After we left Cody, WY, we went straight west to the small town of Cowley where my grandparents and many other family members live. It is also referred to as "home" by my mother. I love this small little town so much I can't even begin to put it into words. I beg Wes on a near weekly bases to buy me a vacation home there. There is just something about this town that makes you feel so at home and so at peace. I have a thing for small towns, but this one holds a very dear place in my heart! Do you want to know a cool tidbit about the town? Cowley was established and settled by Mormon pioneers under the direction of Brigham Young. It was named after Matthias F. Cowley who was an apostle at the time of it's settlement. When Matthias came to dedicate the town he offered a prayer upon it. In his prayer he stated that all children who were raised in this town will be blessed and bestowed with a great talent in music. - It is true folks. The residents of this town, past and present, bear more musical talent than you could even dream! Because of it's rich Mormon heritage, they too celebrate Pioneer Day, just as Utah does. It is a great excuse for family and friends from all over the country to travel there and reunite. Hence our journey.
The water tower that sits in the center of the town's park.
The town's population grows from just under 600 to several thousand in a matter of 2 days. It's pretty incredible! Many people still refer to it's Pioneer Day as "Cowley Days or Cowley's Day" but it is not very P.C. to do so since several of the surrounding towns all come to participate as they were settled by pioneer as well. Don't make the mistake. Especially if someone from Byron (major rival!) is around!
Wes giving E his breakfast
This town's parade is not complete without these ladies!
Can you can can can?
After the parade all the grandkids dumped out their bags of candy on my grandparents table and had a
sugarfest, which will be pleasing to many dentist's pocketbooks in the near future!
The weekend was full of entertainment, BBQ's and games held in the town's park. We were fed quite well and it was nice to not have to worry about what we were going to cook each night! Sometimes the food was even free!
After the celebrating comes to an end, there was a lot of down time during the week to just relax, take long walks through the town and sit on the porch.
These Tiger Lilies have been coming up every Spring in the front of my grandparent's house for over 60 years.
There are days where I long to be in this exact spot. I get homesick for it and it makes my gut ache. The front porch is one of most favorite places to be and where I spent many hours during this trip.
I don't know if you know this, but Wyoming has some serious fireworks at a really good price. We took full advantage of it. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it, Utah!
Here is the view from my father's cousin's back yard. We stayed with him while we were there. He is like an uncle so I just call him Uncle Wilford instead of 2nd cousin Wilford. I think it's weird calling people "cousin" when they are 35 years older than me. Uncle Wilford owns a very large ranch and is surrounded by nothing but his crops in the fields and large cottonwood trees. Do you know how wonderful it is to leave your bedroom window open at night to feel the crisp air come in and hear NOTHING outside!?
We took Emerson to the park every night during the week, either before or after our walks through the town.
I may have participated in some of the fun.
To be continued. Again......
2 comments:
I don't know why exactly, but when read this section it brought tears to my eyes. I guess it's the "home" thing. I'm here and Mom and Dad aren't. It's too far away.
wow, i am so happy for you!
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