Week 14 - 7/25-31/16 Jill's House - No Trek

We didn't have a trek scheduled this week, so we decided to go to Jill's in Burns WY.  We had a great time. A couple of days we went into Cheyenne.  Jill was looking for a different car to buy to drive to school in Laramie every day, where she is working on getting a degree in speech therapy.  A car that they bought sever months ago gave out on them.  We were shopping for Hawaii clothes because by the time we get back home the end of August, there will probably not be too many summer clothes left on the shelves, and we are going to Hawaii the month of October.

Jill and Dan got baby chicks, which are now almost laying hens.  They think they are part of the family--even come in the house if the back door gets left open very long!

I can't believe that Jill picked up one of the chickens.  She calls them "the girls" but she says she really doesn't like them too well.  Mostly because they leave their deposits all over their patio, but they do keep the bug population down!  They roost in their coop, but have the run of the yard during the day.

We helped her put up a little netting fence around their patio.  (But, Jill says that after a couple of days they learned they could just jump over it!)

About two weeks ago, there was a big hail storm in Burns.  It stripped Jill's garden and all of her raspberry plants.  It ruined the roof of their house and took off some of their siding.  It also stripped their wooden fence.  They will be busy getting all of the repairs done before school starts.  The week we were visiting, there was another hail storm (golf-size hail) about 20 miles from them.  It caused a lot of damage, along with some flooding.  Jill and Dan went to help that night and ended up at the high school, boarding up all of the windows that had gotten knocked out.  At times like this, we are always thankful that our home is in Idaho (although we sometimes have some flooding, and usually some forest fires in the summer.)

One day, while Dan and Boe were at work, we took  Jill and Kamber to Milliken CO (near Greeley) to visit David & Emma Seamon.  They are great people whom we met last fall in Mesa AZ.  Their home is really nice and it was good to see them again.  They seem like extended family to us and it was fun to have Jill and Kamber meet them, and their dog, Beezer.  We made plans to meet up with them this fall in Mesa.  Thanks to Dan & Jill and kids for a wonderful visit.

It was kind of strange being away from the mission.  It took a couple of days to not constantly think about the other missionaries and wondering what was going on back on the ranch.  I can see that it wouldn't take long to lose the special spirit that is there and be back in the world again.  I am so thankful we are having this experience at Deseret Land & Livestock Trek Mission.