The Williamson Pack: Getting on the Same Page

I thought my next post would be a “recap” of what’s going on around the Williamson home these days. Some of you know all this already, others may not. In October, we bought a house in Corvallis, MT. We both fell in love with the place the moment we went to see it. I was worried, though, that we’d move in and I’d find all these things I didn’t like about the house. On the contrary, I’m finding things I didn’t even consider but love. The house is a 2 bedroom ranch style home built in 1990 but with some well done improvements from the previous owners. It sits on 2.5 acres with a garage, shed and barn. There is a large side pasture and a smaller front pasture as well as some “yard” space. We’ve already done some slight improvements for our own dog needs. Of which we have 7 now. Blue, Kona and Saw (the original gangsters as Cobey likes to call them), Okanogan and Paluk (two sled dogs we acquired from Absaroka Dog Sled Treks), Isis (8 month old) and Tank (14 week old puppy of Paluk’s). Paluk was pregnant when we got her and had 8 puppies in January. We found homes for all, deciding to keep one.

Cobey, Keegan, and I are doing well. I’m still a research scientist (something many of you know I’ve always wanted to be) at the Rocky Mountain Labs, a branch of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Disesases of the NIH. Cobey works in Missoula for the Montana DNRC (Department of Natural Resources and Conservation) as a Wildland Fire Dispatcher. Keegan is almost 15 months and is a movin’ and a grovin’, literally. He loves to parade around the house with things he finds babbling or laughing the entire time. A good friend, Lisa Pintok, got Keegan a little basketball hoop and Cobey has already taught him to slam dunk which he does readily when you say “Keegan, slam dunk!” He also dances. He has some great moves! My personal favorites are the oh-so-subtle head bob to the beat and his gregarious torso twist with head tilted back and an extremely cheesy grin on his face. My words don’t do it justice and the next time I catch him dancing I’ll try and get video of it.

That’s a pretty quick and dirty recap of what we have going on. We’re waiting for spring to come around here; it’s still cold (22°F this morning) but warm days poke up here and there telling us spring is coming. We can’t wait to start planting and improving our smallholding. As Keegan learns new things daily, we will most certainly be posting more soon.