Many Glaciers

These are some of the beautiful views taken at Many Glaciers in Glacier Nat'l Park north of St Mary. The Moose family really surprized us. Mama came up the hill right in front of our parked truck. I think she was as surprized as we were and steered across the road but then the babies came up behind her and one almost ran into Richard, what a lucky experience.

Many Glaciers is almost into Canada on the east side of the park and very beautiful. My brother said last summer they saw a Grizzly Bear there. There doesn't seem to be as many visitors there. The wildflowers are just beginning, they're smaller than other places we've been but just as pretty.

Yesterday we had a few inches of snow. Every place we've worked in the West there's been snow on either the 6 or 7th of June so we were expecting it. Business is still slow but should pick up soon.

New kitchen and summer work

We finally solved the problem of kitchen cabinets and put together cabinets from IKEA and put them in as a peninsula instead of trying to find cabinets that would fit under our windows that were installed to low for standard cabinets. I think they look really good too.



This is the sink cabinet and the only hanging cabinet at this time. How do you like my black sink?
















The cabinet on the left is actually 2 cabinets back to back. The one you see here faces the kitchen table and has the drawers needed for silverware.

The stove will go in the left corner and stacking washer and dryer will go in the right corner by the sink.







I love the red color and the black and while vinyl flooring. Don't have any chairs yet for my antique table.














Here's the other side of the peninsula. This cabinet will hold my pots and pans and will face the stove.












It only took my brother, Richard and I a month to put this all together. There's still some fine finishing work to be done later but the big stuff is done and it's ready for appliances.

After finishing this Richard and I headed to Kanab, UT to work another summer at the Parry Lodge. This summer we'll be managing the kitchen for dinners 3 nights a week. We just finished our first week and it went pretty well. Richard is working the kitchen side and I'm working the dining room side. It's nice to just be working 3 nights a week. This first week everyone at work and the campground has been coming down with either a virus or allergy reaction we think to wind and rain. Most everyone is getting better except me. My nose is still running and I've got a terrible cough. Hopefully I'll be better by the time we go to work this week cause I worked last week trying not to cough when taking orders. I'm getting worn out from all the coughing day and night and not getting much sleep.

Back in Nebraska

It's been a long while since I last posted but again I'm not sure if anyone actually reads these. It's a good way for me to do a journal on-line though.

We're busy working on the house again. This visit we're putting in the kitchen. I finally figured out a way to put cabinets in which had been a big problem since the windows were installed to low for standard cabinets and counter tops. We got our cabinets at IKEA and put them together ourselves. They are free standing and we're going to put a couple of them back to back as a peninsula between the windows so i don't have to deal with the window problem. Richard and my brother are trimming out the windows today and soon we'll put the flooring down so we can then move in the cabinets. I tried to put some pictures on here but it didn't work.

We had a cold winter in TX while Richard worked his Santa season. I worked again at the Cafe on the Green in Sun City near where we camp. We got to see a little more of Shawn this year since he finished his college degree in Aug. The grandkids are sure growing up fast. Zack is in kindergarten this year and doing very well. Maddie is just as cute as ever and having a great time being home with her Mom all the time. Shawn Marie has decided that she can stay home with the kids for about the same as working due to the cost of daycare. I think it's great for the kids too. Shawn and Shawn are trying to have another baby now that Shawn P. has finished school so Shawn Marie might just as well stay home and be ready for the baby when it comes.

We'll be heading back to Kanab, UT for the summer again. Our friends have asked us to help them another season doing the dinner shift for them so we'll be leaving NE the beginning of May.

We're not sure what the Santa season will bring this year. Richards Mall in TX he's worked at for 7yrs seems to really be near the end. It lost it's last anchor store this spring and a couple of the larger stores have been sold to a Community College. We'll be sad to not be coming back to the Austin area while the grandkids are still so young. Richards Santa Co. has told him not to worry they'll find him something but it may not be near the kids. So far we haven't heard what their plan is for him we just hope he'll make close to what he's been making or more so we can keep working on our house.

Trip into AZ on Hwy 89A

This is an old Fort at Lee's Landing. Notice the colored rock wall, there are so many different colors in the rock walls here.




These are some of the Condors that have been re-introduced into this area. They're at the Navajo Bridge here.





This is the visitors center at the Navajo Bridge in the Vermillion Cliffs area. Those are some of the cliffs in the background.





This is the Colorado River before it gets to the dams that have built in Page, AZ and Las Vegas.




More of the Vermillion Cliffs.


This area is truly some of the most beautiful scenery in the whole country. It's a shame it's so hot all the time. We end up being house potatoes cause it's so hot away from the air conditioning. We love this area but just can't live here again.

We had a fun party at our Campground Club House the other day. It was a Margarita Game night. We made different kinds of Margaritas and played games and laughed a whole lot. We've got a good bunch of neighbors here.

We're counting down the days here already cause it's been so hot. We've been asked to come back next year but said no cause it's just to hot to enjoy our time here.

Lexi has been having a great time with her new friend Rock and his parents. She goes to Doggie Day Care with him once a week to play and enjoy the swimming pool.

Next week we're going on a dinosaur tour up in the Grand Staircase Escalante area beyond Bryce Nat'l Park. They've uncovered dinosaur bones and other artifacts so the scientists are doing tours, should be very interesting.

News from home.

Got news and pictures from my brother today. The gravel company finally put the gravel down on our driveway. That will get rid of some of the mud. The grass is doing really well, that was one big mud pit when we were there last. Butte has been getting lots of rain which has been great for the grass.

It's still hot in the afternoons here in Utah. It cools off at night so we can sleep with the windows open but about 2:30 in the afternoon we have to close up and use the air. The air conditioner we thought was breaking seems to be limping along which is good since no one knows of anyone in the area that works on RVs anymore. We did buy a little window air conditioner in the event the RV one completely goes out. We'll find a use for it at the house if we don't use it here.

I've been sewing for a craft table that several of the ladies here have at the Farmers Market. I'm making microwave baked potato bags. Last week I sold one and I haven't heard today if they sold anymore. It gives me something to do on those hot afternoons when I don't want to be outside.

100 degrees in the beginning of June!

I don't think it got this hot this early the last time we were in Kanab, 3 yrs ago. We seem to be having some trouble with our air conditioner again, always when we get to these hot places. Yesterday we drove to St George and bought a small window air conditioner in case the problem persists and we can't find someone to repair it. 3 yrs. ago there was an RV repair place here but it has since gone out of business and we don't like to have to drive someplace for repairs when we're trying to work and have to do something with the dog as well. Maybe we'll be able to limp along until we finish this season.

Utah is just as beautiful as I remembered it. The red rock is something as are the mesas. 2 weeks ago they were having snow here and now it's in the 90-100 range.

Where we're working has changed some. We've been welcomed back by all the employees that worked with us before and are still there. They have all been waiting for Richard's biscuits and my bread pudding. They've also said they were looking forward to us cleaning the kitchen up a bit, the level has dropped a lot. They now serve lunch 5 days a week and dinner 3 nights a week in addition to the breakfast buffet 7 days a week so it's much harder getting everyone on the same page of clean-up duties.

We just had our first 2 days off and got a little early morning hike in to look for wild flowers, they seem to be almost done blooming after having such a late winter and then no spring and right into real hot weather. Lexi likes to hike if it's not to hot but she's not a big fan of hiking in this heat, she did ok this morning cause we kept it short enough and early enough before it got to hot.

I'm doing some sewing. Four of us women are going together on a craft table at the Kanab Farmers Market each Sat. I found a pattern for microwave baked potato bags that are at my skill level so I'm getting some of them ready for when they set up the table. Since I'm done with work at 11 am it's giving me something besides taking a nap in the hot afternoons. We get up at 4 am so my body would like to nap more than sew but I'm trying to get my body into the new sleep routine, so far I only sleep 4-5hrs a night on work nights. Hopefully I'll get adjusted soon. I did sleep really well on my days off though.

We like our new RV park for employees. We're just 3 miles outside of town but it's much nicer than being in town like we were last time. In each corner of the house shoe layout there's room for a nice big garden. Next to us our bosses have a real nice garden and then at the other corner my friend Chris and another couple have another real nice garden and are trying some veggies. Some of the veggies are planted in the ground but most are in containers with good soil. I brought a bunch of extra plants my brother didn't have room for so I planted in containers broc., caul., brussel sprouts and a couple mystery plants that didn't have labels. I've never tried those type of plants in containers so we'll see how they do. It's fun to have a little bit of garden anyway.

The summer may be busy with friends visiting, another friend has just said she and her husband may visit, maybe end of June or early July. Another friend is coming for a week the end of Sept. They're both very interested in visiting Best Friends Rescue Ranch which is just a couple miles away from us. Sounds like we all made our plans at a good time so we can cross paths again.

Murphy family