The Ranch

Life Returns

2012-01-21T13:56:00.001-06:00

After so much devastation, life returns to the ranch! We've had rain, and the grass is growing back so that we have 'spring grass' in the fall and winter!! I thought it was particularly interesting to see the first small snow fall on the new grass. In many areas the grass didn't make it, but the weeds are nice and green. So we have work to do to get our pastures back in good shape (or I should say: Rancher Mike has his work cut out for him!!!)

Refer back to the last entry to see the almost dried-up state of our 'stock tank'! They don't call them 'ponds' in this here state!!! We typically refer to it as The Tank. One heavy rain and the tank was just about full.

Worthy of note: You probably see Sam (who accompanies me everywhere around the property), and the horse grazing in the background, but note also... there are ducks on the tank. Maybe next spring we can restock it with bass and catfish!

What's really cool is that I can now see the tank from the kitchen window. What a great view of our property:

The horses are particularly aware of where the greenest grass is .... on the other side of the fence, of course!!! And on cool mornings after their breakfast of sweet feed (grain with molasses) and a couple of flakes of hay (which we had to buy since we didn't have any to bale thanks to the drought!), it's time to lay in the sun and rest.

And to complete our recovery from the drought, we're enlarging the back porch for our added enjoyment, where we'll be able to enjoy the tank and the happenings in the chicken yard and the garden while we enjoy a meal or just a tall glass of iced tea!!You might notice the time of day is well displayed in the reflections in the windows.

Another beautiful sunset!

Going to bed so we can start anew with a beautiful sunrise tomorrow!

It's not over yet!!!!!

2011-09-19T15:20:00.003-05:00

DROUGHT: I just read the following excerpt from an LCRA (Lower Colorado River Authority) Bulletin:The 11 months from October 2010 through August 2011 have been the driest for that 11-month period in Texas since 1895, when the state began keeping rainfall records. This summer in Texas has been the hottest in the country’s history, according to the National Weather Service.

This is what we've experienced over the past 6 months!!!
This WAS our 'Stock Tank' when we moved here - we actually have two on the property, but this is the larger one which is stocked with bass and catfish and has NEVER gone dry!!

Here it is today - a big mud puddle!!! I don't know how many fish have survived, but some have died, and they're now fair game for hawks and racoons and coyotes.

If it doesn't rain soon, there'll be nothing!!! We've had a few showers in the past week, but the rain is just enough to wet the driveway. The most we have had is a quarter of an inch, and that's like spitting in the tank!!!!! The whole community is praying for rain!!!

No rain, no grass, no hay to feed livestock for the winter!! This picture was last October 2nd followed by a picture taken just a few days ago:

Then there's our yard!!!!

The trees have taken a huge hit!!! Last year the Crepe Myrtles along the sidewalk bloomed all summer! I'm only seeing blooms right now and unless we get more rain, I'm afraid they'll drop and we won't get flowers. We've been having to water them just to keep them alive, and as you can see, the shrubs at the base of the crepe myrtles aren't looking too good!!!.

The huge tree beside the house has lost lost of leaves and there used to be grass to mow at the base of the tree in front of the fence!!

In the back yard, we've had to drip water the apple trees. One looks OK, but the other isn't looking very good although I'm seeing some new leaves since we've watered.

The leaves on the ground are from the BIG tree in the back. Even though they have deep roots, we've had to water it. I'd hate to lose those big beautiful trees!! Everything is brown except weeds and mesquites!!!

Aside from the drought, Mike was trying to reclaim some grazing land from the Mesquite trees, which are like "tree weeds" as in they constantly reseed and grow fast. He hired a 'dozer to come in and remove most of the mesquite. Unfortunately, I have looked through every picture album and don't have a decent before picture. The closest is this picture of our first little calf kicking up her heels... if you can check out the background, you can get a sense of the overgrowth.

Now there are just SOME trees!!!

Flag with a Mission

2011-06-11T11:15:00.001-05:00

Since Travis deployed with the Special Forces out of Hunter AB near Savannah, GA in 2007 to his present day deployment from Aviano AFB, Italy to Afghanistan, the meat department at our local Stewart's Food Market right here in Olney has been selecting and slicing beef for jerky which Mike smokes and processes, vacuum packs and sends to wherever Travis is deployed. John also benefitted from some of Stewarts jerky beef during his deployment a year ago and more recently our niece, Chrys, currently in Alaska received a surprise package of jerky. Travis carried this flag aboard his F-16 for a recent mission and sent if to express his thanks as well as that of his Special Forces friends and his F-16 colleagues who have shared in his bounty

Pictured above are:(L to R) Me and Mr. Mike, Jason Pack (manager of the meat dept), Paul Garcia and Joe Cameron (meat dept staff), Homer Molina (store manager) and Danny Stewart (owner). We are missing Robert Stewart, Danny's brother who we shook hands with on our way out!! For a small town like Olney, we have a very nice grocery and folks come from all around for their meats. Now their meat has even been eaten abroad!!!!

Wow! So much news!!!

2011-05-28T18:00:00.002-05:00

Life is busy, and one day to the next there doesn't seem to be so much change, but little events mount up. The previous blog entry comments how the THREE little calves stick together. Well since then here's number 4 calf (with #3 mom - we call her 'White Face'):

We haven't figured out how he got to be that color since the daddy is all black. He's a nice little bull - healthy and full of energy. He now has an eartag (#10) and is a 'steer'... no bull!!!

Then last week our last heifer, #5 (we just call her 'Cinco') blessed us with another little bull:

A new addition draws a lot of attention around here once it's discovered! Here the new little guy is between his mom and #7, our first calf (a 4 month old heifer), and the legs behind him belong to #9 (first little bull). The little guy is less than a day old. And the daddy (Numero Uno) is always interested in his progeny:

He has greeted every single one!! So now ALL our heifers have had their first calf and Mr Bull is now a proven bull. He was young when we got him, but he's good at getting the job done.

When the 2 little heifers get a little bigger, we'll be trading them with a good friend of ours for 2 of his same age heifers. That way there will be no inbreeding and we don't have to sell and buy. He'll be getting 2 very nice heifers. So we've grown from 6 to 11 cattle!

Then I looked at the little chicks we got in March!!! You won't believe how they've grown!!!! Those little white chick have grown to look like this:

They must weigh at least TEN pounds!! One chicken will feed us for at least 2 meals and still have a little for some chicken salad. Now that I've experienced these Cornish chickens, I have noticed they are not the brightest chickens in the hen house!!! They are clumsy and pretty messy birds.
The other new little chicks were my little Americaunas and Production Reds. They are growing nicely but are welter weights compared to the Cornish chickens. They may be laying eggs soon. In the picture (right) the 3 in the middle are Americaunas and their color varies quite a bit. The one standing has pretty light grey tailfeathers compared to the others. You can see how different the second one from the right looks. Then look at the next picture to see the 4th Americauna - it's the grey, black and white one. The Americaunas will lay blue and green tinted eggs!!!
The other four are the production reds and are all hues of dark red. All of these are very fast and run like roadrunners all over the yard. The reds lay brown eggs.
Just after I got these new chicks, our chickens started sitting on eggs. That's been an education. Sometimes I would see 2 hens squeezed in the same nest. Turns out, some hens just sit on the eggs. When some hatched, the hen switched to caring for the chicks and another hen sat on the nest. Pretty soon I had 3 nests with 'sitters' and 3 hens caring for chicks. One was good about taking new babies - an excellent surrogate. So now we have our own baby chicks. I guess Mr Rooster has proved himself too!!! AND I've noticed he will help feed the babies sometimes and the mom's let him while they chase off the other hens!!! Now we have 10 chicks out with the hens and I have 5 more in the grain room under the light. I'm hoping a hen will adopt them.

Things are ever-changing!! So gradual you just don't notice until the changes are BIG!!! Lots more coming on the blog, so keep an eye out. I'm off work for the summer and can keep up now!!!

A Record-Breaking Day

2011-03-18T01:48:00.000-05:00

AND a pictoral update.....

For the first time today, my 13 hens:

laid 13 eggs:

and just a few days ago, we added some baby chicks to our menagerie:

Chicks to be laying hens - 2 kinds:

4 Americaunas (little striped heads) - they lay blue and green eggs!!! and

4 Red 'something-or-others' . they lay brown eggs

and for Rancher Mike..... Cornish Chickens for dinner:

The place looks like a real ranch now. All the horses, donkey, cows,bull and 3 calves were in the orchard just below the house:

Those 3 little calves really stick together. Miss Whiteface cow should have her calf within the next month.

And one more ranch addition ..... a new tractor!!! The old blue one went to auction.

Awesome Texas sunset & Number 8

2011-02-11T00:06:00.000-06:00

After looking at the Texas pics on the Wilson Chronicals, I must add a sunset shot right across the road from where Cheyenne took her sunset shot... When I learn to photoshop, I'll crisp it up and make it even more striking!!! Check out all the mistletoe!

Our little herd of brangus cows has now grown to eight!!! Number 2 cow gave birth on Saturday at 5:30 pm, almost EXACTLY 3 weeks (to the hour) from our first new calf... and this one is also a strong and beautiful little heifer!

She's less than 24 hours old here, and it amazes me how they tolerate the frigid winter temperature and vicious winds we've had lately. I thought we moved to Texas where the winters were mild, but we were snowed in for almost 5 days last week with single digit temperatures and a wind chill that easily made it below zero. Very hardy animals!! We have one more that is ready to deliver.... maybe on Saturday. Don't want to break the pattern!!

A Kodak Moment....

2011-01-22T14:30:00.000-06:00

CHECK THIS OUT!!!!

With Cheyenne's help (a Cheyenne Tutorial), we photoshopped this picture after looking for a local photo op!!! This is a nearby old outhouse. I think I may do a blog on 'Things Remembered from Long Ago'. This is just a sample of what's in our local area!!! Pay particular attention to the detail. The first picture is fine, but with a little sharpening and intensifying of color, it's spectacular!!! I can be a local Ansel Adams!!!!

Above: RAW PICTURE

PHOTOSHOPPED PICTURE

ANNOUNCING... QUATRO Y UNO!!!

2011-01-18T00:46:00.001-06:00

In this case, Quatro y uno = Dos!!! Bad math, you say!!! All of our cattle are ear-tagged. Mr Bull is Numero Uno!!! And the heifers are 2-6! That's the extent of our herd!! BUT now we have SEVEN!! Number 4 gave birth Saturday evening to a very sturdy, healthy little heifer who will soon wear ear tag #7.

INTRODUCING our FIRST calf (here, 12 hours old):

and it turns out, she has a lot of vim and vinegar and she's only 48 hours old:

Her mom keeps a close eye on her at all times and hustles about to keep up with the frolicking little #7. She kicks her heels up like a bucking bronc and she runs like the wind. As you can see she's a very cute furry little baby. She will soon have playmates to frolic with as I think Mr. Bull has proved himself x 5. Even little White Face (above), the youngest of our heifers, looks pretty pregnant though she won't be second to give birth. We should have one or two more in the next couple of weeks

This afternoon, Mr Bull was checking out his offspring!

Check out her beautiful long eye lashes! I'm jealous!!!

Pirogies anyone??

2011-01-05T00:58:00.000-06:00

I've had this pirogi maker for several months with the hope of making some pirogis or fried pies to try it out. I'm now glad to say .... it works!!!!! It makes pirogies that look professional! Check 'em out!!

To the right is the simple hinged maker, into which you place a circle of rolled-out dough and fill the little pocked with potato and onion mixture with some herbs and spices added and some cheddar cheese or you can fill with sauerkraut and potatoes.

When done they look like those on the tray - every one picture perfect. I am so impressed with this little gadget! It comes in 3 sizes - this is actually the smallest one. At this point, I froze several for a later meal.

For dinner right away, you plop some in salted boiling water until they float, then move to the frying pan.

In the fry pan, I melted butter and sauteed some onions, then added the pirogis. When they started to show a little color, I took them out and served them up with a dab of sour cream on top. Boy, were they good!!! Pam, I think you'd love one of these!! It really did make it easier, and not a single one fell apart in the water.

YUM!!

GO, AIR FORCE!!!!

2010-12-29T00:15:00.001-06:00

For Christmas, Travis (and Pam) sent us tickets for the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, LA - about a 5 hour drive. He also got us into the AFA Tail Gate which was awesome in that we were up close and personal for pre-game preparations.

As part of the package, we got shirts and a barbecue, beer, pop or water and a lot of fans to rub elbows with!! It was actually pretty fun, even though we didn't see a single soul that we knew!!

We got to meet the Peregrine Falcon (mascot):

After we ate, the cheerleaders showed up to practice, then the band and of course, the Bird was greeting everyone and posing for pictures!

Interesting enough, the Bird (or one of the jump team dressed as the Bird) parachuted into the stadium - just like Travis did back in 2000 - (left). YUP!! That's Travis as the Bird as he parachuted above us on his entry into the stadium!!!! If you asked him today.... he'd likely say it was the 'funnest' thing he did while at the Academy.

Back to the present: We enjoyed the cheerleaders practicing along and with the band:

GO AIR FORCE!!!

Then for the game.... they were first on the scoreboard, but were down by one point (6-7) by halftime.

Then came the halftime show.... a B-52 flyover at 1000 feet (felt like 100)

and of course the band:

then my battery gave out!!!

Any of you that watched can attest to the fact that it was a good game and kept you just a little worried right to the end when AF got an interception on the 1 yard line, which shut down Georgia Tech with seconds to go! It was a close game (and COLD!!!).

Probably the worst thing that happened was that we had to go through security on the way in, and they confiscated by full bottle of Propel.... but worse that that, Dad had to throw his trusty sidekick, his pocket knife away!!

Spotty

2010-12-18T16:50:00.001-06:00

I've had some pretty wonderful kitties over the years, mostly siamese, but Spotty ranks pretty high. She has now gained the status of my in and out cat. She's probably the most loving and gentle cat I've ever had. I'm putting this first picture on for Riley who's coming to visit soon and I know he and cousin, Brenden like to see Spotty when we skype!! Here she's snuggled up on my side of the bed (she knows better than to migrate over to Grampa's side, cause he doesn't like to share with a kitty).

Can you pick Spotty out when she was a kitten with her brothers and sisters???

A few months ago, Spotty was limping and needed to lay low for a bit. Initially we couldn't see anything wrong, but after a day or so, her paw swelled up. Here she is with her 'mitt' of a paw!

A few days later, the fur started falling off and you could see 2 distinct wounds that were 'weeping'. From the pattern, we think she got bit by a snake of some sort. It took her a couple of weeks to get better and a month for the fur to grow back. I'll bet she'll be more carefull next time she encounters a snake!!

Unfinished business (or perhaps I SHOULD say - FINISHED business):
A couple days after my last post, out came a can of paint to finish the horse shed.

One morning there was a Kodak moment. Eeyore was in the shed and all three horses were lined up in front of it just after sunrise. It was picture perfect.... but I didn't have my camera with me. By the time I ran in and grabbed it, they were making their way to their feed buckets and the moment was lost. This was 2nd best, but I'm waiting for that perfect shot! The most interesting part of this photo (besides the shed!!) is the sky - it looked painted, like there are brush strokes. I would have cropped more of the sky out otherwise.

Traditions

2010-12-05T15:47:00.004-06:00

For Thanksgiving, most people have traditions. Over the years we've developed favorite foods that we mostly have ONLY for Thanksgiving:
    Turkey with a Pennsylvania Dutch-style Potato Stuffing,
    Candied Yams         fresh Green Bean Casserole,
    Cranberry Orange Relish        Mashed Rutabaga, and for dessert,
    Fresh Pumpkin Pie and Pecan Pie.

We tend to start from scratch, and the pecans and pumpkins are harvested from right here on our little Texas ranch. If I'd put up some green beans in early summer, we could have had home-grown string beans too. So this year we had our usual fare, but we totally enjoyed sharing it with 2 airmen from Sheppard AFB who were spending their first Thanksgiving away from their families. I didn't know who Mike would come home with and was pleased when he called on his way back home with Megan and Megan 'too'.

What a godsend they were. They helped prepare food and set table, and they got a taste of life in "Texas-country". They helped collect eggs and feed hay to the cows .... and since it had rained, they even got to take back some Texas mud with them. We certainly enjoyed their company since our family was spread out and wouldn't be home for dinner. Incidentally, we're STILL eating turkey!!!

Very loosely related to 'traditions' (the title of the post) is our new (to us) nesting boxes for the chickens. Our friends, Neta and Junior Lackey, were instrumental in the early arrival of chickens to our little ranch. A neighbor was looking for a home for 9 cornish hens and had asked them if they could take them. Well, not only did they give us the chickens (indirectly) ... and find us the tailless rooster ..... but Neta's dad had chickens and Neta had his old wall-mounted nesting boxes! She's had offers to buy the nesting boxes, but didn't want to give them up yet. After finding a home for the chickens (with us), she asked if we'd like her heirloom nesting boxes.

They've been up for a couple of weeks now, and the hens seem to be taking to them. I find at least half the eggs there now. They started in the lowest row of boxes and now I find eggs in the top row. We've gone from the blue crates to nests on the wall:

If you can see, there are actually 2 eggs behind the exiting hen... the bigger one she just laid, and the small one is a 'seed' egg - a small 'pullet' egg I leave in there. They like to lay on the seed egg and sometimes I will find up to 3 eggs with it!!

Besides cracked corn, maize and wheat, I've found that chickens LOVE pumpkin and watermelon!!! Check out the enthusiasm when they find a surprise in their yard:

It looks like a chicken convention!!!!

Note the iridescent green feathers on my black chickens. Mr Rooster has them too as you can see below in the previous blog entry!!

The Shelter .... plus update on COCKA-DOODLE-DO!!

2010-10-31T21:26:00.004-05:00

Now that we have cows AND horses, we need a place for each when it's drizzly, stormy, blizzardy or just windy from the north! They don't really congregate together. So Mike planned and built a shelter for the horses and I've already seen them in there!! Here you can see the progression:

The meager beginning (L) and if you enlarge the detail on the right, you can see at least 3 grasshoppers on the post, not to mention a nice side view of the house.

Once the frame was completed, it was time for the roof:

Then the aluminum siding to wrap around for the finished structure:

BUT, my favorite shot is looking out from the interior: a nice fall day, with a view of the house and the horses just resting under their favorite tree - You may have to enlarge to see the horses!!!:

As for my cock-a-doodle-do-less 'Cogburn', about a week after my last post, he started cock-a -doing! He didn't quite have it until about another week later when he finally got it right. He now wakes us up with a full COCK-A-DOODLE-DO!!! Every morning it's very noisy out in the hen house as all the hens are 'BEDAWKETTING' VERY loudly in response. Don't think those hens didn't notice Mr Rooster's shortcomings (L) - however, time has made him a more handsome rooster as he's growing in tail feathers:

As for our hen population, something 'got' one about a week ago. My count was off when I put them to bed, and I hunted all over for her but couldn't find her..... until the next morning. With daylight, I could see feathers all over the place and following the trail --- I found her dead and picked apart by something. My cats were a little suspect at first, but we've narrowed it down to a likely chicken hawk. Then Mike got a call from someone who was selling his chickens, so he got 6 more hens. Upon arrival, one flew over the fence and disappeared across the road. We've been visited nightly lately by howling coyotes and figured that hen's chance of survival was next to nothing. Late the next afternoon, I heard a screem and went out to find Sam with something!! It was the hen!!!! We yelled at him to drop it and she ran off the first time. He ran after her and caught her a second time and was 'mauling' her with his mouth. Again I yelled at him and he dropped her and she just laid there. Well, so much for that hen!! So Mike picked her up so Sam wouldn't get a taste for fresh chicken, and after several seconds, her eyes blinked!!! Then she moved a little. So we brought her to the hen house, and she jumped down and joined her sisters - all huddled in the corner. So by some miracle, we have all 6 new hens!!

I don't know what kind they are, but they are interesting with their orange necks and feathered feet. The one below looks like she has fluffy slippers on. They're pretty young, so I don't know that they're laying yet. I did have one very light egg the other day, so maybe they're just starting.

Speaking of eggs, on the recommendation of a friend, I painted a face on an egg and put it in one of the laying boxes. Sure enough, they like laying when there's already an egg there. Sometimes there are up to 4 new eggs in that carton. So I put a golf ball in one, but they didn't buy it!!! Finally, after a month, at least one hen accepts the golf ball and sets on it to lay her egg.

No cock-a-doodle-doing here!!!!

2010-10-02T13:01:00.001-05:00

You know when you get a little male puppy, they don't know how to lift their leg right away? I remember our dalmation as a puppy, I thought he'd never potty like a big dog, but eventually he figured it out!! Sam, our border collie was a quick learner and trust me, not a wheel rolls on our driveway but it gets peed on! He thinks it's part of his job description around here. He also breaks up cat fights and he and Eeyore have discussions at the corral gate whether a donkey should paw at the lower bar! Eeyore says 'I will if I want to' and Sam says 'not on my watch you don't.... get your hoof offa that gate!!' Eeyore will ignore his grain to aggravate Sam at the gate. It's like a game and he knows it bothers Sam, so he does it on purpose when Sam's right there.

Once upon a time there were 9 Cornish hens looking for a home. My friend, Neta, called because she knew Mike was building a chicken house and wanted to know if we'd like to adopt them. The yard wasn't fenced it yet and we didn't have any supplies, but how can you turn down a gift chicken that's about 6 months old and just starting to lay eggs!! So he put wire up and we got a makeshift bowl for water and we were in the chicken business. At first we got 1 or 2 small eggs a day, but I think they like their new home because we've picked up on the number of chickens that lay every day.

For your edification.... Have you ever had something 'stuck in your craw'? I've heard the expression, but since we've had the hens, I've learned what a craw is!!! If you look at the left-most hen, you can see a pouchy area below her throat. You can see it on the second hen too. That pouch is a 'craw' and when they eat insects (like GRASSHOPPERS) they go first into the craw for the first stage of digestion. Since I am overrun with grasshoppers, my hens walk around with thier craws full most days and I can see which are quickest and best at catching those nasty grasshoppers!!!!

Neta's husband, Junior, brought gifts!!! A bale of hay for their nests and a bucket of wheat for treats! They had to come visit and see the chickens. Neta also has a family heirloom for me ... her dad's chicken laying station ( for lack of a better term) It's actually pretty nice though it needs a little repair. A week later I got another call from Neta... "Do you want a rooster??? Junior got one for you if you want him." Now don't laugh, you'll hurt his feelings!! Something almost had him for dinner and instead got a mouthful of tail feathers! Poor Cogburn.... no tail feathers until he grows new ones. We figure we saved his life by letting him come here with our 9 hens. And af far as 'cock-a-doodle dooing, he doesn't!!! I guess it comes with maturity. Mike's waiting for the morning he gets awakened with a cock-a-doodle-do!!

In the meantime, we've grown to 4 or 5 eggs a day and they've gone from small eggs to medium and large!! I weighed them the other day to compare to a 'large' store-bought egg, and I'm getting at least one large egg everyday and a few mediums! Compared to store bought, the yolks are yellow-orange in color. It's awesome having free-range eggs. They make beautiful deviled eggs!

Time Changes Everything....

2010-09-18T16:13:00.002-05:00

Doesn't this relate to everything in this life??? Children constantly change. Relationships change. Seasons change. But, God never changes!!! The rainbow is a great reminder of God's promise to us. Over time, things in life can change. Take this rainbow for example. Mike took this photo because we were so impressed with how BRIGHT the rainbow was!!! He then gave me the camera and I took the other end of the rainbow, but when I turned back, the brighter end looked different.....The brightness was muted as it was quickly disappearing, but note the funky lighting on the trees and the grey sky on one side of the rainbow and the beautiful blue sky on the other!! The rainbow may not be as bright, but I LOVE this picture and all it's nuances!!! (Additionally, one could make such relationships to life transitions) What did Forrest Gump say in the movie? "Life is like a bowl of chocolate"? I think life is more like a rainbow with rainy times, sunny times and times of transition - ever changing!!

And, here's the other end of the rainbow with an interesting sky... grey clouds, white clouds and blue skies in the distance. Funky light in the field and wet bales of hay -- our very own!!!!After the storm, out came the horses to check out the new bales of hay that Mike had brought up from the field. (L to R: Tutu, Doc, Eeyore and Racey) After the rain, life is good again!!!

There's never nuthin' to do....

2010-08-22T16:59:00.003-05:00

This is close to the culmination of a BIG project!!! Designing and building a chicken house!! What does trenching have to do with a chicken house you ask??? Well, if you want a nice chicken house, you need electricity and water. Contented hens can see to knit while they sit in their nesting boxes and can take baths when they arise in the morning before they step outside to wake us up with their 'cockadoodle-doo'!! We're going to have classy chickens!! On a more serious note, we need to keep the chicks warm (use a warming light) and they of course need water, but the biggest water usage is my garden, and this trench brings well water to my garden!!! Mike had to rent a trencher to lay pipe and electric lines ... and the cows are so curious they had to gather round to check out the activity! The cats have explored the trench from one end to the other, and when Mike went out to lay the pipe, he found a 3'-4' snake skin and a thousand crickets!!

Now drop back to early last year - as winter was finishing up, Mike was making the specs: He laid the foundation as soon as he could work the ground. He framed it and put in flooring. To test it out, one morning we heard the clatter of hoofs just after sunrise. I peeked out to see what all the clatter was about and ran for my camera!! Racey and Eeyore were checking out the hen house!! When they saw me they quickly exited and tried to convince me they hadn't been in there, but I caught them in the act!!!

Then he added the trusses and all the supporting boards for the roof. This was mostly morning work because the days get pretty warm in the summer and you're forced to move to your inside projects.

Then putting the tin roof on (below).. It's really starting to take shape. As you can see, the chicken house is back to back with my garden - incidentally chicken poop is an excellent fertilizer!! Where you see the plywood wall is my storage room for garden stuff and toward the front a storage room for chicken feed.
Then comes the siding and doors and window covers:

And from the backside, you can see the door to my storage room, my potting porch, places to hang my tools, and a window so I can talk to the chickens....

A few weeks ago he sectioned off a section near the corral to store hay. That involved installing a fence and a gate wide enough to get the tractor through. He also churned up the dirt to get rid of the weeds and put out weed killer. This year we can store enough hay for our livestock for the whole winter.

The hardest part of this project was digging the holes for the gate posts. The ground is virgin and packed down - dry and concrete-like!! It took Mike and an experienced friend to dig with the augers you see laying on the ground. Even with the tractor, added weight had to be placed on top so the auger could dig a deep enough hole. This project is done now. The fields have been mowed and baled, and over the next couple of weeks Mike will be transporting the HUGE bales of hay, one at a time, to their resting place in the hay yard until needed over the winter.
There's another project that's a work in progress - my camera will find it's way out there soon to capture the action for future memories!!! Stay tuned for progress!!! And the arrival of baby chicks. Right now the only residents of the hen house are crickets, grasshoppers, mud daubers, wasps, mosquitos and spiders. Except for the mosquitos, there are numerous varieties of each!!! There's even a resident black widow!!

Ever see a RED Grasshopper?????

2010-08-19T00:40:00.003-05:00

I have TONS of GRASSHOPPERS!!! BIG ONES and small ones, some hop, some fly, some are brown, some green, some mustard yellow (those are some of the HUGE ones) and then the other day I saw a RED one!!! I tried to get pictures, but was limited by the life of my camera battery. So, I got pictures of perfectly clear, crisp leaves to my tomato plant and a blurry grasshopper!!! But at least it is recognizable!!!

Then there are some that are BIG and UGLY!!!!

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly...

2010-08-14T16:40:00.000-05:00

My garden is one of the things that keeps my busy. My best new garden toy is my Troy Bilt 'Horse' - a wonderful rototiller that will make my garden even better next year. It's powerful, yet easy to use. Here's my ranch partner checking out the new equipment! The 'good' parts of my garden are my cucumbers (it has now reached the top of the cage) - not so much the peppers - I am getting a few jalapenos, but the sweet green pepper is only leaves and flowers.

I've already had some pumpkins (background) Unfortunately the grasshoppers like pumpkin, so I have to fight for everything I get ... and I have some HUGE watermelons and the one we tried was sweet to the rind! They had taken over the whole back third --- BUT the horses got into my garden and trampled them!!! They're trying to recover, but the pumpkin really took a hit!! Maybe by halloween it will make some more!!

Pickling cucumbers have done great in spite of the grasshoppers and the horses!!

Not everything has been as successful.. My kohlrabi (on the left of Schnoz, who meets me in the garden most mornings for pets).... has been eaten by grasshoppers! I tried, Pam!!! I almost saved them - got them back once, but then all the new growth was eaten overnight and as of last week, the last one died : (

Then there's my poor apricot tree!!! I could taste apricot jam and apricot fried pies!! This is the first year the tree has been fenced in so the horses didn't eat the blossoms!!! There were LOTS of tiny little apricots coming .... getting bigger.... bigger.... still green and hard.. .. GONE!!! The grasshoppers ate EVERY LEAF and the fruit leaving only the pits!!!!

I think I counted 20 grasshoppers in this picture:
Just as ugly was my corn!!! Early on we had some NICE corn from the first 2 rows of corn we planted. The second 2 rows were planted later, and we didn't get a single ear. Guess what got them all?? Not the birds! Not the horses (they only ate some leaves and trampled a few plants on their afternoon in the garden)! Not catapillars or worms? Not rabbits?? YUP.. those pesky grasshoppers!!! It gave meaning to the plagues in the Bible!!! Just like the locusts!!!

They swarmed all over!!!

... and what they left behind wasn't edible...

Not pictured: they also ate leaves and branches of my string beans. Did I mention that I HATE GRASSHOPPERS!!!!

Family

2010-05-25T12:05:00.029-05:00

I am so delinquent on this blog, but I've been out of town without my familiar computer and familiar software! There's too much to put in one blog, so I'll divide topics - starting with grandchildren and family. What blessed times we've had over the past couple of months!! Travis and Pam (and family + hounds) visited here at the ranch on their way to Phoenix for a few weeks of additional training. Though this picture was taken by Cheyenne in Phoenix, it's an awesome current family shot. Actually they also visited on their way back to the east coast to move to Italy, where they'll be for the next 3 years! While here the second time, Grandpa Mike took them to the Wildcatter Ranch (a steak and ribs place) for dinner, and they took some good pictures:

(from here down, left clicking once will enlarge any small picture)

I thought this was a particularly great photo, capturing Grandpa with Brenden and Marissa.

After their first visit, Travis and Pam arranged for Marissa's baptism while in Phoenix, so Grandma ("Noni") headed for Phoenix to represent our family at the baptism. They were at Luke AFB for another week or so, so we got to spend some time together every day. When Travis wasn't busy on his graduate studies, he was helping Brenden share his love of trains (choo-choos) with his cousin, Riley (who now has a love for choo-choos and cars too).

Here's beautiful Marissa (below, left), showing off her new Noni beanie and it wouldn't be complete without Pam and a good shot of Brenden! While together at 20 months old, Brenden and Riley developed a password (Da-dah) which none of us adults have a clue what it means, but they are very enthusiastic when saying it to each other. It's how Riley knew if Brenden was in the house, and how they greet each other on Skype now that they are in Italy and carry on quite the da-dah conversation!!

Of course I stayed with Cheyenne as John was deployed and I was to be her labor coach. Her due date was about 2 weeks away. Of course in her inimitable fashion, she was 8 days past her due date (last time it was 10)! Riley seemed oblivious to the impending arrival of his little sister. He loved playing outside as you can see.

Because of Cheyenne's last fast labor and delivery in an apartment parking lot, we prayed for discernment as to when to go to the hospital (about 1/2 hour drive) ... not too early, not too late and prayed that her doctor could be there for the delivery. For her account, check out http://www.cjwilson34.blogspot.com/ ("Did we make it to the hospital?") Things could not have fallen into place better! Alas Scarlett Chaeny Wilson was born at 0336 on May 11th, and I was back home by the time Riley woke up and he was none the wiser! He did so well during the transition to 'big brother'. No tears until Mommy got home with the baby. When he saw her sitting there holding his new sister, he was incredulous!!! Heart broken!! How could Mommy bring that baby home???? By later in the day, he'd gotten over the shock and has been fine ever since!

With no further adieu, here's the beautiful brand new Scarlett, just minutes old with her mommy:

and here's Scarlett in her new Noni beanie ready to go home:

And here's Scarlett during her first photoshoot! Do you think she's going to be a well photographed child???

And last but not least, HERE"S SCARLETT.... at one week with her new 'Aunt Pam' bracelet! Needless to say, she's a welcome addition to the Winslow family, and now Marissa will have a playmate whenever the families come to visit in years to come! We are very happy grandparents!

Rolling in Dough......

2010-03-03T13:07:00.009-06:00

It was a day to make hoagie rolls for Mike!! While I was at it, why not make a batch of Kaiser rolls?? Only problem was that when making the Kaiser Rolls, I accidently added 1 1/2 TABLEspoons instead of 1 1/2 TEAspoons of yeast! WHAT TO DO??? So, I made 3 batches of roll dough, divided the very quick rising dough into thirds, and made LOTS of rolls!! I spent all day in the kitchen, raising dough, shaping rolls, raising dough some more, and baking!!!

An interesting aside.... Kaiser rolls are folded from flat discs - several flaps toward the middle, then placed face down on a little bed of poppyseeds and raised. Just before putting in the oven, you turn them face up and bake them. Mike loves the Kaiser rolls!!!!!

And I ended up with LOTS OF BEAUTIFUL GOLDEN ROLLS!!! (clockwise from upper right: cloverleaf rolls, plain rolls, hoagie rolls, hard rolls and Kaiser rolls)
Too bad you don't live closer! You could visit the Winslow Bakery for some nice fresh rolls!!!

'Dillo Damage

2010-02-20T16:18:00.008-06:00

This, my friends, is the most efficient (and devastating) lawn aerator known to man -- the armadillo!! Wild pigs do a job on your property too - they do more than aerate, they dig BIG holes (VERY destructive to lawns). The problem with this Texas critter is that he visits mostly at night and is gone by morning. He makes friends with Sam (dog) and the cats. He's very focused on his work, and when bothered, he just moves to another spot and starts digging for grubs. His shell-like cover protects him from most predators (including me with the broom), and he's hard to catch. He doesn't bite, but he has formidable looking claws. We 'bagged' this one a couple of times (NO easy task) and moved him on down the road, but he'd find his way back. Then we took him a mile or so away. Now either he's back or one of his friends!! Every morning we go out to more areas of excavation!! He particularly likes to go along stones and around trees.... (feel free to click on pics below to take a better gander of the completed 'work')

but the lawn is fair game too, especially if there's a tree nearby with lots of roots that might attract grubs....

I don't know how I'm going to get my flowers to grow and bloom with all the help he's giving me!!!

More Winter!!!!

2010-02-13T16:27:00.006-06:00

Here it is, almost Valentines Day, and it looks more like Christmas!!! It's been a real winter here!! BIG SNOW STORM, cold weather, heavy frost, and now more snow! But this one was more of a pretty all-day snow fall with temperatures right at freezing overnight with progressive warming over the past couple of days - so, it's almost gone and up to 56 degrees today. This was Rodgers Road yesterday. Our property is to the right of this road. Welcome to the country!!!I dashed out to take snow pics towards town, but the best pictures yesterday were right here in the pecan orchard. Even though the snow was melting off, the horses enjoyed wandering and foraging in the snow.

...as did the heifers and bull. They're growing as they should, and while there's little grass to be had in the fields, they eat a huge bail of hay about every other week.

The Ranch in Winter

2010-01-31T21:35:00.026-06:00

Brrrrrrr! Even here in Texas, it's cold! This morning we woke up to 25 degrees!! It's been pretty foggy for the past several days as it was this morning as you can see. The horses have a heavier coat and oft spend the night against (or inside) the hen house. In fact one morning Mike found Eeyore shut in and peaking out the chicken door, looking to be rescued!!! The frost this morning was quite beautiful - our world was frosty!
The live oak tree which keeps its leaves year-round had frost-outlined leaves; the crepe myrtle right next to it looked 'flocked' (like the fancy christmas trees), and the large tree behind was a little coarser frosted, but I rather liked the contrast between the three (click to appreciate detail):

Brindle (left) was checking out the contrast between the green grass just starting to appear and the frosted shrub. Right, I thought the bird nest in the pecan tree was interesting. The loop that looks like a rubber band is likely a hair from one of the horses tails which was used in constructing the nest. The aqua blue is from the twine around the bales of hay. (click for detail)

Last week one day, I came out to get the mail and along the fenceline across the street I was met with a hundred eyes looking at me......

until Sam barked and they gathered together and then stampeded away! Sam likes to herd those cattle across the street!!

The last few mornings have all been below freezing and it's interesting to see the dog dish where Sam and the kitties have licked a hole in the ice and it freezes in rather interesting patterns.

On sunny cold days (like last week) the kitties like to gather together and take baths and hang out on a blanket on the porch. This works well until Sam decides he wants to lay there. Sometimes he'll share, sometimes not!

Sienna (front) is the senior member here. Her daughter is my semi-house kitty. In the middle of the pack is Patches (with the black and orange coat and the black eye) - she'll be a year old in May and is Sienna's sisters little one. The other three are my orphans, born in July. Bonnie (behind Sienna) comes inside part of the time. Brindle is the only one I have left with that coloring, and last is Blondie (he's the only little boy in the picture). This picture represents half of my kitties.

Check out ALO Top 10 by Travis

2010-01-20T10:27:00.004-06:00

Wow!!! Any of my friends who follow along with personal and ranch happenings, MUST check out Travis' latest reflective post on his 3-year ALO assignment. It's awesome and I want to share with all!!! Just click on the link: http://snakeye.us/

The Arrival of Marissa

2010-01-15T16:14:00.000-06:00

This is a grandparent entry!!! It captures our visit with Travis, Pam and Brenden while awaiting the arrival of Marissa. We arrived in Savannah in time for Thanksgiving. What a great family time. We got to enjoy Travis and Pam, but the best was getting to know Brenden in toddlerhood! Of course, he didn't remember us from this summer, so we had to get reacquainted! We got to take walks, learn a new word ("car"), shop, eat, and visit with our beautiful family:
After a couple of days, Brenden's personality really came out. He LOVES to 'read' books!!! He recognizes a ton of words and can identify most pictures (by pointing) in his First Words book. He also LOVES vehicles. His other favorite book was a fireengine book with wheels on the bottom. We 'talked' about the different emergency vehicles every day. When Pam pulled out some wooden vehicles, the favorite game became "what's this?". He didn't say 'what's this? .... but the intensity of his eyes looking at your mouth when holding up a toy SCREAMED ... 'WHAT'S THIS CALLED?'

This was his favorite floor toy. He loved the balls... to put them down the various holes and to throw them on the tile floor and watch them bounce. He liked to put a variety of things through the holes and often 'Noni' (that's me) had to get square things through the system!

Then finally the big day came... Marissa's birth day! Here's Marissa when only a few hours old being admired by her Mommy and Daddy:

..... and by her 'Grandparents Winslow':

Here she is, 4 days old! This is my favorite picture with her mom. She looks 100% cute with her dad too. (click on them to enlarge)

Such a beautiful little girl she is!! This is Marissa Hazel at one week old, and I'm sure she'll just get more beautiful as she develops facial expressions.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!!!

2009-12-31T18:55:00.024-06:00

WOW!!! The last time we attended a real live Air Force football game was when Travis was a cadet at the Air Force Academy (AFA)!!! He graduated in 2001, has been through pilot training, F-16 training, weapons training, survival training and multiple other kinds of training since then!! He's been to Iraq and Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia and Germany and he'll soon be on his way to Italy!!! A lot of water under the old bridge!!!

Anyway, this year, Air Force was in the Armed Forces Bowl, and they played at TCU Stadium!! The 'T' is, of course: TEXAS!! We were only a 2 hour drive away, so Travis gave us tickets for Christmas!! He couldn't be there, so he sent us to take pictures and cheer for him!!! And WE HAD A GREAT TIME!! We bought some long johns and bundled up in our AF clothes to buck the 42-46 degrees we anticipated. By the time we parked, walked to the stadium and found our seats, it was kick-off time!!! The officials came out on the field... the coin was tossed, and AF received:
Our seats were at about the 16 yard line, and we sat behind the Cadet Drum and Bugle Corps (below, left). For the AF, the game got off to a great start ... TWO TDs (unanswered) in the first quarter, and we could see the TV broadcast on the scoreboard (below, right). (for detail, click on any small pictures to enlarge)

Houston was obviously off their game... here we are giving them another opportunity to score:

Then at half time these 4 groups marched onto the field to take their oath of office for the USAF, USN, US Army, and the Marines - new recruits!! You can also see the University of Houston Band at the ready in their bright red uniforms.

Then a VERY nice half-time show featuring 3 bands: Houston (red), AFA Drum & Bugle Corps (blue) and the Army Drum & Bugle Corps from Fort Hood (camo & behind the AF)... Shown on the right are the Houston majorettes ... performing in very brief uniforms!!! BRRRRRRRRR!! (click to enlarge):

Immediately after the game, the AF team assembled directly below us and sang the school song and cheered. (below, left) The final score appeared on the marquis (below right). Note the position of the flag compared to the picture in the first quarter!!! We had a bit more breeze in the second half.

All in all, it was a great game, reminiscent of Parent Weekends past!!! A GREAT Christmas present, Travis and Pam.

Dreamin' of a White Christmas

2009-12-26T12:27:00.006-06:00

In OLNEY, TEXAS???? I'm wondering WHEN the folks around here last had a white Christmas! Last year I don't remember a single snowfall! I remember a couple the year before, but not for Christmas!! I had a feeling we might see snow for Christmas. Late evening on the 23rd I heard some pretty good rain, and figured it could turn to snow during the night. We woke up to snow falling and a heavy dusting ...

As the day went on, we had horrendous winds and swirling snow.... and then the power went out. Many of my planned activities were put on hold .... like baking cookies, homemade rolls and bread, doing laundry, vacuuming! So we worked on other projects. The temperature outside fell into the 20s and Mike dusted off the kerosene heater in the garage to keep the house temperature comfortable. My 'in and out' kitties (2 little calicos) enjoyed the day sleeping inside. I brought a nice wool blanket out for the corner of the porch and Sam and the other kitties were safe out of the worst of the snow and wind. They all huddled together. It finally eased up around 4, but we still had no power. But it allowed for some nice pictures:

Left is the Live Oak off the front porch, laden with snow. Right are the doors on the side porch outside of our bedroom, blasted with wind and snow. (click to enlarge either picture)

Left is a view of the side yard (click to enlarge) with large drifts. Right is Mike shaking the snow off the laden branches of the Live Oak. Mike cleared the car windows in anticipation of attending the Christmas Eve service at church, but we couldn't get out of the driveway.

As you can see, we were set up for a beautiful white Christmas which paralleled the famous

"Twas the Night Before Christmas when all through the house,

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse" (with 8 cats outside and 3 in the house, I guarantee NO MICE!!!)

This beautiful sunny snowy scene depicted the poem further as evening approached still without power....

"The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow
Gave the lustre of midday to objects below"...

Though still without power, we nestled in with a fire in the fireplace and our kerosene lanterns to a quiet evening with cheese and summer sausage snacks, our traditional glass of Bristol Creme Sherry or Bailey's Irish Cream and read the Christmas Story (Luke in the Bible) and played a few games of Backgammon. And then the power came on at about 9:15 pm!! My super-thanks go out to those 'linemen' out in the wind and freezing cold trying to get to the problem location with nearly impassible roads and blizzard conditions. As a result, we had an old fashioned Christmas and made many memories!!!

Visit us again very soon for our next entry of our very own special Christmas-time child!!

Sky High!

2009-10-23T09:30:00.006-05:00

Guess where the pot of gold is???? It's at our little ranch!!!! This was taken in July, after a little shower, and I was at my neighbors home (3/4 mile away), taking care of their garden while they were away. Doesn't it look no more than a mile away???? Now for more recent awesome skies:

On my way to Arizona to take care of Riley while John took Cheyenne on a surprise trip to Cancun, I became enamoured with the sky's incredible beauty... in fact, with gorgeous scenery too. On the way, I caught some incredible canyon views and sunsets. This is approaching sunset - the sun was behind clouds, and it was very 'dusky' .....

Driving on a little farther with my eyes glued to the mountains and sunset brought this gorgeous sky.....

......and, on the way back, the MOST incredible clouds kept me entertained! Just check out the various textures and the storm and sun effects! I had to stop SEVERAL times just to take pictures because it's not always SOOOOOOOO beautiful!!!

Note the big puffy clouds beyond the trees and the brightness of the white in the near clouds from the sun in spite of the blue-gray stormy area in the middle!

Note how the storm cloud has an opening (like a window) to highlight the distant bright white puffy clouds beyond the mountains.

The next two pictures were taken at the same place, different directions! Especially note the variety of textures in the clouds in the right picture.... Are these not breathtaking???? (click to enlarge)

Normally I crop some, but I couldn't bring myself to cut out the little gray whispies - I don't think I've been on a trip with more beautiful skies than this!!!

And how about this sunset shot with rows of mountain ranges in the distance!!! I did NOT doctor this picture either.... looks like I hit the color correct button and put in purple and pink hues, but this is pretty much how it was!!!!

God's paintbrush at work!!!!

Hay --- you guys!!!

2009-10-03T22:46:00.011-05:00

I arrived home from Branson, MO/Charleston, IL late Friday, and it was dark, so I couldn't see any changes until morning. While I was gone, the field with native grasses was mowed and baled!

(You may have to click on this to see the bales in the field below the house. If you can't open this one, left click on the small pictures below this one.)

Just to give you an appreciation of how far we've come in about a year and a half: left is the field 4/15/08 and right is the same field 10/3/09....

What holds these bales together? Check the mesh that covers the outside of the bales:

How big are they, you wonder??? I certainly can't move them!!! Check out my kitty jumping off! It's a considerable jump!!!!

Stay tuned for more ranch news! I need to take a picture of the hen house for an update!!! Can you hardly wait???? :)

Where's the BEEF??????

2009-09-24T00:05:00.008-05:00

"There seems to be something new on the ranch!" (Checking out new arrivals) Though I've been calling our Texas home a 'ranch', it's been a little deficient! What do you expect to find when you visit a RANCH????? Hmmmmm.... HORSES of courses!! A herd of CATTLE!! A working DOG to help 'round up' the cattle!! Some CATS to keep the mice, rats and snakes away! DONKEYS or MULES (they're good to keep coyotes away), and of course some COWBOYS and COWGIRLS!! Up till now, we've been missing a key player.... NO CATTLE!!! Well, now we're a full-fledged RANCH!!!! Now we've got the beef!!!!

"What do you suppose these are??? They sure don't look like us!!! NOT HORSES!!!" We have four 6-9 month old Angus heifers and a brown calf with a white interestingly marked face (don't know what breed she is!!!). They're only interested in one thing!

Is it time for dinner yet??? Sam knows he's supposed to do something with these critters, but what??? Right now, he dashes at them and snaps his teeth just to show them who's boss!! They give him space. Soon he'll be able to help round 'em up and bring 'em home.

Orphans with new mom!

2009-09-13T00:57:00.004-05:00

Since Kitty vanished from the scene, her baby care has fallen to me. I tried to get Powder or Sienna to adopt their mom's babies, but NO WAY!!! So, we're getting along just fine!! They're growing and they are the friendliest babies and LOVE to be loved on!! So here's substitute Mama with her brood ----

I have to wear tall socks and my boots to keep from getting too scratched up! Their claws are like little razor blades! They slice through skin like butter!!!

Raising the roof!

2009-08-29T11:00:00.016-05:00

HOME SWEET HOME with a new roof!

It doesn't rain often here, but when it does, we get some pretty wicked winds with impressive thunder and lightening! We've had roofers out 3 or 4 times to repair the roof when the wind blew off shingles and leaked through to the ceiling. So we knew we'd have to have it replaced!

The roofers started almost as soon as the sun came up! Here you can see the old roof (the ORIGINAL roof) and they applied the new shingles on top of the original roof after they inspected and repaired any problem areas.

The installation took about 3 days with the whole crew working till mid afternoon in 100 degree heat.

Then the boss man would come back and work till dinner time (about 7 pm) before he'd give up and go home.

Here's the back view of the new roof, and the color goes quite nicely with the brick!

There's also progress on the hen house. Mike worked quite a few mornings before the temperature outside reached into the 90's and low 100's - making and installing his trusses!

Then it came time to do the roof! As you can see, it has a metal roof and interior walls. It too should last for a long time without leaking and without giving the chickens a chill! Now for the siding - dependant of funding for the lumber purchase!

It's a CAT-tastrophe!!

2009-08-15T13:29:00.019-05:00

This has been a terrible week in kittendom! Last Sunday morning I had a full complement of kitties, short 2 with new homes. By Friday morning, I was minus 4 kitties! (Three 14 week old kittens and Mama Kitty!!!) Now I have these eight little orphans - just 4 weeks old. Last Sunday, we saw 5 or 6 buzzards fly off as we approached about 1000 feet down the road on our way to church. We tried to spot what they had from the car but saw nothing. It wasn't till I went to feed my brood, that 2 kittens (little white spotted male and 'Bibs' pictured below) failed to report when called. They ALWAYS come for meals. They weren't there the next day either! Then we wondered about those guilty-looking birds. My 2 boys loved chasing bugs in the living room window in the evening when we were watching TV!

On Tuesday I went to do my Pink Lady duty and when I came home, there was a buzzard eating something at the intersection of our road! When I got home, I took a kitten count and couldn't find my beautiful, most loving, Red. The fur on the road has confirmed his demise!

Then Friday, Mama Kitty was NOT waiting for breakfast and she wasn't under the porch with her kittens! By noon I knew something was really wrong because she's the BEST mom and would NEVER leave her kittens for hours! I can only guess that she came to the same end as the others. I thought she was safe because she was bigger, street-wise and feisty. When attacked from above, I suspect one is helpless with nowhere to instantly run for shelter! Here's Kitty just after she adopted us (Feb 2008) - I think she was pretty young there. To the right is Little Kitty, fulfilling her role as an awesome mom!!

It breaks my heart to say goodbye to my babies! I'd so much rather have found them homes. The little white one had a new home for a day, but it didn't work out for him.

For now, I'll be Mama to the babies, but I can't do near the good job that Little Kitty did!!!

Visitors!

2009-07-26T17:15:00.008-05:00

We were SO blessed this week with family! No one lives nearby, so we don't get to see one another often. Monday afternoon Travis (son), Pam and Brenden (left side) arrived from Savannah, GA, along with their greyhounds, Merlin & Morgan (foreground) and a persian cat, Avalon (not pictured). At the same time, Mike's sister, Debbie (center back) and niece, Chrys (center left) arrived from California. Then on Tuesday, Cheyenne (daughter), John and Riley (right side) arrived at DFW from Arizona. And of course you can pick out Mike and me and our dog, Sam - we're all that's left!! This is the best close-up to show the grandsons with their moms. The timing of the visits is to get the families together on middle ground. And it was a bonus to have Debbie and Chrys arrive when they were all here. We had a great time catching up.

While they were all here, we had another visitor one night - a skunk! He made himself known by what he left behind - his familiar aroma! The only problem is that I couldn't find any kittens at breakfast time! Nary a one! I called and called. Nothing. So I started hunting around, and alas, there they were - safely hiding in a tree! Six of the eleven were all snuggied in the notch of the tree. I strongly prefer our family visitors!!!

The LAST kittens for Kitty

2009-07-18T13:28:00.004-05:00

Kitty apparently got pregnant when her former litter of 3 were 8 weeks old! So this is her LAST litter. Her two daughters (Powder and Sienna) who had 12 kittens between them, already have an appointment with the kitty gynecologist, and Kitty won't be far behind them! NO MORE KITTENS!! Hopefully the ones we keep will hang around and not meet with any coyotes or birds of prey in the nearby area. All three have had very pretty litters since the tuxedo cat has been roaming these parts! He's going to be so disappointed when he next comes a'calling!

Kitty got HUGE!!! She had her kittens the afternoon/evening of July 8th. She'd had 4 by the time I got home from shopping in Graham. Every half hour of so, she'd have another well into the evening!! By 9pm, I think she was done, but there was one little one that didn't make it. The next morning when I went out to count, there were eight! So she birthed NINE!!! I really didn't need so many more!!! All the dark ones are girls and the orange/beige ones are boys - so I have 5 calico girls and 3 boys!
In this picture you can see them all better:
She had them during the heat of the day (105) and panted all the way through labor. The next morning she moved them to the floor of the porch where they sometimes squiggled off in their blind state. So, I moved the box down there to contain them, but she moved them back onto the concrete. I tried to let her be in the garage where it was a little cooler, but she wouldn't leave them in the box and insisted on taking them behind the shelves. As fast as I could return them to the box, she'd move them back to the spot behind the shelves. So I had to ban her from the garage! That meant Mike couldn't open the garage door to work because she'd quickly take advantage of the moment! So we moved to the back porch where Kitty stayed her first winter with us. Still she'd take them out of the box but was otherwise happy with the location. Ultimately she moved them to the only corner I hadn't swept - under the kitchen vent and hemmed in with bags of potting soil and alfalfa pellets, BUT she's happy there, so there they will stay for now!

Enjoy them Little Kitty 'cause there won't be any more!!!

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary, How does your garden grow?

2009-07-06T08:00:00.015-05:00

It's been pretty warm here on the ranch, 100 + or - for the past couple of weeks. The fields and lawn are taking a hit and turning tan out in the open - under the trees it's still green. The garden has it's ups and downs. I water at least once a day and sometimes twice. I come in as soaked as the garden but without benefit of the well water! In spite of the heat and Eeyore in the garden - TWICE, most things are doing pretty good. This is the garden overall: The corn at least produced decent ears, but they're cooked twice by the time they reach our plate. The blackeyed peas (center upper picture, left below) are growing like crazy right now. They're supposed to be 'bush' plants, but have sent out streamers so far, I had to provide something to prop them up!!

This is my best tomato plant at this time (left, below). If I can keep them moist enough, they may produce better when it cools off! Cucumbers (below right) are doing well and we've already had more cucumbers that the whole season last year.

Then over to the vine plants - the Straightneck Yellow Squash is getting ready to start putting out some yummy tender squashes (left) and the Okra is sporting it's first flower (right) about to open and provide us okra for gumbo.

The pumpkin is getting it's first fruit (I had to make it big so you could see it in the upper left corner:

We should be getting canteloupe in the next couple of weeks (left) - the one below is about 5". Watermellon (right) is coming along, some itty-bitty ones just starting, but the one shown is about 4-5 inches :

My salad row is still making lettuce - mostly green leaf lettuce, but a few reds. I planted some 'mesclun mix', but the leaves were so bitter, I won't plant that next year, just variety lettuces and spinach. There are also some carrots mixed in with the lettuce.

Mike's project is coming along well considering he's a one-man construction crew!! He's put down the foundation, the flooring and the framing so far. This structure will store garden items, feed for the chickens and the larger part will be the chicken coup. Most of the work is done between 7:30 and 10 a.m. before the sun is most intense and the heat oppressive.
By 10:00 a.m. you see narry a kitten around because they're all under the porch and they don't come out till late afternoon, early evening!

So goes life on the ranch these days!!!

Who's in the hen house???

2009-06-26T12:10:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, shortly after sunrise (you can tell by the lighting), I awakened to this tapping, scraping noise, and I laid there and thought -- What is that noise???? Sometimes Racey or Eeyore wake me scraping her(his) front hoof on the chain link fence, but this sound was different. So I got up to peep out and see what it was and this is what I found!!!

To the south of my garden, Mike is building a storage area (for garden supplies) and hen house for our future chickens. I've been meaning to go out when he's working on it for a progress picture, but this was too good of an opportunity. Racey AND Eeyore were walking around on the floor of the hen house and 'pawing' or should i say 'hoofing' at the floor. So now we know that the flooring can support over 1000 pounds!!!

When they realized they were caught in the act, they quickly exited:

Within 30 seconds the two were innocently standing by the fence trying to convince me -- "we weren't in the hen house!!! We're not chickens!!"

Home again, home again, jiggety-jig

2009-06-24T13:58:00.004-05:00

After getting caught up in stopped traffic for about an hour and a half d/t a BAD accident where the whole of I-10 was closed down for CSI activities (collecting materials & measuring distances), my first day of travel was shorter than planned. I overnighted in Lordsburg, NM and knew I was in for a L-O-N-G day of driving for my second day. So rather than take the 'fastest' route according to TomTom, I chose the 'shortest' route and hoped I didn't make a big mistake. Except for one tour through a little mountain town, it did a good job! I made it home for dinner, saw some nice scenery, and drove about 200 fewer miles!! TomTom took me through White Sands National Monument:
and through some beautiful mountain/canyon vistas:

The purpose of my trip to Arizona was to take care of my little grandson, Riley while his mom and dad went white water rafting. We had SUCH A GOOD TIME!!! He's a wonderful and inquisitive little boy, about to crossover from the baby stage to the toddler stage!! He's good natured and tons of fun to be with. We had so much fun getting to know one another. He LOVES water!!! That includes the doggie's water dish or ANY source of water anywhere. Bath time is a favorite time!! Note the tidal wave in the tub from splashing!! And the look of glee!!!

Mobility is another full time activity during waking hours... On the carpet he crawls, but on the tile floor, he does a bear crawl (hands and FEET):
While Mom and Dad were gone, we worked on stair climbing, and it didn't take long to improve his technique. Stair climbing and assisted walking were his favorite things to do -

When Cheyenne and John got home, we went to a neighbors to practice swimming with Mommy:
Cana (black lab) usually comes along to visit his friend, Bailey for water sports - they NEVER tire of retrieving - the big splash is Cana:

And when I got home, we moved the new kittens to the side porch which serves as the training grounds. When napping, they tend to sleep together and all over each other. Ten of the twelve are pictured here!

America the Beautiful

2009-05-30T20:17:00.007-05:00

Besides being the BEST place to live despite hard times, it's amazing to me how the landscape can change in 10 minutes of driving! You can sometimes see forever with soft velvety hills (below left), then be in the midst of treed hills and just 15 minutes later (below right).

The landscape can take your breath away at times! The southwest has wonderful rock formations that hold archaelogical truths and rich history of our past (recent compared to other continents). Just imagine moving west 100 years ago through some of this rugged country, without the superhighways!! I remember family trips to visit relatives, and we went through every town and berg along the way!! My kids will never know, and their kids probably won't believe how 'primitive' travel was as recent as the 50's!!

The CATtle Ranch

2009-05-26T17:27:00.006-05:00

It was suggested by Travis that we drop the TLE off of catTLE Ranch and just have a CAT RANCH!! We're well on our way! Had to hire a few hands to help manage our growing cat population on our little ranch! Check out the video link!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pk7yqlTMvp8

Seriously, we only have 19 cats right now .. :) But the concept is interesting and well expressed in the video!!!

PLUS FIVE = an even DOZEN

2009-05-22T12:20:00.004-05:00

Powder had her babies yesterday morning! She was a little freaked, but she did use the box provided and nursed her new little brood. This is her most unique one, though I must say it's an interesting mix... she had a calico too.
The first family picture was a little messy, so I decided to get a better 'family' picture so as not to gross you out!! However if you count, you'll notice SIX kittens in the picture (she only had FIVE). She now thinks they're ALL hers!! So she borrows from her sister at every opportunity.It's not hard to catch her in action:

So, Sienna had to check out Powder's box when she noticed her kitten count was a little short! While checking, Powder returned with yet another and settled in to nurse.

By the time I finished feeding all the animals this morning, Sienna's box was EMPTY!! I had to figure out a solution. Returning them just invites her to retrieve them again, so I scouted around for a bigger box. If they're all going to end up in one box, then there needs to be room for two moms to feed them all! So, here's my solution since it's very apparent to me that they intend to share in the responsibilities!!! And Powder's being pretty pushy, keeping all the babies in her box!!

SEVEN!!!!!

2009-05-19T14:19:00.005-05:00

Her first (and last) litter -- SEVEN! I always thought first litters were small!! I knew she was pretty big... I expected 6! Now with Powder, I'm expecting around 5 more within the next 24-48 hours!!
One little addendum: Last night, EVERY time I checked on them, Sienna was ALWAYS purring big time!! It was a permanent purr - even the door vibrated against the water dish!!

Here are the kaleidescope kittens:

Little Kitty is a Grandma!!

2009-05-18T23:50:00.013-05:00

Actually I have another blog almost ready to publish, but this mini-event needed a quick blog!! I took some pictures of my 'kittens' (8 1/2 months old) on Saturday to show how big they were, knowing that the births would be very soon. So, here's Sienna on Saturday:

At dinnertime tonight, there was a commotion with Sam out on the porch, and Mike went out to check out what was going on. Maybe because of the new kitten noises coming from the box, Sam was responding with worrisome sounds. Sienna had already had a few kittens and was in the process of having another. My next few trips out found her 'pushing' to deliver another and another! I don't yet know how many are out there, but for a first litter, she has a pretty full house!! There are at least 6 or 7, and they're all different colors - I see an orange tabby, a blonde one (like Powder), a couple of calicos, black and white, and grey-orange-black combo. It's like a rainbow out there!!! Maybe I can get better pics tomorrow.

Then, Mama Kitty (now Grandma Kitty) came out to investigate:

Powder's next, and I think she has at least 5 - we'll see in the next couple of days!!!

TIMBER!!!!!

2009-05-08T12:19:00.001-05:00

A few months ago, a great wind storm came through Ohio and we were notified we had a tree blow down in the yard. I know there's a dead tree in the back yard, and I hoped it was THAT tree!! What a silly thought!!!! (picture on left)

So, when I visited my mom last month, I took a day trip to Ohio to have lunch with my friend, Loretta, who I worked with at the Kettering School of Medical Arts. I also visited my friends, Melissa and Bob, who I knew from the condo community we lived in for a few years. I stopped by our yet-unsold house to check out the yard for the fallen tree, and peek in the windows. Except that the yard could use some TLC, it looked pretty good.

When I got back, we too had some terribly windy days and don't ya know, we needed the roof repaired (for the 3rd time) because of missing shingles and one of the cedar trees blew down in our side yard.

At least here, Mike could go out with his handy saw and haul it off the the burn pile to await the calling off of the burn ban currently in force. Though we've had a few inches of rain, it's still pretty dry. I'm praying for more rain before the hot summer comes!!

In the meantime, the newest litter (2 boys and a girl) are getting really cute - they like sleeping in sunshine on reasonably comfortable days. Yesterday (and today) it's hot and humid and they're happy in the shade of the house.

Latest Project

2009-04-25T13:52:00.003-05:00

Olney Centennial Celebration is one week from today, and the Hospital Auxiliary will have a table. We're planning a Bake Sale, and we have a great location just around the corner from the Gazebo (where many events will be). I've been making hot pads (such as they had 100 years ago) patterned after some my mom had. I remember these being around as far back as I can remember. We get so used to ever-updated technology, and some of these old talents are all but lost in this generation. My grandmother taught my mom, and my mom taught me when I was 8 or 9, and I've passed it on to my daughter. But most younger people I talk to don't know how to knit, crochet, darn a sock -- we just get new ones. Of course, I too take advantage of modern conveniences, but I thought it would be nice to promote this old art for our centennial. I'm actually having fun knitting and crocheting while watching movies or TV. I can now almost make one a day!!! We'll see how well they go at our table - I'll sell them for $5 apiece.

Busy-ness limits blog activity

2009-04-20T11:30:00.010-05:00

There are always things to do with all the animals on a ranch (farm), -- and living on a gravel road creates more things to do IN the house - what with all the dust! It has been SO dry here for MONTHS, -- so there is a lot of dust kicked up by passing vehicles (5 or 6 a day!!!).
On the left, note the dust in the air compared to our more usual Texas sky on the right! Also note the lack of green secondary to the drought conditions!

This week we've had a couple of storms come through, so for the first time in a long time, there's no dust in the air!!! In fact, with 3" of rain about 10 days ago, and another inch 4 or 5 days ago, things are starting to green up nicely!!

Aside from the busy-ness associated with 'ranch' life, I became a member of the Hospital Auxiliary (i.e. 'pink ladies') a little over a year ago, and don't you know, they voted me in as President last fall! We only have a small hospital, Hamilton Hospital, here in Olney (about 20 beds), but it has a rich history. At one time, Olney was a thriving community of over 5,000! There were 3 clothing stores, a nice hotel with an ice cream parlor, a bowling alley, several banks, a tea room, a couple of five and dimes and lots more. Now we have around 3400 (at last census) which includes more than our fair share of government housing. Oil activity has fallen and taken with it much of the industry/business that was once here. Back then the hospital had over 100 beds and supported 8 or 10 doctors. Now we only have a couple and they bring docs in from around the area to cover the Emergency Room. Anyway, our auxiliary was once around 40 strong and now we have under 20! Since I've been president, the first regular BIG activity of our year is a bean and cornbread luncheon put on each spring. This is THE MAIN FUNDRAISER every year. Aside from that, we assist with projects wherever we can, and we provide fresh ice water, newspapers, and some companionship for the 7-18 patients. Our beans and cornbread meal was March 26th, so I was quite involved in that (but unfortunately I didn't take any pictures). Even Mike helped serve as we expanded to serving at Air Tractor (a major employer in Olney) as well as at the Civic Center. We also had a raffle (an afghan that my mom donated for the event). Then on April 8th & 9th, we had our first ever Book Fair and also finished up on the raffle. It was a very successful event, earning us just under $600 that will allow us to donate some additional things for the hospital. We're not done yet either! In 2 weeks the town of Olney celebrates it's centennial. The whole town will be turning out for city-wide events, and we'll have a pink lady table somewhere along Main Street. As the new president, I find myself busy organizing all these projects, new and old. 'My ladies' have been wanting new members and now I think I can keep them busy, so we're going to have a 'new member drive' along with the big Centennial Celebration!!!

OUCH!!!!!

2009-04-11T11:40:00.005-05:00

Little Kitty doesn't miss a chance to kick Tober's butt!!! When Little Kitty first came she was a polite friendly Kitty that resided mostly on the back porch. But Tober, seeing her out on the porch would get pretty 'put out' and growl through the glass and bite on the wood frame to show Little Kitty what she'd like to do if she could just get through that glass!! NOW, Tober's rather 'laisez faire' but Little Kitty says 'point taken' and looks for her opportunities!! Yesterday was pretty windy and the directionality of the wind would blow the screen door ajar enough that she could get her paw in there and sneak through the door! AHA!! Where's that *#@** cat???? A one-sided cat fight ensued! Mike came to Tober's rescue and grabbed Little Kitty by the scruff to throw her out. All I heard was the cat fight and the LOUD scamper of chunky cat diving under the bed. Then Mike came in dripping blood from Kitty's response! She can be very fierce when 'tangled' with!! She bit BOTH of Mike's hands trying to get free - piercing skin with all 4 canines and probably nicking a vein! It's a good thing she's the OUTSIDE cat!

Now Tober gets to watch Kitty's comings and goings from a safe distance since Kitty moved her kittens from the front porch yesterday. THREE times we had to rescue them from behind the shelves in the back of the garage! That was obviously her first choice place to stash them! Finally she accepted the box on the side porch, her usual training grounds for the other two litters.

Birds and Kittens

2009-04-02T00:09:00.010-05:00

Well, when I got back from visiting family in Illinois and checking out our Ohio property (next post), I found Little Kitty sprawled out on the porch. I knew she should be due soon, but she was smaller than last time, so I figured I miscalculated. Then, on the morning of the 24th, I noticed she was smaller and looked in the box. Sure enough she had her kittens right on time, but she had only 3 this time (so no wonder she didn't look as big as last time - with 6!!). Anyway, all is well and she's being the attentive 24/7 mom as before!

In the meantime, while she's bathing her babies, the mockingbirds and white-capped sparrows fly in for breakfast and a bath! They are SO messy!! They love to drink the water and bathe in it - BUT they also poop in it!!! I've talked to them about it, but they pay me 'no never mind'!! They dance around in the food dish and spread it al over too! And not just the cat food, but the bigger chuncks of dog food too!!

A trip to the past... but it had changed!

2009-03-12T07:18:00.025-05:00

I first went to Texas A&M in June 1962 to take a 5-hour summer school course in calculus so I could hit the starting line at full speed when the fall semester began in September.
Close your eyes and imagine this picture:

Right out of High School; My first commercial flight (an American Airlines Electra - look that one up airplane buffs – first class, of course); Philadelphia to Dallas Love Field (DFW wasn’t even on the drawing boards in ’62); change planes at Love Field to a Trans Texas DC-3; three stops down to College Station.
At Texas A&M’s Easterwood Field, the plane landed and taxied up to the one-room terminal. There was no-one there, and the pilot didn’t even shut down the engines – the stu (not “Flight Attendant” - they were young, good looking, and single back then) just opened the door and handed me my suitcase, pulling the door up as I stepped off the air-stairs.
I watched as the plane taxied away and took off, leaving me standing all alone in the middle of nowhere, with the campus looking like an island in a sea of prairie grass, about a half mile away.
I picked up my suitcase and walked over to the campus, and found the office where I needed to check in and get a room assignment.
I went to Building 10– a sandy-brown brick dormitory in the ‘quad’, where in a couple of months a cadet squadron would be housed, and claimed the bottom bunk of my assigned first floor room. I had to open the window to get a breeze, since there was no air conditioning.

After a brief nap, I wandered around the nearly empty campus to orient myself to my new environment. One of the places I ‘discovered’ was the MSC – the Memorial Student Center – one of the few air-conditioned buildings on campus.

College Station was a pretty small town in 1962; I remember only a few small stores and businesses just outside the campus boundaries called Northgate: A movie, a storefront restaurant, a drug store, and “Old Army Lou’s” Bookstore. Needless to say, other than going to the “flick” on Friday or Saturday, or to Aggie sporting events whenever, there wasn’t too much social activity to distract one from the Corps or academics.

Jump to 2009 – 47 years later:

I was lost when I walked the campus. First of all, when I was a sophomore, Texas A&M underwent a significant change – they admitted women, and made the Corps of Cadets an option. So the university went from 8000 students in 1962 to nearly 50,000 today.

The campus was packed with new and expanded buildings, some of which replaced the old buildings where I had my classes. The ‘Quad’ was still the home of the Corps, but there are only 1700-1800 cadets anymore. I found my old dorm, and talked to a cadet that was living in the same room that was my “hole” as a cadet… same fundamental lifestyle (although I’m sure that the corps doesn’t condone some of the stuff we used to do – Bab-O Bombs; booby traps when the upper classmen opened their doors; skinning deer and other game in the showers; stuff like that.)

College Station is now a major town, packed with fast food joints, bars, hotels, bookstores, law offices… AND LOTS of traffic.

It was good to go back, but my memories of A&M will always be of the campus that I knew in ‘62.

This is February???????

2009-02-26T15:15:00.004-06:00

For the past 3 days we've had summer like weather (well, summer up north standards!)!! It was up to 92 on Tuesday! Here's today's high - it's held steady since about 12:30! I just planted about 100 sweet onions in my beginning garden and I'm HOT!!!!! Is this global warming??

Adventures of SAM and the Rubber Tub!!

2009-02-21T10:59:00.018-06:00

You can purchase toys for children, toys for cats, toys for dogs -- we even have a toy for our horses! I guess big people have toys too, but their toys are a bit more pricey than those of their children! If you can remember when you were young (some of us have to remember more years back than others!) what were your favorite things to play with? Pots and pans? Buttons? Sand? Remnants of Dad's carpentry projects? Many of the things we played with were not purchased for playing!!! My cats ALWAYS love playing with 'ta-ta's (little pieces of balled up paper) more than most things purchased! Sam has had LOTS of dog toys, but he doesn't really PLAY with them - he EATS them!!! When he first arrived to live with us, he ate his food out of Sheba's travel dish, then he ate the dish!!! (pictured left)
The toys I buy are reduced to small bits within a very few days. However he has found the best toy for himself right here under Eeyore's nose, Eeyore's rubber feed tub. Twice a day we have to hunt for the tub in order to feed Eeyore. Most often it's somewhere in the front yard. Before Sam claimed it, Eeyore and Tutu would carry it around the corral, and I had to hunt for it out there! Sam loves it SO much, he steals it while Eeyore is still eating! Or, he'll snatch it right out from under Tutu or Racey's nose when they come to finish off Eeyore's food! You see - when Doc finishes his, he displaces the girls to finish theirs! There's a hierarchy amongst the animals we have! Though Sam totally respects the equines (because of their size), I think he's definitely the TOP DOG!!
Note his feet - half the time he's in the air while he's tossing the tub to and fro! If you could see the tub close up, you'd see the chewed down edge - the tub keeps getting shorter!

He goes crazy when it comes to the tub!

And that's not all!! He's totally fascinated with Tober - day and night:
If Tober comes too close to the window, Sam barks and jumps on the window! OOPS!!

Got a little too carried away!! I'm sorry!!! Didn't mean to break the window!!!

The Glorious Ending!

2009-02-12T14:16:00.004-06:00

The crowning glory of our Disciple Now experience occurred as we left the church after the creative skits between 11 p.m. and midnight. The kids looked up and called our attention to the moon which looked very much like this!!!

In all my years, I have never seen a moon halo! It seemed like such an appropriate night for it to show itself. It was incredible!! Unfortunately the battery in my camera died, so I couldn't take the picture myself. This picture is close to what we saw!!

EVERYTHING!

2009-02-09T14:22:00.000-06:00

We just finished with the 'Disciple Now - 2009' program offered by our church. The theme this year? EVERYTHING! We opened our home to young participants. Our initial expectation was one or two 'kids' would stay here with activities at the church. When called to plan for our 'kids', we discovered we would have around 10 (TEN) eighth grade boys!!! The good news was the 'package' deal came with a small group leader and a helper which for us turned out to be a wonderful young man, Jared, who's seeking a counselling post-grad degree, and Spencer, a parole officer!

Wednesday night we got to meet most of these people. We learned a lot about this program by participating and really enjoyed our group of 8th graders though parts of the house looked like a dorm room (no picture needed!). Activities really started Friday afternoon at the Olney/City View Basketball games (girls & boys JV & Varsity), followed by a large group session at 10 p.m. (included a Christian band and an awesome speaker who seemed to relate well to the kids.
Truck the kids back to the house (they ALWAYS wanted to ride in the bed of the truck) for a small group session and bedtime at 1 a.m.! You have to know that Mike's bedtime is 10 p.m., and I was totally impressed that he hung in till 1 a.m. on Friday, and AFTER 2 a.m. on Saturday!
Saturday included more large and small group sessions. We were responsible for breakfast and dinner on Saturday (food and paper goods supplied by church).

Each group came up with some sort of a skit. Skits were performed Saturday night and some were VERY moving and some were fun and musical.

While the band was practicing, Keelan experienced 'rock star' status on drums, since that's what he's learning to play.

Our church provided a great pancake breakfast on Sunday morning and the morning worship was essentially another large group session. There must have been at least 150 participants from 7th - 12th grade!!! It was a BIG deal!!!

Awesome Grandsons (and their moms)

2009-01-30T12:00:00.002-06:00

We just had the BEST visit with our grandbabies a couple of weeks ago. I don't have many pictures because Cheyenne brought her new camera and she and Pam went nuts taking all kinds of pictures. You can see their pics by checking out their blogs but I just realized that I did have a few pictures that captured the memories of having a 5 month around. It's been a long time as Travis' 31st birthday was the 27th of January!!!
Here are a few pics to showcase our 'little men'!

They were both SO cute and inquisitive, and I loved their laughs and other sweet noises. I loved Riley's cuddly expression when he woke up from his nap!

Thanks to my church friends, I had some things to put them in - a swing, the little pictured whatchamacallit, a double stroller, a highchair and a pack'n play.
Also thanks to one of my church friends, I had all the makings for a 'bath station' and a changing station so the girls didn't have to worry about diaper changes and bath supplies. It was great advice and the moms really appreciated it.

On one of our nicer days (when the girls got to ride Doc), I strolled around with the boys. Before we brought the stroller back in, the kittens (Powder and Sienna) thought they'd check it out so they could come along for a ride too!

Nature at its best (and worst)

2009-01-28T13:54:00.007-06:00

I was scheduled to 'pink lady' yesterday morning, but I dared not wander out in a vehicle, since it was slippery walking on the grass - much less checking out the road! I am constantly amazed by the variance of temperature from day to day here in Texas! Pictures say it best.

Last week we had 2 mild days with a high up to 84 degrees. The night of the 84 degree day the temperature dropped down to 29!! This morning when Mike got up, it was 19 degrees. As I type the temperature outside is rising quite rapidly and the ice is melting off!! Yesterday held at around 25 all day with wind and ALL the animals stayed protected in the shed (equines) or in boxes (cats) and Sam spent the day either in his house or curled up in a corner of the front porch.

I feel bad for the outside animals when it's so cold and the wind is brutal, but they stay out of it as best they can. But now check out the beauty:

(left click on this to appreciate the scenic landscape...)

Note the lacey pecan tree across the driveway....
Ice on mane and forelock.... the glassy shrub across the sidewalk... the cedar tree in the back, and the glassy grass and sleet pellets...

HAPPY STINKIN' NEW YEAR!!!

2009-01-02T16:32:00.004-06:00

What a way to start the new year!!! We had dinner with friends outside of Olney yesterday afternoon and when we returned home, we noticed our friend, Mr. Armadillo, departing via the driveway and he sauntered across the road to the cow pasture. I'd say good riddance, but he'll probably be back in the cloak of darkness! So we settled in to watch the Rose Bowl and the Orange Bowl and heard Sam bark from the front porch (usually he barks from a little further away), so Mike went to the door to see that we had a visitor just off the porch and a moment later, Sam was plowing, nose-down through the lawn and along the driveway like crazy! Our visitor wasn't very hospitable!! HOW DO YOU GET A SKUNK TO LEAVE???? We didn't dare go out on the porch knowing that he could swing around in an instant! So we hunted up the bebe gun and pelted him a half dozen times and he FINALLY turned and sauntered through the shrubs (we hoped he'd go exploring elsewhere and find him a new neighborhood!). HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO GET RID OF SKUNK PERFUME???? Why, you ask???? Because he came back at 6 am this morning!! Same spot as last night and he wasn't interested in other neighborhoods, so Mike 'took care' of him! Now the area around our porch has a moderately strong aroma! I'm curious to see how long it takes to go away!! (If you glance down at the last blog entry, you'll spot the trunk of the same tree - he picked a very popular spot!)

Post Christmas Thoughts

2008-12-29T14:00:00.012-06:00

Hope you all had a nice Christmas! We had a mild sunny day with kittens lounging in the sunshine, spending a lazy day! The daily highs continue to bounce between the 20's and the high 70's - what to wear varies greatly from day to day!!

As in the days of the birth of the Christ child, for the donkey and steeds, it was a normal December day. We enjoyed calling family. Travis is in or near the holy land, though not free to take in the rich history of the area. With the current political climate of the area, it's hard to remember all what happened there. I notice the temperatures in Bagdad are typically within a few degrees of our own temperatures this time of year. I cannot imagine going out and climbing on our donkey, 9 months pregnant and travelling day and night only to find no room at the inn, and no doctor or midwife waiting to assist. Here in Texas, we can see galaxies and stars by the millions on a clear night, and to imagine one star guiding the way to the newborn King!!!!! Just recounting this situation makes me feel so blessed this Christmas season. Blessed with family and new grandsons who are soon coming to visit!!!

Blessed with children that have direction in this life. Blessed with a spouse who can do most everything, and wears a wonderful smile daily.

Blessed to be among the wonderful people of Olney who I have found to be kind, loving and eager to help when needed. We have our challenges and disappointments like everyone else, but we were never promised a life without them. So, in spite of them, I appreciate my family, friends, our little ranch with its scant livestock and struggling grasses, and especially our pets: Tober (inside mouser), Sam (outside mouser and gatherer of many things), and Kitty and her awesomely sweet kittens (mousers, snake deterrents). All make us smile and sometimes laugh!

With 2009 just around the corner, I wish you'all a New Year with abundant blessings, much love and lots of smiles!

Brrrrrr.....

2008-12-21T23:23:00.009-06:00

The one thing about winter in Texas is that we have a few cold days and then it warms up for a couple of days then it plummets back down again. Since the last post, it was down in the 20s for a few days, then it was low 60s one day, 73 for a high the next, then it was 17 degrees this morning and barely hit 30 for a high today!! The horses will hang out in the shed overnight, Sam in his dog house and the kittens and mama kitty will bundle up together in one of the boxes on the front porch. They're all enthusiastic for breakfast come morning and they get a little frisky in the corral to warm up a bit, but for a drink???? Mike has to break up the ice in the horse trough:

We have cold temperatures, but no snow! Doesn't look like we'll have a white Christmas! Speaking of which, our tree is up and looked pretty good a few days ago with gifts underneath, but our new bed and mattress arrived, so all the new linens moved from under the tree to the new bed! So, the best we can do right now is enjoy our Christmas cat! Tober LOVES it under the tree - as you can see, she rearranges branches and likes to play with the balls! Here, she was wishing you a "HO, HO, HO, and a MERRY CHRISTMAS" when I snapped the picture below!!

The new comforter set looks rather western and it feels like suede!! It's also nice and toasty on these cold nights!! In fact, I think I hear it calling to me right now!!!

With Christmas just a few days till the big day, know that we wish you who visit our little ranch blog, a VERY MERRY and BLESSED CHRISTMAS!

Changes ... changes

2008-12-14T23:59:00.001-06:00

December 14th - and it's a week and a half before Christmas, and here in Texas it was 77 degrees outside at 4:30 pm! It was like an early fall day - a BEAUTIFUL SUNNY WARM day. By 5, it had dropped to 75 (no big deal, right?). Then a breeze came along, and soon it was blowing at quite a good clip, so checked the outside temperature, and it was 59! Within 2 hours of the 77 degrees, it was 38!!!! Now, at midnight, it's 28 - soooo, that computes to almost 50 degrees fall since late afternoon!! It dropped so fast, the kittens are all in the cat carrier waiting for a trip to a warmer climate! And poor Eeyore - his HeeHaw is only a Hee, 'cause the Haw froze in his throat! The coyotes must have run for cover too, as it's pretty quiet out there tonight!

On a warmer, fuzzier note, I've noticed some amusing changed behaviors lately. Sam always vies for attention whenever one fusses with the kittens, the horses or Eeyore. He MUST be first!! All of a sudden, he noticed Tober through the living room window, and is totally fascinated with her! His gaze bores into her! He can't avert his stare for fear she should move and he'd lose sight of her! If she comes toward the window, he barks and goes crazy! Yet, he lives with 6 orange cats outside!!!!

Then there's Kibbie, who isn't the least bit interested in the moist cat food! Up until the last week or two, she eats only dry food (kibbles, thus her name, Kibbie). All of a sudden, she's taken up eating Sam's food! She waits with Sam and starts eating while he's going through his commands before being released to eat. And she doesn't move when he starts eating either. I've heard him growl a couple of times, but I think he's given up and claimed her as 'his' kitty!!! Sam's kind of a big pussycat anyway! He frequently shops for mice and rats out in the field just like Kitty! And he plays with them until they won't play anymore!

The equines are creatures of habit also. When we first got Doc and Eeyore, it sometimes took 15 minutes to get them in their respective places to feed them. There's a pecking order!! Doc is the alpha horse. Eeyore is no threat to Doc and can get by Doc even in tight spaces. But the girls are a different story. If you don't get Tutu through the gate before you feed Doc, she won't go and will hang out and eat Eeyore's food. Racey and Doc will kick at each other if Doc lays his ears back, so you don't want to get in the middle of that!!! They've learned their places and often wait by their own trough now,so it only takes a few minutes to feed them. When Doc is done, he displaces Racey, who either displaces Tutu or goes in and takes over Eeyore's remaining grain. Tutu will check out Doc's vacant bucket and then go to Eeyores. Usually they go out to the field for the day, but on this nice sunny morning a couple of weeks ago, they all sunned themselves - all laying together (except Tutu is on this side of the fence) ... and you'll notice that the gate is open to the field on the far side of the horses!! They must have had a tough night and slept in!!! MORNING ADDENDUM: At 6 am, it was 21 degrees and according to the forcast we may not see 30 today. The horses had the sense to come in out of the cold and spent the night in the shed. At 7 they came out trotting, kicking up heels and chasing one another to get warm! Turns out I have a Christmas Horse or a Holy Horse! Tutu has a 'crown of thorns' tangled in her forelock. I went out with treats to attempt removing it. She gladly took the treats, but it was too tangled and I only got half of it. Mike was afraid if she shook her head, it could puncture an eye! Now it's shorter, so I'll get the rest out when it warms up!!! This branch is from our Mesquite trees and we have a lot of them - makes me want to take the lopers out on the next warm day and get rid of the lower branches of the ones that will continue to live on our little ranch!

Family time

2008-12-09T17:47:00.017-06:00

(To enlarge picture, you can left click on any picture, click back arrow to return)

Pam and Cheyenne were quick to update their blogs with our mini-reunion, so this may be old news with a twist! It all started when Cheyenne decided to go to her 10 year high school reunion which was right after Thanksgiving. From there it expanded to Thanksgiving with John's Grandma in Pittsburg and a desire to see her Grandma Tigger, Uncle Tim and Aunt Rhonda in Illinois (of course to show off Riley). Since Travis is over in the desert for 4 months, Pam is home in Cleveland area, so she too joined in and got some good time with Cheyenne and John and Riley, and got to visit Brenden's great grandma, great uncle, etc. Well, this was more than I could resist since I hadn't seen my mom for over a year. So I also journeyed to Illinois and got to see Tim (my brother)'s 8 month old (GIGANTIC) puppy, 'Chip' (English style Chocolate Lab) and my nieces (who hadn't seen Cheyenne in years and had never met Pam)!! So, here we are, the basic building blocks of family: Back row: Tim, Mom, Me with Brenden and Rhonda Front row: Pam, Cheyenne with Riley, and John (Chey's hubby)

Tim's daughters, Jean (right) and Staci (center), and Jean's daughter Kelsey (left) came over and really took to the babies!

Great Grandma Tigger got a good look at both great grandsons:

When Travis was a baby, I had a picture of him with his Uncle Tim, and it seemed fitting to have Travis' son with Great Uncle Tim!!

I know Chey and Pam were anxious to meet their nephews in the flesh! Here's Chey with Brenden!

John got his share of playtime - it's too bad Travis couldn't be there, but maybe sometime after he gets back from the desert!! We have that to look forward to!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2008-11-27T22:20:00.007-06:00

To all who visit our blog, I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving, had a good meal, enjoyed football games and are feeling great (not too stuffed). The above still-life is from my late garden! They're the first pumpkins I've ever grown! I didn't get a ton, but I did get 6 pumpkins, a few watermelons and the bounty previously pictured! The last time I tried to make a pumpkin pie from fresh pumpkin was a disaster. It wasn't very good. This time I researched on the web before I started - I cut it up in small pieces, peeled the outer skin off, cooked till tender, mashed it and set it in a seive for a few hours to drain. NOW I have some nice firm pulp. I made a pumpkin roll and yesterday I made a pumpkin pie. I have dried pumpkin seeds that are pretty tasty too.

Every morning the man of the house goes out with his faithful dog, Sam to feed the steeds and open the gate for them to go out to pasture for the day!! This morning however, Mike heard a coyote nearby and grabbed his rifle for a Thanksgiving morning hunt while I assumed the steed feed duty! He did spot the coyote across the street from our pasture stalking 2 deer. I heard a 'BLAM' which got ALL the animals attention and I waited to see the fine pelt - but the varmint got away!! You see I have no love for the coyotes, as they lurk waiting for my kittens to amble away from the safety of the yard! ALAS! The kittens have names at last! Timmie of course is the little runt - the little guy! The other orange one (F) is SIENNA. Then there are the triplets (above) that are VERY hard to tell apart. For the most part they look alike. I'm going to have to mark their ears or something until I can find some way to tell them apart. I THINK the front one is POWDER, the back one is BLONDIE, and the one to the leftish is KIBBEE (she's the one who just eats kibble).

While trying to take the above picture, Powder yawned, but it looks like it's screaming for some kind of a caption! It looks like she has something to say! What do you think??

More UPs and DOWNs

2008-11-01T22:00:00.000-05:00

Who can believe November is here?? And today is All Saints Day AND it's CHEYENNE'S BIRTHDAY (we won't mention how many because it will date me too!!!) : ) (Needless to say, this is an UP!!) My GOOD memories SOOOO outweigh any difficulties along the way. I love the person she's become, and I KNOW she's going to be a WONDERFUL mother to Riley and any other children that God gifts her with. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MY BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER!

My 'grandkittens' will soon be checking out their new homes. As you see, they have their UPs and DOWNs learning to climb higher in trees now. They have such fluffy coats and such cute faces that they steal my heart with just a look with those sweet innocent blue eyes! This week Mama Kitty has had 3 very enthusiastic kittens that share her moist food.

Finally this morning as I decided to catch this Kodak moment, for the first time, the 4th kitten who is eating dry food in the first shot (above left), decided to see what was so good while the 5th came up (above right) and took her place eating the dry. When all was done, the new addition to the moist breakfast stayed to clean UP crumbs (below left). Guess who's waiting at the fence waiting for his breakfast (as he looks on with great envy). This particular dog currently smells like 'skunk'!

Tiny still depends on Mama Kitty for sustainance, but he IS growing. Mid morning the plumber came to fix the kitchen sink (wouldn't drain) and scared all the kittens who hid in the cat carrier. When gone, I looked out, and noted they were segregated - the girls in the cat carrier, and Tiny and his brother sleeping in the grass. (below) This is like Mutt (biggest) and Jeff (smallest). The kittens are actually pretty gentle with their 'little' brother. They play MUCH harder with each other than they do with Tiny.

Monday night we had a freeze warning. Check out my tomato plants:

That meant I had to pick as much as I could from the garden. Well, it didn't freeze (36 degrees), but the DOWNer is that I picked LOTS of green, yellow, orange, and red tomatoes that could have grown more and ripened on the vine!!! The UP is that tomorrow I think I'll can some tomato sauce and salsa.

Ups and Downs of Ranch Life

2008-10-26T14:46:00.025-05:00

(Please excuse any graphic material in this post, but a picture is worth 1000 words)

Since I'm working, I don't get to spend much time composing, plus the computer has been acting up, further interfering with blogging! So, there's much to catch up on! I might have to divide it into a couple blogs to keep related items together. This will be my 'animal' blog and my next one will be a 'work' blog!

Sadly, my 'bestest' babies have been missing for a week. Though I know there's a small possibility that they're off exploring and COULD turn up one day, each day Mia and Mitzi are gone, my hopes are dashed a little more! Living in the country, we have too many predators to hold out a lot of hope for their survival! All I can say is that they were the sweetest and gentlest kittens I've EVER had. It makes me sad to consider their likely demise. For all the times I've heard the coyotes close by, yip, yip, yipping, my kitties have always showed up. As long as there were trees nearby, I knew they could find safety. In the open field though, the odds change in favor of the coyotes. Unfortunately the kitties and Sam search for field mice and rats out there.

Now the next generation is coming along pretty well. I've observed some interesting training methods of late. Little Kitty hunts at night and brings her quarry to the porch for the young ones to feast on. I've seen evidence of a mouse, and then last Saturday, she brought a rat and showed the kittens what to do with it. When they lost interest, she tossed it around as if it were alive (demonstrating her techniques) until she got one or two interested and then they'd feast on it for a bit. Like a good mom, she waited until they were done before she ate her share.

I can also tell she's in the process of weaning them. I see them eating dry food and drinking water. A couple of them like the wet food. Then there's Tiny (the pint size kitten) - he's feisty, but still prefers mother's milk. They were taking advantage of Kitty's eating to sneak under for a drink of milk, and all you can hear is multiple purrs coming from beneath her belly. The kitten IN the food dish nursing is (of course) Tiny - it's kinda like standing on a stool.

He's starting to look cuter these days!

And they have become so playful and they're sooooo cute. Judge for yourself!!

In a couple weeks they'll be ready for their new homes and it will be pretty quiet around here.

Snakes and snails and kitty cat tails...

2008-10-05T16:00:00.000-05:00

Sam just gained some status in our family of furries! Last night he was barking at something, not just a bark at the kittens or at distant coyote calls, but a more immediate slithery something. So Mike went out with the flashlight to see what the fuss was all about, and found Sam and the kitties (Mia and Mitzi) around the side of the house contemplating how to rid the yard of a rattlesnake!! Our first since we moved in 1 year ago!! So Mike came in and retrieved his snake gun while Sam and company kept it from slithering away, and Mike gave that viper a taste of the snake gun. He didn't like it too much, and in fact didn't survive the assault. So here's Mike with his prize: Interestingly, upon looking up about rattlesnakes, I learned that when they're young, they can shed their skin up to 3 times that first year, so you can't count the rattles and determine their age exactly. My newly educated guess is that this snake is likely a couple or 3 years old. Did you know they can live 20 - 30 years (in captivity)? Here, if they wander into the yard or nearby, they won't have the chance!

As for kittendom, at 3 weeks and 2 days, their world is growing! The first explorers are 2 sisters, inviting the others to come out and play:

Speaking of which, playing is a new activity when not sleeping which still takes up a lot of their daytime.

(As you can see, "Tiny" has a little growing to do to catch up with his sisters and brother. He's too small to join the fray right now.)

Mama has been moving them around lately. One night she moved them from the pet carrier to the cardboard box, and the next night she took them under the porch. We're expecting a storm tonight, so I put them back in the pet carrier (if she'll leave them there till after the storm). They're starting to exhibit personality!

Don't kid yourself, Mom has eyes in the back of her head - she KNOWS what's going on!!! Hmmmmm, what's this?

Home Home on the Range

2008-09-27T10:15:00.002-05:00

We left our little ranch to visit Travis, Pam and Brenden in Savannah on Wednesday morning (September 17th), and arrived in Savannah in time for dinner on Thursday. We had a REALLY nice visit and really enjoyed getting to know our newest grandson, Brenden, pictured here with his grandpa. Friday they took us to lunch at The Crab Shack on Tybee Island which was a delightful marshy place - just what you'd expect from the name. It was very 'nautical', had exotic birds, LOTS of small alligators (~3 feet long) and lush palm trees and HUGE live oaks with Spanish Moss hanging down - not to mention GREAT seafood. Then on Saturday afternoon, we joined some Savannah based Browns fans downtown to cheer for the Cleveland Browns (but they lost!). Even young Brenden bellied up to the table :) A boyhood friend of Travis' (Kevin) from Cleveland visited and also enjoyed the game - but not the loss!

After a weekend of college and professional football, we headed home to resume duties on 'the ranch'. Right before we left, we discovered fleas on Tober. So upon return, I've washed linens in all her usual sleeping spots, and of course bought some flea shampoo to give Tober a bath! I think the fleas liked it (but Tober didn't!), so I'll give them another shot today!!! Poor Tober!!

It was good to see all the animals doing well, but especially the kitties. I worry about my wandering 6 month olds (Mitzi and Mia) because of all the predators that lurk in the shadows. Then there's Little Kitty and her new babies that were a week old when we left. She moved them to the pet carrier on the side porch while we were gone. All were accounted for! They have their eyes open and have grown appreciably.

Day 6 when we departed (left) and Day 15 when we returned (right).

Wednesday I started day shift on my new temporary (seasonal) job. You remember those school fundraisers? You or your children had the opportunity to sell candy, nuts, candles, kitchen items, or knick knacks to your neighbors and mostly to Mom and Dad, Aunt Mary, the folks at Mom or Dad's office???? Well, the warehouse for all those things is right here in Olney, Texas and it's called Cherrydale Farms! We fill orders for schools and bands all over the USA!! It's a production line arrangement and I'm a 'puller' which means I pull products from the shelves and place in a crate that gets checked and double checked for correctness and then gets packed for delivery. We really hustle to fill these orders. Some lines process 10,000 items in a shift!! My legs are REALLY tired by the end of the day from the constant activity!

Also, Mike is a Substitute Teacher for Olney High School for science and math, and he's been called upon twice so far, bit I suspect he'll be called upon often to share his expertise in these fields! So for now, that is life home on the ranch!!!

Love is evident EVERYWHERE

2008-09-15T10:56:00.010-05:00

How can anyone not love furry little things? Just look at these cute and loving faces!!!!

Momma Kitty LOVES her babies - 4 days old

SWEET at 5 days:

Don't forget me!!!

Sam and HIS kitty (Mia):

But MOST beautiful of all is the love of a mother for her child -

Now don't you dads get your drawers in a bunch!!!! Special attention is upcoming!!! : )

Happy Birthday X 6

2008-09-10T13:21:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday to all of Kitty's new babies!!! Did you count??? That's how many new babies Little Kitty had sometime in the early morning hours of this stormy night! Like her first litter, these babies were born on the patio table on the front porch, but Mama Kitty did it all by herself this time! I didn't get to play 'midwife'! There must be another male kitty living somewhere in the distant neighborhood, as ALL the kitties this time are either like Kitty (3) or are VERY light (3), almost albino in appearance. They all appear healthy and perfect!

Most of these babies already have loving homes to go to when they grow up a little and once they are weaned! Kitty was first taken in by a couple of hunters that spend weekends about 1/4 mile away, and they will take a kitten back home to the Fort Worth area. Our friends, David and Shirley recently lost their kitty that looked like a male version of our Mama Kitty and was a wonderful companion. They will have 2 of the kittens, and my friend, Pat who I work with every Tuesday morning (as a 'pink lady') will have a kitten. Since I lost 2 kittens at 10 weeks last time, we'll wait and see how many kittens we have when we get to that place in their training! Thus goes the saga of new kittens!!

Good Fences Make Good Neighbors...

2008-09-06T15:15:00.008-05:00

--slightly amended from the famous poet, Robert Frost:

'Why do fences make good neighbors?

Isn't it where there are cows?

But here there are no cows

Before I built a fence I'd ask to know

What I was fencing in or fencing out?'

Here on the ranch, we don't have cattle yet. I often see a neighbor's cow or calf (or bull) roaming outside the fence along side the road. But I never see horses wandering about! Since living here, I have learned that horses can find weak spots in fences when it means finding the grain or greener grass.

Doc says - "Hmmmm... the grass looks greener over there"

Well, yesterday I was watering and gathering produce from my garden when I came across a partially eaten cantaloupe (left) and disheveled vines. I knew I'd had a visitor! Maybe a skunk? My kittens attack the tassels of corn and romp in the vines, but they don't EAT cantaloupe!! After a little more investigation, Mike pointed out a missing section of wire fence on the far side! With that BIG clue, I found hoof prints and horse/donkey piles of 'poop' around the garden, and then I checked the corn! On an earlier escapade they had eaten some of my corn and killed a few plants. This time there were ears to be tasted! I'm lucky if I have 5 corn stalks standing!! Good thing the corn was a loss anyway because of maturing in the heat of August or I'd have been really cross with those horses!!! At least they didn't trample the squash, cucumbers, okra or other melons. Aside from the corn, I lost 3 melons, but there are several others coming along. For a garden that was planted late, we're getting lots of summer squash and okra. Melons are doing well. We're just starting to get cucumbers. The tomatoes have been a bust so far, but as it cools this month, I think we'll be rewarded with lots of tomatoes and peppers. The 'late planted' garden is really paying off!!!

Along another fenceline, Mike found this huge garden spider this morning. I'm not sure what she's consuming, but it's the size of a grasshopper if that gives you an idea of her size. Isn't she a beauty???

A father's son...

2008-09-04T11:27:00.009-05:00

In looking for baby pictures for Travis, I came across pictures of both children (of course) and one particular picture of baby Snakeye triggered a WOW!!! Boy, does that kinda look like Brenden!!!! YOU check it out and weigh in!!! Does Brenden look like his dad?????

(Too bad the quality of print isn't equal, but technology has come a long way!!)

And while we're at it, check out Cheyenne and Riley!
I couldn't find as good a comparison, but you can see that she had a rounder shape to her face. I don't have access to John's baby pictures to make any comparisons, but most people say that Riley looks more like John - though I'm sure he's a combination of both as is little Brenden.

Welcome Home, Noni

2008-08-31T16:05:00.000-05:00

God is GOOD! Life is GOOD! Grandchildren are GOOD! Kids are GOOD! And coming home to 'Pappy' and the ranch is GOOD too!!! Rancher Mike (aka Pappy) worked hard to do my chores as well as his so that I could help Cheyenne and John when they come home from the hospital with their new baby, Riley. It was a good welcome home last night - Sam met me at the car and also Kitty (looking somewhat more pregnant than when I left). The horses and donkey were by the fence in the corral. And Mike was still awaiting my call to start dinner! Only problem was that my phone died before I was able to alert him when coming through Throckmorten (about 30 minutes out). I came home to a happy Pappy sporting the start of a mustache:

a fat cat and a fat pregnant cat:

a garden of goodies (like a cornucopia of yummy proportions): Mike took good care of my garden while I was gone and ate/gave away squash and okra!

On the way home, I got to marvel at some naturally beautiful 'scapes:

I've dubbed this Turtle Rock:

It rained on and off most of the way and there were many overcast, grey cloud covered mountains even more beautiful than this: I am ever thankful for a safe enjoyable journey, a wonderful visit with my daughter, son-in-law and beautiful new baby, Riley for 10 wonderful days and I look forward to soon visiting Travis, Pam and our other new grandson, Brenden. I am thankful for the happiness of these 2 new families:

First Pics of Riley Asher Wilson

2008-08-20T18:58:00.022-05:00

Darn!!! Too bad our kids don't live in the same direction!!! We can only visit one at a time!! Let me introduce our grandsons:
I'm in Arizona with Cheyenne and John, and I arrived here 5 minutes after they got home from the hospital with Riley Asher Wilson. Here are a few pictures of Riley at the advanced age of one day:And here he is with his Mommy ---- and his Daddy!

To see Brenden Paul Winslow (alias Snake Jr.) click on the Snakeye Frag (here or under 'other blogs'). There's even a wonderful video there.

The Old "One - Two"

2008-08-19T14:36:00.003-05:00

In a miracle of timing, our second grandson said hello to the world today (19Aug) at about 2PM EDT.
"Little Snake" (we're still waiting for release of his official name) was 7lbs 2oz and 19.5 inches. Pam is doing quite well, and Daddy couldn't be prouder!
AND... needless to say, Grandma and Grandpa are just beaming!!!

HE"S HERE

2008-08-18T11:39:00.002-05:00

First grandson just arrived!!! Will update when I get to Arizona, but for now know that Cheyenne delivered at 7:55 AM (west coast time) along the roadside on the way to the hospital!! Riley Asher Wilson is 21" long and weighs in at 9# 4oz!!! I'm hitting the road as soon as I hit the 'publish post' button!!!! Next is the arrival of little Snakeye in the next week or so!!!

How Hot is it????

2008-08-16T13:39:00.007-05:00

After almost 2 weeks of 100+degree days and about 2 months without rain, Texas was looking pretty dry! Fire bans are in force. Unless you water, lawns are brown and burnt up! If you do choose to water, there are rules .... properties north of SR114 water on odd days and south of SR114 on even days. I only water the garden, potted plants and the decorative vinca vine to keep it alive. Otherwise, we could have a huge water bill while we don't yet have our well functional.

So, you know it's HOT in Texas when ---

- the front porch looks like this [even the animals seek the cool] (click to enlarge) > >

- and you break into a sweat when you walk out the door...

- when called in for dinner, the horses lumber in and suck up half the tub of water...

- and when you refill the tub, the hose water is HOT and you have to float off the algae so the horses can find the water...!

- when the garden plants are wilted every evening and totally stop growing (thought I was a failure at gardening for a while there)...

- when the okra and squash are already cooked when I pick them...

- when the corn kernals become popcorn before picking ....

- and the trees and shrubs whistle for Sam...

- when you singe your fingers without a steering wheel cover

- when the wind brings in a steady supply of dust in the house and blows my plants around:

Melons are rearranged on the north side of the hills ----

- and when the skinks and spiders seek refuge IN the house.

Why... one day last week, we saw Sam out chasing a rabbit .... and they were both walking!!!

All that's changed now and the kittens can come out and play while I work in the garden.

Finally the high pressure moved away and this week we've had rain (ALWAYS includes lightening, thunder and 70 mph winds) THREE times for a total of about 2" of welcome rain. The horses (and donkey) have muddied up their yard and corral and it doesn't stop them from rolling in their favorite dirt spots -- now mud!!! The fields are happy! The vinca vine is no longer wilted, the lawn is showing some green blades of grass, and my garden is going nuts!!! Plants are growing and blooming, fruit is setting, the veggies are maturing right before my eyes, and life is good!! We're just waiting on our grandbabies!!!

Doc can even stop and smell the flowers!

Persistence and Work Prevail!

2008-08-09T16:20:00.004-05:00

One of the first projects we planned when moving to Texas was to have a nice garden! Well, like everything else, each step along the way takes longer than one anticipates! We sent soil samples to the Ag folks to see what the garden area needs, and started carting manure from one of the horses' favorite places and rototilled it into the garden soil as well as sprinkling organic fertilizer over the area. (Actually I grew up on a dairy farm and cattle 'go' whenever and wherever the urge hits! Horses, on the other hand, pick places near fences and exclusively 'go' there. It's like a big litter box!!) Before planting though it needed a fence to keep critters out! So Mike had a fellow come out with an auger and dig holes (the ground is like concrete and would take forever with a post hole digger and human muscles) ....

The only hold up was that it rained and partly filled the holes and Mike had to dig out holes after they dried up a bit (= delay) so it took quite a while to get the fence in!! Then there were the gates- had to wait for some materials at the local lumber store, so Mike made a temporary gate so I could plant. By now it's at least a month past when everyone else planted their gardens! Rather than pass, I figure whatever we get is more than we would have had if I planted nothing and waited for next year! Also, I had to reclaim that area from the industrious fireants. (below)

Then we've had a couple of weeks worth of 100+ degree days which challenged my young tender plants! The intense daytime sun was wilting my plants and I had to revive them every morning!! (sad squash below) ..... (to the right is the same plant NOW!!)

So I started watering more deeply with little wells around each hill or group of plants and that REALLY paid off!!! Now I have little to no wilting and I'm starting to get some yellow squash, okra, and there must be a dozen canteloupes coming along nicely. The watermelon, pumpkins, cucumbers and tomatoes show great promise. The corn is rather stunted, but it is tasselling out and maybe we'll have mini-ears!!!

Check out the canteloupe and watermelons....

cucumbers and okra .....

and pumpkins and stunted corn ....

A couple days after Mike finished installing these sturdy gates, one of the horses put some muscle on one and ripped the top hinge right out of the wood and twisted the heck out of the bottom one, walked over the gate and sampled half of the corn plants (well, it looked like grass!!!). So now we have fewer corn plants and even sturdier gates!!!

A Pillow Challenge...

2008-08-07T23:09:00.004-05:00

When Travis & Pam and Cheyenne & John came to visit the ranch, they came with some projects to do. Pam brought some neat machine embroidered biplanes she was using on her baby bumper. Her aunt had made them for her. Pam and Cheyenne chose complimentary swatches of material to mount them for hangings in their babies' rooms. This is the outcome of their craftiness before framing:

With leftovers, Cheyenne challenged me to make some kind of a pillow to match and Pam left me an airplane to make it fit the theme. So, here it is!! The finished pillow for her chair in the nursery or wherever she plans to put it. I think it will go well with her theme:

You are not going to believe this......

2008-08-02T11:46:00.006-05:00

I think it's some kind of bad dream!!!! We picked up our new Honda CR-V last Saturday!! Last night we drove to Wichita Falls for dinner and left to go to the Royal Theater in Archer City (from 'The Last Picture Show' fame) to see 'Funny Girl' when right before our eyes IT HAPPENED!!!! We were first at the traffic light when someone ran the light - (this part is an error - see under comments for the 'rest of the story') ON A MOTORCYCLE (OUCH) and we heard screeching and metal and saw a body flying through the air and land on the pavement about 15 or 20 feet in front of our car. A red pickup spun around out of control and came to rest on the front drivers side bumper of our BRAND NEW Honda!!!!
Close up of front bumper and wheel well....

The kid on the cycle had a pretty bad compound fracture and crushed ankle with split skin down his foot - showing the bone in his ankle! He may have other injuries, but that was the most apparent! Well, we did make the show which was enjoyable, but now we have to have the CR-V fixed for the trip to Phoenix.... and my little girl is due to have her baby in 6 (SIX) DAYS!!! Hopefully it will be an easy fix for us.... Not so for the young cyclist!!!

Great Texas Skies!

2008-07-31T10:49:00.002-05:00

We're on a string of days over 100 and haven't had any rain for a while. Things are pretty dry around here and the horses are really sucking up the water when they come in from grazing. Two days this week we had about a 10% chance of rain, and the storm cells just barely passed us by - twice! So every morning I'm out watering my garden to keep it going for one more day. It's a real challenge with that hot sun beating down. One benefit though - as we were being passed by for rain, the sky at sunset was really gorgeous. Check it out!!!!

What a BIG Pussycat!!!

2008-07-29T16:46:00.000-05:00

There seems to be a little role confusion going on around here!! We have a cat that can kick butt, and a dog that's a 'mouser'!!

Sam will even share his dinner with his "litter mates":

Maybe next year when we get some cattle, he can retrain to be a cow-dog which will come natural to him since he is a 'herding' dog!!

Ranching Progress with Challenges

2008-07-24T14:27:00.014-05:00

It seems with every project, you take two or three steps forward and one step back! There's always something to slow progress - sometimes it's self-induced (like equipment failure) and other times it's just nature!! We've watched our fields go from tall 'spent' weeds (wild sunflowers and grass burrs) (just imagine 60 acres like this!!!). Mike levelled the weeds in the corral and along the road with a 'bush hog' (right) and used a 'disk' in the fields to allow a fresh start for choice grasses in the fields! After disking the fields TWICE, he broke up the clods/clumps with a 'cultipacker' to give a manicured field for planting.

The upper pasture (Mike calls it the WEST pasture) was planted on April Fools Day with Coastal Bermuda which should provide good hay in years to come for the livestock we'll have by then. It's planted with a 'sprigger' which plows a trough, drops in the sprig and then covers it. It rained the next day -- PRICELESS!!

The lower field (EAST field) is planted in some native grasses that include Switchgrass which can be useful as an alternative fuel. This field will likely be more for grazing at least in the beginning. Native grasses are planted from seed with a piece of equipment called a 'seed drill' (below). You can see the many 'tubes' where the seed is fed and dropped in numerous troughs made by small plow blades and covered.

The results??? Green fields!!! Again, God blessed us with timely rain!!

So, what about the challenges???? With newly planted grass, one must mow every 28 days for the first few months to cut down the weeds, and it takes time for the grass to choke out the weeds, so --- the lion's share of what's out there to mow is WEEDS!!! And in the process, he's been stuck in the soft soil in the field a few times (required a tow once), had a broken disc, SIX flat tires on the tractor, and a battery that's died THREE times. Retirement is so much fun!!!!

A Short Update

2008-07-18T21:52:00.000-05:00

Last Thursday the Honda was towed to Gilmore Collision for evaluation and diagnosis -- when I called Friday, they had determined there was over $18000 damage to my poor Pilot. On Monday they called to say that the diagnosis was TOTALLED! So Honda Pilot has passed on! Thursday we went to Wichita Falls to test drive and check out a potential replacement. Currently I'm leaning toward a Honda CR-V, but we also looked at Chevy, Dodge, Hyundai, Jeep, and Pontiac. After checking Consumer Report and Edmunds.com, it looks like the best other choice is a Toyota RAV-4. It just happens that the Honda dealer is getting one in the color I'd like (Borrego Beige) in the very model we want before the end of the month and would loan us a CR-V to drive while waiting for it's arrival. They didn't seem too excited about taking the loaner to Arizona for the upcoming grandson arrival, so Chey... wait till I get my wheels!!!!

As for my person, my arm is still swollen, but not as tight as it was, the blisters have broken, and the bruising has travelled to my elbow and down my hands and fingers. In a week it will look different, and hopefully the swelling will start to regress!! Currently the swelling makes my arm look deformed!!!

A funny thing happened on the way to the .......

2008-07-12T00:27:00.005-05:00

I was going to add an addendum to the last post, since the 'manager' wouldn't download more pictures and in the meantime, a more pressing item has reared it's ugly head.

Actually it's NO funny thing that happened on the way home from Wichita Falls. I never did absolutely LOVE roller coaster rides, nor slippery roads, nor chigger bites, nor rattlesnakes, nor anything painful!!! I suspect Travis can most relate to the wild ride I took Wednesday night, as he rolled our Blazer over 5 times and came to rest within a foot or so of a tree or poll that could well have been his swan song, yet he walked away relatively unscathed - with only a couple of abrasions. It totalled our Blazer. The verdict is still out on the Honda Pilot (2006)! I was on cruise control at 70 mph (speed limit), when I nodded off for just a moment too long. The change in surface jarred me into reality and it was like driving on snow! Impossible to get any kind of traction and a lot of fishtailing! I avoided a road stake only to totally lose it, go airborne for a moment and then slide through a fence, wiping out a few mesquite trees and some prickly pear cactus. We (Honda and I) came to rest wedged behind and beside several mesquites which limited my exiting the vehicle. I tried to call home, but it was one of those dead spots along the road, so I tried to find a way out of the vehicle. I opened the sunroof just about the time a good samaritan came along, noticed the fence out and saw my white vehicle in the mesquite patch. The driver's side windows were obscured by the deployed air bags but he could see through the windshield. He managed to get the passenger door open enough that I could get out and drove me to our local little hospital in Olney (only about 5 miles away) while I called Mike. I was REALLY lucky. The only injury I sustained was a scrape and hematoma (bleeding into the tissue under the skin) on my left forearm. Luckily nothing was broken. So they cleaned up the scrape and put ice on to reduce the swelling and stop the bleeding. All was well until I started blistering up - it seems I'm allergic to the cleanser that they used!! So my arm looks a little nasty right now, but I'm on the mend!!!

There was a fence post with barbed wire across in front of the then-standing mesquite trees:

The swath through the trees and brush:

Poor Honda ... bumps and bruises everywhere!!

Passenger side-view mirror and damage above driver's side windows

My swollen arm and hand with lots of blisters from the allergic reaction to the cleansing solution.

Y'all come back now .....

2008-07-08T23:01:00.004-05:00

Until last week, our 'kids' have only seen the ranch via the blog. We've been looking so forward to their visit and the week went by so fast, and now it's but a memory. But we do have some pics to look at to remind us of the fun we had. I think everyone enjoyed meeting the ranch animals and playing cowboy!

Somehow though, I don't think Travis' greyhounds (Merlin & Morgan) enjoyed it quite as much as they learned that horses and donkeys chase cuyotes, and they looked like black cuyotes to them!!!

We had lessons on holding babies! We got to compare sizes and notes on experiences so far!!

There was shooting, and fishing and sewing and barbecuing and getting together with friends...

Don't ya just love to finish a project???

2008-06-25T14:32:00.006-05:00

I started hooking a rug before we got married - probably somewhere around 1970-1972 !! I might have worked on it some after we were married, but with a move it got put aside. From there on it was in the original box and moved from garage to garage whenever we moved (TEN MOVES!!!). While working on the garage, it attracted my interest because it was almost done! So last week I reread the directions (because it's been soooo long since I've latch hooked anything) and in 3 or 4 evenings, I completed it!!! After roughly 35 years, I can't tell you how good it feels to look over and see the completed rug! Now the big decision is whether to hang this prize on the wall or brighten up a room with it on the floor!!!