Sabbath Day

DAY THIRTY:  Today we got up reasonably early so that we could go to church at the Star Valley United Church in Thayne, which we have attended before several times. Pastor Steve Crittenden had left to take a church in Twin Falls, ID last fall, and we had not heard what was happening since, so we were curious to find out the story. Max loves going with us because there is a great play room for kids loaded with really nice toys. But when we got there five minutes before the service was supposed to start, the parking lot was empty. Oh dear! Had they cancelled church? No, a sign on the door indicated that the service would be at 4:30pm this afternoon, but with no indication as to why. We learned later that they have a part-time pulpit supply person who comes down from the Presbyterian Church in Jackson, and thus needs to have the service in the afternoon. We have other things to do this afternoon, but maybe we'll be able to go next Sunday.

So, we came back, but not before stopping in the store in  Etna to get Max some ice cream we promised him. The soft-serve machine was down but they had ice cream sandwiches.

Max picks out his ice cream treat

Then we went to the Family Dollar in Alpine where I got some CD mailers and toothpaste, and Max got a toy - a pirate sword - thank you grandma Ellen!

Max with his new sword. His friend Olivia is in the background

On the way to Alpine we go right by the elk refuge. There were hundreds of elk feeding. What a sight!

Elk feeding

When we got home, it was such a beautiful day that I decided to go for a walk. Ellen's foot hurts so she decided to give it a rest.  There was much to see on my walk. The beauty of the ice at my feet at the roadside:

 Paul's house against the mountains:

 The view from the top of the hill:

 I especially love the color of the willows at this time of year:

In a couple of hours, I'll watch the North Caroline/Iowa State basketball game in the NCAA tournament.  This year, the tournament has been marked by an unusual number of upsets, with lower seeded teams defeating high seeded teams. Perhaps the most stunning was that Mercer U (Macon, GA) defeated Duke, a team many thought could win the championship. Other notable upsets: Dayton defeated Syracuse, Stanford defeated Kansas, and Connecticut defeated Villanova. UNC is a 6th seed, and Iowa State is a 3 seed, so maybe UNC will pull off an upset too!  Go Heels!!