The Knutson Family…back in 1975.

1. Be kind. My mom does not have a mean bone in her body. She treats everyone as though they are her long lost friends, regardless of how long she has known them. You only need to spend a minute with my mom to pick up on this particular trait.
2. Have fun with friends and strangers who are not yet friends. My mom knows how to have a good time. And she loves get-togethers with friends and family, always tending to everyone’s needs and desires. But it’s not only current friends she has fun with, the woman can make herself new friends better than anyone I know. It typically starts with some sort of Griswold moment happening in public, and the next thing you know she’s got a new friend coming to dinner. She knows how to have fun, and how to not take herself too seriously. I think many people are attracted to that quality in her because it makes it so easy, and fun, to be around her.
3.  Be respectful and compassionate. My mom is amazing with both older people and those in need. She is always listening patiently, making sure everyone is feeling included, and ensuring people have what they require. One of the most beautiful things I’ve observed my mom doing is giving my grandfather a foot massage when he was in the hospital nearing the end of his time on earth. She had no hesitation and her only concern was that he was comfortable and cared for.
4. Adapt, make the best of your circumstances, and move on. My mom has had to overcome many obstacles and challenges and has always done a great job at adapting to the situation, making the best of where she was, and moving on. The most recent example I have of this, and one that I am so proud of her for, is adjusting to life after my father passed away. They were married for exactly 40 years when he passed away back in 2006. She had gone from her parents’ home directly to being married to my dad and had never been on her own. I’ve talked to other children of widowed parents, and they have to struggle with their parents moving on. They end up not wanting to do anything, and are very depressed. To say my mom was sad when my dad passed away would be an understatement. He was a tremendous man, husband and father, and it was an incredibly difficult time in her life. At first she relied a lot on other people to do many everyday tasks for her. Now, however, she has become such an independent and strong woman. She is the gal who gets out there and mows the steep hill at her house, and unloads 2 tons of beef into her freezers by herself, or goes gallivanting to Spain or Germany, and volunteers for a week-long shift at the Medora Musical in North Dakota. I greatly admire her for her spirit and her adaptability. No, things are not perfect, but she’s making the best of them and living her life to the fullest!
5. Show your love with food. Quite possibly the thing my mom is most known for is her excellent cooking. She can make these amazing meals, and feed an army of people, while making it look like a walk in the park. She loves food and enjoys making people happy with her delicious concoctions. Many people have been lucky enough to be on the receiving end of her love and the food that comes with it.

I always like to say that Country Pasta is the combination of my dad’s entrepreneurial talents and my mom’s love of cooking. Without one, or the other, I have great doubts that the pasta could ever have reached as many people as it has today. I hope the next time you have Country Pasta, you think of your own mother, and the many amazing traits she has. And know that your next bite is filled with love and lessons, right from the founder.

Wishing my mom, and mothers all over, a memorable day filled with family, love, and delicious food.

~Heather

West Yellowstone Entrance

Arrangements were made, and by arrangements I mean that all the hotels were booked up in West Yellowstone, MT (unless we were willing to fork out $265!) where we would spend our first night. Our choices limited, Heather managed to secure the last KOA Kabin at a campground just outside of West Yellowstone (whew!). For night number two, she finagled a 12×12 tent site near the Grant Village store. Fortunately (we checked) both locations had shower facilities available! For each day in the park, we planned to sample a cold pasta salad at two locations, spending a few hours in each.

Since we were going to rough it in the Park, we spent some time digging up our camping lists, comparing notes and making adjustments. Needless to say, between Heather’s extensive Montana backpacking and hiking experiences and my week-long childhood camping expeditions into the Eagle Cap Wilderness in Oregon- we were over prepared! I won’t include the whole list, but here is a sampling: Can opener, tent, tarp, sleeping bag, pillow (I STILL forgot mine!), bucket for dishes, axe, firewood (no one wants to pay ridiculous prices for a small box of firewood in a park come on), coolers filled with pasta, ice, headlamp, FOOD, bottled water, sampling equipment, gift basket (we gave away a prize), bug spray, lantern, towel (drat, I forgot that too)… and the list goes on!

After taking bets on whether or not my packing skills were up to the task, we stuffed every available nook and cranny of the Nissan Murano full of supplies and took off! After a (mostly) uneventful drive, we arrived in West Yellowstone just about dinnertime. We unpacked what we needed for the night at the KOA Kabin and headed into town to find some vittles. We ended up at a pizza joint in town, full of locals enjoying the sports bar. The Kabin was comfortable, but I can’t remember the last time I slept on the top bunk. Fortunately, I didn’t roll out and hit the floor. In the morning, we feasted on instant oatmeal and steaming hot Tipu’s Chai before packing up and heading to our first store.

Canyon Village was bustling and full of activity by 10 am, and everyone was on a mission! Our little table was next to the cash register and across the aisle from the ice cream, so pasta was a tough sell in this store! We persevered, made some new friends and departed with high hopes for store number two. We stopped to have peanut butter & jelly sandwiches at a beautiful waterfall along the way and got some great pictures. While crossing river to the Fishing Bridge store, we got an up close and personal look at a wandering bison working his way back to the wilderness. Fishing Bridge was an easier place to sample; we set up outside between the two entrances and were able to chat more with folks going in and out. They were also hungrier at this time of day, and we were happier with our results!

Hungry Hikers

That evening we drove to Grant Village, where we would stay the night in our deluxe tent. Being experienced campers, we pitched the tent and started a fire before the temperature dropped. We had been eagerly awaiting the chance to try Hungry Hiker’s Beef Stroganoff (they of course use Country Pasta). So we tore open the package, followed the directions, and enjoyed a delicious hot meal! After dinner and dishes, okay just one dish, we enjoyed s’mores over the campfire and planned our attack on the next 2 stores. After a chilly, semi-comfortable night listening to the neighbors, morning brought welcome warmth and purpose.

The next event was scheduled for 10 A.M. in Grant Village’s store. We gave out many samples to excited customers and learned several interesting tidbits about the park from the folks who return each summer to work there. We even heard a story about a sleepy bison who loved to spend the night just outside the door to a store employee’s RV. She would routinely call in to work explaining that she would arrive after the bison got up for the day!

Moving to our final location was very exciting, since we would be setting up at the largest Old Faithful store. This store has two levels, and was wall-to-wall people for the entire 3 hours we were there! We sampled to folks who had traveled from all the way from Israel to vacation in the Park. We met folks who had used our products for years, as well as many people who had never heard of Country Pasta. Near the end of the afternoon, Heather was kind enough to hold down the fort while I watched Old Faithful in person (for the first time). What a sight!

When we served ourselves out of a job, we packed our supplies (and souvenirs) in to the car one last time and prepared for the drive back to Polson. It was agreed that we should reflect on our time in Yellowstone while enjoying Montana-made Wilcoxson’s ice cream, available upstairs in the Old Faithful store. We had a memorable trip, and it was an exciting opportunity that I am glad we were able to participate in. As we drove out of the park toward West Yellowstone and home, we tallied the license plates we had seen on our short 2 day visit. The results are surprising we counted plates from 45 states and 4 Canadian provinces. What a trip!!

Check out our slideshow for the highlights including Old Faithful!

Melinda and Heather

We want to extend a HUGE thank you to everyone who helped support this year’s Live Locally event!! Whether you donated prizes, time and talent, food, support, money, best wishes or just your smiling face-you are appreciated! This race was the best attended ever and Melinda is overwhelmed with the community spirit and generosity (so are we!!). Let’s keep her in our thoughts and continue to help her reach her goal: London 2012. We think she can make it :-)

Hats and bracelets are still for sale at Health Care Plus. All proceeds go to Melinda to help with the continued costs of training and travel.

Click on the link to check out your times… 2011 LIVE LOCALLY RESULTS
See you all next year!!
Enjoy…