Thank You, Montana

You have stayed long enough at this mountain.  Turn and take your journey...

Deut. 1:6,7

I've tried and tried to write something about Montana, but each attempt either leaves me  at a loss for words, or with way too much to say.

The beauty here is never accurately captured on camera. It's the kind of beauty that makes you feel really small, and immediately puts you in a state of praise the moment you drink it in.

I must say, "What a Designer!"

  that fifty times a day.

It's very raw beauty, too; not coiffed or maintained. It's rugged, wild and humbling.

But there is so much more to our experience than just the surroundings.

But, how do you express it all?

Short answer: you can't.

With that said, my "Goodbye Montana post" is probably best visually communicated.

Sidenote: Because I love to explore, I would often jump in the car and take a road just to see where it went.

This is not always the smart thing to do in Montana. I found this out the hard way. I took this road on Memorial Day weekend one year and found myself in a foot of snow in one of the shadier areas of the mountain. There were no people to ask directions, no signs, no guard rails to protect you from the unexpected 100 ft. drop at the road's shoulder. There is also  no cell reception. Just you. And God. 

After three hours of throwing the subaru in 4 wheel drive and crawling down the narrow road, I made it, and vowed never to do a dumb thing like that again!

We arrived in Montana with our minivan and whatever we could cram inside it.

Today, we need two trucks to move our gear. God provides, that's for certain. 

Our family looked so different back then.

 Our four...

...became six.

And looking back, I confess that I was a bit of a snob as it pertained to the

hospitals I was used to in NY. The maternity wing in my new small town only had eight beds in it as opposed to the hundreds that were back east. I was sure that the cutting edge technology dwarfed our little NV hospital by comparison...BUT the truth is,

Yeah, the access to the big medical stuff was nice but when it came right down to it, the medical staff in Montana was amazing. The care was concentrated and thoughtful. And the birth of my babies were truly some of my very best memories, because they made sure they would be; and our doctors became our friends.

Medical volunteers caring for their community.

So my kids grew here.

My preschooler

became a middle schooler.

My middle schooler,

 became a graduate.

And in the process, I watched a community rally around their school.
I never saw that before,
and I loved it.

Montana knows how to celebrate. They do holidays right.

Montana is a land of extraordinary color

(unmodified images)

And crazy contrasts...

Sights and sounds

...and huckelberry love.

The people work hard 

 and play hard

And pray harder.

Living here also brought people into my life that I know will be there when I'm old. GOD has taught me so much about HIS Grace through these people, and they are lessons that couldn't have been learned any other way. For this, I am changed, and thankful.

And as we get ready to move, I am reminded of a`song that my daughter and I like to sing...

For Good

I've heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don't know if I believe that's true
But I know I'm who I am today
Because I knew you...
Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
I have been changed for good
It well may be
That we will never meet again
In this lifetime
So let me say before we part
So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You'll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart
And now whatever way our stories end
I know you have re-written mine
By being my friend...
Like a ship blown from its mooring
By a wind off the sea
Like a seed dropped by a skybird
In a distant wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But because I knew you
Because I knew you
I have been changed for good

-from the musical, Wicked.

I only make perfect cookies when I'm dieting

You know what's fun? Baking cookies while dieting. I couldn't help myself. We had no yummies in the house and between a week of consecutive snow-sleet flurries, and me packing up their stuff, my little guys needed a little home baked lovin.

Meanwhile, I am in the homestretch of a pretty gnarly diet. I usually don't mind baking regardless of dieting, but today I've been adoring those chocolaty babies from afar. I even sniffed a few.

If you use this recipe, you never have to worry about flat chocolate chip cookies ever again. Here ya go:

Preheat 360 ( yes, 360 )

2 stick room temperature butter

1 1/2 Cups brown sugar

1/2 Cup granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

3/4 Cup of bittersweet chocolate chips

3/4 Cup milk chocolate chips (a combination of chips are so worth it, guys!)

*Combine these ingredients in a mixing bowl, set aside.

In a separate bowl, combine:

3 Cups Flour

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

I usually put all the dry ingredients into a sieve and gradually sift it into the wet.

Once all combined, let the dough rest for 10 min. I don't know why this works, but it does.

spoon onto cookie sheet and bake 10-12 min.

Then find yourself a snazzy moving box like I did, which makes the presentation all spiffy- ha!

Counting down the night-nights

~ eight more sleeps