activity
For most of this last year, my niece Lindsay Moore’s life has been a whirlwind of excitement and activity. With the birth of her little girl, Mackenzie Rose, Lindsay and her husband, Shannon have been enjoying every new experience that comes with parenthood. Mackenzie is a happy, and sometimes goofy girl, who keeps them on their toes. Mackenzie is starting to walk these days, and getting into anything within reach, so her parents have to keep a close eye on her now. Lindsay has been a work-from-home wife for some time, employed remotely by South Dakota State University, and now she is also a stay-at-home mom to little Mackenzie. For Lindsay, life doesn’t get any better. she is just living the dream that she has had for a long time. Lindsay is a health and exercise advocate and always keeps herself in excellent shape. Of course, these days that exercise is easier, because Mackenzie keeps her mommy running.
Lindsay’s husband is the tight ends coach at Eastern Carolina University, and so during the football season, Lindsay and Mackenzie spend Saturdays at the games cheering on Daddy’s team, and hanging out with friends at the game. Lindsay has always been a football fan, especially if it’s Shannon’s team playing. When Shannon married Lindsay, he married his biggest fan, and now they have added another member to the fan club. If you ask me, Shannon has the cutest cheerleaders ever. Lindsay is a very social person, so they are always joined by friends at the games, while they are cheering the team on. It’s a good thing that she makes friends so easily,since they have moved around every so often. It is a common thing with coaching.
Lindsay and Shannon were in Wyoming visiting family this summer, which is a fairly common occurrence for 
them. His job and her work-from-home job make it easier for them to come home in the summertime, so the family gets to see them more than the average kids who live far away. They family went to the Black Hills, where we joined them for the 4th of July festivities in Custer, South Dakota. Then they went on to the Big Horns. It’s a blessing for my sister, Allyn Hadlock and her husband, Chris, and the rest of the family. It’s hard to have a grandchild who lives far away, and having them visit often makes it a little bit easier. Today is Lindsay’s birthday. Happy birthday Lindsay!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
When I first met my future sister-in-law, Jennifer Parmely, at the young age of 13 years, she was a vibrant girl, full of life, and she was what I thought of as a picky eater. Now, this didn’t upset me, but I just noticed that she would rather eat…well, what we would all today know is healthy, but still it seemed odd. What kid would rather eat chicken and salad than a cheeseburger? Actually, I can name a couple, because Jennifer wore off on my daughter, Amy Royce…so much so that I have wondered if she should have been Jennifer’s daughter, and not mine. Nevertheless, kids get traits from their aunts and uncles too, and that was the one Jennifer passed down to Amy. To my daughter Corrie Petersen, Jennifer passed down her laugh, and believe me when I say that they are identical!! I often wonder when Jennifer got there, when in fact it is Corrie.
Whether she knew it or not, Jennifer was well on her way to a life of health care, as well as a life of healthy living. She was a teeny little girl with a teeny little waist…that she still has, by the way, and yes she was a picky eater, but not is a bad way, as it turns out. It isn’t often that a young teenager has a pretty good grasp of ways to stay healthy, and I can’t say for sure that Jennifer had it all together, but at least in the diet arena, she did. As the years went on and Jennifer grew up, she had her babies, and like most women, gained a little bit of weight, but once she decided that it was time to get her life back together, she never looked back. Jennifer skies…both cross country and down hill. She snow shoes, hikes, and jogs. Her life is a flurry of activity, and it is what has kept her slender over the years.
Jennifer is also a full time nurse, in the Obstetrics department at Wyoming Medical Center, where she has worked since she was a candy striper beginning at 17 years old. So, in reality, she has been in the health care industry almost as long as I have known her, and most of our family has been blessed to have her in 
attendance at the births of the children and grandchildren. I would hate to have had my grandchildren come into this world with any other nurse, because we were so spoiled by the great care and advise we got from Jennifer. Nurses just don’t get better than she is. I’m sure her daughter-in-law, Ashley Parmely would agree too, since Jennifer has been there with her for the births of her daughters, and will be for the upcoming birth of her son, who will be Jennifer’s first grandson, too. Today is Jennifer’s birthday. Happy birthday Jennifer!! What a blessing you are. Have a great day!! We love you!!
Yesterday was our office picnic, which was held at my boss…he hates that word…and his wife, Julie’s cabin on the mountain. We always have such a wonderful time up there. It’s so quiet and peaceful…and yet filled with a flurry of activity. Of course, most of that flurry of activity is not of the human kind. The wildlife around their cabin is constantly busy…especially the hummingbirds. In the past I have tried to capture these amazing birds with my iPhone’s camera, and while it took good pictures of them, I could never really capture them in the way that I wanted to…until yesterday.
While we were waiting for the food to be ready, we watched the hummingbirds snacking on their food…a sugar water mix…yum!! Not quite what I would have wanted to dinner, but I guess to each his own. Hummingbirds are such fun to watch…especially when there are so many of them. On the mountain, people who have feeders and who slow down long enough, will be treated to dozens of hummingbirds diving toward them, to get the feeders. The birds, of all kinds, are always in a flurry of activity. They never slow down. We watched Hummingbirds, Mountain Chickadees, Woodpeckers, and even a Cassin’s Finch…maybe not rare, but one I hadn’t seen before. My camera was snapping constantly. I especially loved the shots of the hummingbirds fighting over the feeders, like there wasn’t enough feeders to go around.
The squirrels were a little more shy than some of the other animals, as were the deer, but I managed to get pictures of both, even if they were a little leery of me, and my motives for being in their space. The deer watched apprehensively, mostly, but the squirrels were very vocal about their disapproval of my presence…not that their chatter changed the situation, because my time in nature is far more limited that theirs, so they will just have to put up with me for a little while.
Of course, taking pictures of the wildlife was not the whole picnic, and we enjoyed 
such a wonderful time with friends and family, along with great food. Our time at Jim and Julie’s cabin is always a great fun, and it reminds us just how blessed we are to have them in our lives. I cannot think of better people to know and work for. God really does put people in our lives to make them rich and greatly blessed, and I thank him every day for those he has put into my life. Amazing family and friends…it doesn’t get better than that.
