Christmas and Beyond!

 Christmas Day

Christmas Day was a fun one for me! I had to walk pens at work, so I went around to a couple of my friends' houses during the day. 

Here we are riding ATV's on a pond. The surface of the ice was so smooth that the ATVs couldn't get any traction so donuts were kinda out of the question, but we did pull each other around a little!

This isn't the recommended method, but it does work!

Pulling 2 guys at a time-with the string you could get a little bit of a slingshot effect!

Random Pics from Today :)

If you look really closely, the smudges along the horizon are the mountains of the Front Range. All I had with me was my iphone, and it didn't pick them up very well. (For reference, they are ~145 miles away, almost the length of Massachusetts)

Caydee got to come check water tanks and look at cows today!

Took the puppies for a walk in the horse pasture today...I just think this mare is so photogenic!

Caydee practicing her sit

I really wish I had gotten a video of her walking towards me, she was a little intimidating!

The newest longhorn mamma and baby

Isn't that little sucker cute??? (he has no idea what's awaiting him as he gets bigger....)

Off into the sunset :)

Chats with Patrice

Hi Patrice!  It was definitely porch weather out here today! It was close to 60F here. We were moving cattle and practicing our roping (we need a lot of practice!) in vests and hoodies instead of heavy coats!
So glad Wendell is feeling better! I rode both my horses today for the first time in a while, and they were full of beans!

1. What is your favorite way to have potatoes?
2. Do you keep your house toasty warm or a bit cooler?
3. What would you most like to see under the tree?
4. Do you have an Elf on the Shelf?This one may not translate to other countries- Just tell us something you want if you don't know what I'm talking about.
5. Have you put up a Christmas tree this year?

1. I love cheese on my potatoes! I just made a cassarole the other day and decided to put in potato chunks and it was really good!  I put a layer of those biscuits in a can, then a layer of mostly boiled potato chunks, then a layer of ground beef, mushrooms, celery, green peppers, and tomatoes all fried together and poured a can of cheese soup over the whole thing and covered the top with another layer of biscuits and baked it for about an hour (gotta remember to cover the pan with foil so the biscuits on top don't burn before the bottom ones bake ;) )

2. I love my house toasty warm! Right now I live in the basement and the thermostat is upstairs, so I have to turn it up to 80+ to get it remotely comfortable inside!

3. Oh, I don't really have anything specifically....I love picking out presents for people that I think they would love, so as long as someone put some thought into what I like, I will love it! :)

4. I keep hearing about these things on facebook and random blogs...I tend to follow fads just enough to know what everyone else is talking about....

I just got my house decorated for Christmas over the weekend tho! I do paper chains and snowflakes hanging from the ceiling! (my house is a mess), so here is a pic from last year:

5. No Christmas tree for me this year. :( I don't have room in my tiny basement and I might be moving soon, so I'm enjoying everyone else's! But I do love a real tree and the smell of pine :)

Cows, Horses, and Ponies

Took Caydee for a walk to run off some energy and decided to go take some pics of the new longhorn calf in the horse pasture.

Today's post is picture-heavy since I brought Caydee home last night and got up approximately every 1.5487 hours to go outside :)

the horses were not being very photogenic today....

But the Longhorns made up for it!

Here is the little guy... just a couple days old :) 

She will probably have a calf soon...notice how full her udder is (AKA bagged up)

Some of the scenery...I just love the colors of this time of year! The blue sky really brings out the shades of brown...

Freedom in the Little Things

I think I've posted on here before about my 'Summer of Freedom'. Basically this summer I let go of all the things that I did for other people to be the person I thought they wanted me to be. And it's been amazing how much I've grown personally and spiritually. I just wanted to share and celebrate one of those things with you :)
Growing up, I never really hung out with boys or was more than passing acquaintances with them. I was shy, and I felt that I didn't want to waste my time or anyone else's time if a relationship wasn't going to be very serious. I had a rule that if I could talk myself out of liking a guy within a week, (by pointing out all the ways a relationship wouldn't work/we didn't like the exact same things/ect) than he wasn't 'the one' and I wouldn't even try to be friends with him.
Now I'm all grown up and having to figure out how to interact with guys. There has been a few that I've become good friends with, but I didn't have a crush on them :)  But when there is one guy that I don't know very well, but he seems awesome and I'd love to get to know him, I, for the first time in my life, want to enjoy it. I realize that it might not work out, but it might! So when I will find myself looking forward to seeing him, and talking to him, I'll let myself savor the anticipation and enjoy the moment. :)


Note: This whole post is more about the freedom than the crush. I'm still level- headed me. I'm not giving my heart away or letting it shut down my brain. This is about the victory of getting ready to meet a guy or the guy I marry. Because if I don't let myself open up to the fact that it is OK to like a guy, I"ll end up a spinster with 10 cats, 8 horses and my knitting. Nothing wrong with that, but I don't believe that that is where God wants me.

Hey Peoples!

What. A. Week.
My boss and one of my co-workers went to a conference for 3 days this week, so it was just my other co-worker and myself during the coldest weather yet this year! We were feeding, thawing all the waterers in the feedlot every day and going out to break ice in the tanks in the pastures (some of which are 45 miles away) And on top of that, I decided to be uber-social this week and went somewhere every night but Wednesday! So mentally I was exhausted.
I don't regret doing all the things I did, I just wish they could have stretched over a couple weeks!

But it is supposed to get above freezing next week! I'm so excited :)

And I finally got my Christmas Cards ordered!!!

So after work today I am hanging out with my puppy ( which is making my cat mad)

And I think I'm  going to call her Caydee :)

Chats with Patrice

Well, better late than never! I've been so busy this past couple weeks, we have a ton of calves (several tons, in fact :) ) in the feedlot that we are getting vaccinated and then some are being trucked out to graze cornstalks for the winter. So we have been working past dark almost every day.
But I finally made it back to the internets! (Oh, I did make a trip to the library on Sunday, with a good book, I kinda forget that the internet exists!!)
1. If you are celebrating Thanksgiving, what are you looking most forward to on Thursday? Getting to go 'home' and see my family - my brother was there and I havent seen him in quite a while, so that was awesome :)
2. My favorite Thanksgiving dish is ___________? I'm with Patrice here ;) I love it all! Although it is a standing joke that no one lets me near the olives beforehand....
3. Do you go through periods of time when you get hooked on a specific food? Oh yeah! I usually eat the same thing for a couple weeks and then I get tired of it and get hooked on another food.
4. What's the best stuffing for a turkey? It has to have walnuts in it!!
5. When you were a child, were you ever in a Thanksgiving play, pageant, mock pilgrim dinner, or anything different to celebrate? I don't think so....if I was it didn't make an impression!!

Puppy!!!

I"m getting a puppy! And I'm so excited. :) I've been wanting a dog for a while, and when my co-workers dogs had puppies (on accident...) they said I could have one!

The tri-color is the dad, he is a hanging tree breed (http://hangintreecowdog.net/)

and the other one is the mom, we think that she is a cross between a German Shorthair and some kind of Pointer.

She's about a month old right now, so I won't get her until Christmasish :)

Still working on a name, but I'm thinking something girly and tomboyish (are those mutually exclusive??)

I kinda think I have one in mind, but it is like it's in the back of my mind and I can't quite tell what it is yet....

My Favorite Time of Year

I love fall out on the plains.

I love the brown rolling hills with the crystal-clear blue sky behind them.

Here and there is a vibrant green field of wheat or other grains.

And the days are just the right temperature to wear a hoodie all day long (mostly)

Chats with Patrice & Wendell

I've been following this blog, http://www.everydayruralty.com/, for quite a while, and I love seeing all the questions and answers! So I finally decided to join the chats :)


QUESTIONS

1. Would you rather sit in front of a fireplace with a roaring fire, soak in a lovely bath, or spend free time on your computer?

Ooooo I would love to curl up in front of a roaring fire with a good book! But then I like water about as much as a cat does....

     2.   Milk chocolate or dark chocolate?

Definitely Dark Chocolate. I keep a bag of Ghiradeli's dark chocolate chips around at all times, and that is probably what I use in any cookies, breads, ect.

      3. Have you ever tried a recipe from a blog or Pinterest?

I use recipes from blogs all the time

    4. Do you have a guest room? If not, do you have a spare room that you use for something other than a bedroom (sewing room, office, craft area, etc)?

I wish! Right now I'm grateful for my basement home, but I would love to have more than one room!

1. Is your hair curly, straight, or something in between?

My hair is stick straight, and recently, I put in colored highlights! Pink, Blue, and Purple :)

Stuffed Animals

AKA What My Cats and I Do On Friday Nights :)

 It started with an elephant. Well, actually it started with a friend having a baby and wanting to make a gift instead of buy one. And EVERYONE who knits will make a baby blanket. :) So I was trying to be different :)

 Then my sister wanted one, so I made her a miniature (she had a standing request for a miniature of everything I make, but I don't think that that is going to happen) and shipped it off to her in a decorated toilet paper tube.

 Then I decided a giraffe would be cool.

Then, of course I had to do a pony! (btw, now you know what movies I own...Right after Fireproof is Follow Me Boys, my favorite Disney movie "Sarge, I think we just hit a simulated rock!")

Up next, Hippos!!!

I'm thinking that I might make a bunch of these over the next year and sell them at craft fairs around Christmastime or just have on hand to give as gifts. :) What do you guys think???

What I've Been Learning

It's been a while

I've been learning that opportunities slip away when you don't chase them, make time for them, sacrifice for them. 

I really regret all the nights after work this summer that I went and sat down and watched TV instead of working Callie. I felt like I didn't have the knowledge I needed to train her, so I did nothing at all. And now that I've decided that it is worth the hardship, it's winter and I don't have the daylight to ride her in. That is an opportunity I'll never have again. I will train her next year and she will flourish. 

Falling Isn't Failing

God has given me freedom this summer. Freedom from being the "super-Christian" that I've always been called and I've felt the pressure to attain. Freedom from having to read my Bible every day or pray for hours at a time. My relationship with God is unique. No one else will relate to God in the same way, so why do I expect my relationship to look like theirs?

I spent several months without opening my Bible, without setting aside time each day to pray. God told me "If you aren't hungry for Me, then I don't want your religion". Now, I'm starting to get hungry. I don't know what dinner will look like, but I'm starting to look forward to it. I'm looking forward for my hunger to become more distinct so I know exactly what I want.

In this, I had times where I tried to have God Time on certain days, and I would not do it. I felt like I was failing, that I would never be hungry enough or be good enough to do this relationship correctly. One day I was watching Extreme Makeover; Weight Loss Edition and Chris Powell said "You can fall without failing." And a lightbulb just went on. I can pick myself up and try again, and be more prepared to succeed. I was free :)

A Lot of Life Happened

I have so many pictures and stories to share, and I'll try to get them up here over the next weeks/months/ect. but here is a little teaser:

Kitten Snuggles

This is Peaches, just sound asleep on my back. =)

Before the Storm

We had a thunderstorm rolling in this evening, so I took my phone out to see if I could catch some good pics. We have the horses and roping cattle right by the houses, so they turned into my subjects. (Any time I write 'subjects' I want to say "Haha! I have someone to rule!")

My pony, who is getting some well-earned vacation time. This old man was getting really cranky about working and just about caused a wreck a couple days ago because he was frustrated and didn't want to work. Plus he's losing weight even though I've been feeding him ~8lbs senior grain every day.

And then some grass/cactus shots. I love the cactus blooms. I think they are one of the prettiest flowers on the prairie...

This kind of grass is called 'needle and thread' because the seed head is kinda sharp, and the long awn follows it. 

(The sky wasn't actually this color...it's amazing what you can pull up by manipulating a photo!)

Missouri Trip

Hey guys! It's been a long time and I've got all sorts of stuff I've been accumulating-so hopefully I'll get back into blogging my life here....
But the fun stories start with the trip I just got back from! The ranch I work for has cattle pastured in Missouri (btw, I finally figured out how to spell it, I always want to spell Missouri "Mossuri" lol I'm nothing but literal) and we went to brand the calves. It was kinda interesting, since no one brands in MO, as there is no brand law there like there is here.
Also, being Colorado cowboys, we took horses to round them up. We ended up driving a group of about 30 pair (moma and calf) across the road and about 1/2 mile across a pasture to a working facility. The locals were just amazed at how well the cattle moved. Apparently they move cattle on ATV's and the cattle just scatter at full speed, so they don't move them. But take a look at this pasture:

(sorry about the slant....but it is really hilly there!)

We were talking about all the pasture management that we do out here, and how many more cattle they could stock by managing their pasture. But it's just not something that they think about since they are so lush.

I mean, look at how tall the grass is compared to the horses! and this is shorter grass!

I was really happy with how I roped this trip. I was catching both heels and getting my angles right. Getting Vegas to not gallop out of the pen took some effort, but no one got run over. :)

We stayed at this cute little bed and breakfast:

The train tracks are literally right behind the white house in the background, so every time a train went through town, the whole house would vibrate. We were so worked out though, that we barely noticed :)

Those are all the pics I took...guess I was too busy working :) but it was good to get back in Colorado, where the humidity is almost nonexistent, and you can see for 50+ miles. :)

What Does This Ad Say to YOU?

I read:

"Five Dollar Buck Lunch"

And a buck lunch for Five Dollars just sounds like a rip-off...

:)

If I had been designing this ad ('cause you know, I'm an expert at this) I'd have left off the $ sign so the ad reads:

"Five Buck Lunch"

So much cleaner!