Mother's Day

For Mother's Day we went to Fort Benton for a wonderful buffet at the Grand Union Hotel.  It was a nice day for a drive.  I hadn't been to Fort Benton since highschool when we had our divisional volleyball tournaments there-- always a blast!  I'm pretty sure I wanna retire in Fort Benton.  It's such a pretty little town right on the Missouri River.  And it's so historic too, which fits in nicely with my useless History degree! 

Downtown there is a little monument dedicated to ol' Shep.  Shep was a sheep dog that belonged to an old sheep-herder in the area.  When the sheep-herder died, his body was shipped back east on the train.  Shep had accompanied the body to the station.  Every day Shep would wait at the station, waiting for his master to come home.  Many people took pity on Shep and tried to adopt him, but he would never stay, showing up every day to see if his owner had come back for him.  He did this daily for about 5 years until he died.  For a way better, more complete story, please click "HERE".  It's very touching.  I've always loved that story.

The Grand Union, built in 1882 was open for around 100 years before closing in the 1980's.  Some people from Montana bought it in 1997 and began the long process of restoring it to its former glory.  It is very beautiful inside and out. 

The buffet was out of this world!  They had 3 different seating times, with each time having a different menu.  Our menu consisted of a flatbread appetizer with carmelized onions, a spinach and strawberry salad, Turkish apricot cous cous, basil whipped potatoes, mixed vegetables, roasted chicken with a honey glaze, pork loin stuffed with blueberry stuffing, and a perfectly grilled flank steak with an ancho-chilli lime sauce.  The food was absolutely astounding. I couldn't pick out a single favorite.  It was unbelievable.  Oh and the dessert table!  It was so disgusting how we piled our plates up, but man was it yummy!  There was the caramel cheesecake.  Oh man. To die for.  And so many many other things I can't even think.  Needless to say we didn't need supper when we got home!  Mom and I had to take a little walk down the block and back.

Spring Storm

Benjie is back to "normal" (whatever that means!) since his surgery.  He hasn't had any problems with his eye and it has grown shut nicely.  He also got a brand new haircut andeverything looks really good. 

Of course the day after he gets his haircut, we have to have a horrible spring blizzard!  He has been soo cold he has been glady spending his time in his sweater, or on laps, or burried under blankets, or warming himself in front of the heater!

We luckily haven't lost power.  Mom and dad have been withouth power for over a day now.  They have been spending time in their camper staying warm and listening to the wind howl.  The wind has just been relentless.  We don't have too much snow on the ground here in the Gap 'cause the wind has blown it all away.  Stanford however has been getting some good accumulation.  Mom sent me this picture this morning.  The snow is drifted halfway up the barn door.

Roads are still closed from Great Falls to Eddie's Corner.  Schools have been cancelled again.  It's an old fashioned Spring Storm!

Grandma Moves to the City

After 70 something years of country living, Grandma Jo has decided to move into Lewistown.  Grandma started her life near the breaks, north of Denton.  After grandma and grandad were married, they lived in a small cabin at the base of the Twin Sisters, near Buffalo.  They were there for about a year and a half, before settling on a ranch between Stanford and Denton.  They were there for 40 years before moving just outside of Lewistown.  17 years later, grandma decided to try out the city life.  I know it's a huge change for her, but she will enjoy being closer to things and having neighbors and people close by. 

This last weekend the family got together and moved boxes and furniture with a fury!  It was quite a whirlwind, but we got things accomplished!  When we left, Grandma and the schnauzers were settled comfortably in her chair, watching some TV!

Signs of Spring....

Missoula Getaway

Two weekends ago we were able to get over to Missoula to visit the Compton Family.  Had a great time visiting with Sarah, Jimmy and the boys.  Tim and Jim were able to get some golf in and Sarah and I enjoyed some girl time-- shopping!  Saturday night they hosted a barbecue/birthday party/going away party for Jimmy's brother, Danny.  Lots of fun.  Always enjoy going over there.

One-Eyed Schnauzer

Our poor litte guy had to have his blind eye removed last week.  :(  His little eye just wasn't doing too well.  It was just getting really goopy all the time and sort of retreating back into his head.  He was born blind in his left eye due to an infection, so he really doesn't know any different.  But it was difficult for us.  I think I cried all the way from Horizon Vet to the Town Pump.  Poor little guy.  He looked like such a wreck when I picked him up 8 hours later.  He was soo loopy yet from the anesthesia.  He was pretty sad for a couple of days.  I think he was a little embarassed too, because when you talked to him or he looked at you, he would try to hide that side of his face.  But it's been over a week, and he's just about back to normal.  He has to go back next week and get his stitches out.  I'm sure that will be a fun visit! 

Deadwood Trip

Last weekend we took a bus trip to Deadwood, SD with Tim's sister Colette and her husband Kelley.  We did this same trip 2 years ago and it's always fun.  We left Billings at 10:00 am and arrived in Deadwood at 4:30.  As we pulled up to the Deadwood Gulch Resort, "Wild Bill Hickok" boarded our bus to officially welcome us.  He hosted a little get-together in the lounge for our tour. 

We ate supper at the hotel then it was time for some gambling!  Tim hit the blackjack table while Kelly, Colette and I tried our luck at the slot machines.

Saturday morning we participated in a Slot Tournament, where Kelly took 2nd place.  He took 3rd place last time we were there, so maybe next time he'll get 1st!  Tim and I took a walk downtown and checked out some other casinos and giftshops.  Colette and Kelly met us for lunch, then we headed over to our favorite casino-- The Celebrity Hotel.  It has all kinds of costumes and memorabilia from lots of different movies.  It also houses many cars and motorcycles from movies.  We like this casino because it's small and quiet and the dealers are really friendly and don't mind giving you tips.  We all had a blast playing blackjack for a couple of hours. 

We headed over to the Silverado's all-you-can-eat crab leg and prime rib buffet for dinner.  We took the trolley back up to our hotel where we played games for the remainder of the night.  Tim and Colette settled at the blackjack table again and I played my favorite Goldfish Slot Machine for awhile before joining them at the table.  Tim and I played til they shut down for the night.  I think I came out $5 ahead!

It was a great weekend.  We didn't win any big jackpots, but we didn't come home broke either!  The bus ride home was that great because they couldn't get the air working, so it was really hot and stuffy.  Oh well.