat one. I decided to give them a test run tonight and they are delicious. A lot like cinnamon toast. Anyone with kids should give these a try. Older kids could even help.

Photo from scrumdilly-do!

Marshmallow Puffs (via scrumdilly-do!)

Ingredients:
~ Large Marshmallows
~ 2 tablespoons melted butter
~ Cinnamon Sugar (make your own or buy pre-made in the spices.)
~ 1 container pre-cut biscuits
~ muffin pan, greased

Scrumdilly-do has detailed instructions with photos. You should check that out.

Essentially, the directions are:

1. Mush biscuits flat.

2. Dip flat biscuits into butter - covering.

3. Cover buttery biscuit in cinnamon sugar.

4. Put covered biscuit into muffin pan - similar to a pie crust.

5. Place large marshmallow in middle of biscuit.

6. Bake for 10 minutes at 350.

7. Enjoy!

Thrifting for Lara

I found these a week or so ago at Goodwill. They were 99 cents each. I thought Lara would like them so I put them in my cart. I emailed her a photo while I browsed and she confirmed, "they're cute." I bought them for her and they look really cute in her apartment with white candles.

Watching Clayton

Since getting back from Yellowstone, I've started watching Clayton at least one day a week. This week, I'm watching him Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. It's a lot of fun and also very tiring. Clayton is a very energetic kid and I try to keep up.

Tonight, I have a quick view of some of the things we do together. I try to email Jean throughout the day with updates because she likes seeing Little Red. These are the photos I've sent her the last two days:

Yesterday we went to Rudy's BBQ for breakfast.
Jean mentioned it as an idea before she left for work.
They go to Rudy's every week so Clay know all about tacos.
Here he is w/ 2 egg & potato tacos, cheese and an orange juice.
He also has BBQ sauce which he calls ketchup.



Another view of Rudy's.
Here he is saying, "Cheese" for his mommy.
Clay normally gets bored pretty quick when we eat out.
Not at Rudy's.
We stayed here for an hour before he was ready to leave.
He likes to look around and talk to people.



When we got home, we decided it was a no pants day.
I actually decided because he was a poop machine this day.
After his third poop I decided we didn't need to put his pants back on.
We're playing in Baby Riggins' room here.



Jean had an early lunch on Wednesday so we decided to take her a treat.
Here we're headed to Sonic for a Diet Cherry Limeade w/ extra cherry for Jean.
Clayton took a drink in his "big boy" cup so that he wouldn't steal Jean's drink.
We also got dressed before going to Jean's school.
Figured it was smart b/c it was cold & a pantless kid might embarrass Jean.



When we left Jean, we headed back to Sonic for lunch.
Clayton loves fries and this was a treat for him.
He also had a burger and a kids strawberry slush.
He ate his fries first then took his burger apart.
First, he ate his pickles, then meat and finally a little bun.
Everything was dunked in ketchup.
(Here is a view of him wearing his 99 cent Mickey shirt.)



After lunch, we watched some TV to calm down for nap.
He loves Tom & Jerry.
I love Tome & Jerry too - especially that it has music instead of dialogue.



This is how today started.
Clayton slept late so he was still asleep when Jean & Chad left for work.
He ended up waking up at 7:05.
He realized pretty quick that Mommy & Daddy were gone.
I told him they went to work & he said, "bye bye, see you later, have a good day."
That's what Jean says to him every morning when he goes to Granny's house.



Breakfast is about 7:30 each morning - unless Clay is too excited w/ playing.
Today he asked for cheese.
I also gave him strawberries.
Once in his seat, Clayton also wanted ketchup.
He loves ketchup.
He dunked his cheese in the ketchup.
When the cheese was gone he just ate it with his fingers.
He even dunked a few pieces of strawberry in the ketchup.



Jean mentioned Clay could use a bath so I saved it until he got bored.
After lunch, he got grumpy when I wasn't doing everything he said.
I decided it was the perfect time for bath.
Here he is with a bubble bath and all his toys.
In the background, there are 4 monsters that I got him for Christmas.
I thought he would like to play with them but I was wrong.
He likes them but won't let then in the bath.
The monsters must stay in their houses on the side of the tub.



After bath Clay decided to was a good time for a read.
Here he is reading his Ugly Doll book.
I decided to get a Mickey Mouse book and then Clay wanted to trade.
He knows he is suppose to share so he always uses the trade technique.
Even if you don't want to trade.



About 11 we went for a drive.
It's nice to break up the day and Clay loves getting out.
If we ever have a nice day we will go to the park but that hasn't worked yet.
Since today was cold and wet, we went to look for school buses and get lunch.
Clay loves school buses and big trucks.
He looks for them every time we drive somewhere.
After we see one he says, "more school bus."
Then I say, "let's look for more" and he says, "okay."



For lunch today, Clay had chicken nuggets and fruit.
He only had 4 chicken nuggets and didn't think that was enough.
He asked for more very sweetly but was out of luck b/c there weren't anymore.
I asked if he would take cheese instead and he said, "okay."
I gave him a couple cubes of cheese and he was a happy camper.


Photos always ended right around lunch because nap time comes quickly after. When he goes to sleep, I nap too. He is a great nap taker. He doesn't cry or whine when nap time comes. It's nice not to have a fight. He also sleeps for about 3 hours - which I love. Jean is normally home when he gets up from his naps or quickly there after. Lala normally arrives near when he wakes up too because we always get together on Wednesdays when I watch Clay.

More Thrifty Goodness

It was too much posting everything I would buy every visit. Instead I've decided to post things as I take pics of them or before I give them away.

When I went thrifting on Sunday, I looked at all the baby girl clothes hoping to find something for Baby Riggins. It was a good day because I did find a few things for Baby Riggins and something for Clayton too.

I found this Mickey Mouse shirt for 99 cent.
Clayton loves Mickey and he loved the shirt when I gave it to him today.




I found these 5 outfits for Baby Riggins.
I think all of these are so cute.
Of course, I looked through a ton of not cute, dirty, broken clothes to find these cute ones.

I paid:
Top L to R - 99 cents, 99 cents, 50 cents
Bottom L to R - 99 cents, $1.59


I love looking through all the glassware when I thrift.
I don't often find anything but I found both of these items at the same Goodwill.
I'm planning to sell the mug and give the bowl to Clayton.
This is a Joan Walsh Anglund mug.
The print is copyright 1969 but I'm not sure the mug is that old.
It's in really good shape to be that old. I love the blue birds.


I love this dish.
Jean & I had a couple sets like this when we were growing up.
When you have the cup, saucer and bowl together if forms an entire person.
I hope I can find the rest of this set for Clayton.

This is what an entire set looks like - but I don't have this:


More later...