Time for a fresh start

     It's been a few days since I have posted anything on here so let me catch you up on the activities of our past few weeks!  Kelli and I continue to try to adjust to our new life over here, finding a house to buy would sure go along way towards us meeting that goal!  Our search has taken us all over the Spokane/Coeur D'alene area, I swear there's not a neighborhood in either town that we haven't explored.  But like every other aspect of our lives we are making a conscious effort to turn it all over to God and just let him lead us to the right house that we can turn into a home! 
     We spent Christmas over in Stevensvile with Kelli's parents and had a delightful time!  I ate WAY too many goodies, which was made evident by the way I felt on Christmas morning!  Most of the weekend was spent relaxing, although Dan and I watched the Cowboys barely loose to the Saints on Sunday afternoon while the girls shopped and as you can expect that wasn't very relaxing for me:)  Christmas eve, after another one of the Dobson's amazing meals, we found a small candlelight service at the Our Saviors Lutheran in Stevensvile.  The service was one of my most memorable in recent years as the small little church in the country was nearly full and yet there was probably 50 people in attendance.  I loved it as it brought back memories of the church my mother grew up attending in Adrian, ND, so small and quaint that even though no one there had ever met us before we felt like members.  The pastor had a great way of connecting with the congregation along with emphasising the true meaning of the season!  We opened stockings on Christmas morning and had a fantastic dinner, followed by an episode of the Christmas Story and more relaxing!  Overall it was an awesome weekend!
     So now were back in reality and continuing the house hunt along with the job hunt for Kelli, she finally has an active assisting license with the state so that will help, it only took them 2 1/2 months to process!  Gotta love that Gannon luck!  As we continue to adjust to the new chapter in our lives we only hope that each of you have had as good of a year as we have!  We are very grateful to be heading into the new year with all of the blessings we have been given, we are both healthy, happy and ready for the next step, whatever that may be:) 

Remember, New Years resolutions are a great way to remind us that we're all human!:)

Daddy's hands

    Last Thursday, the 13th of December, our world as we know it lost a very special person.  My grandfather, George, left this earth to spend eternity in a much better place!  If you've talked to any of my family in the past few weeks you already know that he had encountered some setbacks that ultimately resilted in him spending his last few days here in a hospital.  Although his last few days were indeed a struggle, we all know that he is in a better place now and someday he will be reconnected to each of us. 
     George Heinrich was a man like no other!  I have extremely fond memories of my grandpa, like our summer visits to the Adrian valley where all of us kids got to take our turn being grandpas helper for the day.  He would load us up into the truck and make the short, but extremely fast, drive over to the farm where we would spend the day litteraly following in his footsteps!  Now if you knew my grandpa you understand how difficult this could be as not much grass ever grew underneath his feet:)  I can remember following him around as he would work on a piece of equipment, thinking that there is probably nothing he couldn't accomplish.  A true farmer with the gift to just simply make things work, he truly was the handiest man I know!  He would pass along his knowledge to us kids willingly, answering every single one of our many questions, never stopping until we were fast asleep.  My grandpa has many grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, so I imagine many of the same questions were answered hundred of times!  This never hindered him form making each story just as compelling every time he'd share them!
     Along with being extremely handy he was an expert craftsmen, if you've seen any of the woodworking projects he's done you know what I mean!  Grandpa took great pride in combining his love for his family with his craftsmenship as each of his grandchildren have recieved one of his masterpieces for wedding gifts.  Some of my fondest memories of grandpa come from watching him carefully turn a piece of ratty old wood into a beautiful piece of art in his Arizona workshop.  From the glass front hutches he built for his grandkids, to houses and barns, there simply wasn't anything he couldn't do!  I too find great joy in building things with my own two hands and each time I do so I think of him and am thaknful of the gifts he has passed on to me.
     My mother and her sister recorded an album many years ago which was titled the Heinrich sisters, easily the best song on that entire album is Daddy's Hands.  Many of us kids still have a copy of that old cassette tape and while listening to that song you can feel the love that both Amy and Georgia have for their father.  When I think about how fortunate all of grandpas children were to have him in their lives for as long as they did I am extremely greatful!  Many people don't have the chance we've all had to connect with their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents!  I think about all of the lives he has touched and I know that each of us who were privelaged enough to know him are very lucky! 
     I know he is up in heaven now, most likely whipping God in a hot game of cribbage, and one day we will all join him.  For now though, all of us who have been taught by him will continue to carry on his legacy, passing on his passion for hard work, along with his love and devotion to family, understanding along the way no matter what we run into in life that we all have one more gaurdian angel looking over us now! 

Remember, no matter how down we get, there is always love in daddy's hands!  We love you grandpa!!

What a week!

     Wow!  That is the first word that comes to mind when I think about all that has happened in the past week.  We started our week in sheer joy taking in a home game for my beloved Cowboys!  This can be described no other way than mesmerizing!  Even if you simply cannot stand the Dallas Cowboys, which lets be honest they're truly a love/hate team, even those of you crazy people who fall on the hate side of the line would be mesmerized by all that Cowboys stadium has to offer!  The sheer architecture of the building is fascinating in itself, then you throw in a show unlike anything else I've ever seen and you've got an unforgettable experience!  Even Action Gannon, who has arguably been to more high profile sporting events than most of us will be in a lifetime, was overwhelmed by how much of a show Jerry World puts on!  I could be mistaken but I swear I even caught him jumping out of his own seat when my 'boys scored the go ahead touchdown half way through the fourth quarter.  To say the least, it was the experience of a lifetime, and to be able to share it with two of the most important people in my life made it even better!  

     This trip was capped off by celebrating my tenth year of sobriety on Friday the 7th!  The trip to Arlington was my gift from Dad and Mom, now you can see why it was so special!  Most of you already know how much both of my parents have done for me over the years and Lord knows I wouldn't even be here today if it wasn't for their love and support, and Kelli has easily meant way more to my sobriety than she will ever know!  Each day I remain sober is a testament to how strong our love is and I know having her on my side has made things easier!  So being able to share that weekend with both Dad and Kelli was like icing on the cake!  
     We wound down our week by scouring the Spokane area in search of our next house to buy, we're currently in a rental in CDA but we are eagerly searching for our next home.  We've narrowed our search down to one area, now we just have to find the right house!  We know we will find it soon enough but this is the first time we've been able to take our time looking, we've always had to scramble to buy a house because of our animals.  It's comforting knowing that we can take our time and be really picky, that being said, we both really want to get into a house while the timing is right with interest rates and such!  We know we'll find the right one if we're patient enough!
     To cap off the down part of our week my grandpa has had a couple slip ups in the past week in Arizona.  The doctors think he may have had another stroke and right now Mother, Harlan, and a nurse who spends the night at the house have been taking care of him.  None of us know too many details right now, all that is for certain is that he could use all the prayers out there as he struggles to recover.  Please keep all of the family in your prayers, especially my mother who has been like a saint dealing with her Dad in this situation!  
     So we enter this week ready to get back on the roller coaster of life!  All of us know all too well just how fast and windy this roller coaster can get at times.  All we can do is hold on and enjoy the ride for as long as it lasts!  

Remember, there was a time when all of us loved roller coasters, there's no reason why we still cant enjoy them:)

Big D!!

    Amidst all of the chaos of our recent move, Kelli and nearly forgot about the trip to Dallas we had scheduled to watch the Cowboys game!  So after a long couple of days in Missoula closing on our old house, which happened yesterday morning, we hauled our last load of belongings over to Coeur d' alene and caught an early flight out of Spokane to head for big D!  
     We met Action down here and he has planned the entire trip out, even getting us a hotel room directly across the freeway from the stadium.  So in the event that my excitement keeps my eyelids open tonight I can step outside and just stare at the "8th wonder of the world", Cowboys Stadium!  
     So as I get ready to lay down and attempt to get some rest, I realize that this post is a bit short, but don't worry I'm certain that I will have PLENTY to write about after the game!

On the go!

     In the past week and a half Kelli and I have had just enough free time each day to give the constant spinning of our heads a short rest!  In that short time we locked up a rental in Coeur d'alene and moved almost all of our belongings over there.  Now we are back in Missoula for one final load, Kelli's last day of work, and to close on our old house.  T say the least it has been a bit of a whirlwind!
     As was the case for our last move, we could not have done it without the help of our family!  Kelli's parents helped us load up in Missoula and then followed us over where Jill and Ryan were there to help us unload.  Before we could unload anything though we had to do a little cleaning.  Only those fortunate enough to be part of this clean up can begin to explain to you how much fin this was!  I like to think that I am a relatively calm person but due to the condition of the house a few lucky people got to witness a couple of my rare blow ups!  Spewing enough obscenities in a 30 second rant to make most truckers blush was not exactly my proudest moment:)
     Even with the blow ups though we managed to hold it all together and get settled in, we all had a fantastic thanksgiving dinner which was followed by watching my beloved Cowboys send me into yet another rant, then spent the rest of our weekend attempting to relax.  After all of our help had went home and it was just Kelli and I we were reflecting on all that has happened combined with all that continued to go on, and we both began to feel a little overwhelmed.  This all changed when we walked into the Fred Meyer store near our house and we could hear music, as we got closer we were surprised to see the beautiful tones were coming from the Salvation Army bell ringer who was singing carols!  All by himself, completely accopella and in perfect harmony, his voice had quickly changed our attitudes!  I dropped some change in the bucket which prompted him to stop singing just long enough to tell me "god bless you", and we left the store in a much better place than we entered.  The bell ringer probably has no idea just how well received his voice was by us!
     It's made both of us realize that we were probably far from over the speed bumps of this move, but no matter what we one across along the way, nothing will be impossible!  We simply have to remind ourselves each day just how great full we are to be where we are in life and never loose sight if the fact that we are not in this alone!  I hope each of you approach the speed bumps in your own life the same way and don't let anything get you down, I know more than anyone how difficult this can be at times but if we keep the faith it will all work out in the end!

Remember, anything is possible if approached with the right attitude:)

Hello winter!

     Last weekend Ryan, a friend of ours Kris, myself, and Duchess embarked on another swan hunt to Freezeout lakes near Fairfield.  Last year during, our inaugural season, Dad was with us and we got two swans along with a few ducks and had a great time!  Kris is a die hard waterfowler so it seemed to be a no brainer to invite him to this years event.  Ryan was the only one of us who had drawn the swan tag but we knew there would be plenty of other birds in the air.  As the week drew longer and I kept a watchful eye on the weather, my excitement grew with each day.  Our first winter storm of the year was moving in and I just knew it was going to get some birds moving!  Freezeout lakes is one of the major fly ways for all of the migratory birds heading south for the winter, one of which is the snow goose.  When the snows migrate through they do so by the thousands and it usually happens in about a weeks time.  In all the years I've hunted there I've never timed it right, with the weather starting to work in my favor I just knew this was going to be the year.
     Ryan and Kris met me in Missoula and we loaded Duchess up and headed north.  The weather had already begun as we traveled on icy roads nearly the whole way!  We got to Fairfield just before dark and when we pulled out to the lakes all we could hear and see was geese!  It was just as I had imagined it, the sky was littered with snow geese!  My excitement was short lived however as I noticed that nearly all of the water on the lakes had froze already, there was a small patch of open water on the main lake still which meant we still had a shot.  So we headed to the hotel and made a plan to come back in the morning and sit as close to the open water as we could all day and see what happens.  You can't really decoy swans in so your only shot is to set up near the water and hope to have one pass by within range.
     Sunrise brought with it single digit temperatures and snow!  We bundled ourselves up for the day and headed to our spot.  We were not even fully set up yet and six swans flew right over the top of us, Ryan was caught completely off gaurd yet somehow got off two crack shots with his ten gauge as they flared away.  We quickly settled in for what we all knew was going to be a great day!  As the day went on the birds kept coming, we got a few chances at passing ducks and geese, Kris capitalized on a shoveler in one group so we didn't get skunked.  The swans appeared to be growing wiser as the day grew longer however and Ryan got a few more shots but each one was either too far away or too surprising to bring anything down.  Most of the birds would come in from behind us with no sound at all so by the time we noticed them it was already too late!  The most heartbreaking part of the day for me was that I had finally got to Freezeout when the snows were there, I was just a little too late as all of the birds were too high in the air.  We literally saw thousands of snow geese and canada geese, but with the water all mostly frozen they were coming back form feeding in the fields too high to shoot at.  It was still a remarkable sight to see though.

      We headed for the truck at dark with our one duck and our minds full of birds, the temperature never did get into double digits so we were all ready for a hot shower and a good meal!  Even though the water had all disappeared we decided to give it one more shot in the morning and when we woke up to -17 degrees we knew we were in trouble!  We all had a pretty good idea what our chances were of even seeing any birds on a day like this, but we bundled up and headed out anyway.  It only took an hour and a half and two small flocks of honkers so high in the air we could hardly tell what they were for us to decide to pack it in and head home!  The first leg of the trip home was fairly quiet as we all pondered what had just happened, then just like any good hunter we immediately switched our thoughts from what we could have done different this year to what we will do different next year!  I know we may not have brought home a lot of birds, but I'm sure we all brought home enough memories to get us through until next year!

Remember, all hunting trips are more beneficial for the time shared with friends and family than they are by the success of the hunt!

Heading in the right direction

     After a few weeks of looking at our option between renting a place for a while or buying right away we've decided to rent.  I have been commuting back and forth for work and Kelli has been packing up and manning the fort with all of our animals.  In my travels for work I have been inside a couple homes with a realtor and I have quickly realized that the indecisiveness Kelli and I share, combined with the ample supply of houses on the market that closely match our criteria, that we need to rent for a while first so we can take our time for the next house we buy.  
     I scoured the internet and drove through countless numbers of neighborhoods in search of a rental that would accept our small zoo of animals we have.  After finding two houses that would work and looking at them with the help of my mother I felt like we were heading in the right direction.  These houses were both listed through a property management company however and they felt it necessary to have our complete bank account numbers, we had to agree to disagree on this issue as we didn't feel too comfortable giving our numbers out to anyone other than an employer who wants to direct deposit checks into it, so those two houses were out.  Meanwhile Kelli had found a house for rent on Craigslist that she wanted me to look into, I called the lady and tried to set up a time to look at it, she never returned my phone call though so I figured it was already taken and I headed home to Missoula for the weekend.  I got a phone call the next day from the lady with the house apologizing for not returning my call, she was at the hospital all night welcoming her first grandchild into this world, a legitimate excuse I guess:)!
     So once the new baby was home and safe and I was back in town we set up a showing and it is perfect, we only had one major criteria to meet in that it would take all of our animals!  We agreed to a six month lease and hopefully will be able to move in by the end of the month!  The six month lease will be perfect as we will be able to check out every little bit of the area before we decide to buy!  
     The last few weeks have been a little crazy in our house for sure, but Kelli keeps telling me that we are going to reach a peak in the roller coaster at some point and everything will be on the homestretch from there, I feel like now that we have an actual forwarding address to go to that we might be there!  We might be finally heading in the right direction!!

Remember, God has a plan for all of us, the hard part is having the patience to allow it to happen!