Back in the Great State of Texas

Well it's time for confessions. The last post I posted was completely false and I made it up so that my siblings and friends wouldn't get suspicious when my blogging stopped. So I made up a false story (pretty convincing I might add) to hold them over until I got home on Saturday. I made many surprise appearances and it was a whole lot of fun.

My trip was so fantastic and I need to thank some people for it. Thanks to Memaw and Papaw who took me with them in the summer of 2015. That is when the wonder began and I have gone back every summer since. Thanks to my family, because I know it was hard to let me go for that long but you did so valiantly and kept me updated on life in Woden. Thank you to my church family and friends and family who read my blog and made comments. It really was encouraging to see how many people really cared about how I was doing. I appreciate that.

Oh my goodness and of course thank you to my amazing aunt who let me live with her for five weeks and made my experience absolutely fantastic!

Well that's a wrap for my summer in the Tetons...maybe I'll go back next year :)

Emma Kay Terrell (one last time)

Wacky Wednesday and Thrilling (Not Really) Thursday

Sorry my posts are getting more spread out but I was too tired last night to post about my day. Aunt Susie and I, being the only ones in the house because Sarah is working on the farm and Catherine is in California, decided to get out of the house yesterday so we went on a little road trip to a city south of Jackson called Pinedale. We ate some awesome BBQ there for lunch where I got a pulled pork sandwich which was amazing. They serve sweet potato fries there that are out of this world. Aunt Susie got a nice grilled sandwich because she doesn't eat pork...or beef...what kinda life is she living???!! Jk jk she is a lot healthier than me and in a lot better shape than me...I know (Aaron and Gareth and like my whole soccer team...) you think that isn't saying much...and maybe it isn't... 😂...but the point is she's really fit and athletic and she's my GREAT aunt. I don't think any of you have a great aunt as beast as mine. Any way...moving on...we also went shopping around some but because I spent nearly all my money on souvenirs, I didn't buy anything. When we got home we just relaxed and then watched a movie called Country Crush. Oh my goodness do not watch it! We thought it would be a cute chick flick but it was the cheesiest thing I have ever seen. Aunt Susie and I laughed at loud at some things that shouldn't have been funny, like when characters would break into song in what should have been a serious moment. Don't ask me why we watched the whole thing...honestly I don't know.

Well today we just chilled at the house and cleaned and stuff. Aunt Susie has had to work a lot in preparation for us leaving in a couple weeks so today was just one of those days where she spent the day working and I spent the day entertaining myself in whatever ways I could. I think we might try to go fishing again tomorrow to see if we have some more luck at the river but we might also go on a hike. I guess we'll see when that time comes.

Well ta ta for now,
EMMA KAY T.

Typical Tuesday

Hello everyone. Today was very normal and not exciting at all compared to the adventures of yesterday. We cleaned quite a bit and I did laundry and I went into town to get some more souvenirs (I think I'm done with those now). You may be thinking it's a little early to get all of my souvenirs but I like to be prepared and I love buying gifts so I couldn't really wait any longer to get them. Well...I'm extremely sore from our hike up Snow King and I felt like (and I'm sure looked like) an old woman walking around the house today. But there is a weird satisfying feeling associated with being sore. Like "I did something productive and awesome to be in this much pain!" No regrets though. It was worth the pain and old lady-ness. Also my wisdom teeth are coming in and to be honest I'm low key freaking out about it so I'm sure I will be visiting Dr. Powers as soon as I get home. Yay...

Well that's a summary of what my day has been like today.

Catch you later,
Emma K.

Starting to Wrap up my JH Bucket List

Another quick reminder that JH stands for Jackson Hole...not junior high or Jake Hill *cough* Grace *cough* :). This morning Aunt Susie and I woke up at 7:00 to hike up Snow King because it is something that I have been wanting to do and dreading at the same time. I knew it would be hard but I knew I would regret not doing it...and I do my best to avoid regret...and running...and social interaction with people I don't know...and running...and eating chicken pot pie...and running...but that's totally beside the point. So we went on the hike and it was pretty awful going up to be honest. It never once leveled out, and the continuous incline made my legs feel like fire...and jelly...at the same time...like jalapeno jelly...which is a thing...I don't know why actually...it seems like a *insert poetic term that I can't remember right now*...(minus like 50 points for using ellipses way too many times in a sentence). The view from the top was definitely worth the pain it took to get there though. We could see the entire town of Jackson Hole which was pretty awesome, as well as the Tetons and surrounding mountain ranges and buttes. It was amazing. And very humbling too actually: To look out on such a vast landscape and realize the greatness and immensity of the earth and our littleness in the face of it. Our worries and cares are nothing, we live just for a little while and then we are forgotten by the world, discarded with the billions of others who have gone before us. So let's all just slow down. Life is meant to be lived. And it is short. So live it well.

After we got back from our hike, I just sat down for about two hours and when I would stand up, I found that my legs were more tired than I think they have ever been in my life. And they have stayed that way all day. I am not exaggerating at all when I say I literally crawled up the stairs to my room earlier. Aunt Susie had to do some work so she went to the office and I stayed home and cleaned the cabinets, washed dishes, and folded laundry (and there may have been some Netflix mixed in there at some point). Then we she got home we went to Jackson Lake Dam to fly fish (which I learned how to do yesterday). Aunt Susie told me I'm a natural (not to brag or anything...okay kinda to brag) but with the wind blowing hard and the fish not biting, the excursion didn't seem promising. After about an hour or so of casting and recasting I told Aunt Susie I would be ready to go after just one more cast. And what do you know? I caught a cutthroat trout on my last cast!! It was so exciting! It was pretty small but Aunt Susie got a picture that made it look bigger than it actually was :). We left the dam pretty dam happy (pun intended) and I commented that the only thing that could make the day better would be to see a bear (something that has been on my JH bucket list since the first year I came here in 2015). We headed out and we went by the boat dock at Signal Mountain to get another view of the Tetons in the setting sun. As we pulled out of the driveway we both freaked out because there, across the road from us, was a bear!!! An adorable black bear! (I'm sure they're not as adorable when they're hungry but there wasn't an immediate threat so it looked pretty darn cute to me. We snapped some pictures and were on our way home, as excited as pigs in a mud puddle ( I may have just laughed out loud at that one...).

Any way today was an extremely exciting and tiring day and it's about to hit midnight here and I'm kind of EXHAUSTED so it's time for me to get some zzzzzzs. I love writing about my adventures for y'all to read and I really hope you enjoy reading them.

Lots of Love!
ET

Me dying on the Snow King trail...

Action shot

The view from the top of Snow King. Elevation: 7,808 ft.

My fish! His name is Carl

Picturesque

My friend the bear. His name is Norman

String Lake With No Strings Attached (It's Dumb I Know)

We spent the whole entire day at String Lake in Grand Teton National Park today. And by whole day I mean 10 straight hours. We rented paddle boards and spent the day paddling them all over the place, lazying around in hammocks (apparently today was national hammock day...who knew?), and listening to children through tantrums around us. It was an amazing day and instead of trying to describe to you exactly how it was, I will just include quite a few pictures. It was absolutely beautiful and the water was really cold. Oh, and Nathan must have been there (or some likeness of him) because someone was flying a drone over the lake full of people in their swim suits (I really hope he or one of his family members reads this but if not the Alders know what I am referencing). Anywho...we also made a quick run to the farmer's market this morning before we left so that I could get a few more souvenirs. Getting that souvenir shopping knocked out a little at a time :). Alrighty well here are the pictures that were promised.

I'm exhausted by the way. Good night fam.

Emma T.

Hanging in a hammock is ENOugh for me

When you pose like a model without even knowing it...that's the Grand in the background

The Two B's

I'm sure you are wondering what the two B's are. Are they bread and butter, boxes and basters, the birds and the bees?? What on earth could they possibly be?? Oh Emma pleeeeease tell us! Alright. Bartok and Brahms. Two of my favorite composers and the two who also wreaked havoc on my life during senior year. Let me just say, Brahms is just magnificent and Bartok is underrated. (Now you are probably wondering why I am talking about composers, just as I am sure you were wondering why on earth I write like an epic nerd). The reason is this. Tonight we went to an orchestra performance which was part of the Grand Teton Music Festival and which featured the extremely talented pianist, Yefim Bronfman. As you can probably guess, the orchestra played a concerto by Bela Bartok and after the intermission they were joined by Bronfman, who played alongside the orchestra a piano concerto by Johannes Brahms. It was A B S O L U T E L Y fabulous. Aunt Susie and I both enjoyed it a lot and when it was all over she told me she felt a lot more relaxed. I confidently asserted that her relaxation was indeed a result of the classical music, my confidence backed by the 21 pages of research I did concerning the topic. It was a proud moment for me. 

Other than that, we dropped off Catherine at the airport today because she is going to San Diego to go to a Comic-Con with her dad (super jealous). Then we came home and cleaned for quite a while because Sarah and the other intern at the farm, Alex, are here and the house needed some attention in preparation for company. The other Sarah (who I had the convo with yesterday) hasn't shown up at the house today even though all of her stuff is still here so...I don't know what's happening with her. We'll see I guess. 

Well, tomorrow we are going to the farmer's market and then to the Park so it should be a pretty fun day. 

Bye Bye (two b's...get it? 😂)

et_the_extra_awesome

When it Rains it Pours (without hail this time)

Well right now I'm sitting on the couch watching rain fall on Snow King and hoping the aspen tree in the front yard that is coming uprooted won't fall and hit the window where I'm sitting. I love rain so much. It's one of my very favorite things. And I also feel like it is great for creative inspiration (though what I am about to write isn't very creative :)). But you get my point: it's perfect blogging weather.

So yesterday we didn't do all that much but we went on a bike ride around town in the afternoon. Catherine and I were supposed to go to a free concert last night but we didn't know we had to have tickets to it and it ended up being sold out so she promised to take me to dinner. Fran joined us and we went to Hatch (a Mexican food place). I think it was one of those places where you have to order the right thing or else you will be really unsatisfied, and Catherine and Fran did not order the right thing. So they were quite disappointed with their food and I was satisfied-ish with mine. Then we sneaked (apparently snuck actually isn't a word) into a gala for the Dancer's Workshop at the Center for the Arts that we didn't have tickets to. Thankfully because Fran and Catherine are both on the staff we were able to get into the show, which was really cool. They had a fundraiser in the middle of the show in which they took donations from the people in the crowd and they raised over $100,000 in 5 minutes. It was insane. There are so many rich people who live here.

This morning I woke up thinking I was at my house and Ruby was barking and I spent a few seconds trying to think of what dog would be barking at my house because we don't have a dog and neither do the Bertkes. I thought maybe it was Dirk...then I realized I wasn't at home. It was a really weird feeling. Aunt Susie worked today some and Catherine went to ballet and then to hang out with her friend Sarah so I was at home by myself for a little while. I washed some dishes and painted and cleaned Aunt Susie's refrigerator so I felt pretty productive actually. Catherine brought me home a rice crispy treat which was really sweet and she just left for a doctor's appointment with her mom so Sarah and I just had a talk about my future (I just met this girl today and I really like her :)). Aunt Susie and I are supposed to go to Music on Main today in Victor, Idaho but it is raining so I don't know if we're still going to do that. We'll see.

Sorry for the long post full of play by plays but now you know exactly what I've been up to.

Also one more thought: I really miss my piano. I've been thinking about it a lot today and I can't wait to play it when I get back home. I'm afraid I won't remember how to...but realistically I don't think 13 years of piano lessons can actually be wiped out by 6 weeks of absence.

Okay bye now,
ET

Bearly Escaped (Pun TOTALLY Intended)

Well today I almost lost my life.

Okay, maybe that is a bit of an exaggeration...but let me tell you a little story.

This is the story of a girl. An innocent 17 year old young lady who wanted nothing more than to find happiness in the grand adventures she planned to have on her "relaxing" trip to visit her great aunt in the mountains. We'll call her Olivia.

Chapter One: Morning
Olivia woke up on the morning of July 18th happy as a snail (because snails are really happy creatures). She glanced out her window at the beaming sun rays and took a deep breath as she prepared to take on another day. After an average morning, she set off on a mission to retrieve the mail from the post office and since that seemed an errand too ordinary, she decided to do a little shopping in town. She bought a few trinkets for family and friends and even got to go into a bookstore. Now Olivia is one of those people who loves to read and owns way more books than she has ever read, so bookstores are her happy place, and entering one seemed to brighten her whole outlook on life. Things seemed to be going up for Livy. Little did she know the afternoon would take a deadly turn...

Chapter Two: Danger at the Door
While Olivia had been out running her own errands and feeling quite contented, her great aunt had been at home, stressing over many things that need not be specified. So, the pair of them decided to go into Grand Teton National Park to take a detox walk around Jenny Lake. However, because of complications with the original trail, a new trail had been constructed (unbeknownst to them) that took them up a mountain above the lake. The trail, new and nearly uncharted it seemed, went right through what looked like perfect bear territory. As the two were walking up the tortuous (not torturous) trail, three runners came jogging down the trail, bearing with them the warning that they had seen a bear up the trail but it was going up the hill to the side of the trail. Now...one would think that after such a warning, the two women would have turned back, but they did the opposite. They kept on trekking along the path, bear spray in hand, complaining very loudly of the tough inclines and singing about whatever they could think of (attempting to keep the bears away). Fun fact, Livy's aunt actually has a very limited mental music library so she kept singing the song that the dwarfs sing on their way to work in Snow White over and over again. Nonetheless, either the magnificent singing or the very potent aura of terror kept the bear at bay and the pair made it back without once even seeing the beast. They stopped off at a boat drop off area so Olivia could get in the water (she has a freshwater fetish) and the experience served as a detox for the "detox" hike gone wrong.

Chapter Three: Stayin' Alive
Olivia could have sat on that rock in the middle of the lake for ages upon ages and never have been bored, what with the rushing waterfall breaking the peaceful silence of the mountain air and the outlines of the Tetons becoming silhouettes in the setting sun. However, at some point everyone has to let go of those moments to get back to reality, so after many minutes of taking pictures and gazing longingly at the unreachable beauty of the surrounding scenery, Olivia and her aunt set off on their way home. They stopped at a burger joint, and though neither of them were very hungry after the evening's events and the peanut butter sandwiches they consumed in the midst of them, they shared a salted caramel milkshake and some sweet potato fries. The perfect ending to an exciting day.

And they all lived happily ever after.

Emma Kay T.

Sunday

God's Creation, Nature, The Great Outdoors, The Universal Back Yard (I think I may have made that one up...but it makes sense, so I'm going with it). To be honest, I'm not sure where I was going with that thought... All those things are names that we have given to the beauty that surrounds us, yet none seems to fully encompass the essence of it, because what words can you really use to capture and contain something so vast? Is there really any way to constrict something so beautiful and so grand to a series of letters? I would argue no. Not really. Though each one of the names above do describe the immense beauty that surrounds us, each lacks something to correctly encompass it's grandeur. Just a thought as I relay my day to y'all. 

This morning we went to church at 11 where the pastor taught on Ephesians. It was an interesting and inspirational message on unity that I think influenced much of the congregation. The only weird thing was that we had communion in the middle of the sermon. I'm not quite sure why because it could have just as easily been done at the end. That was a little different for me. Then we went on a small hike this afternoon just up a little butte near Aunt Susie's house as storm clouds gathered above us. It was a nice walk and we rescued a dog on the way back (but we didn't keep it because its owner came and got it).

Catherine and I on the butte...supporting AC from way up north....roadrunners for lyfe :)

Throughout the rest of the afternoon we did sort of filler activities to take up time and then we cooked out on the deck for dinner. Oh yeah and we made a fire pit today so we had a fire going in there and there was a nice smoky smell in the yard. We grilled cod, bison steaks, and vegetables that I cannot for the life of me remember the name of, and we had zucchini pasta with a really good sauce, and gorgonzola cake things that Sarah made. It was all delicious and we sat on pillows around a low table outside to eat, which was really refreshing (I almost said very refreshing...that would have been a big mistake...all you who have taken Mr. Bryant's class know why...I don't know if he even reads this but I'm sure he would be proud of me). Catherine made some really good dessert and then we went inside to clean up the MASSIVE amount of dishes we had from our huge meal. Now I'm in bed and I really gotta sign off now because we're going to Idaho Falls tomorrow and we have to drop off Sarah on the way so we have to get up early.


I am having some technical difficulties...hence the centered writing.
Good night everyone! I can't get the other pictures attached how I want them so sorry about that.

Emma T.

Concerning the Bard of Avon (Google it if you have to)

Shakespeare. He wrote some of the most read and most popular plays in history. He also wrote plays that are somewhat inaccessible to a modern person who speaks contemporary English. But even through that, his plays are read and performed all over the world and his legacy lives on. I have always had trouble interpreting Shakespeare because his language was so old and when I have been exposed to it in Omnibus class, we move too fast for me to keep up with the side notes that will interpret some of it for me. So I have always been just a little lost in the story as we read the words, but I can always understand the final product. You're probably wondering why I'm rambling about Shakespeare, and if you're one of those perceptive sorts you have probably already figured it out. We went to see a Shakespeare play today: The Tempest. And, like any other Shakespeare play I have seen, the story was told mainly through the actors' facial expressions and body movements. What you miss through the actors' lines (which is pretty much everything) you get through their facial expressions. It's kinda crazy how people can tell a story by the way they look and how they present their lines. Anyway, Aunt Susie and I ended up leaving during the intermission because she was kind of lost and I wasn't exactly enthralled in the story and we were both ready to go home. The production was pretty good though.

This is where the magic happened :)

Before the play though, there was a potluck dinner at Aunt Susie's friend's house that we went to. Influenced by my social anxiety, I wasn't exactly thrilled about the gathering, but it proved to be pretty good. There were people there from the Center for the Arts that I knew from helping out at the outdoor dance performance (you know, the one with the sheep) so I didn't feel like such a stranger.

This is a picture of the drink table...because that's the only pic I took while I was there

Any way that was pretty fun. We didn't really do much this morning and afternoon. I cleaned all the windows in the house (except the upstairs ones) inside and outside.

Like always, I don't know what tomorrow holds. But I know who holds tomorrow. (quote credit to my little quote thingy in my room at home...my Texas home).

Faida!! (that's goodbye in Swahili) (I've always wanted to learn Swahili)

EMMA KAY TERRELL

#farmislifepart2

So yesterday I made the decision to wake up at 5:30 this morning to go work on the farm in Idaho with Aunt Susie. Don't ask me why...I honestly have no idea. Maybe I thought I would regret not going...maybe I secretly like putting myself through pain... I couldn't tell you. But whatever drove me to that decision had me reluctantly dragging myself out of bed at 5:36 this morning and questioning my sanity. Needless to say, I wasn't exactly looking forward to a day of farm work when I got up this morning. However, the day proved to be better than my morning self had expected, and we had a good day working with a group of interesting people. There was Chris (the hipster) who has some really "rad" family members and likes to buy lotion that is made out of goat's milk and has none of those "gnarly" chemicals and stuff in it. Then there was Wana, the forty year old Filipino yoga instructor who likes to bring really strange, organic drinks with her to work. And there was also Nina, who was mourning over the loss of her very well-trained dog and who taught me that you can be happy when you're alone, but you need someone to "complete your soul" (hence marriage). I learned life lessons at the farm today :). When I wasn't being taught valuable, wise lessons, I was weeding and cutting lettuce...with legit shears. I have never used shears before and I kind of stabbed myself with them a couple times. Aunt Susie and I cut some spring mix, a combination of five different lettuces. Then we weeded a lot, trying very hard not to pull up the actual plants. It was a little intimidating because we were handling the farm owners' livelihood: those vegetables are everything to them, those are how they get their income and how they live. After we finally finished our fifth hour of work, we had a delicious lunch (prepared by Sarah) and then we got to pick strawberries to take home. I loved that, and I tried to pile up as many as I could in my little container. It reminded me of when the Bertkes (shout out :)) used to have strawberry plants that we would eat off of...oh memories. There's not much that is better than a fresh picked strawberry. We headed home after we collected our vegetables from Erika (one of the farm owners) and we made some stops on the way home to get materials to make a raised bed for our vegetable plants. We built it and set it up in the backyard and now we are relaxing. Sarah just got home and I don't know what we're going to do tonight. We shall see.

Ahoj!! (That's goodbye in Czech)

Emma

These are my strawberries!
Also if you look closely you can see the mud caked onto my knees...I was kind of filthy...

Morning Post

Today I'm gonna switch things up a little bit and post in the morning...I know...crazy. Yesterday I babysat the girlies from 10 to about 4 and then Catherine and I went to the store because we were running very low on food. We ended up coming home with maybe more than we should have but we had fun and it was a bonding experience :). Then last night Aunt Susie and I went to see Wonder Woman in the somewhat outdated Jackson Hole Cinema. It was actually kind of neat to see. It was really small and I don't think it had ever once been updated since the day it was built. We enjoyed the movie though, it was really good (despite the long running time). I won't comment on the movie itself because I already did that to Grace and...well she hadn't seen it yet...sorry girl. Well today I am going to help Tanya (the preacher's wife) with a watercolor class that she does (I think). And tonight I am babysitting Lydia and Chloe yet again while their parents go to a gala for the pregnancy center. So, today should be fun. (Especially since I have Oreos and ice cream from our outing yesterday :)).

Sorry I don't have more to share with y'all right now...I'll have an interesting post sometime soon :)

Tikka Tuesday

 So today was another pretty chill day characterized by Indian food (which I ate for dinner and lunch). This morning I went on a quick walk with Catherine and Fran and then we came back and Cat had to leave for work. The rest of the afternoon consisted in lots of painting and some Netflix, among other little things. At lunch time I called my mom (shout out) because...well because I wanted to...and had fun talking to her (and dad who was making comments from the driver's seat). Oh and I talked to Bryce too...that child...he just makes me smile :). This afternoon Aunt Susie and I went on a hike around Snow King (the ski mountain in town) which was really nice. From up there you can see all of the city and the Tetons also. It's an awesome view. When we got home, Cat and I went to pick up Sarah from town because she was here delivering produce with her farm. We went to Teton Tiger to get naan to eat with our leftover Indian food and then to Lotus (an all organic restaurant) to get dessert. We had a little tiny accident coming out of the parking lot but we don't need to dwell on that. We got home and ate all together which was nice and then we had our dessert and watched You Get Me. Let me just say....DO NOT WATCH THAT MOVIE. It was in the romance section and we wanted something "light hearted" so we decided to watch it. It looked like your typical high school love story...but it wasn't...it was 179 times more disturbing. Basically there's a psycho girl who starts stalking this guy and then kidnaps his girlfriend and shoots him...so bad... Aunt Susie and Sarah both left in the middle of it but Catherine and I wanted to see what would happen so we watched it til the end, with the occasional fast forwarding of seemingly unimportant or disturbing/suspenseful parts. Any way, that is now over (thank goodness) and I am in bed writing this trying to recover emotionally from that movie. I'll probably have to watch Disney or something...I'm just a little bit scarred. Well...I'm hoping I can actually sleep tonight. We shall see.

Hope y'all's nights ended a bit happier than mine :)

So long,
Emma

Nothing Much to Report

Today has been pretty normal, and by normal I mean average, no intense hikes or bike rides or anything like that. Aunt Susie needed to do paperwork today and Catherine worked at Teton Tiger so I just hung out at the house doing different things. I read, painted, watched Netflix, and washed all my clothes. Nothing really significant to report today. I only got one suggestion for a new title out of everybody reading this...so I guess I'm going to use it, though I don't know if it's THE title, you know? I didn't feel a stirring of any kind when it was suggested but...I just feel like I need a new title for a new year. Thanks for the suggestion...you know who you are.

Alrighty well...maybe tomorrow's blog will be a bit fuller.

Adios!
eMmA

P.S. I believe I have fixed the comment problem so everyone should be able to comment now.

A Day for Poetry

I thought up a haiku while we were on our hike today and it goes like this:

I'm struggling to breathe

I think I'm suffocating

We're up really high

Another to correctly describe the situation:

My legs are burning

Feels like millions of lunges

Get that hiking bod

And lastly: 

Most beautiful hike

So say my aunt and cousin

They have got a point

So today's hike was a true mix of beauty and agony (but really, what isn't?). Before we get to that, however, we need to back up about 16 hours. My aunt and I decided to go camping in Idaho with Sarah so we got all our stuff packed and headed out to pick up Sarah at the farm. We made it to our camp site at Moose Creek after much deliberation over the perfect spot, and though our spot was far from that, it was still very nice. We started a fire almost immediately to try to get rid of some of the mosquitoes that were swarming us and it kind of worked...Then we started grilling and we had a nice meal sitting and talking and enjoying being immersed in nature. Like....very immersed...we were pretty much alone which made Aunt Susie happy because we had the freedom to "pee wherever we want." So, that was kind of a new thing. But you know, there's something oddly satisfying about peeing in the woods, maybe it's because you feel one with nature, I don't know. I should probably leave this topic before it gets weird, but let me just say that I am pretty good at peeing in the woods now (something I think Mr. V could give me a patch for :)). Moving on...as we finished our dinner, a dark cloud started forming over us and, as we deliberated whether to get the tent out, we made a quick and executive decision to go ahead and make s'mores (priorities). As we finished our s'mores, the thunder kept rolling so we sat and waited even longer to see if we would get rained on. After a while we decided to go for it, and we set up our three man tent. Now, a bit of clarification. When my aunt said "three man tent" I was thinking, "Okay good it holds three men." However, what my aunt MEANT by "three man tent" was "you can only fit three men in it" (there is a difference). After seeing the smaller than expected tent, I was reluctant to climb in, seeing as though we had three people and a dog, and fearing that claustrophobia might kick in (which never happens to me but, hey, you never know) or that we would breathe all the oxygen out of the tent during the night and wake up with headaches and dizzy the next morning. Thankfully, the experience was better than my expectations and we all (including Ruby) fit comfortably enough and played some Scrabble until we were ready to go to sleep. I, having longer legs than my aunt and cousin, had trouble getting comfortable enough to actually fall asleep and I ended up waking up multiple times during the night, so as you can imagine, it was a blessing when morning came. 

We left for our hike to Darby Canyon after a good breakfast and started off around 10. It was roughly 6 miles and Aunt Susie thinks we gained 2000 ft. again. I wouldn't be surprised. It was tough but it was so beautiful. It led to a big waterfall at the end which I went down to and put my arm under (because who would want to miss out on an opportunity to stand underneath a waterfall and feel the power of it hit your arm?). It was extremely cold and moving very fast so, as you can imagine, it was slightly painful. But so worth it. Obviously, the trek back down was a lot easier and we finished around 1. We came home and cleaned up some and I've been eating since we got home...it's bad. But it's all organic so it's okay. Any way, we might watch a movie tonight, I'm not sure. Aunt Susie and I painted together earlier and she was talking about teaching me to crochet today but we're both really tired so I don't know if that's gonna happen. 

Oh and shout out to Aaron whose birthday is today! Yay!! Love ya!

Okay see you on the flip side!

Emma Kay Terrell

Dysfunctional Fam pt. 1

Dysfunctional Fam pt. 2

The first waterfall

The final waterfall

From underneath it

That moment when your aunt takes a stealthy picture of you while your eating rice crackers...I was just enjoying the view. An elderly man on the trail told me he liked my shirt and it made me really happy :)

There I am feeling the rushing water...though it's hard to tell

Not All Dances Are Created Equal

Well...in contrast to the great contemporary dance we saw last week, the dance we attended today was neither inspiring nor beautiful (though some desperate souls convinced themselves that it was). So...backstory. Aunt Susie knows the director at the Dancer's Workshop and she needed some help this weekend with Ann Carlson's Doggie Hamlet show (just the name should give you a clue). So, yesterday and today we stood at the gate to let people in and hand them programs and we got to watch the show for free today. Thank goodness it was free for us because it would not have been worth the money to see it. I felt bad for everyone else sitting there because they were all as confused as we were but it looked as if they were really trying to see the point so they could feel justified in their waste of money. As for us, we sat silently, confused, and a few times I got a look from Aunt Susie when I started laughing. The best part were the very talented sheep dogs that a trainer could completely control just by different pitched whistles. That was pretty neat. Other than that though, a few people ran around with sheep skins and "passed out" a few times and then started chasing and yelling at the sheep. It was slightly disturbing to be honest. I took multiple videos but I can't attach them on here so if anyone is really interested in seeing them...you can let me know. There was one guy there who made me so happy because during the show he was laughing too and we made eye contact a couple times and he was taking selfies. Then after the show one of the other people working asked him how he liked it and he said that he was on the verge of openly weeping at one point. I started laughing so hard but the funniest thing is that I think the lady totally believed him.

Any way...summary of tonight's experience. It was by far the worst performance I have ever seen in my life and I realized that not all dances are equal.

There isn't really anything to comment about the previous part of the day. I ordered a book about coaching volleyball since I think that would be a nice thing to have seeing as I am coaching volleyball this fall. We cleaned quite a bit because Jacob is here again (Catherine's friend). So now we're winding down. We're going camping tomorrow in Idaho (Gracie). 

Goodnight!

ET

At least there was a good view...

#farmislife

I'm pretty sure that is one of the many hashtags that we Tertke cousins use to mock the farm boy in our midst (along with #iliveforRosie2.0, #honkifyoulovesheep, and #farmertedandhisbelowaveragefencesstrikeagain). For those of you who don't know, said farmer boy is none other than Levi Fischerman, sheep tamer and fence builder extraordinaire (love ya buddy).

Any way...moving on from my title...today. Today was the most exhausting day I've had since I've been here. You may be thinking, "How could today be more tiring than the 15 mile bike ride or 10 mile hike she went on last week??" Others may be thinking that a 15 mile bike ride or 10 mile hike up a mountain is nothing, so today probably wasn't that tiring and really I'm just wimpy. If you think that, go join the Olympics or something. We don't want you here. Seriously though...in response to the first (and sensible) question...today was exhausting because we worked on a farm for 4 hours ("Four hours isn't even that long"...haters gonna hate). We worked extremely hard in the fields weeding, digging up thistles, removing and folding up coverings on plants, and hoeing, lots and lots of hoeing (jokes have already been made so feel free to keep any comments to yourself). It was very strenuous but at the end we got to jump into a very cold pond to refresh ourselves before we ate a delicious lunch. We had vegetable curry on rice, black beans, and salad. It was so good. Sarah got the afternoon off so we went to Driggs to scope out some camping spots and to go grocery shopping. On the way back to the farm, we went to the Victor Emporium where there is "world famous" huckleberry shakes and we got huckleberry ice cream in cones (amazing). Finally we made it home after I managed to stay awake the whole way home...the fight of the century...and now I am sitting at home, nice and clean, just chilling until we go to eat at Teton Tiger with Catherine and her friends. I imagine I will sleep really good tonight.

Hope y'all are enjoying this.
P.S. I find the lack of response from my aunt down in Woden to be disturbing. Love you though!

So long!
EMMA

Happy Fourth of July

Happy 4th of July everyone! Today we celebrated the 4th like real Americans: we ate BBQ at a lake after we went to the parade and now we're grilling outside before we go see fireworks. Super festive Americans we are. We got Big Hole BBQ which was absolutely incredible. We drove to Slide Lake and the water was too cold so we didn't actually get in but we sat on some rocks and soaked up some rays. After about an hour and a half we finally got kicked off of the private property we were trespassing on so we headed home (though we were about to leave any way). Catherine and I made a cake and now we're in the process of making dinner and then we plan to go to the foot of Snow King to watch the firework show (we've already marked our spot with chairs and a blanket...like pros). Any way...besides those things, not many exciting things have happened today. On the way to the lake we had Lip (Fran's dog) and Ruby both with us and the back of the car was packed so they BOTH sat in the middle seat between me and Catherine. I have a few battle scars...I got scratched multiple times...and Catherine got bit (by Lip). We moved everything into the middle seat on the way home and made the dogs sit in the back which proved to be more successful.

Tomorrow Aunt Susie and I are going to work on the farm with Sarah...should be fun.

We're eating so signing off!
Emma T.

One of Many Aunt-Niece Bonding Days

Today was another aunt-niece bonding day as Catherine worked all day (again) and Sarah is of course at the farm. Aunt Susie and I decided this morning that I need to start setting an alarm in the mornings so I'll get up earlier. We decided to go into Teton Park today to hang out by String Lake but first we weeded the flowerbeds in the front yard. Then we packed up tubes and snacks and took off for the park. First we went to Jackson Lake Lodge to eat lunch and I had a fantastic pulled pork sandwich while we enjoyed the wonderful view.

This is where we ate. You can see Jackson Lake in the background.

Then we drove over to Signal Mountain Lodge to get a giant cookie, which they make daily. It was pretty good. After that, we finally headed to String Lake where we braved the cold water and got in our tubes to float. Other than the wind constantly pushing us towards the shore, it was an ideal day and our float was quite nice.

#artsypic...not really...it makes my legs look huge...but hey, you get the picture

We got out of the water after about 30 minutes and hiked to Leigh Lake which is about a mile and a half from String. It was a nice hike but it got pretty dense so we had to be very cautious for bears (I saw two bear tracks *gasp*). We were fine though and didn't get attacked by any bears, however I do know what to do if that situation were to occur (now you can sleep at night mom).

Leigh Lake

We hit some legit traffic coming back into town but we finally made it home and now we're about to eat dinner. Tomorrow we're gonna watch fireworks at Snow King, a ski mountain right near Aunt Susie's house.

Later,
ET

The Best Day Ever

Today was absolutely amazing. After a hearty breakfast and a little painting, we decided to take a hike up to a lake near Jackson Peak that Sarah's friend Hannah led us on. We had to drive up to the trail head and by the time we got there we were at 8,000 feet. The hike took us up 2,000 more feet elevation wise and took us four hours to complete. It was by far the hardest hike I have ever done and I was having some trouble at the beginning keeping up and also breathing (that was hard). However, all of that was worth it when we got to the last mile and there was snow everywhere. We had to tramp through it, trying not to slip and fall (which happened plenty of times) and then we got to a bunch of rocks that we had to climb over (again trying not to slip and fall). We finally made it to the lake which still had ice on it and we ate our lunch on some boulders. It was so beautiful and overwhelming that we just sat in silence for a little while to take it in. We went down to the lake to get some more water (we had filters) and then we took off on our trek back, which was much faster than the one up. We picked up a hitchhiker on the way home (don't freak out mom) who had been on a 15 mile hike and wanted a ride home. He was nice and he is from Austin. Anyway, we made it home exhausted and took showers and ate dinner and watched a movie. Today was such a fantastic day!

Pics at the bottom.

Much love,
Emma

Too Tired to Come Up With a Creative Title

There are many different forms of art: music, sculpture, painting, drama, the list could go on. Tonight I experienced a form of art that is unique, abstract, and for me, hard to grasp: the art of contemporary dance. It has a sort of surreal beauty to it that transcends the common, modern mind but it is something that is very meaningful when you consider the concepts it seeks to portray. Though I was slightly confused throughout most of the performance, it was beautiful and passionate, and I enjoyed watching it. Fran and Dan (who I have mentioned before) were both performers as well as choreographers and it was really neat seeing their vision come through the different dances. I cannot even imagine putting together such a complex routine and I was amazed at the final product.

Well...going back in time...I watched Lydia and Chloe again this morning while their mom and Aunt Susie finished up their paint job. We had lots of fun (again) and I introduced them to Phineas and Ferb, which they loved. When the ladies got back, Aunt Susie and I decided to go on a bike ride...little did I know it was going to turn out to be 15 miles long! It was actually great though. We rode all the way to the Snake River and back and saw some beautiful sights, including an eagle, which was pretty cool. After that exhausting excursion, we took off (in the car thankfully) to get Sarah from the farm she works at in Idaho. We went over Teton Pass, which is an amazing mountain road, and I found myself utterly content. Some girls need chocolate or new makeup or flowers to make them happy: me, just drive me through the mountains while I get to look out the window and soak it in. That right there is a recipe for happiness. We stopped at the grocery store on the way home and then enjoyed a delicious (and extremely healthy) meal made by Sarah that contained many, many vegetables and no meat at all. But that's okay because I am learning to appreciated veggies more and more every day. After that, we went to the aforementioned performance and now I am home, resting my weary (to say the least) legs. 

Oh yeah! I also stabbed my tongue with a piece of pizza today...because I am that talented...and I think I may have done some legitimate damage 😂. I've got issues (but you got 'em too...it's a song for those of you who don't know). 

Okay it is becoming more and more apparent that I am tired because my brain is running away to crazy places and I can't catch it. (see like that...that doesn't even make sense)

So...I'm going to sign off before I say something I regret ;). Oh and pictures included at the bottom. Actually just one because I realized my aunt has the ones from the bike ride on her phone.

Bye now!

EMMA

The view going through Teton Pass.

Losing Creativity and It's Only Day 5

Today was probably one of the most productive days that I have been here. My aunt woke me up at an appallingly late time and told me I was gonna babysit. Turns out it was for the same two little girls who came to the house a couple days ago. They were HIGH STRUNG today but I had a ton of fun with them. We played with Legos and a doll house, had a tea party, played at the park, and read some books...and we got to have mac and cheese for lunch...which is always a plus. I ended up babysitting from 12-6 and since they're kids are so good, Aunt Susie never has the parents pay, but Miss Crystal gave me $30 at the end of the day, which I really appreciated. Though it may not seem like compensation for six hours of babysitting, the girls proclaimed to their parents at the end of the day that they loved me, and that is payment enough.

We had an awesome dinner at Snake River Brewery, and I had a cheeseburger pizza, which I almost ate in its entirety...after days of Indian food and vegetables and fruit I was ready for some good ol' 'za (pizza). It was really good. Although I have to admit, probably the best part of the experience was rubbing in my dad's face that I was at one of his favorite breweries.

Anyway...today was great, and I feel so much more accomplished at the end of it having worked today. I'm sorry I haven't had pictures up recently, it rained today also so we haven't taken any hikes or anything. Hopefully we will go to Grand Teton National Park tomorrow.

Peace out,
Emma K.

When it Rains, it Pours (and Hails) Pt. 2

Well...we had another day of not so great weather today so we didn't hike or anything like that. This morning I went with my aunt and a lady she works with to go see some open houses (they're realtors). We only managed to see two since most of the open houses closed at 12 but they were both really nice and the second one was a 5 million dollar property!!! It backs up to the National Elk Refuge and it's really big which explains the price of it. Then we went to their new office, where furniture was being delivered, and took a look around. It's going to be pretty nice and they are expanding their business so they will have a lot more agents. When we got home, I ate leftover Indian food from, you guessed it, Teton Tiger (this is becoming a thing). Then my aunt and I cleaned because Catherine had a friend from high school back in Texas who was coming over. I cleaned the windows and vacuumed the whole house. When Catherine and her friend (Jacob) got here, Aunt Susie left to go to the store and we left to get food to bring to Fran's house. (Fran is one of Catherine's good friends and her friend Dan was there too. They're both dancing in a performance we are going to see on Friday). Well...we were trying to decide what to do for dinner so we thought...what better place than (drum roll please).....TETON TIGER! Wow. It's a good thing they make good food or I would be done with that place. We took the food to Fran's house and had a great time eating and talking to them.

Oh yeah...most important part...and the reason for today's title...it rained and hailed AGAIN today. We had to run through the hail to our car...it was kinda painful not gonna lie. That was an exciting experience.

All in all, today was a good day and I am very glad to be developing a friendship with my cousin Catherine. I was a little worried about how that would play out before I left, but she makes it so easy and I am very grateful for that. She and my aunt are both including me as part of the family and it makes me feel at home. I'm very thankful for them.

Still waiting for better title suggestions...maybe from a certain creative and hilarious aunt of mine...*cough cough*

Goodnight y'all!
EKT

When it Rains, it Pours (and Hails)

Hey! Today was pretty relaxed which was nice. We had a chill morning until a storm rolled in and we were hit with heavy rain and hail. I've never seen so much hail before, it looked like it had snowed on the back porch when it was all over. After that fiasco, Aunt Susie had to leave so she took me to Teton Tiger (where Catherine works) and I hung out and ate some Indian food. I got fried okra, which was made with chickpea flour and had a kind of cucumber and lime dip to go along with it, and though it may sound strange, it was the best fried okra I have ever tasted. I also had some Thai Tea which is pretty much sweet tea on steroids made with bubble tea (if you don't know what that is then google it because I don't know what it is either). It was incredibly sweet so I couldn't drink very much of it. I got some Chicken Tikka Masala to go and set off to find my way back to the house (I walked). I actually made it back with no problems and found the street pretty easily. I was proud of myself. When I got home I had a nice phone call with my main girl Gracie (shout out) and then I watched some  Netflix and painted. When Catherine and Aunt Susie got home, we went for a hike with the dogs up part of the butte that I hiked the first time I came. It was pretty difficult because a lot of it was uphill but it was a gorgeous hike and it was really nice outside (61 degrees to be exact). We saw a three legged German Shepherd that was kinda scary on our way out. When we got home, I warmed up my Indian food and ate it and now I'm sitting here, telling my story to the world (not really the world, more like little podunk Nacogdoches). So today was another great day!

P.S. I'm kinda tired of the title of my blog since I used it last year...if anyone has a new idea please let me know!

Emma

Day 2

There is a moment in time when you are captured by something and it takes over your senses. All your worries melt away and the problems of the world are dissolved. And in that moment, time stands still, because you try and try to absorb it all but you can't because there is just too much beauty, too much majesty. I experienced that moment today.

Taggart Lake

Before we get to the breathtaking experience of the day, let's go back in time to this morning/afternoon. I watched two little girls with Aunt Susie today and long story short, they are super sweet and I painted a ton. Their names were Lydia (5) and Chloe (2) and they were downright adorable and they got along so well (much better than my sister and I would've gotten along at that age I'm sure). Lydia loves to color so we sat at the table and colored and painted for a very long time and we watched part of Zootopia and then we colored/ painted again. It was really fun. After that, (here comes the boom) we packed up some snacks and water and Aunt Susie and I took off to Grand Teton National Park to hike to Taggart Lake. It was so beautiful and, though I was breathing very hard due to the reduced oxygen levels, it was soooooo worth it. It was amazing. It's hard to put into words what it was like and the pictures don't do it justice either but I'll just point you back to the top of the page. I could have sat at the lake for hours upon hours upon hours because it was impossible to fully absorb the glory and majesty that is the Lord's Creation. I don't want to get repetitive so I will just close with this: The Lord is good all the time and I think that nature is proof of that. 

Blessings from Jackson Hole,

Emma T.

Flowers on the trail. The colors are gorgeous.

Trip to the Tetons #3

Hello! To anyone concerned, I made it to Jackson Hole, Wyoming safe and sound at 2:00 this morning. We had a 2 hour flight from the DFW airport to Salt Lake City and then my aunt and I drove four and a half hours to get to Jackson. We wanted to eat at Chick-fil-a for dinner but we could not for the life of us find one so we drove and drove until finally we gave up hope and settled for Wendy's at 9:30. The drive through Salt Lake City was really nice and scenic but around 10:30 it got dark so the rest of the drive was less exciting. I spent most of my time trying not to fall asleep and I actually succeeded (thanks to some really great friends who stayed up way too late last night (shout out)). Aunt Susie and I listened to music in the last two hour stretch and she made me the DJ so that was fun.

Moving on to today...we got up this morning and had a nice breakfast and then I took a shower and we got ready for church (we went to the 11 o'clock service). The church service was pretty good, the highlight probably being offertory, in which a man played "It Is Well With My Soul" on the harmonica. It was pretty cool. After church we ran home to get our wallets and we went grocery shopping for about an hour and a half (due to the fact that my cousins and aunt shop at three different grocery stores). Then we went home and ate leftover Indian food (well some of us, Sarah is a vegetarian) because Catherine works at Teton Tiger, and Indian restaurant in town. We had fried rice and it was really good, better than whatever Peking has to offer I'm sure. It had bison in it, and bison is awesome. It's so much better than beef (which the fam doesn't eat by the way). After lunch, Aunt Susie and Catherine left to take back our rental car and I went on a walk by myself. It was really nice: I walked to the Elk Refuge and back. As soon as I got back, Catherine asked me if I wanted to go to Persephone's with her (a little bakery) and I accepted her offer immediately. So, here we are, sitting in Persephone's, me writing a blog and her making a website. I think we are going hiking later on and then tonight we have to take Sarah to Idaho, where she will be working on a farm during the week. It's been an absolutely beautiful day today and I'm excited to hike later. I attached some pics at the bottom to add a little excitement to this otherwise ordinary post.

Signing off,
Emma K. T.

My aunt's neighborhood

Another shot of the hood

I'll get closer to the Tetons later on in the trip :)