Meet The Maiden

Miss Iron Maiden Walker (the 'Iron' is silent) was adopted into our family on August 28th, 2010 at 12:57pm from the Star Valley Humane Society in Thayne, Wyoming.

Weighing in at a whopping 1.7 lbs, this 10-week-old brown-eyed, gray and white tabby won our hearts by gingerly kissing Jeremy on the chin the first time he held her. She has the perfect balance of spunk and affection, has already pooped on our carpet and is still trying to figure out who that funny looking cat in the mirror is.

For those who don't know, I have been wanting a kitten for quite some time now. To be honest, ever since I moved out to Jackson I've been desperately in need of some company around the house when Jeremy's at work. It's questionable whether or not I'll be able to concentrate on my work now, but I can already tell that I'm going to love having Maiden around.

We're Engaged!!

On August 19th, at the top of Mount Mansfield in our beautiful home state of Vermont, Jeremy Walker told me there was a question he would only be asking once in his life. Sitting on a rock ledge, sweaty and jet-lagged, he asked me to marry him.

It was so surprising, yet expected and so silly, yet serious that I didn't know how to react. He was visibly nervous and I was in shock. I was experiencing my once in a lifetime proposal; the answer was so painfully obvious I was speechless. Finally, I came to and managed to say, "Yes, of course!"

Twenty minutes later, when we had finished crying and laughing and embracing, we got to our feet and had someone take our picture. "Sweet! Let's go down and start planning our wedding!!!"

The Full Report

My Love has been gone for over a week now and I barely know what to do with myself. It's been interesting, though, because this is really the first time I have lived by myself. Our babies are still alive and being watered everyday and the dishes are remarkably clean. However, I do have to say that there is a bit more clutter around the house without Julie here to keep me organized and I have been taking full advantage of leaving the toilet seat up. I really miss her terribly and can't wait for her to come back. The house is too silent without her here and I need her back to color the silence.

As Julie mentioned earlier July was a very busy month for the two of us. It was also an incredible month for us. We are getting very good at living together. It's been easy for us because we complete each other. My dad and his partner Gale visited us for five days. This was very important for Julie and I as now we have both met each other's parents. I think I can speak for my parents when I say that Julie has their overwhelming approval.

With my dad and Gale here we did what we always do best: being active in the outdoors followed by cocktails. I took my dad on a great mountain bike ride on Teton Pass. He survived without too many cuts and bruises. We also went on two great hikes. The first hike we did was an out and back up Granite Canyon. The second hike had to be one of the most memorable hikes I have experienced. We hiked up Teton Canyon to Teton Canyon Shelf to Alaska Basin and back down Teton Canyon. It was about 16 miles of some of the most gorgeous scenery the world can offer. The hike took us about ten hours and the conversation was never dull. After the hike we we ate Mexican food in the "Mexi-Bus." A perfect cap on a perfect day.

The last night of my dad and Gale's visit turned into a good old fashioned Jackson night including farmer's markets, great food, and pig wrestling at the County Fair. Classic!!

So that's the "full report" on a great visit. DAD, thanks so much for coming and spending time with us. We welcome other visitors with open arms. You just have to be ready to experience an almost gross amount of love in our house of love. As of now I am just waiting for Julie to come back from California. It's not natural for us to be apart like this. She truly is my other half. Before her return I will have my work cut out for me: cleaning the clutter, bathroom, kitchen, and of course making sure the toilet seats are down.

July, July

Man oh man, what a crazy month! I can't believe it's August. July has gone by so quickly. I apologize to all the die-hard fans out there (**cough, Cristin, cough**) for the lack of posts this month, but you wouldn't imagine how busy we've been out here in Jackson's Hole. What with all the late nights and lazy mornings, Jeremy spraining his ankle and getting a rash (probably from watching Big Fish), me getting an infection (probably from eating gluten [source: Dr. Charles Marks M.D.]), both of us getting a year older, and Jeremy's dad coming to visit the days seem to have just slipped away.

Now (all of a sudden), I'm getting ready to leave for a 3-week adventure with the Fam. For the first time in 78 days Jeremy and I will be apart. (*GASP!*) - I know. Scary. I can hardly believe it myself! I am leaving him for a 100 mile hike on the John Muir Trail. I'll miss him terribly and pray every night that our babies will still be alive when I get home.

(Our babies)

And I guess I should explain the picture at the top...

First of all, the title of this blog is misleading. It's not really over. It's just the beginning. For my birthday, my one true love pulled yet another remarkably romantic trick out his sleeve: a photo album handmade out of bamboo and banana leaves from Bali. This being a 'love blog' I guess I can tell you what he said when he gave it to me. "A photo album for our family. So our children can see their parents when they were young."

Jeremy, I love you and will love you more every day for the rest of our lives.

I'll let you fill you in the details about your father's visit. (But remember this is going into the 'Full Report').

xoxo

Wyoming Wild

Wyoming is full of wilderness. I suppose that's why people come here: to experience wild country. I was promised lots of amazing hiking here in Jackson's Hole and I got it. One morning I left the house at 5:45am driving two hours to Shoshone National Park to meet fellow Wyoming Wilderness Association staff members and some good ol' Wyoming locals for a nice long walk in the wild.
We walked 15 miles out to this immense valley where we were met by a man and woman dressed in full jean tuxedos and cowboy hats on horseback. They fed us brownies and Sobe water they had hauled up on donkeys. We talked about how the grizzly habitat is being threatened by the beetle-kill, how the locals want to wipe out every wolf in the state, and how getting dressed up in Wyoming means putting on your best hunting clothes.
It's beautiful country, but I have to say Wyoming sure does live up to its motto...

Dragonfly

Yesterday there was a humming bird outside my window. It stayed there hovering for a few moments, then left, then returned, then left again to perch on the tree. The humming bird is Jeremy's spirit animal so I thought of him while I was sitting by the window without him.

Right now, we're sitting on our love seat drinking G&Ts. It's Tuesday. It's the weekend. Uruguay just got their asses beat by Holland, and we are sitting here discussing symbolism. Not because Holland whooped Uruguay's ass, but because Jeremy spent $100 on a dragonfly tea pot set for us that apparently symbolizes love, happiness and eternity (according to Japan). He bought it hoping it would symbolize our relationship, but according to Google, the Native's believe it symbolizes the undead. That made us wonder if there was any credibility to symbolism. Does anything really mean anything at all or does it just mean what you want it to mean? (Yeah, I heard Carrie Bradshaw in my head when I wrote that).

Jeremy turned 28 yesterday. His sister, Ayla, thinks he's an old fart now. But apparently (according to Google), 28 is the new 18 -- check your facts, Ayla.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Last night we drew a picture. At the fancy restaurant, we drew (with crayons on the paper table cover) a symbol of our everlasting love.

To me this means I love Jeremy very much, but I don't want him to get embarrassed by my heart drawings infront of his waiter friends so I drew skull and cross-bones to even it out.

What does this mean to you? Seriously. We're interested. Apparently, symbolism is subjective. But just so you know... we side with Japan: Our dragonflies represent love & happiness for eterenity. (4Eva)

Jeremy needs a new G&T now. So do I. Adios. Happy Tuesday.

A New Taste of The Tetons

We have been here for a little over 3 weeks now and I feel like we are both starting to experience the full flavor of the Tetons. This makes perfect sense for Julie cause she just started living here, but I have been here for 4 years now and I am just starting to taste the Tetons. I am perceiving them in a whole new light because I am experiencing them with my partner. I am not just looking at them through my eyes, but I am looking at them through OUR eyes. For me, this feels great. A few days ago we drove up to the Granite Hot Springs in the Gros Ventre Mountains. I had been there last year, but on this time I was looking at the landscape and thinking about all the possibilities for us, and they were nearly endless. Normally I would drive up to these gorgeous hot springs and relax in them and then drive back home. However, this time my mind was racing with ideas of spending days relaxing by the river, camping out, hiking, and doing myriad of nothing with nobody else except each other.

I have a very established life here in Jackson, and I know this has been hard for Julie to become accustomed to. It can be a scary thing to just pick up and move to a place where your lover has been living for years. I know that some days are better than others for Julie here in Jackson, but I have noticed that the good days are not only becoming better, but they are more frequent as well. Julie is doing an amazing job acclimating herself here and adjusting to our new lifestyle in this new place. In usual fashion she has landed herself a job with the Wyoming Wilderness Association. Originally she interviewed for a volunteer position, but they loved her so much they just needed to have her on as a payed employee. Sometimes I ask myself, "how did I happen to land this incredibly talented, smart, charismatic, and gorgeous woman known as Julie Fucking Marks." She makes me feel secure.

I coached my first of two bike camps last week as well. It went really well and the pay is great. Not that I will be seeing much of my hard earned money cause every cent is going to the IRS... gotta pay the taxes. I have never felt better on my bike and it was going so well until two days ago I sprained my ankle biking. I realize now how precious my body is for earning my needed income. I could not work last night because I could not walk. I will heal though, and I plan a full recovery.

Two nights ago we had a joint birthday party for me and my friends Ryan and Derek. We camped out on top of Shadow Mountain, built a fire, had some drinks, enjoyed the incredible views and great people. The night could not have been better. We even got see a lightning show over the Tetons in the distance. Again, this night was incredible and unique for me. I was experiencing my home here in an entirely new light because Julie was by my side. She has enhanced my life here and completed me. Now I am a member of a two person team while doing my everyday activities because she is a part of them. I first arrived here 4 years ago, and I am finally tasting the full flavor of the Tetons.