Montana Clouds

Havre, Montana-We're here.

So we're here in Havre and have been for a couple of weeks. Seemed like it took forever to get settled and also settling in the two Elders in the basement (who, by the way, are very nice and quite interesting young men). We like the house. Well, at least I do. Dad/Dennie hates the fact it doesn't have a shower in our bathroom. Also the fact that the bathroom is across the kitchen from our bedroom and not in our room. Guess we're spoiled. We do have a huge walk-in closet in our bedroom that use to be a room. No, not quite as big as yours Leah! I'm sending some pics of the house. The members here have been so good to donate all the furnishings for us and the Elders. We have everything we need now except for a few things like night stands and a few more chairs. Nothing essential. 

Like I said we took a long time to set up housekeeping but last week we got around to some missionary work, or re-activating work. We met several people, visiting and people dropping by with donations, and then Sunday we met a bunch more. So many that it's really hard to remember who's who. We're both equally bad at names. Dad's a little better with face recognition and I think I'm a little better at directions around town. (And I have to remind him at every blind intersection, of which there are many.) 

The landscape around here is beautiful. It's kind of amazing that I like it since I'm not too fond of the desert. Well, I do like the desert if there are mountains, mesas or wildflowers. But around here the landscape's very wide and as they say, it's big sky country. Right around here there are some rolling hills and odd coulees (washes or gullies, we've learned). So it's not really desert, although there aren't too many trees, aside from the towns. We also have the Milk River which is crazy winding, crooked. Look it up on the internet. The trees are all turning but the leaves are falling fast, with the wind. It's not cold yet. In fact we're sometimes surprised when we go outside in the morning because it's warmer outside than in. 

Havre is a big railroad town. I'll send pictures of that too. I love the sound of the train whistles. We're just about the right distance away for it to be a good sound. Not so close that it jars us awake at night! We drove down by the railyard (don't know if that's the right word but it sounds like it might be? Or train yard?) today and I love the sound of the coupling of the cars and just the train sounds. 

Accross the tracks is North Havre. We visited an Indian woman named Red Elk over there Sunday. We went there last week but she was not home but her boyfriend, Roasting Stick, was. Yes, interesting names! So far we've met several Indians and they are really nice. Guess we are going to be meeting a lot more of them since we'll be helping a couple who've been called on a service mission to try and re-activate the Indians on the Rocky Boy Reservation. There are over 100 on the membership rolls for Havre. This couple, the Quinns, have a 4,000 acre organic wheat farm in Big Sandy and they grow Kamut, an ancient variety of wheat. He goes all over the world finding markets for it and land to grow it on in other countries. He says he can't keep up with the demand in places like Italy and around that area. Very nice people. 

So far we just love the people here. But I still miss Harlowton. This is more big city, although it's population is only around 9300. 

I don't want this too be too long so I'll quit for now and send the pictures. 

We love you all. Write if you can. Thanks, Krause girls, and Shelbo kids, for writing!!  Oh, and Cally for writing me an email!!! Am I forgetting anyone? Of course some of you older ones have emailed and thanks for that, too.

Love, Mom and Dad, Brother and Sister Jacobsen, Dennie and Becky