My first hunting trip

We returned home from hunting on Friday after three cold nights in Central Utah. The nights were colder than I had originally expected so as soon as Quent got back from hunting each night it was time for a quick dinner and then off bed. However, it wasn't quite cold enough for the deer to make their way down the mountain and we only saw two young bucks that would even be possible to get and we ended up coming home empty handed.

We did see wild turkey's every morning in our camp and on Thursday morning we had about eight cows join us. (I thought I got a picture of the turkey's but apparently it didn't work out.) I've never seen wild turkey's before so that was cool and well I've seen plenty of cows in my day and luckily after scouting out the brush in our area they kept on moving and didn't stay long.

The fall colors were just beginning to change and it was fun to be out in the mountains for a few days. Hopefully we'll a deer next year.

Our Campsite

A cow comes to visit.

On Wednesday, Quent and I went out looking for deer and we came to a ridge where we could see across the entire valley. This picture doesn't do the area justice. It was beautiful.

Taken from the same area, just a close up of the yellow trees. Not too many of them were red yet.

I'm going camping...I mean hunting!

A quick heads up, I'll be offline for about a week as Quent and I are going hunting on Tuesday. Now believe you me, if something earth shattering happens between now and Tuesday I'll be bloggin' about it. But just in case you've thought we've fallen off the face of the earth, which by some accounts I have, we haven't, we're just heading north for a few days to see if we can get a deer.

As a hunting rookie it should be an interesting couple of days. Camping I love, I've just been told it's going to be colder than cold at night so prepare to freeze my behind off.

Make sure to check back in about a week to see pictures and a recap of my first hunting experience.

Two weeks and counting...

It is true, I've made it two solid weeks in Big Water and I'm still going strong. Apparently after only being in town two days before heading to Las Vegas, there was a rumor floating around town that I'd had enough of Big Water after two days and that Quent and I were headed for divorce. Obviously not true!

This past week Quent and I journeyed over to Kanab (the other big town) to run some errands and drop by the doctor's office. While I was waiting in a very large waiting room, I was obviously the one that stuck out like a sore thumb. Over the course of one hour I was asked four different times what I was doing sitting in the corner, now not exactly that direct but people were concerned there was a woman no one had ever seen before sitting in the corner. Everyone else that came in during the hour seemed to know everyone in the waiting room. They talked about Friday night's football game against Salina, about how running concession stands during the varsity games should be run by the sophomore and freshman mom's not the junior and senior mom's and about the upcoming weekend. While sitting (and patiently) waiting for my husband, I picked up a magazine that had been left on the chair next to me. The Sierra Club Magainze dated July 1997. Now last time I checked it is currently 2007, now maybe they kept the magazine around because of the red rock formation on the cover, that must be it. I will admit that once I saw that the publication was over 10 years old, I didn't bother reading anything inside.

What time is it? I'm confused.

Big Water likes to do things their own way so when it comes to observing time zones, we have two. Most people in town live on Arizona time, which stays with Mountain Standard Time all year and does not observe the Daylight Savings Time. So it's common to ask what time, Utah or Arizona time? Ninety percent of the time, the answer is Arizona Time.

While it has taken me a while to get used to the fact that we live on Arizona time and live in Utah, I'm getting used to watching the 10 p.m. news at 9 p.m. and Young and the Restless at 9 a.m. not 10 a.m. While I still get confused from time to time I'm getting used to the two time zone thing.

Even the local radio station gives updates in both times. There was a flash flood warning on Sunday and the radio gave MST and MDT times for the warning.

Dale made it to Big Water at 1:30 a.m. Saturday night/Sunday morning. After landing in Vegas, renting a car and driving over it was quite late when he arrived. He lost three hours on his flight west and was confused about what time it was from the minute he got here, he asked about once an hour what time it was assuming that it would be three hours later than the last time he asked. I will admit flying west (or east for that matter) and having to adjust by more than an hour is some what confusing. However he really never got used to it. After all, he did get up at 2:30 a.m. on Monday morning and didn't go back to sleep.

Here are some pictures of Dale's visit. He was obsessed with the cactus in the front of the house so we took a picture of he and Quent next to the cactus.

Cindy and Dale with the Grand Staircase in the background (a view from the front of the house).
Dale & Quent next to the cactus in front of the house.

Dale & Cindy at the dinner table complete with Mom's lasagna, Joy's Bread and Quent's Salad.

Update from Big Water

It's Tuesday, September 12 and we've been married one month and one day but who's counting right? Well it's only my fifth consecutive day in town and things are going pretty well. Yesterday I ventured into the town all by myself. I went to the post office and had to ask for the mail out of the box because we couldn't find the spare key to the mailbox (Quent found it this morning). I spent about 10 minutes in the post office chatting with Laurie (the postal worker) just like I was a local, catching up on town gossip, of which nothing meant to me because I don't know anyone around here yet. I got my new social security card in the mail which was exciting, which means the government has officially changed my name, I'm now a Bradwisch.

Following the post office in Big Water, a trip to Page was next on the list. A quick trip to the dollar store, the gas station, the grocery store and the bank, where after two visits they have finally changed my name on my account, I was headed back home.

We had quite the wind/rain storm yesterday afternoon it was even mentioned by Sterling Poulsen on KUTV last night, it's always exciting when we're mentioned on TV, after all I'm sure 99.9% of the state has no idea we even exist down here.

Dale confirmed that he will be visiting this weekend, our first house guest since we've been married.

Until next time...

Not as Good as Grandma's

I found out Monday night that bread making is an art. We decided to break out the bread maker we received for our wedding and make some bread, after all we had flour and yeast in the cupboard. After all the ingredients were measured and layered in the pan, just like the instructions said, we pushed the start button and three hours later the bread was done. Nothing like the smell of fresh baked bread permeating throughout the house.


I was expecting something like grandma makes, the bread we have each time we visit her in Cody, but it wasn't quite the same. It was fair at best, not much flavor and rather heavy. But I'm blaming the recipe and not the maker, although for the first try it wasn't bad. Quent said it was good and was excited to get out the peanut butter and try it out.

I have emailed Grandma and hope to get her recipe for the "good bread" and hope I can make a loaf or two that will taste half as good as hers.

Back in Big Water

I made it home! The car is fixed (well at least that is what I've been told, but I certainly don't agree with them, but that's a story for another day.)

Today we actually unpacked some boxes and sorted through some of our wedding gifts. Things are coming along however I wish I could just wave a magic wand and have it all done!

Yesterday Quent picked some vegetables from the garden and we used some of the red peppers and tomatoes with dinner. Today I grated and sliced some of Quent's "Blue Ribbon Winnin' Zucchini" to freeze, I never thought I'd be so domestic. (See exhibit A). Thanks to Nancy, I had my Salad Shooter to grate the zucchini, I don't know that I could have done it without it.

Dale called yesterday and said that he is going to be in Vegas (my home away from home) next weekend and is thinking about renting a car and driving over. Now of my four brothers, Dale is not the one that I thought would be the first one to Big Water, but I guess stranger things have happened. After all, I DID move to Big Water.

Over the next couple weeks, I'll take some pictures of the area so everyone that hasn't been to Big Water can see just where it is I live.

Stuck in Salt Lake

Well Labor Day weekend is officially over and Quent is on his way back to Big Water and I'm stuck in Salt Lake waiting for my car.

Over the weekend we helped Kerry pack and move back to her parents house as she prepares to go to Prague in January. We also went to my parents house for a BBQ for my birthday, all-in-all it was a pretty full weekend.

I will wait in Salt Lake until my transmission is fixed (again) and will head back to Big Water as soon as humanly possible. We're convinced that we're not supposed to actually live in the same house now that we're married. On the bright side I was able to go to the Social Security office and the Drivers License office to get the ball rolling on changing my name.

Thanks to everyone who sent me birthday cards, I haven't been home to get them but Quent says they are awaiting my arrival.