A Few Pictures from Recent Months

First there was pie baking!

Then a wedding!

(Showing off my custom boots that were made for the wedding. More about that later!)

 

Followed by an amazing reception in our backyard (the orchard)

Off for a honemeymoon!  Into Seattle and...

Down the coast we went!

Back to the grind with one of our many harvests.



Chickens getting so big!

And a double yolker to boot, what productive girls!

A happy dog in his new house!

 

 

Bottle babies no longer on bottles, just growing like weeds!

My first ever trip to balloon fiesta!

An amazing experience!

What in the world has been going on?!?

To say that things have been busy would be the understatement of the century.  I am well aware it has been MONTHS since I have written but I haven’t forgot!  If I posted as much as I think about posting this would be filled with updates multiple times a day!  So, shall I begin with a brief summary of life as of late?

1.        I got married!  The wedding was the most fabulous and best day of my life.  Everything went perfect (in my eyes at least).  We were married in the small country church that we attend and had the reception in our backyard.  Which also happens to be in the middle of the pecan orchard.  We had a massive tent in which we sat 250 of our closest friends, a dance floor and food that was fit for a king.  It was very important to us to contribute and make the wedding something of our own.  We both feel we succeed in that.  We served rib-eyes that came from cattle I help produce, squash from our garden, potatoes that one of the groomsmen grew, rolls that some of the ladies from church made from scratch, different flavors of roasted pecans from the orchard, cake made from a wonderful friend and pecan pies made by my family and the ladies from our church and the area.  The food was to die for.  With me being from so far away I had expected that the turnout of my friends and family might be lacking due to the expenses and hassles of travel.  WOW am I a blessed gal!  We had friends and family from all areas of the country!  If I remember correct we had 10+ states represented at the wedding.  The outpouring of love from our friends and family was overwhelming.  We are loving married life and having fun joining our lives together!

2.       Big gardens produce LOTS of food.  We have been overrun with produce from our garden all summer and it is wonderful!  While the hubs and I were on our honeymoon my parents stayed out the house to look after all the animals, etc.  They stayed busy by putting up corn.  They put up (prepared and froze) almost 200 bags of corn.  The measured out each bag in different amounts so if we need 1 cup, 2 cups, etc. to cook with we can just grab it from the freezer!  The best part of it?  They wrote notes to us on almost all the bags.  Besides corn we had an extreme over abundance of squash/zucchini for a long time.  Then it moved into the pepper stage.  We are still harvesting peppers as a matter of fact.  We planted from seed directly into the garden and it turned out to work great.  Maybe even to great.  We eat peppers in everything now.  The one thing I want to have more of next year is onions.  I still had to buy a lot of onions so I would like to remedy that.

3.       Flowers worked!  I planted a row of different kinds of flowers in the garden and they grew and made me so happy!  We had a large variety of sunflowers, xenias and a few varieties of marigolds to help keep bugs away.  I am usually not a fan of marigolds but we had multiple varieties that were so joyous!  Some grew as tall as 3 feet and had blooms the size of baseballs!  They bloomed ALL summer and most of the fall and were one of my favorite things we had.  Another success I had was I got a few blue bonnets to come up!  It was kind of a joke planting them but it worked!   If I had done better in the weed control department it would have gone a lot better but now I know for next year!

4.       The chickens are laying!  We had a few chicken casualties but our numbers are still strong and they are really getting down to business laying eggs.  They started slow with just 3 or 4 eggs a day but production is in full swing and I am now getting at least a dozen and a half a day.  We are being overrun with eggs!  I can only make so many angel food cakes from scratch (which take a dozen egg whites) and the dogs are starting to run away when I bring out the eggs because they don’t want to eat anymore either. 

5.       Moving is a hassle.  Combining 2 houses is not easy.  This has probably been one of the biggest consumers of time.  I have moved in with the hubs into his new (2011) but established house with all my “treasures” and making it all go together is a task.  We are slowly making progress and everyday it gets better and better!

So really a list of 5 things is a pretty sorry excuse for why we have been busy but let me tell you it has been insane.  Combine the above with working 80+ hours, involvement in the community, taking on new work endeavors, traveling for various events/functions and trying to live life makes for a busy time!  I am confident that things are going to continue to settle and life will take more of a regular tone.  I can’t wait to post more about what we have been up to!

Did I Forget to Mention?

Did I forget to mention that I bring baby calves home in my car?  They like to look out the windows and watch the world go by.  Diesel is way to high to drive my truck to take home these little cherubs.

This little gal was especially curious.

Did I also forget to mention that I am getting married to this guy in less than 2 months?  I am just a teeny weeny bit excited!



Honcho the Unlucky Dog

I have a Jack Russell Terrier named Honcho.  He is a chubby mess and I love him to pieces.  Honcho has had some unlucky moments in the last few months.  The poor guy just can’t seem to catch a break.  A few months ago Honcho had a sudden disappearance.  We could not find him anywhere.  He has been staying down at the orchard with Michael so he can run and play and be a dog all day long.  Michael called and said he couldn’t find him.  I went down and looked and couldn’t find him anywhere either.  We looked everywhere.  And then we looked some more.  He was still nowhere to be found.  The next day he still had not been discovered and I was going hoarse from calling for him so much.  I continued my search to no avail.  Michael has a hill built up around his water pressure tank for his house so I thought I would crawl to the top so I could have a lookout point in search of my 10 inch tall white dog.  I climbed to the top and realized that the lid was open on the access door.  For some odd reason I looked in and wouldn’t you know, there was Honcho staring up at me wondering where I have been!  He was within 30 feet of the front door of the house the entire time!  He must have barked so much when he first fell in that he couldn’t bark anymore for us to find him.  Thank goodness we found the sweet little guy!

                This past weekend Honcho went missing again.  He had been spending lots of time out with Blue and the babies so we thought he may have been out there.  We looked all afternoon and evening on Saturday to no avail.  I was getting nervous.  With the disappearance of two other dogs of the family I had the worst in the back of my mind.  Sunday the search continued.  Michael decided it was time to start thinking like the dog – what space could he possibly get stuck in?  That’s what always happens with him so why would this time be any different?  He checked the water tank house and no Honcho.  Suddenly it dawned on Michael – we had been moving around and unloading the trailer Saturday afternoon and he kept running in and out of it.  Off Michael went to the trailer parked by Blue and the horses.  He peeked in and what did he find looking up at him innocently? Honcho!  How this dog is so unlucky to get trapped everywhere I do not know.  I am thinking I need to get an orange bike flag like little kids get and tie it to him so we can always keep track of him.  This little guy is going to get into some serious trouble his he doesn’t start watching out for himself!  Thank goodness he was found because I am not sure I could take losing another dog!

Cheese Making

We sold all of our baby calves on Saturday so we have had Blue (the milk cow) giving us lots of milk with no babies for it to go to.  I have started drinking it like it is going out of style but there is no way I could ever keep up.  I finally got to give a go at cheese making and I had a blast!  Saturday I made one batch of mozzarella and it was good although I forgot to add the salt and it desperately needed it.  I got to try it again on Sunday and made two batches and they were like heaven in the form of cheese!  They were simply amazing!  With the whey from the mozzarella I also made ricotta.  Another delicious and creamy treat!  With the extra whey we have been able to feed it back to the dogs and the horses.  It is a wonderful source of protein so it is a big addition to their diet!

For a mother’s day treat for Michael’s mom we made a special supper for her.  I have never been able to make a supper like this and am proud to say it was pulled off well.  I used the fresh mozzarella and ricotta in lasagna.  The lasagna had both ground pork and ground beef in it so I was able to use beef that I got from work, another fresh product!  The lasagna turned out to be the best lasagna ever.  I cannot put into words that flavors that erupted from this dish.  The cheese truly and honestly made a difference in the entire dish.  We had a green salad with leaf lettuce from our garden and topped in with pecans that Michael had grown.  We slipped in canned pineapple and garlic bread that was not sources from us but it was necessary to compliment out the meal.  For dessert Michael got out peaches that he had froze last year and we drizzled them with fresh cream from Blue.  Once again, words can’t describe these flavors.  We were so proud of our meal and it was even more special because it was truly appreciated by all that shared the table.  I have 8 more gallons of fresh milk waiting for me at home tonight so I better get to some more cheese making!

                                             The table set and ready for everyone to "sit up"

The amazing lasagna - I can't wait to make it again!

The Milk Cow

We got a milk cow.  She is fabulous.  She is a beautiful Holstein.  She doesn’t have a name yet but I am working around the clock to come up with the perfect name that fits her just right.  I have never milked a cow before but in the 9 days we have owned her I am getting plenty of lessons.  We got her so we can use her milk to feed the baby calves.  So far it has worked well.  The babies have taken a hard hit.  We brought one in that brought some kind of sickness and it spread to the others.  They seem to be over the sickness but are now dealing with the weather change.  It was 100 degrees last week and the week before and now this week it hasn’t even reached 70 degrees.  The temperature changes are very hard for these babies to handle since they are so fragile.  Hopefully they all pull through this.  We have been getting lots of extra milk and so the dogs have been benefiting greatly.  They each get a bowl of fresh milk every morning and every evening.  Their condition is rapidly improving, even though it wasn’t poor in the first place.  We are also going to be drinking some of it.  Michael has tried it but I have not yet.  Michael grew up with his family owning a milk cow so he is used to this process and also drinking fresh milk.  He says it has a very different taste.  I can’t wait to try it!  I also plan to make a go at cheese making.  I am going to start with mozzarella.  There are so many great adventures ahead!

                Yesterday I did our first lettuce harvest.  I was so nervous I would pick it all (it’s leaf lettuce) but when I got done I couldn’t even tell I had picked any!  I made a balsamic vinaigrette from scratch and added pomegranate crasins and walnuts to the salad.  It was delicious!  I had never made my own salad dressing before but I loved it!  My recipe was:

                ½ cup balsamic vinegar

                ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

                A spoonful of canned chopped garlic

                2 Teaspoons white sugar

                Some Salt

                Some Fresh Ground black peppers

I put it in a jar, sealed it tight, shook it like crazy and drizzled it over the salad.  I love it paired with the crasins and walnuts.  I can’t wait to eat more for lunch today!  I paired the salad with fresh grilled asparagus (prob. The last harvest of the year), rice pilaf and grilled chicken that I marinated in Italian salad dressing.  It was a light supper but oh so filling!

Enjoy some pictures of our new milk cow!

Three of the babies milking with Honcho the dog watching very close.

Look at that stud working those udders like a champ!

A Lesson Learned

Although posts have been limited activity on the funny farm has remained elevated.  Yesterday I learned a good lesson.  I was trying to clean up my house because with all the activity lately it has not gotten hardly any attention.  I had been gone over the weekend and had left Yellow Cat at my house to fend for herself and mouse around.  Since she has been feeling better she has really started mousing so I didn’t want to interrupt her hunting schedule by taking her somewhere while I was fone.  Anyway, in my cleaning process I cleaned out the litter box and was excited that it wasn’t very dirty or smelly!  I really hate that job!  Anyway, basking in light litter glory I continued to clean. When I got to the fireplace I noticed an odd smell.  I started to look around for it and realized there was an ashy white powder on the floor and on the hearth.  I thought this was sort of weird.  The more I studied I realized that this was truly coming from the fireplace.  I haven’t had a fire in there since January or February so there should have been no reason to have any ash activity.  Boy was I wrong!  After further investigation I found that Yellow Cat really made herself feel at home and decided that the fireplace, with all that lovely soft ash, would make a great litter box.  HOW GROSS!  I hadn’t been in a rush to clean out the ashes in there because…. Well, there was no reason to at that point!  So, I had planned for a good hearted attempt yesterday to clean the house and I ended up having to totally clean out the fire place due to Yellow Cat’s confusion.  How is it that all these weird things happen to me?  Why can’t I just get a normal pet that does normal pet things!??!  Anyway, I suppose I learned my lesson, always clean out the fireplace after your last fire of the year!

Bottle Calves

I am happy to report that all the babies are doing well so far and we have acquired another one.  This time it is a solid black bull calf.  He seems to the be the strongest eater we have had yet and he needed the least amount of help nursing from the bottle.  The heifers we really had to help get them started nursing by getting the nipple in their mouth and then squeeze on their mouths to get the suction started.  We had to do that for about a day and a half on Blackie and 3 or 4 days with Red.  So far, bull calf has needed no help at all!  Below is a picture of Blackie meeting Ace.

                I had a funny moment last Friday as I was talking to my dear friend Meghan as I was headed over to feed the bottle calves.  We finished a great conversation and I said I had to run because the babies were crying for supper.  She laughed and said, “Wow how our lives have changed!  I am leaving from supper at a bar in Boston and you are going to feed cattle!”  I have reflected on this a lot since then.  It makes me laugh every time I think of it.  It also makes me think of how many different paths there are in life.  I never thought this would be the life I would live but I love every second of it.  I always thought I would be right along there with Meghan and my other friends that I grew up with being young socialites in the city and someday settling down in the suburbs to raise my 2.5 children in my white picket fenced yard.  When I was little I told my mom I wanted a job where I could wear “click-clack” shoes when I grew up and my dreams have come true.  My cowboy boots go click-clack every time I wear them.  Although this is not the same click-clack we imagined (I thought it would be high heels) I wouldn’t change it for the world.

                On that note, I am off to feed calves, chickens, dogs, horses, the cat and the fiancé.  Have a great Tuesday!

Living on the Funny Farm

There has been so much activity lately that I can’t even think straight let alone make myself write for the blog so I apologize for the huge gap in news.  To start off I have some sad news that our dog Gabby has disappeared.  She has been my family’s dog for years and when my parents moved overseas she came to live with me.  Sadly, I think some predator or something may have gotten her.  We have had a lot of fox sightings recently and also coyotes roam the area frequently.  On the bright side my life has been filled with many other animal adventures and distractions.  Tulip, Michael’s bulldog has been getting chewed alive by Buster, the Boston Terrier pup.  He plays plenty hard and she doesn’t care but she was looking really tough so she made the move from Michael’s house and the pecan orchard over to my house for some R&R.  The barn cat, Yellow Cat, also got into a scuffle with an unknown creature and has been in poor shape for weeks.  We finally brought it to my house to recuperate and it has gotten so much better.  It also helped taking it to the vet for some more formal TLC.  Hopefully before long she can move back out to the orchard.

This past weekend my chickens arrived.  There are two groups, some larger than the others.  The oldest were born on or around March 29 and the other group was born on or around April 12.  They are so cute!  There are also SO many of them!  With being so small they have to be taken care of and watched pretty close so the solution for that was they have moved into my house.  They live in different sized large Rubbermaid containers in one of my spare bedrooms.  Let me tell you, they are fun but make racket all night!  Their chirps are cute and the babies sleep a lot but the bigger ones do not!  The bigger lot will move outside to the chicken house this weekend.  It is time for them to go!  With a bulldog, an injured cat and 25+ chickens my house is getting a little crazy. 

To add to the madness I have also gotten 2 bottle calves.  One is about 4 days old now and the other was just born yesterday.  These calves are very hard to care for and their chance of survival is sadly not very good.  However, I am doing my best to keep them going!  They get bottle fed twice a day with milk replacer and a colostrum supplement.  They are about the cutest things ever.  I am not naming them until they are at least a week old because I want to be realistic  about the situation.  They are doing so well though!  The older one is especially looking great.  She is a big heifer calf that eats like an elephant (If you would let her) and is already drinking water out of a bucket.  She even comes when I call her.  The younger one was born a little premature and is defiantly going to have a bigger hill to climb.  I just got her yesterday afternoon but so far she took a bottle last night and had one again this morning.  As long as she keeps eating like that things should stay positive!  It also helps that Michael is experienced in all of this.  On day 2 with the older calf she got sick.  The stress of the move and everything gave her a cough and a runny nose.  Michael was able to treat her twice though and the next day she was 100 times better.  We were a little more proactive on the younger and treated her right when she got to the house so hopefully we stay ahead of her and her very likely poor health. 

All of this combined with a visit from my mom, wedding planning, a full time job, church activities, a garden the size of Rhode Island and 4 horses to care for I am pretty darn pooped out.  Thank goodness tomorrow is Saturday!  We have an LWML (Lutheran Women’s Missionary League) rally so that will be a fun morning of fellowship and Bible study!  After that it is back to work with more garden planting and finalizing the chicken coop for move in!   It seems as though my life is quickly transforming into a funny farm/future petting zoo and I love it! 

Gardening Season

Gardening season is inching closer and closer and things are really starting to pull together in my neck of the woods.  This past weekend Michael and I installed irrigation for our garden.  We may have gotten a bit ambitious on this garden but I am really looking forward to it.  Our garden measures 300’x25’.  Yes, I know, that is a 7,500 square foot garden.  Yes, I know that we will be able to feed a small nation shall it be successful.  But why not!?! We have the space, time and energy (right now that is).  We will be providing a good amount of food for our wedding reception so it will come in handy.  Half of the garden will go towards my favorite food on Earth – corn.  Anyone who knows me knows I can consume corn like it is about to disappear off the face of the earth.  The other 3,750 square feet will go towards traditional garden items likes tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, peppers (many different kinds), carrots, peas, lettuce, eggplant and about a million more seed packs that are sitting on my dining room table.  We have started some seeds inside and they are looking great.  Really spreading their “wings” in the grow container we have them in.  I will also be putting in some flowers because a little color and beauty never hurt anyone!  I am not 100% sure on planting in this region but from what most people say it sounds like we can really take action after Easter.  It seems to be the “safe time” to get things in the ground. 

                Last night I made an eggplant and beef pie that was pretty tasty.  We bought the eggplant so we could eat it and also extract some of the seeds for planting.  We also did the same with some interesting looking tomatoes from the grocery store.  (I am not a tomato eater so I just encouraged them because of their weirdness.)  I had never had eggplant in this form and I loved it.  The texture was just right and it worked well with the beef and spices.  I just had one issue and it was that I shorted it on the sauce it needed because I ran out of supplies.  Overall, it was a good, filling eat. 

                Enjoy the pictures below of my recent happenings!

 Ace - The Newest Addition to the Family - Out for a ride on Sunday.  Poor guy was scared of the camera and ready to jump - hence the spread/crooked front legs.

Standing towards the end of the garden.  Can you see to the other end?

After a long day of running and chasing birds Honcho needed to watch some T.V. to unwind.

Brittney Spears

Have I mentioned before that I have a horse named Brittney Spears?  Well, as embarrassed as I am to say it, I do.  I did not pick out this name and have tried to change it many times but I can’t seem to find one that sticks.  Many times when people ask how many horses I have they also ask what their names are.  I must admit I am sometimes embarrassed to having Brittney Spears so I make up another name.  This has got to stop though, she must have a name!  I think I may be fighting a losing battle though because the name Brittney Spears seems to be sticking really well.  I have owned her for over a year now and she lives at the feedlot.  The pen riders use her to ride the pens and check for sick cattle.  She also gets used when they are shipping cattle.  When I bought her I DID NOT need another horse but I felt bad for her.  She had a really poor shoeing job done on her feet and it made her unable to walk for months.  A really sad deal so I convinced the owner that I needed her because she could be my new English horse when she got better.  She is a tall lanky thoroughbred so I thought she would be perfect for jumping, etc.  That is all a great plan but after a year and a half she still hasn’t left the feedlot.  She does well and gets ridden enough to warrant her stay.  The winter has been a little tough on her so she doesn’t look as nice as she has in the past but hopefully this nice spring weather and getting ridden more will help that out.  This weekend is going to be a horse cleanup weekend.  It is supposed to be 80+ degrees out every day so it will be perfect to getting all of the clan looking better.  I can’t wait to spend some time out in the sun and beautiful weather!  Have a great weekend!

A BIG Day

Today is officially a BIG day.  I meet this afternoon to get something I have been wanting for years.  Today I meet with a custom book maker.  Michael and I will make a 2 hour trek to the “big city” where I will have my foot fitted  and measured for a pair of cowboy boots for the wedding.  I am so excited I can barely hold myself together.  The place I am going to has been making boots for 4 generations and has even made boots for famous cowboy, Gene Autry.  I have a pretty good idea of what I would like them to look like but also want to leave some of it up to the professionals.  I can’t wait until July 28^th – the wedding day – to wear them with my dress!  I’m sure there is lots of other news that I should be filling you in on since I haven’t written in so long but really, all I can think about is boots so you will have to wait to be caught up on the latest happenings! Have a great weekend!

Spring Chicken Order

This week I had the excitement of placing my spring chicken order.  I don’t have much experience with chickens because well, look at my background.  My mom, a teacher, hatched them with her class one year and that was the most I have been around them.  Looking at all the pretty pictures and reading the descriptions of different breeds was fun and made for some wild ideas.  I still don’t have my chicken coop finished but the plan is in place.  I have a human sized doll house that will soon be home to the ladies I have ordered.  I think they will love it!  It is at my house but since the chickens will live at Michael’s I still need to move the doll house and make it chicken ready.  The pressure is now on since we have an estimated arrival date!  The first date being later this month and the second shipment coming the middle of April.  I ordered a total of 28 chicks.  There are 11 varieties total.  I am a fan of the buff colored chickens so many are buff in color.  I also ordered some that lay blue/green/purple colored eggs.  I simply can’t wait for the arrival of the chicks!  Later this spring we hope to get some for butchering but these will be layers and I am counting down the days until their arrival!  Wish me luck in the chicken department!

 Some Examples of all natural colored eggs - they really come in these colors naturally from the chicken!

Buff Rocks - One of the breed I ordered

Buff Laced Polish - Another breed I ordered.  It wears a rather comical "hat"!

Fabric Buying in Abu Dhabi

The quilt guild I go to is well underway for the year and of course, I am behind.  By behind I mean I have nothing done.  While in Abu Dhabi I was able to buy fabric for this project, I suppose that puts me one step closer!  Our theme this year is Asian blocks which I am not a huge fan of.  I am finding through the show and tell every month that the fabric you use can totally change the block.  With the fabric I have seen the other ladies use it either looks totally “Asian” style or not even close.  With that being said I was trying to stay away from the traditional Asian style fabric.  In Abu Dhabi there seems to be a fabric store on every corner and I couldn’t resist going in any longer.  My mom and I sent the boys packing (To pick up handmade tailored shirts that Michael had made) and we went to the fabric store.  Interestingly enough, it is all men that work at the fabric stores.  I don’t think I could pay a man enough money in the U.S. to spend 12 hours a day 6 days a week to be surrounded by fabric!  In the store when you find a fabric you like you point to it and they pull the bolt down for you to look at.  When they pull it down they also spread it out all over the counter top.  When you walk by the stores you sometimes see mountains of fabric stacked high with disapproving women making judgments of it.  Frequently the women just walk out with these men left to refold and stack all that fabric and they won’t even buy any!  I would feel guilty and at least buy a little bit if I were them… Anyway, back to my buying experience!  Mom and I spotted a great set of fabric that had paisley all over it.  Very beautiful.  We had those pulled and I instantly fell in love.  My love affair continued as bolt after bolt of fabric covered in paisley was brought out.  There was 1 gentleman that had a great eye and almost everything he pulled I liked and it worked with the collection.  The other helper, not so much.  There was a clear theme going on and he continued to pull opposite colors or totally different patterns.  I give him an A for effort but sadly had to reject all his recommendations.  I left the store with 10 – 15 different prints, all beautiful!  I can’t wait to see what they will look like in this quilt!  Hopefully in the next few days I have the chance to start working on the quilt and put these beautiful textiles to work.  I think that through the fabric selection it will 100% change the look of the quilt and only someone that is a block/pattern connoisseur will be able to recognize that I have used an Asian style block for the quilt!

Surprise Weekend Away

                This weekend I was treated to a great surprise.  Michael whisked me away for the ski trip he had given me for Christmas!  I worked Saturday morning and after work gathered my bag and we got on the road.  Our first stop was the blue hole which is by Santa Rosa, New Mexico.  I had never been to this site but had witnessed the billboards along the highways for many, many miles.  The blue hole wasn’t nearly as large as I imagined it to be, or not nearly as blue but regardless it was a neat site.  It was packed with scuba divers working on different levels of certification or skills courses.  The water was fresh and I think I will put it on my list of places I need to go to cool off this summer!  Next we continued on to Las Vegas, New Mexico to eat at a great Mexican restaurant that has some of the best green chili salsa and sauces I have ever tasted.  We then moseyed to Montezuma, NM to see the hot springs and beautiful castle that was built by the railroad to entertain guests.  There are many beautiful houses in Las Vegas that do not fit the typical adobe style houses and buildings of the area.  When Las Vegas was a large railroad town people moved in from the east and their style of architecture followed them.  When driving through these neighborhoods it hardly feels like you are in New Mexico!  After that we worked towards our final destination of Taos!  It was my first time to Taos and I loved it!  We stayed at a great motel that fit the New Mexico style, served chocolate chip cookies on arrival and had great clean rooms and friendly staff.  We arrived a little after dinner time and we weren’t that hungry so we headed out in search of good beer.  We made it to Eske’s Beer Pub.  They brew their own beer and we got to sample 7 of their brews.  My favorite was called the Dead Presidents Cherry Ale (or something like that – it tasted so good but dulled my memory slightly).  I do not like fruit flavored beer but this was pleasant and beckoned for more.  Their most peculiar tasting was the green chili beer.  It smelled and tasted amazingly, just like green chilies.  It was as though instead of squeezing in lime juice someone swapped it for pepper juice.  It was even spicy which tricked my head because usually I will take a drink of beer to calm the heat down but this time it didn’t help at all!  After that we headed over to the Taos Inn which happened to have a live swing band playing.  They had 4 band members and all were talented and entertaining.  The crowd and atmosphere were equally as great.  Everyone was up on their feet jumping and jiving to the upbeat and infectious music, Michael and myself included.  It was a great way to spend a Saturday night and we thoroughly enjoyed a night out on the town!

                Sunday was set aside for skiing at Taos.  What a day it was.  The weather was great, about 45 degrees and sunny.  It wasn’t too crowded and the people that were there were friendly and polite.  I haven’t skied in about 8 years (with the exception of in Dubai about a week and a half ago!) so it was a rather slow day for me.  I am proud to say that I only fell once and it was when I was standing still at the bottom of the mountain (very embarrassing)!  We skied all day and then headed on the long road home (actually it doesn’t take that long but after skiing all day it sure feels like it!)  I got home and found out I got a great souvenir of a killer sunburn.  Apparently the sunscreen in my moisturizer wasn’t enough  to handle the high altitude, strong sun and reflective snow.  I wore sunglasses and a hat so I have pale eyes and about an inch and a half of a pale forehead and the rest of me about as red as a fresh cooked lobster.  Needless to say, I have gotten many looks as I have been around work and town today!  Regardless it was well worth it for the great weekend I had! 

Spring Fever!

I’ve got spring fever! It has been beautiful out lately of you can ignore the wind.  Where I live that is nearly impossible.  It has blown everyday this week at least over 30 mph (topped out at high 40s from what I have heard).  That is 4 straight days of crazy wind!  BUT today, it is finally calm.  It is cooler today, only mid 50’s but it is still gorgeous!  It makes me want to go out and do everything and anything outside!  I want to walk the dogs, work on the yard, ride my horse Hooker, work with my horse Dexter, take a nap in the hammock and… you get the idea.  Now all I need to do is find more hours in the day!  I am so happy that it is Friday and with the exception of having to work a half day tomorrow I have a free weekend!  Happy Friday!

40 Bags in 40 Days

The following post should have gone  up yesterday but internet problems kept that from happening...

     Today is the first day of lent.  Many people have the practice of giving something up for the lent season, 40 days.  Some pick alcohol, others chocolate, unhealthy foods or bad habits.  I have never given anything up for lent. It was not something we practiced in my family or the church I grew up in.  This year is different though.  While visiting Florida my Aunt Lisa said she was going to do “40 bags in 40 days.”  Every day you collect a bag and throw it away, give it away or donate it.  I have been wanting to de-clutter for… years.  This year and this time period is a great time to do it.  As lent is a time to prepare us for the crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord and Savior what a great time for me to clear my life of unnecessary objects and prepare not only my heart but my home and surroundings for this time of year. 

                In addition I suppose there are other motives behind it.  With getting married this summer I will be moving out of my house and into Michael’s after our wedding.  As anyone who knows me is aware, I have tons of “stuff.” And it is exactly that, just stuff.  A smile comes to my face as I think of my house and garage without these useless items that complicate my habitat.  So, today it begins.  My first bag of 40.  My starting place today will be my car – wish me luck, it is a large undertaking for the first day!

Arabian Adventures

What an amazing adventure I have returned from!  My great trip to the United Arab Emirates did not disappoint!  I can’t wait to share all my stories of what I got to see and do while I was gone.  In the mean time though I believe it is time to rest.  My body is so confused with what time it is. I actually did really well by arriving home about 4 PM yesterday, stayed awake for awhile and fell asleep around 6 PM, little did I know that it would be for the long haul.  I slept until 3 AM today and woke up bright eyed and bushy tailed.  Thank goodness I eventually fell back asleep and slept up until my alarm at 5:30ish.  When I walked into work today I had not felt that rested in ages.  It was fabulous.  I have felt great all day and only as evening draws near am I starting to feel the wear of the trip.  I think tonight I will do a little sewing in preparation for quilt guild tomorrow, eat some macaroni and cheese, read a book and fall asleep on the couch with the Bachelor playing in the background.  Sounds like an amazing night doesn’t it!?  More soon to come on the trip details!

Bonfire Weekend

     Saturday was a colorful day for me.  The day started with an adventure to the sheep and goat sale.  I hadn’t been to this sale before but it was as entertaining as I imagined it would be.  It was jammed packed with people and very few were spectators, most were buying! They started with pigs but we missed those.  They sold the sheep and goats in small groups or solo.  I saw many that I had to restrain not to buy!  I plan on getting sheep this spring so knowing my sheep buying time was yet to come kept me from feeling so bad.  We were definitely the minority at the sale but we all had the same end goal, a delicious dinner. 

                After the sale (we didn’t stay for the cattle so we left about 11:30) we grabbed a good lunch. I had a Philly steak sandwich that was amazing.  One of the best I have ever had.  After that I stopped by work to check in and then went back home for a quick nap.  It sure was quick because Michael and I had to get ready for our Saturday night entertainment.  Michael has been pruning all his trees and has been needing to burn brush so we had people over for a bonfire.  We cooked ribs, made ramen-noodle coleslaw, baked beans that we cooked outside using the dutch oven and other grill-out type foods.  It was cold and windy but once it started to get dark the wind died down and we could start the fire.  This wasn’t any old little fire, this was a monster.  Michael used his tractor to pile brush about 15 – 20 feet high and about 20 feet in diameter.  It was then topped dressed with diesel to really get it going.  The guys told the girls that they needed to use diesel because the wood was so wet it wouldn’t have started well without it.  You can make your judgments on that statement but I think they just wanted an excuse to have a roaring fire quicker.  It sure didn’t take long for it to really get going.  We tried roasting marshmallows for s’mores but didn’t have much success.  The fire was so hot even with 10 foot sticks it was hard to withstand the heat that close to roast your marshmallows.  All it all it was a great fire.  I got to drive the tractor to add more brush which was thrilling because not only was it in the dark but you have to drive almost into the fire to drop it into the correct place.  The next day we had reports of our friends looking sunburned due to the heat so we know it was a success.  I am glad that tree trimming season isn’t done because I can’t wait to have another fire/party soon!

The Passport Adventures

Anyone who knows me or has spent some time with me knows that I am not the most organized person in the world.  And that is probably a huge understatement.  At work I can keep things in line without issue, file cabinets and organization systems are everywhere for utilization.  For some reason I have not been able to carry that into my personal life.  My most recent lack of organization gave me a good scare.  Maybe it will be enough to get things in better order?  I am getting ready to go and visit my parents that live in the United Arab Emirates next week and everything is coming into line to leave.  Except for one thing…my passport.  I have been unable to find my passport for month and months.  In fact, the last time I remember seeing my passport was when I went to India last January/February.  I started turning my house inside out and upside down looking for this little blue book and still, no luck.  So, reverting back to childhood I used  my mom’s location tactics, go to the last place you remember seeing it.  Well shoot! I don’t remember that, it has been a year since I used – my last international jaunt was to India.  I guess that was a place to start so I looked through things I had brought back.  It wasn’t tucked in any of the handmade notebooks I brought back or stuck between bags of loose black tea.  Maybe it was in my purse that I used?  But what purse was that?  I could not remember for the life of me so I had nothing left to do but go to the pictures.  That seemed like a great idea until I realized I didn’t barely carry a purse there, I used a money belt or didn’t carry anything at all.  This search did provide a nice break from the panic as I got to flip through all the pictures of my last great international adventure.  I looked though all of my pictures and never saw me with a purse.  Next were the pictures my mom had taken.  I flipped through all of those and was getting very discouraged as I neared the end and still had not seen this infamous purse that held such high hopes of discovery.  I had three pictures left and finally I saw it.  Me, sitting at the airport in New Delhi, India waiting to leave, with my purse!  Ah ha! The blue ariat purse that is so handy for travel!  I jumped up with joy and high hopes of discovery and headed straight to the two large storage bins that store my purses.  I dug and dug to the bottoms of the Rubbermaids and much to my dismay, there was no purse.  There was only one hope left, my random box of junk.  I pulled out the box and under a fine layer of cake decorating tools and horse apparel I saw my purse.  I opened it up and there it was, sitting next to $8 and an Indian candy bar – my passport!  I could now continue my great travel adventures!  I could go to the UAE next week!  Yahoo!  Who would have known that it would have been such an affair to locate my book of freedom!  I hope that last nights adventure was enough to get me going and work on organization in my house but only time will tell!

Florida Adventures

Once again another week has passed and I think I have fully recovered from my trip to Florida.  It was a fantastic trip that went by way to fast!  We (Michael and I) arrived Friday afternoon and were greeted by sunny skies and warm air.  We decided to take full advantage of being tourists and rented a convertible.  I had never been in one for an extended amount of time so it was a thrill for me!  We headed our way to Gram’s house and were so excited to see her new apartment.  What a nice community she lives in!  We went up to the care center area to visit Papa and it was great to see him.  He looked great and was plenty chatty.  After that Aunt Linda and Uncle John picked us up and we went to Tarpon Springs to eat seafood.  Aunt Lisa and Uncle John (Another John) met su at the restaurant as they had drove down from Ocala.  The hushpuppies were to die for and the food was equally as good. None of it could beat out the great company we got to share it with though.  It turned into a  late night and I was very happy to finally crawl into bed at the end of the day.

                Saturday we visited in the morning with Gram and Papa and then headed out to Ybor City with Lisa, John and Gram.  We ate at the Colombia restaurant and I am still having dreams of that meal.  The sangria, the bread, salad and main dishes were indescribable.  They are specialists in Spanish and Cuban style food, something that we don’t find here on the high plains very often.  I can’t wait to go back!  After gorging ourselves we strolled through the streets of Ybor which is famous for its cigars.  Michael and I both bought hand rolled cigars.  All in all it was a great day.  We had hoped to eat at Gram’s community dining room for supper but we were all so full we couldn’t handle it.  Hopefully next time we will get to try it because it is supposed to be wonderful!  Somehow we did manage to load everyone up and head to Cold Stone Creamery and indulge in some ice cream.  It is not often that there are this many dining choices in the area so I was not about to pass up the opportunity for some of my favorite ice cream!  We stayed up until midnight and I sure was tuckered out by the time we got to bed!

                Sunday was the 3^rd eventful day.  We had 8 AM church with Gram, Lisa and John and then went out to eat at a Greek restaurant that has delicious breakfast.  If you haven’t noticed yet, eating is one of our families strong points.  This weekend was no exception.  After  brunch it was off for a quick change at the apartment and Michael and I went out to the beach.  We went to honeymoon island and it was a stunning day.  The beach proved to be a little cold with the breeze but that didn’t stop us from laying out, smoking our cigars we bought in Ybor and even taking a swim in the gulf.  After the beach we returned to Gram’s place and warmed up in the complexes’ Jacuzzi and then took a long swim in the heated pool.  I miss being near the water and having so many opportunities to swim! I absolutely love to swim and also love the feeling after.  A day out in the sun and in the water provides a kind of exhaustion that is unique to that activity.  I absolutely love it.  We finished up with a nice supper with Gram and watched some of the football playoffs. 

                What a fabulous weekend we had! We departed early Monday morning and by the time we landed at home I was already wanting to go back!  I feel blessed that although it was short, I was able to get away and visit family.  Getting to spend so much time with Gram, Aunts and Uncles and visiting Papa 3 times a day was priceless.  Although short, some time is better than no time in my book!

A Country Lesson Learned

Don’t Honk Your Horn Unless You Mean It

                I have something I need to admit.  I have a terrible habit.  I can’t seem to stop it.  It brings joy to my life.  I don’t think my friends feel the same way about it. Let me explain.   I am terrible about honking the car/truck/tractor/bus/whatever I can find horn and trying to scare people when they walk in front of any vehicle that I happen to be in.  It makes me laugh, lots.  Yes, I know that is a joke that a 7 year old plays but I can’t help it.  And, if I may, I’d like to gloat a little and say that I am very good at getting people to jump frequently with this trick.  A few weeks ago I learned a lesson about this trick though.  That lesson, you ask?  When on the ranch, don’t honk your horn unless you mean it. 

Michael and I were out looking at the horses and stopped by the barn to check on the cats there.  Michael, being chivalrous got out and opened the gate so he could drive through (Typically it is the job of the person in the passenger seat but being the dashing man he is he took responsibility as the driver that day).  When he walked in front of the truck I played my trick and laid on the horn.  I really let it rip.  He didn’t even jump though.  It fact he shouted, “Don’t honk the horn!”  I thought he didn’t want me to because it’s annoying and childish.  I was wrong.  I soon saw why.  I turned around and saw a mass of cows and calves headed in the direction of our truck from over a far away hill.  They were headed our way because they are trained that when they hear the horn it means food.  Guess what?  We didn’t have any food.  It wasn’t a cake day (Cake = Cattle Feed).  One little (sort of short) honk and they all were headed our way!  They didn’t stop until they got to the fence either.  And there waited 50 or so mommas and babies waiting for cake.  I felt terrible.  Michael was not impressed by my joke either.  Overall,  it was an educational experience and I can promise you that I will NOT be honking horns without reason out at the ranch anytime soon.  This is just something that they don’t prepare you for when you take “country living 101.”