June
 2025

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June was unusually hot, with a few thunderstorms thrown in to keep things interesting.  
 
   

Big doings at the Timbers Lodge - we're FINALLY getting a new roof!  It's about 30 
years overdue, but also very pricey so we had to get psyched up for the expense.  
  Rebecca & Bryce came to visit early in the month so Larry hosted us all for a party.  
   

Larry's house is a great place to watch storms come rolling through. 
  This is the newest member of the Casazza family.  Ashley's pretty new puppy Ivory. 
   
Luke is telling them something unbelievable!    Pretty ladies finding a quiet moment in all the hub-bub. Rose, Tracie, Ashley, & Kristi. 
   
Kristi & Rose both have Norwegian ancestors and it shows!   The golfing guys were talking shop on the porch. 
   

I thought it was Casazza men who could fall asleep in any situation, but maybe it's just any
Dad of a toddler!  Caleb shows his talent for catching a rest during some minor chaos.  
  Eric was trying to convince Myla to play the piano with him.  She was skeptical.  
   
Larry was turning 60 at the end of the month, so Rebecca made this into an early party for him. 
Here she just gave him a birthday button. 		 Kids, dogs, and family - all in a pile. 
   
Next we enjoyed a dinner with friends Brian & Jessie, now we're on an after-dinner walk.  It wasn't that warm, but Montana kids will swim in crazy conditions! 
   
   These guys were solving the problems of the world.
   
Kalispell now has 2 Indian food restaurants - woo hoo!  I love Indian food so much, I have to take
a picture every time I have it.  		 One day poor Gunner got stuck in one spot for hours.  He's afraid of water and got himself 
into a place where the only way out was to go into the water, so Eric had to intervene.
   

Trying to protect it from one of the several rain storms we had while they were working.  

FYI, Roof Ops did great work!  
Progress on the lodge roof.  Once the many layers of old roof were removed, then had to 
re-frame the roof and then start adding much-needed insulation.  		  
   
Our annual Scraps-n-Threads quilt guild picnic got rained on, so we moved it indoors.  A big day for me - bridge day!  I wanted a bridge to cross the ditch instead of the plank we've
used for 12 years.  This is the pile of lumber that will become a bridge by the end of the day. 
   
Eric helps wench the giant timbers across the ditch.  It's done!  Now Eric is building me a nice, new gate to go with it.  
   
This shows the new bridge with the old plank in the background.  It's still good for bouncing on!   Beautiful!  This is very useful, I'm so happy with it!  
   
Lovely skies along our walk one day.  A flotilla of geese. 
   

On a walk one day, this elk came out and ran around majestically.  
Twice in June we got very close fly-bys from this strange, motorized thingie.    
   
   
Eric removing a dangerous chunk of twisted metal that had been part
of the ditch for years.  		 The wench wasn't strong enough, but the transmission was! 
 
   

The first shingles are going on!  We splurged on top-of-the-line simulated shake shingles 
and man, do they look nice.  
I'm so happy they made the inlet of the lake so beautiful.  
It could have easily been some kind of ugly pipe or something.  		  
   
 Closer view of the new shingles going on.  Next up - a camping trip with Larry & Lisa.  Someone very kindly left a flannel shirt behind for Buddy.  
   

Buddy realizing that I just caught him begging for handouts.  "It wasn't me!"  
Buddy is ready to assist Eric with any food-related chores.    
   

See how well Lisa fits in?  She's already got the pointing thing down pat!  :-)  

(It's an old family joke, in a photo of any group of Casazzas, one of them will always be pointing at something.)  
 On a little walk down the lakeshore.   
   
Buddy & Oliver found something very interesting to sniff.   Lisa & Larry & Lake Koocanusa.  
   
Happy dog.  A funny tree near our campsite that had a rope swing on it.  Eric tried it, but his butt dragged the ground. 
   
Eric's style is more to climb things anyway.   Buddy is concerned for his safety.  He wants to join but is afraid to.  
   

This is more the kind of thing Buddy likes.  He's the reason I have to bring my 'footstool' chair 
when we go camping.  
Eric called him up there, but he wasn't liking it!    
   

Group selfie before we head back to civilization. 
Buddy, toasting himself by the fire.  
   
Now, out to our beautiful concert venue, Abayance Bay, for Sister Hazel.    I've forgotten the name of the warm-up band, but they were good and started early for a longer set. 
   
This was my third time to see Sister Hazel, they're good every time.   The crowd was really into it too! 
   
At the funeral of dear family friend, Roger Hall.  Normally I wouldn't take a picture at a funeral, but 
during the service, this whole herd of cows came running over, bellering so loud they drowned out
the service.  The crowd couldn't help but laugh.  Roger would have found it funny too I'm sure.  		 Eric spotted this deer with her brand new fawn near our garden one night.
I got my camera out just in time to capture this precious (if blurry) shot. 
   

We used to tease Eric about being "Topo Chico Man" - like he was doing
the advertising for them.  This is Brodie being "Life Straw Man".  
  This is "China Wall" in the Bob Marshall wilderness.  
It is 1,000 feet tall and 20 miles long.  Picture found on Facebook. 
   

Views near Essex, MT, just south of Glacier National Park. 
Next up - family trip to Great Falls, MT.  Five hours away.

The point is to take Rocket to a specialist vet for his 5-year cold.  

  
   
When Rocket would come up front, Buddy needed more space so 
he'd head for the floorboard.  		 More views south of Glacier Park. 
   
Eric fixed Rocket a nice viewing platform using a weighted blanket.  Buddy is never allowed to sit there, but Rocket gets special treatment! 
   
We spent the night at an old friend's house the night before his appointment.  This is his
mountain - it's on his beautiful ranch just west of Great Falls.  		 The guest house, it was gorgeous.  
   
We stayed in the cute little apartment above the garage. It was great to hang out again!   A last look at the ranch as we were leaving the next morning. 
   
After we dropped Rocket off, we had to kill most of the day.  We spent a lot of it at this park, 
Giant Springs state park.  It was a nice place. 		 That area to the left is a natural spring that's been there for hundreds of years.  
   
 Information about Giant Springs. There is also a fish hatchery there, which was highly intriguing for Buddy.  
   

They said that orange one was an albino.
  Buddy, trying to get his mouth on one of them.  
   

On the walking trail in the park. 
  Cool rock formations along the path. 
   

Rocket had a much tougher day than we did.  His arm is bandaged from the IV, his nose
is bloody from the scope.  All we learned that day was how to write a giant check to that vet.  
  Meanwhile, back at home, some elk were cruising past our trail cam. 
   
   We got lots of pictures of coyotes too, but this is the best one.  
   
Hundreds of deer pictures, but this guy did the best job of posing.    
   
   
   
 

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