Yes, we are alive in Wyoming. And what different lives they are. You know you are somewhere special when the clink-clinks of spurs can be heard as cowboys and cowgirls walk down the aisles of Walmart, the heart and soul of the city.
The day we arrived here, several members of the Elder's Quorum met us to help unload our truck. As they drove away, the president got out of his pick-up (the unofficial vehicle of Wyoming) and said, "By the way, I forgot to tell ya'll. We've got an Elder's Quorum activity tomorrow mornin'. We're gonna be shootin' skeets. Don't worry about bringin' your guns (because naturally, everyone has their own guns), the guns will be provided." I thanked him kindly and walked behind the truck so he didn't see me burst into laughter. It was an all too perfect introduction to Wyoming.
Even though it is a very funny, small city, we are very happy here. We are thrilled with our new house (someday it will be all decorated and we will post pictures), and Ty loves his new job. I got a job soon after we moved here managing the Cheyenne branch of a nonprofit organization that provides support and education to families of children with disabilities. All in all, we feel pretty dang blessed. We laugh a lot here, and I still giggle when I say "Cheyenne, WY" when giving our address out, but things are good.
Despite our random location, we have had our fair share of visitors. The week after we moved into our house, some friends came with their kids, 9 in all. We went to Frontier Days, the big summer festival here where the population increases by 100,000 for 10 glorious days. We went to the parades, rodeo, and just enjoyed watching the very interesting crowd, including the elderly saloon ladies. At night, all of downtown is fenced off and turned into a massive outdoor bar. There are apparently multiple brawls and arrests each night as people get drunk on their horses. Needless to say, we did not participate. Although it might have been interesting to see, it seemed like a bad idea in a place where it's still legal to have a gun holstered in plain view.
Shawn and Lauren, our cousins and friends, have also been up to visit with their 3 girls. So fun to see them! My brother Michael also came up for a last hurrah before going into the MTC last week, headed to Everett, Washington. We were able to go to Utah for a couple of days to see him off with the rest of the fam.
We are gearing up for the winter and the wind. We came home earlier this week to see our neighbor's grill picked up and thrown about 10 feet off their porch, along with our heavy iron patio furniture. We are in for a special treat.
Here are some pics from good ol' Wyoming. We miss our friends and family in UT and are sorry for not keeping in touch so well--we will do better!
