Stitches and Spurs

Memory Walks

2011-11-16T20:24:00.000-07:00

I was looking for a picture of a different hair-do that I used to wear and I found these two photos and they made me laugh out loud. I hope you get a smile from them!

In the previous picture Tristin had been doing a somersault on the bed. She was two when this was taken. The look just makes me laugh!!! Is it Mommy, Grammy, Auntie's look?? Goodness, it is hard to believe she will be 21 in January! Yikes!! Hummmm?! That must make me about 49?

Tristin is 3 1/2 here with "Cookie" and one of her puppies. Is it any wonder that this girl loves dogs! I have loved dogs for a long, long time! Red boots... we always like to get our little cowgirls RED boots. Aren't they magic somehow?

This was taken the summer of 2010. I see a resemblance... Hope she doesn't come after me, but after all it is my blog. Ha!

Nothing earth shattering on my mind, I just wanted to share these fun pictures and I put them on face book, but that entity drives me nuts because I don't what I am doing. Do I know what I am doing here? Well, that could be debatable too!

Pansies

2011-11-13T19:08:00.000-07:00

I have always loved pansies since I have been a young girl. I love their faces. I usually try to grow some and this year I got the best pot and the best place to put it. Pansies love cool weather and they do well early in the summer and into the fall. This year I did not empty the pot until last week. I couldn't bring myself to dump it. The pansies went through several frosts too. Anyway, I took a picture of my almost frozen pansies to say goodbye for the season!!

I took the wire off of my pot so I could take a picture, otherwise the deer would have eaten them a long time ago!!!

I will be waiting for the garden catalogs to look at all the pictures and dream, but alas, I don't plant that much as it is frustrating to just feed the deer besides being expensive. I am thinking I need to have a window garden, but I don't know how to start such a project. We would love to eat the fresh herbs. Although this year we ate the cilantro and it was delicious!! That is one herb one either really likes or cannot stand. We are in the "love it" catagory!

Until spring, my fellow gardeners!!!

Granddad

2011-11-13T18:55:00.000-07:00

I lost the picture that I had posted of Dad/Granddad, so I will try again. Computers can be so frustrating! It certainly can't be the operator! Ha! My computer gal couldn't give me a solid answer either and we decided this was the quickest way to get the pictures back!!

This is a good picture and the name shows of his last truck. That shirt he has on is one BJ gave him for a gift and he literally wore it out. I brought it home and washed it and was going to make something for BJ's family, but it was so threadbare and holey that I didn't. Granddad literally got the "goodie" out of that shirt!

The truck was bought by our son Barry, so we were pleased that we know where it went. Grandad spent lots of money keeping his equipment in top shape engine wise.

We think he may have been the oldest trucker in Montana with a CDL at 85 years old.

Veterans' Day, A Special Veteran

2011-11-13T17:55:00.001-07:00

Friday was Veterans' Day and it was a beautiful day in Eastern Montana. Cowboy wanted to fly the flag if the wind wasn't going to blow hard enough to tear it off of the pole. So with the sun rising in the east, I just had to take a picture.

What it is about the American flag that puts a lump in my throat? I am so thankful for all the men and women who gave their lives and who simply served their country so that we could have the freedoms that we know today. There our young people still going to the armed forces to serve this country. What a blessing they are to give so selflessly. In my family alone we have a grandfather, a father, a husband uncles, great uncles, and a son-in-law. The county we live in, Garfield County, has a high number of veterans and enlisted people per capita.

Our Veterans' Day Dinner was last night in Jordan and the veterans were asked to stand and it was impressive. Saying the pledge brings a lump in my throat...

This also a tribute to my Father who was a Veteran. He passed away a month ago and his burial was touching for me. The VFW Honor Guard from Miles City did the 21-gun salute and played taps. The two service men that did the flag-folding ceremony were especially honoring to Dad. I cried when they did that and handed the flag to Bonnie, my step-mom. It makes me tear up now as Cowboy and I have always liked a veteran to be honored.

When Dad was in the hospital during his last days we looked at pictures and talked about work that Dad had done over the years. One could tell he was listening. Bonnie had found two letters that were in Dad's "stuff." One was from an Army buddy that wrote while he was serving in the service and Dad was home in Montana. They other letter Dad had written to his granddad when Dad was in the service. What Bill pointed out to me is that Dad typed his letter and there were no mistakes and his spelling was accurate. Cowboy is not the best speller, but that isn't why I married him! BJ read those letters out loud two different times and you could tell Dad enjoyed that. What was almost Bill's undoing was when Granddad said, "Bill, read me War Bags out of the Western Ag Reporter. Bill got through it, but I could tell he was trying to not get tears in his eyes.

When Dad died there was a true character that will be no more. We miss his phone calls in the mornings and his telling us about different people in general, "Oh, they don't know a thing!" Bill is missing Dad's stories and I am kicking myself that I didn't sit down and just write some of them down rather than cook!

Water Under the Dam

2011-06-10T22:04:00.000-06:00

Since today is Cowboy's birthday he wanted to take a drive to Ft. Peck since they are letting water out of the spillway. It was such a breathtaking site. That water was running so fast! They are letting out about 50,000 cubic feet per second. Here are some pictures Bill took.

Looking from the lake side.

This is one gate that we are seeing. Cowboy held my hand and told me that I would hate myself if I didn't walk over to the fence and look over and see all the water. He was right but you would think I was standing on a cliff and there was no fence and the sound of the rushing water would pull me in!

This is the water coming through.

These two pictures are out of order, but you know computers! Ugh! It won't let me make this one larger. Cowboy said, "It needs to be larger." I know, but how? when it is too late to call my personal tech support for computers! Ha! Oh, I finally figured it out!!

Here are all 16 gates open at the same time. Impressive.

Looking down the spillway from the top of the bridge. It was all I could do to stand there and look. Bill had to take the pictures. The water was moving so fast that it was mesmerizing. It felt like the water could pull me in at any second and it was so FAST. It made me queasy in my stomach. I don't think that I would have made a very good sailor.

At the bottom.

A closeup of the bottom. Do you suppose it is eroding some of the dirt down there? There is a lot of force behind that water. I am thinking of all those people down river. What about their ranches, towns? This has been the most unusual year for moisture. First we had snow since October and then when we still had snow on the north side of the foothills, it started raining and really hasn't let up much. Are we complaining. Not loudly as it is filling dams and rivers and reservoirs that haven't had water for a really long time. That rain is soaking into the ground like we haven't seen and it is over due. Cowboy says we could be three weeks from a drought because as we know this is Montana!

Cowboy had to lean over the bridge and take another good picture. For a man that is afraid of the water, this does not bother him in the least. He trusts that cement to hold him! Imagine!

This our last picture. It is gorgeous. There wasn't any wind and the lake looked like a mirror. One can have a special love for this lake, but she can turn on you just like that! There is so much turbulent water that is unseen going to the spillway. We heard there is a warning for boats not to go into that portion of the lake because they could be sucked to the gates because of the undercurrent.

This is something we have never seen before and probably won't see again in our lifetime.

The Love of Horses and More Horses

2011-06-05T20:52:00.000-06:00

Kamryn and Liv came for a short visit the end of this week. They went to the last day of VBS in Jordan and we able to go to Linford's to see the baby colts. They are so cute! We got the girls used to the mares that are the three-year olds and two-year olds. They were so friendly and we gave them "cake" to eat out of our hands. I didn't take pictures of that, but the girls just relaxed around them. Then we walked over to see the saddle horses and two of the five LOVE peppermint candy, so we got slobbered on a little. Liv didn't like that very well!

Just a pass by before they decided they could come back!

Oh, would not it be nice to have one of those around? Cowboy tells me that it is hard to get them grown as they get in the wire and all kinds of serious trouble...

Pretty easy going baby and curious. Cowboy says that this little one is saying, "When I grow up, I am going to be BIG horse!"

They keep coming for a little treat from the pickup Jack drove in there.

Getting a little closer...

Nuzzling Wendy...

This is one of my favorite pictures. Kamy is relaxed and this little one just is so curious and wants to have a good sniff and be friends... Kamy is busy stroking one of the mares.

As Jennifer says, "Dad really likes the colts too!" He reins in his feelings with practicality and says, no colts.

Sunday was the last day at the ranch for the girls. Sunday morning was for riding. Since the stirrups had to be let down for Kamy, Liv got to ride first. She was instructed to pet and talk to Doc so he could get used to her and her voice.

A few more times around the lot.

Now she is on her own and the instructions begin... My palms are sweaty for her. Grandgirls so want to please their grandfathers and to do it right the FIRST time when we all know it takes time in the saddle to get some of those lessons. That is just the way it is...

Still working on the "steering"...

Kamy's turn to get acquainted with Doc since she grew up on "My Joe" and he has been her horse forever.

That small saddle is almost too small for her and the way she is shooting up, it will be sooner than later. Doc was a good teacher, but Cowboy thinks he would flimflam these kids before long. You know how those gentle horses can be.

There is nothing like being on a horse, smelling them, smelling leather, the feel of them under you. I was always so horse crazy myself. My maternal grandfather had lots of horses, so I must have inherited some of that love of horses. I could not get to the ranch soon enough in the summers so I could ride. Oh, I had lots of mishaps and buck offs and falloffs. Luckily I didn't have any broken bones. Now, the thought of mishaps and creaking bones...well, you know! I was so thankful Cowboy PopPop took the time this morning to saddle the horse and take the time with the girls as he was due at a branding at Joe's. These are the moments they will remember. Those fleeting moments when telling Mommy and Daddy about riding the horse!

There isn't anything like it and I feel sorry for those that have never gotten to experience being around horses...

Decoration Day/Memorial Day

2011-05-30T17:17:00.000-06:00

Today is the day set aside to honor our war dead. It was started in May of 1866. IN 1868, May 30 was chosen as the day to commemorate the deceased because no major battles were fought that day in the Civil War. It then became a national holiday in 1967 as Memorial Day. Then in 1971 there was a change to the last Monday of the month of May to make a three-day weekend. I fear more and more people are forgetting about honoring those who fought and died so we could have freedom. It is more the "beginning" of summer with camping, cookouts, weekend fishing (although this weekend would not be fun due to ALL the rain. At least an inch here.)

Here are some pictures of our special service at the VFW hall in Jordan. It was raining so much today the ceremony was kept inside, but it was still extremely touching.

Bill is the Commander and Joe is the Quarter Master.

Pastor K.J. Ellington giving the opening prayer.

Bill is reading Flanders Fields. The valedictorian and the salutatorian were unable to be present to read Flanders Fields and the Gettysburg Address.

K.J. is reading the Gettysburg Address.
There was a short filmed interview of Philip Murnion as a navy veteran that was a recorded history.

There was a potluck served after the ceremony and Bill counted 31 people present. We were glad that many came out on such a rainy day.

It has been an emotional day thinking of all those soldiers and even those that were able to come home. Bill got a call from one of my cousins in Texas thanking him for serving our country. What a blessing to be thanked.

Have you thanked a veteran this day or at least prayed for them?

Water and Then Some

2011-05-29T21:15:00.000-06:00

It is too wet to do anything here at the ranch, so we took a drive yesterday to see Fort Peck Lake and the dam. Cowboy said that he would like to go on a sunny day. Then he looked at me and said there would be too much work if it was sunny. He has that right! The grass has water underneath it, so no mowing, I am not in the weed-pulling mode and besides ALL that, it rains and it is dreary and I can think of other things to do inside. I have been reading lots of books and doing some sewing too.

The lake was a sight to behold and the drive over was beautiful. It was so green. Even the gumbo hills are getting green. The last time I went to Glasgow was the last day of February and the lake was frozen. Bill said he had never seen the lake this high.

This is the water coming into the spillway.

At the spillway still.

This is three feet from going over the top of the spillway. We were told that "they" had let water out earlier, but then quit. In Glasgow we were told they were going to let some more out. We will have to wait and see.

This is the backside of one of the flood gates. I was too chicken to lean on the fence and take the pictures. We were up in the air and it makes me "shaky" so I let Bill take the pictures here. He said that he would like to see them open the headgates and can't imagine the water pressure.

Looking down the spillway to the Missouri River.

Looking down the fill and the towers. The water is right up against the rocks. I don't think people thought that the water in Fort Peck would ever get high again.

These next three pictures are a panorama of sorts of the lake from right to left.

Notice Cowboy had a little sunshine. That lake is very big and demands respect. I love water, but I would have my life jacket on and a good boat and forget about getting on it with the wind blowing. Maybe I am just a land lubber at heart!
It was a beautiful day for a drive. We drove around Ft. Peck (the town) and then went to Glasgow for lunch. I even got to go to The Plaid Square (the fabric shop for those of you out of the loop). We went on to Wolf Point and down to Circle to pick up parts for the swather. Cowboy is thinking he is going to get to hay. At this rate we might be swathing the yard. We had sunshine and we got to see the damage of the high water of the Milk River at Glasgow. The winter wheat looks good, but it doesn't look like much spring wheat has gotten planted. The closer we got to Circle, the more it was raining. The road is damaged between the flowing well and Jordan. It is just sloughing off with all of the moisture. It really rained on us between Jordan and the ranch.

Cowboy is afraid to complain about the rain as we may be three weeks or so from having a drought.

But on a positive note, the green grass is wonderful!

Little Boys-Snails--Puppy Dog Tails

2011-04-06T21:49:00.000-06:00

Angus came and stayed with us yesterday--just him, so we got to spoil him just how we wanted. It was fun for us! Cowboy and I had picked up a John Deere lunch box in our travels and thought the "only grandson" at that time, needed something special. We were just waiting for him to come and visit!

He was so tickled with his very own lunch box. He carried it around most of the day.

He told me he was hungry, so I suggested an orange. Not thinking, I didn't realize that he wanted to "pack" something in his pail!

He took it to "coffee" at Sand Springs with Cowboy PopPop and ate all of his orange and was given a sucker while there. PopPop wanted to show off his grandson, but the usual coffee crowd (2-3) was not there. Oh, it didn't matter, they had fun and visited the Postmaster.
Before the day was done, the clasp on the lunch box broke, but Cowboy PopPop came to the rescue and got it fixed, aren't grandpas wonderful?

Naturally it was a rainy day and due to all the snow, the corrals were mucky, so there was no horseback riding this visit. But he told Cowboy PopPop that he wanted to be a cowboy. We watched a movie after lunch, Support Your Local Sheriff with James Garner. Cowboy and I laughed a lot and Angus did boy things such as: building blocks, shooting imaginary guns, and jumping around. It didn't hinder our movie watching and he caught some of it in passing. I ask you, why can't they make movies like that these days? It was around 1968 that it was filmed.

He is rough and he is tough...and mean ta' boot! Oh, and before the day was done, Angus got his very own neck "kerchiff," an old one mind you, but one of Cowboy PopPop's just the same.

Real cowboys eat ice cream too!

I was feeling guilty because all we had picked up for Maggie was a lip balm when we got the lunch pail for Angus. So, I was given this pattern by a friend. I thought I could "whip" out a little bag. It turned out cute and just the right size for little girls and Cowboy PopPop put goodies in both the mini purse/bag and the lunch pail. Grandpas are the best!

A postscript to the day was after Angus and Cowboy PopPop went to Great Grandma's for cookies, Angus told PopPop his leg hurt while he was at Great Grandma's. Bill asked him why did it hurt and Angus replied that she just talked too much. Somewhere along the way he must have heard, "they talked my leg off..." What do you think? Like they say, out of the mouths of babes...

We had a blessed day!

Deer! Oh Dear!!

2011-02-22T18:40:00.000-07:00

What have I been telling you? The deer are out of control around our ranch!

There is one eating cow "cake" that dropped out of the feeder! I took this picture out our sliding glass door on the deck.

Who is watching whom?? Not a bit scared. Look at the baby looking under the pickup bed.

After I took these pictures a buck came and was sniffing around. I guess he didn't want to jump on the pickup. It was too dark to take his picture and when I went out to "shoo" him away, he just looked at me for at least a minute. I am telling you, these animals have no fear of humans! And besides that they LOVE anything that I plant, be it flowers or vegetables! Grrrrr!!

Dogs, Books, Cooks, and Anything Else That Matters Today

2011-02-21T16:41:00.000-07:00

I guess I don't need to blog anymore. The title says it all! Before I got out of bed I finished the book, Marley and Me and of course I cried. What a book for dog lovers! My daughter Cari loaned it to me. John Grogan is the author and you can certainly tell he writes for a living as a newspaper columnist. I laughed out loud, I anguished with them and rejoiced with them. I knew what was going to happen in the end, but I kept reading!

I probably will not be writing a book although I was editor of the high school paper. Does that count? What Mr. Grogan says in his interview in the back was that he writes in his journal every day and that is where he remembers events if he is writing about them later. So, to be a good writer one needs to write every day. I am a sporadic writer and I do lots of it in my head. That is why I stopped what I was doing today to get some of those thoughts "out."

One other thing John Grogan said was "The internet is an amazingly powerful tool." "It also is responsible for the biggest loss of productivity in the history of mankind." I think that at times as I am "lurking" around on the computer.

If you have never bought one of these magazines, they are so worth reading. I just do not have a subscription, so I buy one occasionally and the articles that caught my eye on the front were: "Rating Peanut Butters," "Secrets To Perfect Whole Wheat Bread," and "Dressing Up Steaks." Is your mouth watering yet? Cowboy likes perusing them too. What I did read outloud to him was the editorial, PICKUP TRUCK RULES by Christopher Kimball. It is very funny and you can buy your own copy or borrow mine!

Speaking of cooking, today I did the second batch of canned beef. Yum, yum!

If you look closely, you can still see it bubbling in the jars. It makes a quick meal when one is in a hurry and Cowboy likes that when I am gone. Biscuits and hot meat, noodles and beef, hot beef sandwiches, anything that your heart desires. We had a beef butchered at Ryan's Meat Processing and had them bag some of the stew meat in big packages for me to can.

I am trying to read through the Bible in one year and I got behind, so today was my catch up day. While the canner was rocking I was reading... I also got my Bible study lesson done. It is making me dig in my Bible. I have a Beth Moore I am going to finish this year also... I am holding myself accountable so when you ask, I can say, "Yup!" "I am still reading and studying!" It seems when June rolls around and branding starts, I put all my stuff on hold as we roll out of bed at 4 a.m., breakfast, dishes, cook, cook, cook, pack to pasture, feed the men, bring it home, clean up the mess, figure out who is coming for supper, start meal, bake for next day. Then feed the men when they get in that night, do the dishes, fall into bed and that alarm is ringing AGAIN at 4 a.m. the next morning! Thank goodness it is usually only four days. If it rains, it might be five. Of course, rain seems pretty far off right now!

One of the many blessings of today is that the sun is shining! And there is blue sky!!

This is Tristin's tree skirt that she asked me to make for her. I need to quilt it and put the ties on it. I have been at a stop on quilting and sewing as I have been knitting. I can't seem to do both! Ha! And naturally I seem to have a book going at all times too! So I want you to see that I haven't been completely idle.

This pair of socks could be a blog all by itself. Years ago I made mittens for the kids and I thought I needed to learn how to knit socks. One uses four needles. I felt pretty fumble fingered. My teacher lives forty miles away and have you ever had directions explained over the phone when you are a visual learner? The stitches kept falling off of my needles. Cowboy asked me why was I doing that because it did not sound like much fun or relaxing! Men can be so cute! I sent the first sock home with the teacher to pick up my dropped stitches and I started the other sock with much better results. I think I can see the end in sight! I love the color and am hoping they will fit.

Cookie Day Postscript!

2011-02-10T19:39:00.000-07:00

This is what happens when one gets up there in years, or maybe it is just too many things going through my mind to get them all tamed into what I have going at this moment. Old? I can't possibly be old yet...

Last year at Cookie Day I had little gifts for the kids, nothing big, just little stuff for them to take home and lose. And, I had made the aprons for the big girls. This year I made two table runners out of some new Christmas colors that were not the traditional colors. I thought that we could have a drawing of the big girls (Tristin wanted to be included with the "big" girls). They had to be here to get a chance at the runners. Here are the winners...

Meghan and Mary

They really liked the runner with the stripes in the border, but Mary drew first. And being the kind person she is, Meghan decided she could part with hers and give it to Cari since it would go with the colors in Cari's house. That is what I would call sisterly love. Thanks you Meghan!

Here is a picture of the recipient, Cari with Angus telling something pretty important to him. We all want someone to listen to us, don't we?

I think I have collected all my thoughts and have gotten everything down that I want to. Of course there are so many pictures that aren't on here, but if you are ever this way stop in! Hopefully by that time we (The Farmer's Wife and Cowboy's Sweetheart), will have a couple of Cookie Day books done.

Now I am wondering what I could possibly make for next year that would be small and doable...hummm.

Bonfires and Sled Dogs

2011-02-06T16:07:00.000-07:00

I am wondering if anyone is reading this. We really do live for the comments. But that is beside the point right now. I am going to finish my story of "Cookie Day" and the weekend in general.

After the cookies were divided up, it was time to load up with chain saws, mittens, coats, caps, and pile in the pickups. I bought marshmallows, but Cowboy told me there wasn't any way to roast them as the wood would all burn, so I left them home...mistake number one!

Before we got the "folks" loaded up, the kids had to have some fun in the snow with a calf sled that Mary and Wayland brought over. They had a lots of fun going off the hill.

First tree for Wayland and Bill to cut...

Oops! Mistake #2 or not. The tree fell the wrong way. Do you see why I was on the backside of the pickup?? There were plenty of dead trees. They just went to another one.

It hung up in one of the other trees. We did go back and get it later. Well, not me, but I supervised!

TIMBER!!

Wayland had cut this piece of wood and BJ brought it over so Angus could get warm by the fire. Children never really sit still, look at his hands.

It even has a backrest. Perfect! But Angus asked me where the marshmallows were...I was sad!! I should have listened to the little girl inside of me and brought the marshmallows!

A blazing fire...pickups loaded with wood for Grandma Margaret...together...what fun. We weren't even really cold.

What is more blessed that having grandies come and pile on your bed first thing in the morning! Mary decided that she would like to be included in the sleepover so Wayland went home to take care of pets and chores. Jennifer blew up the bed for the kids downstairs and Jen was on the couch to make sure ALL were safe. Mary woke up really early as did we, but we thought everyone was sleeping. We should have made early coffee!

I don't have pictures of the funniest happening of the day. BJ finally told the kids to go outside and hook that husky (which was Tristin's dog, Trey) up to the sled. Tristin did and the brave princess Maggie was the first to take a ride. We are all in the living room looking out the picture and Whew! did that dog take off and Tristin did not put a lead on him so she could control him. He flew. Maggie was brave! Poor Angus was tailing up the girls and falling in the snow. Even Tristin fell trying to catch the sled! Trey went to one hay stack and then another hay stack and then through the cattle guard (thankfully it wasn't a barbed wire fence). By then we told Mary to jump in her car with a leash and she and Tristin better get that dog stopped! It was hilarious to watch since no one got hurt and they all got rides. I think that dog could have gone all day. I told Tristin she ought to invest in an harness for that him.

Many days after the fact, I found some green frosting stuck to something. Imagine that?!

Belated Cookie Day

2011-02-03T20:04:00.000-07:00

I have had a couple of people ask me when I was going to post about Cookie Day that happened in December. It has gotten so late, I did not know whether to or not.

The long story is I bought a new computer from a suggestion by the Farmer's Wife (and she has since mentioned that "it really was a good idea, but..."). I bought it the end of October, 2010. The "thing" crashed three times--first time viruses, second time new hard drive put in, third time I called the company direct (thanks to the Farmer's Wife who said go straight to the top!) and they sent me a new machine with a different antivirus installed. That is the only thing we could come up with that could be wrong. So far so good and that has been at least two weeks or more. I was beginning to wonder if we would get our tax information sent to the accountant as all of it is in this machine. Cowboy suggested I could do it on paper, long hand. Fill in the blanks as to what I told him! Oh, it wasn't that bad. I just told him I had done that and I didn't need the experience.

Cookie Day was fun and BJ was actually able to be here also as well as Meghan.

Here are the grandies that got to be here with their aprons, Tristin, Maggie, Angus, Kamryn, and Liv. Angus called his "my cowboy thing". He liked to wear it and they all had fun.

The Farmer's Wife was the one who had the idea for the aprons two years ago. I insisted that she bring her material and I would make her apron. She had two sets, so I made two and Khyrsten got one, but since Khyrsten didn't come Cari got to wear it as she forgot hers. Look at the sacks of food on the floor behind Mary. There was so much food to eat!

Cari... You go girl!

Do you think anyone could pick out their coat or boots??

Grandma Dutton--some multigenerational pictures. Fun!

Granddad and Cari...

The "big" girls ( I don't dare say older do I, so what would you say?) were having just as much fun as the "little" ones.

BRING ON THE FROSTING! Angus-Kamryn-Maggie-Liv-Tristin

There was precise work going on and lots of creativity.

We never get too old to decorate cookies...

This is serious...

Don't you just love the green lips? Kissable!!

Wayland taking a turn...

This is the creation that Angus made for his Daddy. Pretty special work for a four-year-old!

Jennifer is our candy making girl. This is the second year for her caramels and they just get better every year!! She is going to keep do this recipe. I am the one coming up with new recipes for sugar cookies or the caramels.

Meghan, Maggie, Grammy Karen...

Cowboy PopPop is sure looking at something...

It must be important! The kids love their Cowboy PopPop.

Tristin and Mary...

Jennifer helping Liv...

Some of the handiwork. Beautiful!!

Pretty fancy work, wouldn't you say?

BJ did not do any decorating, he did take home the finished goods to Marsha, Baylee, and Kelli. Yum!

The cookies are "divyed" and the aprons removed. Whew! What a fun day. Mary took 180 pictures and I took 87, so you see why I put so many on the blog. There were so many pictures to choose from and of course they were all good ones!

Naturally there has to be a "rest of story" for the remainder of that weekend. But that will be for another blog. Stay tuned!

The Baking Has Begun

2010-11-30T21:55:00.000-07:00

Cookie Day has been set for December 11, 2010. Pray for good weather for all to travel. I put the butter on the counter to soften and I did the treadmill this morning. I like the treadmill as it is in front of a big window and I can listen to books on tape. I listen to murder mysteries and it keeps me on my toes! Ha! I have this monologue in my head just about every time I get on the treadmill. "You only have to do 30 minutes." After 30 minutes I say, "You can go a few more minutes." Here lately I have been going 45-55 minutes. I like how I feel when I am done and also the reason I walk more is the book is to a "good part."

I have the cutest cookie cutters and it seems like I don't use them near enough. Naturally I have been trying different sugar cookie recipes since we started cookie day seven years ago, and this one is very soft. I will do a different one next year. We will have to drizzle these as the grandies will have them broken before they even start. Of course, they could just eat them!

Even raw they look good enough to eat!

The finished product, ready to be put in the freezer awaiting decoration
.

Now this is the way to do cookies. I was to make a log approximately six inches long and make it square and then chill for at least one hour and cut with a sharp knife. Now girls, don't make fun of my tape measure. I wanted to get my cookies cut about 1/4 inch and wanted a guide. A couple of our girls are "just do it," right Jen, Mary, and Meghan? Remember I am the girl that follows a pattern and a recipe, although I "tweeked" the sugar cookie recipe. It needed some flavoring...but they do have real butter in them. That is an inside joke for those of you not reading Cohagen Chronicles. The Farmer's Wife was told by her Aunt, Rosie O'Grady, to always use real butter. So there you have it!

These are called Glazed Chai Shortbread Cookies. They are very spicy and I had one little to try. Cowboy told me they were good. I always like cookies. They have to be pretty bad for me not to like them.

I have some sewing projects done, but I haven't taken any pictures of them. I will get to it.

Don't forget to make some Christmas cookies for those loved ones.

Thankfulness and Life

2010-11-28T19:55:00.001-07:00

I have been wanting to post, but it seems like there is always something else that gets in the way. I am now waiting for a call from a granddaughter who is driving from Vancouver, WA, back to Bozeman, MT to school at MSU-Bozeman. I called at 7 p.m. and she was almost to Butte. I keep praying for God to have his arms around her.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving in Miles City with Cowboy's son and his wife, Barry and Jolene. It was nice to go somewhere, take a salad and cranberries, the camera, and just us. I didn't even have to clean our house.

Here is Miss Javon getting her "pony" put back in her hair by Grandma Loretta. She doesn't sit still very long and such a live wire with lots of smiles!

Jentry was working at going on over. She is very agile. The girls wanted to strut their stuff and show off for the grandparents!

Cowboy and I are so thankful for God, each other, our health, our families, our way of life here in rural Montana. We are thankful for our freedom by those young men and and women who putting their lives on the line for America. Cowboy says he is thankful for a warm house, plenty to eat, pets, good horses to ride, good equipment. Pickups that run without having to work on them every morning! Also, the blessing of friends.

When I was growing up,we usually went to my Aunt & Uncle's ranch out of Broadus for Thanksgiving and they came to Miles City for Christmas. I remember skating the 100 miles on very icy roads! My cousin Rachel is now staying in Miles City with my Aunt Belva and they had Thanksgiving dinner too. Since Barry and Jolene had asked us first, we went there. But Cowboy and Jentry, our dog Amy, and I walked the two blocks to stop in to say hello to family we haven't seen for some time. (Rachel and Ed's two sons).

Rick and Mark. It is terrible to take pictures of people eating...but I did it anyway.

My sweet Aunt Belva and her grandson, Loren on the right.

I have nothing but admiration for Rachel as she has been staying with my aunt for a couple of years now. We did a short bit of reminiscencing...

I took more pictures there, but I wanted to get pictures of Rachel's boys! They are grown, but you know how we are, they will always be boys!

I am also posting some pictures of deer. I took them from the sliding glass door upstairs from the dining room. And you wonder why I am jumping up and down during the summer months when they are in here eating my flowers. They weren't very afraid of me! They eat any scrap that might have fallen off of the pickup that was meant for the cows!

I told Bill I love to look at them and they are beautiful, but they are so destructive. Of course, I don't think I could shoot one, I just talk BIG when they eat my flowers...

Not just one buck, but three!!

I am sewing when I get a minute, but I haven't taken the pictures yet!

Cookie Day is coming. I am reading posts of some who are dreading it. Drat!

Sunrises and Cattle

2010-11-08T21:28:00.000-07:00

My sunrise pictures are not as gorgeous as God makes them, but I keep trying to capture the beauty, especially with the clouds. I took these with Bill's camera as mine was in the car on the "ready" for that special picture! I found a couple of pictures that he took when they were gathering and thought that I would post them also.

Do you think that the cows know that it is time, even though they bawl when the babies are gone? Are we like that TOO!?!

Everyone at this house was in bed by 7:30 p.m. new time and even though I was up at 4:30 a.m. with everyone else, I DID NOT have to go out and work in the wind and the dust! They were glad to get a reprieve at lunch time. I left the soup out last night and forgot to put it in the refrigerator (beef soup) and Cowboy woke me at 1:45 a.m. to asked if I remembered. I stumbled down the stairs, took the lid off, looked at it and put it in the refrigerator. By then I was wide awake and told Cowboy I had better not serve that to the men. I would not want to make anyone sick. I think it was okay, but that was over six hours without refrigeration. So we went to plan B for dinner/lunch and they got rib steaks, potatoes, tossed salad, garlic buns, cherry pie or lemon bars. No one complained!

So here I am wide awake, but I will keep the blog short tonight and hit the hay myself. We roll out early, doesn't matter whether it is Daylight Savings Time or Mountain Standard Time--it is "Rise and Shine" and I am taking a line from one of the members of our Sunday school class: "Okay, Lord, I am making this choice today asking you to be in charge of me." Sweet dreams!

A Day in the Life of...

2010-11-06T21:09:00.002-06:00

It has been ages since I have posted anything! I took my camera with me this morning and started taking pictures. Cowboy was shipping a couple of loads of calves that they have been working to get gathered and weaned. It was quilting day in Jordan which is pretty important! Ha! Also, our church in Jordan was having highway cleanup. I was not able to help the last time, so decided that I could make it work this time!

Here are some pictures of the "crew" ready to go!

Young and old alike, or I should say--young and younger! Note we had our fluorescent vests on and our rubber gloves. They were waiting for the Head Crew Chief to get off of the phone and that picture of him was blurry! Sorry!! They were very fast on the two-mile cleanup! We started at 10:30 a.m. and my partner and I stopped at 11:30 and I am sure the rest of them were done before noon.

Nadine on the left was chaperoning and working with the younger faster ones! Mary was my partner and we were just steady!!

I grabbed some lunch and back to quilting I went. I had two apron tops started when I left and I came back and worked on them and then started another two tops. You have heard the story, but I will tell it again. The daughters got aprons last Cookie Day and the grand girls asked if I couldn't please make them aprons?? So, this cookie day I am hoping to have them done.

Cowboy got to use the chute first! They brought some steer calves here to be taken to pasture tomorrow.

More pictures of the corrals. They are finally getting to use them!

more pictures...

Cowboy on Cash! They are both very photogenic! This is my picture of a working cowman! Cowboy said, "An old working cowman!"

Our weather has been so fantastic. One day less of cold weather. It was in the 70's today--November 6th! Look at that blue sky, beautiful...one just cannot replicate God's handiwork... And look closely, there is still some green grass, what a wonder.

And last but certainly not least are the heros for the day in the life of a computer "girl". I got a new computer a couple of weeks ago and then the printer which was 8 years old decided to bite the dust, so I ordered a new one from HP online over the phone with a "person" in the Phillipines. That wasn't so bad. Then the machine came, I set it up and naturally it wouldn't work. I got BACK on the phone to the Phillipines (80+ minutes worth) and I got someone who didn't know much more than I did and we tried several things. He told me I should stay calm when I asked for his manager or at least an address for HP as I was going to send them a letter and the very least give lots of negative advertising. I may still write the letter. In the meantime, I am getting a new black ink cartridge, which he thought would fix my problem. Enter K.J. and Sharon who know sooooo much more than I do about computers and printers! Sharon ran the computer diagnostics while K.J. did the "hands on" with the printer. He cleaned the ink cartridge holder. That isn't the proper name, but that what it is! Then he ran it through its paces! The bottom line is that it works!!!! Praise God!! Thank you K.J. and Sharon. Besides that we did some fast and furious visiting. It was wonderful! The up side of this is that I will have some extra ink coming! Ha!

It was a full day for everyone! So now you see why I am not getting any blogging done. It seems like it is first one thing and then another.

We are doing a Bible study on "Becoming a Woman of Excellence" and I slipped a little the other day with the Phillipino. I will try harder next time...

Patriots and Flags

2010-09-15T09:34:00.001-06:00

Flagpole erecting day--September 14, 2010! He wanted it up by September 11th, but it just didn't get done. Cowboy has wanted a flagpole for quite a few years. He had the spot picked. A little over a week ago he got the cement poured and mixed his cement in the wheel barrow. It was work, and I didn't volunteer to help "stir".

Getting started...

Here we go...

Keep coming...

Cowboy is tightening the top, an eagle. The eagle was BJ's idea and BJ also sent the flag. As soon as it arrived my veteran and I had to fold it correctly, I was a brownie scout (many eons ago) after all. On top of that I worked for the United States Postal Service and flag duty was one of my jobs. I am sure you are so interested in that! On to the story at hand...

Joe is in the bucket, Phil is going to guide the pole, Amy is supervising, and Bill is in the tractor...

Phil is saying to raise the pole a little higher. They had to put the chain over to the left of the bucket instead of in the middle.

Let's try it one more time...

The bucket is as high as it will go and the "teeth" are opened to get more height. I had a knot in my stomach and prayers on my lips as they were doing this. Joe said, "the thing is, just don't look down." It seems to me he is looking down. Did I ever tell you I am afraid of heights? Well I am telling you again!

It is in the hole, but not down completely, having a "conference".

Joe went back to the ground and then back up again to paint the "dings". Cowboy mentioned how beautiful the sky was as we previewed the pictures. You just can't beat a Montana "Big Sky"...

Hanging the flag... I couldn't help but think of those jokes, "How many men does it take to hang a flag?" I get to hear soooo many blond jokes!!

A few minor adjustments to the rope...

Bill hanging the flag...

Just one last loop. It is catching the breeze... Thanks to the idea from BJ and the kiddies chipping in to buy the eagle for Bill, maybe the flag too. I could not raise anyone this morning to get the facts, so I will make them up as I go!

Cowboy wants to do some finish work around the base with rocks. Looking at the picture I still get a lump in my throat and a tear in my eye. We are a patriotic family, God has blessed our country and we are so thankful for our freedom. The Lord knows everything that is happening and everything still belongs to Him. It is on loan to us to take care of to the best of our ability.

I salute you, Old Glory!

Little Cowgirls and Sewers Too!

2010-09-12T16:40:00.000-06:00

What do I want to be when I grow up?? For a week this summer Kamryn and Jentry stayed with us. They were with us in July. The week just flew by. When they got tired of our house, they went to Great Grandma's and played cards and visited, then back up the hill they would come!

This time because there was a roping dummy close to the garage with ropes hanging off of the horns...LET"S LEARN TO ROPE!

Okay, PopPop! Let's get going!

It is pretty hard with two girls, but he is trying to get the stance, the arm, the wrist, you know--ALL of it!

One more time, look this way...

Kamy is pretty serious about this. They so want to please their grandpa!

See what I mean about SERIOUS?

It is in the wrist...Cowboy loved showing the girls. Wish they were here more often! They went and twirled their ropes every day. The men would straighten the ropes out a couple of times a day. You know how hard ropes are to get back to the way they coil right!

Jentry and Kamryn each made reversible tree skirts that can turn into capes if they so wish. I had the Christmas material here waiting for them to come. Jentry is seven and Kamryn is nine and a half so the sewing abilities were different. Kamy has sewn with me before, so I knew what she could do. Attention spans aren't as long, so Jentry and I worked in small stages. This grandma doesn't want to burn anyone out on wanting to learn to sew!! Isn't that a sweet smile?!

See that smile of accomplishment?? It was funky stockings and a fun polka dot for the other side.

Jentry got hers finished also and it was green with ribbons, bells, and holly berries and the other side was red with gold throughout. She was relieved to have hers done too!

Ready for bed and a play time with Miss Tiny toe kitten PopPop brought home...

Looks like they got plenty of vitamin D from the sun. They play well together and we did many things. It is hard to take a picture when we were all working! They did dishes. They traded washing for dish drying. I had to let them...

They helped me get meals on as we had two extra men to cook for, so there was always something to do. They checked books out of the library.

One of the things I feel bad about is that they didn't get to ride horseback this visit. PopPop was too busy to get that done. AND, this is the first summer we haven't put up the hammock. It was too chilly to begin with and then, after B.J. and Marsha and the girls were gone, we were thinking about other things and the girls didn't even bug me about setting it up.

So, I have blinked and summer is gone. Grandies are in school and fall is here and we are still catching up on "summer" work. We have bales to stack, cows to move, oh, it goes on and on. Did a little canning of pickled beets and freezing of peaches and peach pie filling! The pies are devoured around here! I haven't even sewn a stitch in almost two weeks, so maybe I can squeeze in a minute tomorrow!

Eventful Two Days!

2010-09-05T21:32:00.000-06:00

Friday I was busy as a could be, but was having a little heart irregularity--that odd beat now and then. I have had it for about 10-13 years. It is called atrial fibrillation (I had to look up the spelling) and I can hardly pronounce it correctly. So I emptied a freezer, ate breakfast, did dishes, and took a bath which was extremely hot (I still was not feeling well), got dressed and decided to head outside and work on cleaning out the tomatoes, flowers, and sundry items that the deer are destroying! I thought the fresh air and sunshine would make me feel better, which it did, I might add!! I cleaned out some of the big pots I had them in and filled a wheel barrow with dirt. Decided that that was enough of that and swept under the deck.

I went into the house and got lunch ready for Phil and possibly Cowboy if he got done loading his truck with the LAST load of the grain. By then it was 11 a.m. I thought I would relax a little and then it hit me with full force, racing this time. So I made myself clean the "now" defrosted freezer. You know, someone needed to do it!!!

Talked to my friend Leah and she offered to come and get me. I told her no, I would catch my breath soon. I called Grandma M. to come and put lunch on and then called Leah back and said, I need that ride, ASAP. I am not going to pay for an ambulance ride.

Grandma came bustling up and I told her there was corn, leftover potatoes to fry, and a roast in the oven. She offered to drive me to meet Leah and I took her up on it. By then we were both scared. We met Leah at the highway and she couldn't drive fast enough for me. I keep trying to calm myself down but I must have been taking too many breaths as when we got to the emergency room, I was like jelly. Dan told me I was hyperventilating and to relax. O K A Y... He got started giving me some drug I cannot remember and probably not even spell. I got there at 11:45 a.m. and about 3:30 p.m. he called a cardiologist in Billings who said I should be in Billings. Dan got my blood pressure down, but the "a phib" was still going on and my pulse was still high. It would go down and then go back up. So, I got the ride in the ambulance anyway, and what wonderful care I got in at the ER and in the ambulance. Dan thought it was a good idea for me to go too as I could get the tests done right away.

Cari got to the hospital right away and they had a room waiting when we got there. It was a circus trying to find it as they told us to turn here, turn there and just take the elevator...not real professional. But Rex found it anyway!

In the meantime Cowboy was having his own adventure, AFTER he loaded the freezer, took a shower after shoveling wheat, and grabbing a sandwich to eat on the way to Moccasin to unload the wheat. BUT...as Paul Harvey Jr. said, "Now for the rest of the story...". Anticlimactic, Cowboy won't let me tell it and it is truly worth telling. So, if you really want to know, you have to call him or corner him when you see him.

My BP was low all night, pulse was good. Tests Sat. a.m. were good. Heart is normal, no blockages, treadmill test was good, they said they could tell I had been working on my walking. I think they might have wanted to add "for your age" but thankfully they didn't.

Before they turned me loose, the prognosis said everything looked GOOD, but they couldn't give me medicine as it would make my blood pressure too low. I will have more of these episodes, but to document the episodes and there is a procedure that can be done, but not today. I am to take aspirin daily, don't gain weight, EXERCISE, watch the stress levels.

Thanks you God! I felt the prayers and I am thankful that I had one of these that could be recorded because usually they go away before I get anywhere, and the Dr.'s would just look at me. These won't kill me, but the clots they cause could give me a stroke if I don't do the aspirin. That is an easy one to remedy.

Enough of that. Rosie thought I should blog this. It is pretty boring for some to read, but it is recorded. Meghan wanted to fly out, but I told her it was okay.

Now I am going to work on the stress aspect...ideas? Exercise is a great one for that, but Farmer's Wife, I don't think my knees would take the running.

I forgot how noisy hospitals are, and the two times I was sleeping HARD, they came and took vitals... one at 12:50 a.m. and another at 4:45 a.m. So needless to say, Cowboy and I slept really well Saturday night.

A Bridge by B.J.and Flowers and Colts

2010-08-31T21:07:00.000-06:00

I finally got a bridge! When B.J. and family were here, he can't sit still, so he decided he would do the bridge. He had consulted with Bill. Cowboy was going to do one, but it was going to be "serviceable" but probably not "fancy" as he would put it!

B.J. made the bridge the first day and painted it and then we all got to vote and decided that a handrail would be just the thing for ALL of us as the tread will be slick in the winter or when wet! After the handrail was installed, B.J. knew it needed a little something extra so added the rings for pots and the rings would discourage the kids from swinging through the railing. That is yet to be tested! Ha!

Isn't that just what was needed there? But, alas, the deer waited until the geraniums were much bigger and more beautiful and then they started on the blossoms. Then they ate the leaves and on down to the roots. I can't catch them, I don't shoot a gun, and I don't want to go to jail if I could shoot a gun as what would I do with the carcass? Besides, I think Cowboy thinks there might be bullet holes in places not needing airing.

Today we went to Miles City to do errands and I bought two little pots of maroon mums. I don't know whether to try them in the pots THERE or put them on my bench under the deck...

I have to show you how beautiful the strawberries WERE before the deer got to them too!!

Thanks, Jennifer, I loved it!!!

The strawberries were good!

I also have a couple of pictures of my iris. They grow in spite of the gumbo, bless them!

We went to the neighbors as they are raising colts and it is so fun to see them! Cowboy says to have them here is asking for trouble as the mortality rate is high--wire cuts, broken legs, you name it. It is a good thing he doesn't let me go to the horse sales without him and he is very careful about me bidding on those "cute" colts!

They are so fun to see. Those mamas are very protective!

I have been so frustrated by the deer and my pots. I was told they would not eat marigolds. They have eaten all the blossoms, twice, off of a round bed I have. They are biting the tomatoes off of the vine. I have a protection of sorts up now. They ate the leaves off of the pepper plant and then started on the peppers. I was able to pick about five. They ate the cantalope vine and fruit. I had two that were coming along nicely. If we didn't have fences around the trees, there would be no trees. I think the deer are getting thicker than ever before. Hunters, come!

Enough of that! Hope you enjoyed the pictures of bridges, flowers, and babies!

Nevada Cuties! part 2

2010-08-29T18:24:00.000-06:00

We are on our way to the barn to see the horses. Cowboy was branding at Roscoe so we were on our own.

What is it about shadows, green grass, holding hands, and people walking away?

Cute Masha with cutie Kelli!

Cari took our picture on the return...remember when you got to be swung...? Oh what fun!!

Grammy reading The Magic Boots to Baylee. I love books and want all the kids to love to read.

Baylee helping me blow out the candles on the ice cream cake Bonnie brought to celebrate Cowboy's birthday and mine. What is better than a child blowing out your candles??

This visit was our first "in person" meeting with Miss Kelli! What a happy baby! Those cheeks were made for mooches!

Quality time...

I usually take a bath picture of Baylee every year to hang in one of our bathrooms. She is at the "posing" age.

All our grandies have this phenomenon about checking to see "their" pictures. Baylee is looking at some taken of her. I would like to know what is going through her mind...

I had to put the roses in the blog as they were a birthday present from Bonnie and they were gorgeous!

PopPop and Kelli. What a smiling baby!

PopPop and the girls

Grammy had to get in the picture too!

More books! The little girls all like Fancy Nancy and Baylee brought her own book so Grammy could read it to her and Dad got in on the story one more time too.

Remember me telling you some of the girls wanting aprons for Cookie Day for 2010? Anyway, Baylee picked this fabric for her apron. She is ready to help Grammy cook.

We are twins, sort of! Baylee would ask me why my face was so curly after I had bathed before drying hair. She could not have possibly meant wrinkles, do you think? Yikes!!

B.J. was trying to get everyone together to get loaded for the trip to Billings to the plane. Kelli had to take a turn at the saddle and to wear PopPop's hat!

Baylee with PopPop's hat. Everything has to be even steven, you know... There were some with them together, but these were the two best ones.

It is so hard to say goodbye. It puts a lump in my throat just typing about them leaving. We had fun while they were here and the time flew by. Nevada is a long way...

Have you ever tried to take pictures and have two children look up and smile at the same time? Yeah, me too!!

I wanted to put more pictures on the blog but 20 is a lot and I did pare it down from the 100 that were taken. You are welcome!!! The girls have probably changed so much since these were taken!

Good bye Nevada! Come back to Montana again real soon!!

Summer Happenings!

2010-08-28T17:13:00.000-06:00

Hi! To a couple of my blog readers and Cari, I am finally posting after eight weeks. Good grief, Charlie Brown! Where has the summer gone???

I am going to post some pictures of what has been happening. I still have more "Nevada Cuties" to post and also when Kamy and Jentry were here. I am continually writing blogs in my head, but don't get to the computer. Excuses, excuses! I am reading, cooking, sewing, or mowing, maybe in that order!!! Oh, and I have started going to a Bible study in Jordan which is a good one!! Throw the fair in the mix and our church in Jordan had the food "booth" (great big room is more like it) so I helped out a little. Did a couple of turkeys and dressing and a couple of salads. I didn't have the chore work of waiting on people or standing all day. We got in on a little cleaning after the fair, but there were others that put in long days! Cowboy took his turn at cooking breakfast on Saturday morning, but he had to leave and I think 200 came to eat after he left. They were running to the store for more supplies.

We have corral builders here. Now we are down to one. He is doing such a good job so you are going to see beginning pictures and they are about done now, but I won't post that picture in this blog.

It already looks like corrals and is Cowboy excited. I know he can hardly wait to use them this fall. A little gravel to the loading chute and it will be "all weather" ready!!!

Phil does precise work. Bill helped weld one day and Phil kept an "eagle" eye on Bill so things were level.

New kitten on premise...Cowboy just happened to catch it at the Sandquist Place. When we took her to the vet for her first rabies shot we didn't know if it was a Miss Tiny or a Mr. Tiny--it was a Miss Tiny!

What is not to love with a face that cute?

She is growing...she would like to be an indoor cat, but remember, I am allergic to cats. Tiggy hates her and
when invited in Tiggy will look around and then go right out the other door to make sure THAT KITTEN isn't inside!

Now on the the Cross Country Piece Makers quilt retreat in Red Lodge, Montana at the Medicine Flower Lodge August 20-22. It took us five hours to get there with a stop for gas and then a stop for lunch. I often wonder why we put ourselves through all the lugging of machines, ironing boards, sewing projects, cutting mats, pillows for sleeping, etc. when we could sew more projects at home. Well, YOU know the answer! It is the fellowship of being with other quilters and sharing what we have learned over the last year and catching up on the family news if we only see some of them once a year. And of course I can replenish my supply of fat quarters with our bingo game. We made bingo cards out of 2 1/2 inch squares and they turned out cute. We gave them to Marge and she is going to put them together for a quilt for family services or wherever they deem necessary. I got 20 blocks completed of a 36 block quilt top and a Christmas table runner that I am going to finish for cookie day.

One of the planners came up with the idea of flowers on a black background, so anything went. I searched my magazines and came up with the one on the top right. I found the cutest buttons to be the centers. Then when I looked at the others...some people are so gifted. The top middle flower is three dimensional...Well, they are all pretty...

This is a share-a-square block for one of the new members. It was to be in purple and teals--a no brainer for me as I LOVE those colors and I just happened to have some in my stash! Mine is the bottom right. I love that pattern anyway. I like stars.

This is our signature block. Laura made the tepee for us. They gave us the blue material and the feather material. What you did with it was your own idea. Some put different embellishments on theirs. There were 22 of us attending. Oh, we did make a quick trip on Friday to Washoe to the fabric store. I think that may be the only business in the town. It was fun to look around.

Me with Nancy G. and Marge G. at the cook shack. The food was delicious! We were served brunch on Sat. and Sun. at 10 a.m. Supper was at 6 p.m. Fri. and Sat. nights. Nine of us stayed in a house a distance from the sewing house. The cook shack was between the two. After we got there they told us to be CAREFUL walking as there were MOOSE and BEAR that had been seen! Sure enough, Friday night a moose came nosing around our cabin. Saturday night, Laura left the outside lights on and no CRITTERS!

Rene E. and Nancy. Note the bear face in the post...

Laura F. and Leah B. seated on the porch of the house we slept in.

Laura and me standing by the fire pit...

Quilters one and all...

Last evening we went to the Jersey Lilly in the famous town of Ingomar, Montana. We, who are from Eastern Montana think so anyway! It was the largest sheep shearing plant in the world at one time. The sheepherders would trail their sheep in from all around. The railroad was there. It was a thriving town way back when. One would have to look up the history. Grandma brought me up the history to read, They Say It Happened That Way about Sumatra, Ingomar, and Vananda. I was afraid I would get some of my facts wrong so didn't delve into anything. When I was a young lady I thought it was a dried up town then, but the Jersey has always been there and Bill Seward ran it when I first crossed the threshhold... The bull and heifer pens are still there and we were told last night that a rattle snake or bull snake had been sited under the boardwalks, so Cari and I stomped our way back and forth! Ha! No snakes on our treks!!!

The reason we were at Ingomar was because we wanted to take Phil down and show him a little country (Phil is from Elko, Nevada and yes, B.J. is the one that got him up here. Call for the rest of the story...) and Cowboy and his cousin were hosting a rocky mountain oyster fry with all the calf fries from branding here and at Dave's. Everything else was potluck. I didn't taste the "oysters" but heard they were good. Don't tell Cowboy but some said they tasted like chicken. I tried them many years ago and I like chicken, but...
There were so many salad and desserts, it was amazing. Some of the "locals" from Roundup and Ingomar played music after supper so there was some dancing.

Three Amigos...Bill, Calvin, Joe

Cowboy photographs so well...

Cari captured us dancing. We do enjoy dancing but don't seem to get anywhere to dance and there just haven't been that many at home.

Still lots of blogs running around in my noggin' but this enough for now.

Nevada Cuties!

2010-07-04T22:00:00.000-06:00

It has been a month since our babies have been here (even the grown ones!) and I was looking through pictures. I will have to blog a little at a time. The picture takers took lots. Cari told me I had to take lots of pictures to get just the right one, so between Cowboy and myself and anyone else picking up the camera, there are LOTS of pictures.

Here they come!!! Baylee is talking a mile a minute!

Baylee informed me and Great Granddad that it was a fun "alligator" ride. (Elevator) Baylee asked me, "Are you Montana?" I said, "I sure am!" I don't know who was gladder to be off the plane, the kids or the folks! They had a two-hour layover in Salt Lake City, Utah. The baby, Kelli was good other than takeoffs and landings.

We were so GLAD to greet them!! Three years is a long time since they were in Montana!

Our first "in the flesh" introduction to Kelli. What a happy baby. She was so good.

Kelli was HAPPY to be loose from the car seat! She just kicked and kicked! We had to wait around the airport for them to bring the car rental. You know the story... They booked a car when they got the tickets. When B.J. and Marsha got there to get the car, well, it wasn't quite ready. They did have a four-door pickup... I should have taken a picture of the luggage. That would not work in the box of a pickup if it rained! So, we waited for them to "detail" and wash the car. Very frustrating but what is one to do? They needed the car. The girls at the desk went in the back office. I would have also! Ha! After 45 min. to an hour, the car finally got there and off to Cari's to a B-B-Q. Tristin was going to come from Bozeman but her car leaked oil and she had just had the oil changed. So she took her car back and they told her she needed an air filter after an hour and a half and she had to work in the evening. I told her to stay put. It was a long drive for an hour of visiting.

Baylee "had to have" one of Auntie's purses to carry around! Too bad Cari had not kept the lime green purse, Sydney loved it when she was little. It would have been right up Baylee's alley!

Baylee posing for Grammy by the flowers. Remember the picture that I took of Cari's flowers right after she bought them? I love that fuzzy topped grass!

B.J. was the cook. He told me that this wasn't a good picture, but the story it tells without words... I took a picture of the two of them at the fair in Billings probably 10 or 11 years ago and they were hugging. It wasn't a particularly good picture of either, but I had it blown up because of the unspoken message it conveyed to this Mom...

More Baylee...

Bonnie brought cupcakes to celebrate birthdays--Cari belatedly and Granddad and mine. Baylee got to blow out candles. Is not that the fun part of cakes on birthdays???

To be continued...

Fourth of July 2010

2010-07-04T21:02:00.000-06:00

I did my first blog of the Fourth of July parade. Where did the year go? I wanted this to be a silent Sunday with just pictures, but really! You are asking too much!! Women like to talk, write, babble... We always seem to have a comment about something. Even if it isn't verbalized, we have one.

The parade was small this year and the turn out even smaller. The 4th fell on a Sunday which took some of the people that wanted to attend church services. Monday is also a holiday, so people went fishing, boating, family events, camping, you name it.

I took money for the noon meal at the hall, we ran out of sloppy joes by the time Cowboy and I ate, so we ate a little salad and went elsewhere and had lunch. We came home and had a wonderful nap and then read papers. I am way behind on my paper reading and Cowboy read the Sunday paper.

Dave and Morris brought a team to town to carry veterans and Dave was outrider. Sorry about the junk in the background.

Cowboy looks good on Ace. Can you believe it was so chilly this morning that we needed jackets? We were glad for the cool weather. We remember a 4th when we went to Miles City with Tristin (we all had horses) and checked on cattle that we had on leased property. Whew it was a very, very hot day! Tristin said she remembered that her long-sleeved shirt had polyester in it...

Note the team in the back. The horses that you see were the only ones in the parade in Jordan. Sad!

Cowboy was trying to remember how many years he has carried the American flag... He feels it is such an honor and privilege. Patriotism runs deep at our house. We pray for our country...

Branding Time

2010-06-27T21:55:00.000-06:00

Branding is over for one more year. Cowboy looks forward to it, but at the same time just gets tightly wound. There is rain to worry about, enough calf "wrasslers" to show, making sure enough vaccine is taken each day. The little chores are endless.

On my end, I get a kitchen helper and we wonder how many we are going to feed. The most we had was 33 and the least was17. I am one of those cooks that wants to make sure there is plenty of meat and then fill in around that. The first day, which got a late start because of rain, began at about 10 a.m. for the branders (the cowboys to gather went at 8 a.m.) They had a coffee break at noon with donuts. Jerome always brings donuts the first day and he presented them with 4 doz. and there wasn't one taste left! They came to the house for supper that night to 21# of roast beef , tossed salad, wheat salad, dinner rolls, and brownies. We made them 10# of potatoes and gravy and we mixed the gravy in a six-quart kettle and we RAN OUT! We quickly made some more for Cowboy and John. You cooks know that gravy really doesn't make "quick" but we got some more made anyway and they wanted some of it. I could bore you with all the menus, but I won't. I try to vary the menus from year to year except we always have lots of beef, at least a roast one day, some kind of burger dish and we fixed 20# of ham also. Whew! It makes me tired and full typing it!

Pictures are more fun, so the last day was a short day and we went up during coffee break so that I could take a few pictures.
Jerome was tally man this year and didn't have to wrestle calves. One of the comments I heard was there was sure a good crew and nobody was a slacker, everyone pitched in and did their fair share.

Dallas running two guns, Wyatt faithfully ear tagging, Cowboy branding, and I assume Jason was vaccinating too, I can't really tell. When I takes pictures, I don't always "see."

John is branding and Bill is watching the ropers. He gives all a chance and I think since this was such a small bunch of calves this day, the younger kids got to rope MORE. How else do you learn if you aren't given a chance?

I had to get a picture of Scottie roping off of Merlin aka Big Blue. Cowboy sold him that horse and we called him Big Blue. He is a gentle giant. I know Scottie takes good care of him. I hear that Scottie's wife like to ride Merlin too!

The country is really green and I had occasion to stop and listen and the birds in the morning are the Best alarm clock! Those 4 a.m. mornings rolled around fast. As Cowboy put it, "When my feet hit the floor in the morning so I could put the coffee on (lots of cowboy coffee at that!) they never stopped moving until bed." The pieces of pie didn't go to his waist, he ran them off!

Thanks for stopping by!

And The Winner Is...

2010-06-17T21:42:00.000-06:00

COWBOY"S SWEETHEART!

I am following a blog that I found when I went to: www.The Scrappy Apple Yard.com. I have enjoyed following the blog of a fellow quilter who designs patterns, has a shop, makes quilts, goes to shows! I am impressed and awed. She said she was having a drawing and if any of the blog followers wanted their name put "in the hat" to indicate such. She said she had picked a winner and the rest of us were a little sad. AND THEN, she posted on my blog since the first person did not respond, my name was drawn! Blessings for me! We had quite a time making an e-mail connection, but finally got it done.

I receive the package yesterday and what a gift box!! There were four yards of material, three fat quarters, 1/4 of material, plus "goodies" of all types. I had best show the pictures!

I wish I could make that a little closer, but isn't that the cutest shadow box for a quilter girl?? I just love it!

The Christmas fabric is glorious and I just need a pattern...ha! All my quilting friends know I am a pattern girl and I don't deviate much. Some of us are like that and I have friends that think out of "that box" and they try to stretch my mind occasionally. It doesn't usually hurt me either. (Right Running, Quilting, Ranch Wife?)

I didn't take the notions out of the packages, but there are so many cute buttons and add-ons. Isn't the quilting book cute? See the snow flakes in the package at the top of the book?

Rosie O'Grady, this is to show you, I may be related... All my gifts were packed in strips of fabric. I could not bring myself to throw them away. Surely there is a use for them. Maybe I will recycle for packing, but for right now they are in my sewing room in a bag... See how we are...

Many thanks John'aLee for the gifts!

Cowboy's Birthday!

2010-06-11T10:03:00.000-06:00

Cowboy likes pie probably the best, so that is what I made him for his "special" day. Of course we had to have candles!

Candles don't stand up real well!

I had forgotten I had bought him a present so when Maggie asked if there were going to be any presents, it jogged my "old" memory! I dug it out of the closet. The grandies had to help open the gift and since there was ONLY one present, PopPop got to open his own. The little hands were so wanting to help and Bill took his time cutting tape. It was fun watching the kids. Angus just knew that it was a gun and Baylee wanted it to be "cakeup" (makeup). Bonnie brought Baylee a backpack and she has been wearing every day. She calls it "backack." We have been having so much fun.

Maggie baked PopPop a birthday cake to bring and it didn't come out of the pan. One half came out and so it torn into two pieces. They left it home...

Birthday kisses...they are just the BEST!

Dancing Darlin's

2010-06-07T21:23:00.000-06:00

Cowboy PopPop and I went to a dance recital on May 29th. It was raining, so we were able to get away from the ranch. We don't get to as many events of the grandies as we would like so this was a perfect opportunity. Little did we realize that it was a dance recital for wee ones up to adults. It was all VERY good, but it was two hours long and the sweet little ones were going to perform again at 6:30 p.m. for another two hours. If I were in charge of the world, I would have a recital for the small children and one for older people. But drat! I wasn't put in charge! There were cloggers, and cheer leading stunts and everything in between...

The theme was a little bit country, a little bit rock...

Liv told her Mom she wouldn't be "shy" and she did lots of smiling! We loved watching "ours" and it was so hard to see them all as we didn't want to miss anything Liv did!

They are getting "lined up" so they don't run into the one beside them. To pull off a production of this sort, is a LOT OF WORK! Taking pictures was a test as they were always moving and some of the one I took were blurry!! Imagine!

Kamy is older and has lots of "polish" and looks fantastic in orange with her red hair. Mom said that it was quite an ordeal getting everyone's hair "just right"...

I love their poodle skirts... Kamy did well in this dance too. They were just so cute with their pink kerchiefs!
We were so glad we went even if it was a lot of sitting! Meghan told me that Sydney had a art show that lasted for 1 1/2 hrs. and that is for a first grader!

Wordless Wednesday in Montana

2010-06-02T08:26:00.000-06:00

Sydney Paige's Page!

2010-06-01T20:35:00.000-06:00

Miss Sydney does not get to Montana very often and I have been saving these pictures for a day when I could pick and choose the pictures to post. Of all our grand girls she lives the farthest. If we had the funds we could "jet" everyone back and forth. But, we do lots of phone talking and the newest thing is getting on "Skype" and I think it is the BEST.

I hope I don't get in trouble for posting this as I have everyone's name listed. It was too precious not to share.

Cowboy PopPop, Auntie Cari, and Sydney tailing them...

Don't you love sequence pics...

From the back Cari and Tristin resemble. (For those of you that don't know, Tristin is Cari's niece).

Joe has got to be the all-time kid horse. He is so friendly and he is so gentle and kind. In the pecking order of horses, they ALL still pick on Joe. I just hate it for him. But this is such a sweet picture of his nature and to a small child, he must seem enormous!

Miss Sydney gives Joe a pat. Notice the "horse cat" walking the top of the fence. Tiggy thinks she is in charge of everything on the ranch!

Finally! Horseback!

Look Mom, I am sitting on Joe...

PopPop was trying to get the cow to eat "cow cake" out of his hand. Grandpa took them to go look at cows and calves. They also saw some sage hens with the roosters drumming, but between the dog and Sydney they were a little bit too noisy for the hens. Meghan was not able to hear them drumming. It is something neat to hear and witness.

I wish I knew what Sydney was thinking...

Bonnie brought bunny ears for everyone and the kids loved them. Grandma Margaret brought up plastic eggs with candy in them and the kids loved playing with them and hiding them and opening and eating the candy! There is nothing quite like getting to play with cousins. We were glad that Maggie and Angus came for part of the Saturday before Easter.

Maggie and Angus are VERY busy dying Easter eggs. The table is spread with freezer paper. Much easier clean up. Cookie day has us trained on what works best with kids. As an aside, when I put the leaf in the table I found green frosting on the edge from cookie day that had been in December... Ah, well, I had a quick walk down memory lane.

Rachel, Tristin, and Sydney getting ready to dye some eggs. I dye eggs even if we have no one for Easter. I love the colored eggs and we all like to eat deviled eggs. Why doesn't one fix them more often? One of those questions that float by.

I think Cari is helping one of them get their egg out of the dye...

Sydney helping Mommy and PopPop swing gates before they brand the new bulls.

Easter morning...

We had hot cross buns. I tried Martha Stewart's recipe and it is definitely a keeper and better than the one I was using! The table topper I made to be used at Easter. It is so bright and cheery. I used some of the Nickel packets. I saw the pattern in one of the quilt shops and decided I wanted to try it.

We went to the church service at Sand Springs. They had a potluck before the service, so after the service there was dessert to be had for our sweet tooth people! You know who you are! Tristin, Rachel, and Cari left after the church service to get back to Billings and Bozeman respectively. We still had Sydney, Meghan, Erin, and Nicole.

I love pictures like this... What little girl doesn't love horses? Look at those curious "boys" looking at that wee little girl. There is nothing so soft as a horse's muzzle...

This ends our time with Miss Sydney and I saved that picture for last. It makes me sad typing this as she is so far away and I would like her to touch those horses a little more often... Our babies all grow so fast and as we get older we see the days just fanning by. Weren't we all just 30 something not long ago?

One last thought on the picture. Cowboy likes to say, "The outside of a horse is good for the inside of a girl." I took the liberty of changing that a little. I think that quote is from Will Rogers or someone else. Does anyone know for sure?

City Girls/Country Girls

2010-05-27T22:07:00.001-06:00

Meghan brought two friends from Oregon who had not been to a ranch in Montana. They came for Easter weekend. As I was going through the pictures no one took any pictures of the girls with my camera! Yikes! You may think they were a figment of my imagination. They were fun, full of questions that Cowboy patiently answered. How is branding done, when we "calve" and what about organic meat? So many questions that I didn't write down! There was lots of nonstop talking. There were Meghan and her two friends, Tristin and her college friend, Cari, and Sydney who is 7 years old. With all the females, it was PRETTY noisy around here. Besides that, Cowboy could barely get a word in edgewise and he had to be fast to do that!

They went to the corral to see the horses. It was too cold to ride and there weren't any "dude" horses that anyone could ride. They were just happy to see them.

The "main men" getting a treat. What good boys!

Bill went to a bull sale on Saturday and got help branding bulls when he got them home.

A cute baby calf...

Meghan and Bill going to "swing" some gates.

Unloading bulls...

They found the branding irons...

Hot irons will do the trick...

Can't you smell the smoke?

One of Switchback Ranch's brands: Y Lazy Y.

Picture takers overlapping...

Helper girl Meghan taking hot irons to Bill. Sydney is cold and Tristin didn't take a coat, but found a blanket. She should remember, it is always chilly even when it looks warm!

Meghan "running" irons. Cowboy does all the branding...

Meghan getting on the computer to show Granddad what her new job will be consisting of. She is now working for Morgan Industries and they move heavy machinery. As you can see, she is doing some explaining...

Cari is hiding behind me, but we are mixing up something good, I am sure!

Tristin is pretty laid back... Meghan and Sydney are probably talking to Jamie (Sydney's daddy) or something else of interest! Rachel (Tristin's friend) and I are looking on... Cari is looking at the camera person...
Being together is so special and pictures capture some of those moments. The time went so very fast and the days flew by. I tried to pour love into such a short space of time...

We did go to church on Easter Sunday but could not convince all to come with us...

Cowboy took the picture of the boots and shoes. One of the girls bought used boots at the Vintage shop in Billings. Why didn't I come up with that idea over the years? Maybe I could have made a buck or two! It seems I have worn out my boots and have holes in the bottoms so I discard them! I have seen some boots on fence posts around the ranch that have seen much better days too! The boot jack has Bill's brand on it. It is the Standing S Lazy S monogram.

The picture reminds me of the chaotic fun that we had (even got in some games too!) and boy, oh boy, was it ever quiet when all left... We were a lonesome twosome...

Happy, Happy Birthday Baby!

2010-05-26T21:46:00.000-06:00

Cari came to the ranch to celebrate her birthday which was Monday. Of course we had a jam-packed weekend! She got her Friday night and we talked fast and furious for a short time and went to bed. We got up Saturday and found out the graduation party (high school for a relative of Bill's) had been moved to a more accessible spot (on the highway). That was relief but it would have been fun to take Cari down in the breaks along the Musselshell River. We hurried to Jordan and bought some plants and then came home and got ready for the party.

Cari spotted the goldfinches in our little cottonwood. There were at least 10 if not more, but when I moved closer to the window, only one "brave bird" stayed. I hope this shows up.

Early Sunday Cowboy wanted to give the horses their flu-vac and west nile shots and worm them, so Cari went to help. She told me we have too many coats, but we can outfit most anyone that comes. She borrowed, hat, coat, jeans, socks and boots... So there you go...

Cari and Dunny

Say ahhhh!

Cash Man...

Art is the old soldier of the horses. He is 25 years old and is such a pretty chestnut when he sheds off in the spring. The light spots are hair that hasn't come off yet. Art is getting is a hooficure. He will be racing around the pasture still the Boss.
One more cowboy rule: Stand on the side with the cowboy so the horse has a place to go if he decides to jump, move, or paw.

Opening gifts and cards. This is the year the "kids" aren't getting birthday presents, so I am having to think of unbirthday gifts I can give to them.

Bonnie and Cari sharing a goodbye.

Granddad and one of his girls...

Don't you just love the look of that grass in the pot. I ran my fingers through it. It is so soft...

Cowboy got up at 3:00 a.m. Sunday morning and moved all plants and hanging plants in the garage because it had frosted. He is a keeper, I am telling you. I would have helped him... Anyway, this is one of the pots that Cari bought to take home. I told her that Bill would think that it might be mine and he would say, "Is that your grass?" The next morning, sure enough: "Is that your pot with the grass?" No, I assured him, it was Cari's. He is afraid the seeds will blow over into the hay fields. He wants to know what kind of "weed" that is--or maybe a new form "quack grass"...

The time flew by and then it was time to hug, kiss, and say goodbye... Happy Birthday Cari!

More Red Shoes!

2010-05-10T14:04:00.000-06:00

Cari was shopping in Dillards and went by the shoe department. She thought that maybe Rosie O'Grady and I had been there shopping...

A girl just has to love those patent, open-toed high heels!

Javon Janae's Dedication

2010-05-09T20:47:00.001-06:00

Happy Mother's Day! What better way to spend the day than to go to a dedication of a child. We asked to go to church with Barry and Jolene not knowing that they were planning a dedication of Javon. We were thrilled to be a part of this. It is not a child's salvation, it is the parents' promise to bring the child up hearing about the saving power of Jesus and seeing it in the home.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16. The minister, Jeff Cahill, preached out of Romans 1:16-17. The question presented to us was are we ashamed of the gospel? And, do we believe? Do we REALLY believe? We are unable to make our children believe just as we are unable to make each other believe. It is an individual choice. There is that free will one more time...

It is a serious commitment for parents and joyful too!

Javon slept through it all!

Here is little Javon helping Grandma Loretta order!

We had a wonderful Mother's Day, Grandma Margaret had a good day seeing grandies. All the grandparents were at this dedication and Aunt Jennifer and Kamryn and Liv (Jentry liked having cousins!), and Jolene's sister and her husband and another cousin, Reese!

Cowboy got me some more pottery made by Dave Lockie (I have one bowl I use almost daily). I really like this and besides that it is made in Montana by someone that I know!!

Of course, both Cowboy and I like the blue color and it will be just right for guacamole. Come on over!

So my question this evening for you is, "Do you believe? Do your REALLY believe?"

Montana Women's Run 2010

2010-05-08T19:26:00.000-06:00

This is my second year and Cari has participated in four of them, one when in college. She ran one three years ago and we have walked together for two years. We do the five-mile walk and enjoy the outdoors, people watching, and the thrill of competing, but most of all, being together. We hatched the idea that we could make it a girls' day and have all the girls plan ahead and do it with us. This would include Tristin and Khyrsten. We saw lots of younger kids too!

This is one of our fashion girls. We had a good breakfast of eggs and toast, me two pieces of bacon and her some sausage (Amy got the left over bacon and sausage and toast). We went back to the room to get ready and I asked her if she had on earrings!! Of course, and you can see them! Me, naturally I had mine on too, but you can't see mine!! She had on makeup and mascara and I had on mascara and sun screen. After all, a girl had got to have her priorities. Oh, did we have a wonderful laugh!!

I wasn't as nervous this year, I knew what to expect. The good Lord willing, I could walk the five miles. We are true Montana girls at heart, I had my silk underwear (and you know I mean REAL tops and bottoms!) plus a long-sleeved t-shirt and a exercise jacket, plus the red outdoor jacket. Cari was layer as well. We got pretty warm, but it was only 28 degrees when we were wondering whether to wear multiple layers.

We always seem to pick (I guess that would be me!) a focus person to try to keep up with and it keeps us hopping! We had a strategy that if we could keep up, we could make the quick burst at the end. We did manage a pass (you realize 7800 women participated in this) but it took some concentration on my part. About mile three I was glad to see the sign! At mile four there is always some funny guy with smart comments, but it keeps us laughing. It is also fun to look at the homes on the streets past Division. That would be Clark St. and Yellowstone Ave.

Back to the walk, about mile four I was starting to lag a little and Cari said, "Come on, Mom, we are just about done." By then, we were both glad that it wasn't any warmer outside! So when we got closer to the finish line, I said, "Should we sprint?" Cari wondered how close to the finish line and I said oh, not too far back. She took off and my jog felt like I was standing in place moving my legs up and down. I don't think mine could be called a sprint, I don't think there is a word invented for what I was doing! We made it across and she looked at the time and said we had bested last year! Yipee!!

It doesn't matter where you start in the line up, your time does not begin until you cross the starting line and it reads your shoe tag and it reads it across the finish line. There is a tremendous amount of volunteer help involved in this race. I know several people that participated, but we didn't see them.

We decided that no post race pics, only before ones! The one thing that I forgot was my pink cap to protect my nose just a little. When I was packing, all I could think about was what to take to keep warm! When I got up Friday morning it was snowing and I thought I should really just stay home, get my t-shirt and be happy!!

Here are our numbers and you can see even though we registered a week ago, we were some of the last to do so! I have three pair of tennis shoes, and these are the oldest and don't rub like the others. We were glad that we had no blisters. We saw one poor girl walking with shoes in hand and a bloody blister on her heel.

So, if you want to walk with us next year...sign on!!

Beth Moore Simulcast

2010-04-25T21:28:00.000-06:00

Beth Moore has written another book and this one is So Long Insecurity you've been a bad friend to us. This teaching session was something new.

What was so awesome (I know the word gets overused, but it is the one that truly fits) about all of this, there were 300,000 women watching this at the same time in "real" time! It was being simulcast in 869 locations all over including Canada. Alaska had to get up VERY early to get to their viewing. She is so full of energy and we sang, we laughed, we cried, and when it was over--I for one am ready for more.

Here we are, we didn't take our early morning walk, it was 31 degrees and too frost for my sensitive nose, so we got ready for our day instead. We decided to stay all night rather than get up REALLY early to get to town. Besides being a ranch wife, there were things that needed to be done since I was going anyway. I got the air conditioner on the car checked. Of course, it won't make that squealing sound for the men!! The tires needed rotating too (so I can go some more!). Bill's favorite watch needed a new band. I got to have lunch with Dad and Bonnie and again at supper, so we caught up on our visiting.

Jen, Cari, and I took a short walk after lunch to catch up on life happenings. Then I got pictures of our "favorites" before the afternoon session began. Mary was a helper girl so was very busy! Blessings abounded, I also won a door prize--a cute purple zippered bag that had shower gel, gum, a scrubby and a small candle.

Beth does her teaching with Bible in hand. It has some meat to it. AND you just have to read the book...

Blondie!

2010-04-16T09:15:00.000-06:00

After reading one of the blogs I follow, I thought I would put a quick one in this morning! Cowboy decided two days ago that since it was wet outside that he would do some "plumbing" and he HATES to plumb, but he is a trooper and does it anyway! When we first got married he had the plumbing under the kitchen sink propped up with a piece of wood. He told me in no uncertain terms that "it worked didn't it, and there weren't any leaks."

Don't panic, we have since gotten that fixed many years ago. I had to tell that little story before I finished with the present story.

The bathtub is dripping from the cold water "part." He bought washers in Miles City and thought he could remove some of the pipes and fix it PDQ. He couldn't even get back to where he wanted. His comment was, "They don't make them like they used to when you could work on them!" (Sounds like the new pickups too!!) So that left him with installing the new faucet for the kitchen sink. I had removed ALL items from under the sink so he could crawl in, like Dagwood, but Cowboy has more ability I am sure! He is tall and it is a pain to crawl in there. It was my treadmill time (good thinking on my part), so I did not get in on any cussing, just a little "these wrenches, you never have the right one!" When I came back in a hour he was about done other than for me to hold the faucet in place while he tightened "stuff."

But the point of my little story was, I had to use the "little girls' room" while he was plumbing in the kitchen. I told him, "Oh, honey, you must have done something right, the cold water has quit leaking in the bathtub." He said, "Oh, my little blond wife, the water is turned off." I consider myself intelligent, why oh why do I have blond moments... And just as he said it, I said, "I know, I know, the water is turned off!"

I will tell you in another blog about how he started saying, "Oh, my little blond wife..."

Hope your Friday is fabulous!

A Mini Vacation

2010-03-31T10:21:00.000-06:00

I had a meeting in Billings on Saturday and Bill had a saddle to be picked up in Sheridan, WY, so we made a little trip out of it. We left on Friday and did a few errands in Billings (always errands) and then on to Sheridan before King's Saddlery was closed. They had fixed on Bill's saddle. It was fun to look around and see things we haven't seen in our travels here. I wished I had taken a picture of one of the last saddles that Don King made. It was beautiful with lots of leather stamping. I was thinking to myself, "Wouldn't that be a wonderful gift to give Cowboy and surprise him!" WRONG!!! The price was $45,000.00. Note the zeros! Yikes!! We would have had to insure the saddle and then would Cowboy ride it??? Probably...but still...

We had fun and bought a few things. Bill was intrigued by some small hand-painted glasses. He saw them when he took his saddle down to Sheridan. They were pretty, but I don't want to break one and you know how glasses are! He had some gift certificates that were getting moldy (mine never get a chance as they burn my pockets!) so decided to buy the hand-painted glasses and then some wine glasses. He could not see buying the hand-painted wine glasses too--his own frugal nature stepped in! I love towels and found some with brands on them and also a hand towel that said COWBOY embroidered on it. I got those for Bill.

I have been looking for several years for a barometer and thermometer. I found one at King's and had Cowboy pick out the picture on the top of them. I was so excited. We got the thing home and I got on line to find out the barometric pressure to set it...yes, you are right, it was broken and wouldn't work. They should have received it in the mail by now. Hopefully, the new one will work when it comes!

Pretty, aren't they??

Western all the way...

When I got this towel home, it said COWGIRL!! So the one that says COWBOY is coming with the new barometer! That is what happens when I am in a hurry!!!

One look could have told us it wasn't working!

If you did not already know, Bill likes knives. By that I mean, "good" knives, well-made and good steel. This is a Tree Brand Classic and is made by Boker of Germany. It could be a birthday present, but it probably won't get wrapped! ha!

I could do a blog on knives. Don't let Cowboy see you cutting with one of our knives on a plate. Use a cutting board and scrap off with the top side. Our knives are kept SHARP, so be careful when you visit and are helping in the kitchen. I don't slice veggies against my thumb if that tells you anything...

This is a humorous story to our trip. When Bill checked in at the motel, they asked if he had any discounts he wanted to use. He said no. He asked what the discount would be. The clerk told him the room price was $99.00 for us and $99.00 if we had a discount, BUT without any discounts we were given a $20.00 certificate to use for breakfast. Those people with discounts were NOT given the breakfast! Go figure...!

Alas! Look what I found when I got back to Billings. I won't have to guess how big or little to make those aprons for the girls!! Remember a couple of them asked me on Cookie Day if I could make them aprons too. They just pulled my old heart strings!

It was fun picking!

I am just hoping they don't all want the same one!

Enough of the pictures! We had a little time to spare, that is why I was able to go to the quilt store before my meeting! Imagine that!

We met Cari and Joey and Bill got to see the condo and then we went to supper with them. Much visiting and good eats!

Spring Break and Travels

2010-03-23T21:48:00.000-06:00

Tristin came to spend her spring break from Bozeman with the grand folks and we were pleased!! She had not been to the ranch since June of 2008, so she said she was ready to be "at the ranch."

Wasn't it only yesterday that I was at Bozeman? You know the phrase 0-60? That must mean age. I did it!!!

Amy was as glad to have Tristin around as we were! She (the dog) wants us to walk, but...you know, the mud!!!

We are off to town!!!

Tristin got a welcoming to good ol' Montana mud!! She got her car stuck when she got too far off of the gravel driveway. And Cowboy pulled her out instead of saying, "Well, you could stay home." Young girls want to go "hang out" with other young people, so off she went!

I wanted to take a picture in "mud" boots before she got on her way...

Tristin is frosting Vermont maple cookies while Angus is afraid to tear his eyes away!! They had a good time together after Angus had his morning with Cowboy PopPop. He came to us with his cowboy boots on and dressed in wranglers with his stetson on backward. His Dad told us that is how he likes all of his hats!! We loved having him and he wiped my kiss away when I kissed him on the top of his head!! Ah, little boys! Aren't they special?!

We didn't stay home too much. On to Miles City to visit as much family as we could squeeze in. Liv put on her dance costume for us, but was too shy to pirouette. They are all growing, growing!!

Javon, busy, busy, busy... Most of the pictures I took of her were blurry as there is no holding her back!

I am told that Liv LOVES to change her clothes! Could it be?

What a fitting end of the pictures! Tristin is taking a picture of PopPop with the "younger" girls! Liv, PopPop, Javon (see what I mean about moving all the time?), Kamryn, and Jentry. They were busy little girls dressing up and playing and enjoying one another!

We managed to get two batches of cookies baked, pants and tops mended and hemmed. We were so busy doing that, I didn't have time to take pictures!!

Tristin left Saturday afternoon, so Saturday morning we were busy measuring and kneading flour for a double batch of cinnamon rolls. Tristin got in on the whole process, especially kneading and rolling out and lathering the dough with goodies! She learned how to make the "goo" that goes in the pan before the rolls. I did have to have a sample and she did a good job!! I forgot to mention that she brought LOTS of washing home to do here too. Our time was crammed and we managed to get in some Rummy with Grandma Margaret and a couple of evenings with Scattagories. We did some Skyping too! I really like seeing the loved ones on the other end of that camera!!

Enough! I will post about the pancake supper on another blog. Tristin got in on that TOO! Like I said, busy, busy!!

Sewing Projects And Then Some

2010-03-06T20:38:00.000-07:00

I have been ready to post these pictures for some time, but I keep going back and working on some quilting projects that have been started since September, the 2009 Shop-Hop quilt for one. I have been asked to show some of my "stuff" so for those that aren't interested in sewing, skip this blog!

This is called "Cheese and Crackers" and it is of 30's reproduction fabric. I saw it and just loved the look of it. It is more like a lap quilt. No one in mind for this one.

This is "Cowpokes and Woolly Chaps" and the lady that quilted it for me, Laura, designed the quilting design for this quilt. She put Cowboy's brand, S monogram S in it, but I had told her wrong and she wanted to fix it. I said it was okay, as there were 16 brands to rip out and she was adamant...so it went back to her. The results are following.

This is just a close up of the picture. The next picture will have the brand.

Cowboy was pleased and they really turned out well.

This is a table runner I spotted in a quilt shop and picked up the kit. I finally got it quilted and bound.

Striking comes to mind.

This was left over from the kit and of course, "waste not, want not." Therefore I have a small table topper for a gift or one of the favorites...

My quilt group from Roundup, the Cross Country Piece Makers, is doing two different block-of-the-month blocks. These are quite large and there will be one for every month to display. You are looking at Jan. and Feb. Many of us are using our scraps of material from other quilts.

This one is windy March. Can't you see the kites flying with their tails swinging in the wind? I can remember flying kites as a kid and I loved it. We flew a few when the kids were little. I wonder if they remember?...

I don't want to be left out, therefore, I signed up to do the "other" block-of-the-month club too! I drew purple out of the "hat" so I was relieved as I have many purples. These are the first two blocks.

There are others too, that are doing both projects, and it will be fun to see the end results. Our goal is the quilt show in 2011. That gives us a little time to get it put together and quilted.

This is the third block done with two different colors. I didn't think there was enough contrast in the left block, but with the picture it does. Hummmm... I will have to decide which to use, so will keep them both for the time being. I really like stars anyway, so am enjoying this.

Wayland wants a Mariner's Compass, that will be the challenge. We need to find striking material!! I told him it can't be a quilt just to throw around. It will be one for the looking mostly...I think I need to teach him to quilt. Ha!

Enough for now.

Sun Dogs

2010-02-24T07:44:00.000-07:00

Going to town for a root canal for Cowboy...

We stopped to take a picture of two sun dogs. I looked it up in the dictionary and it is called "parhelion" (spell check doesn't recognize it!). My old timers told me, "a change in the weather" and Cowboy said Gramps said, "Bad weather is 'acomin'." All I know it was a beautiful day yesterday and in the 40's in Billings. It was hard to come back to the cold country! This morning it is 22 degrees and no clouds and the promise of lots of sunshine! YES!!!

It was about 11 degrees. Cowboy was impressed because there were two and he said that "we" would have to blog the picture. He is getting to be quite the picture taker...

The root canal went well and he was practically giddy when it was over. He is scared of dentists and wishes he could have had a gentle dentist when he was a child. Some dentists do know how to put the fear in children and then others are super! I remember B.J. having a root canal done when he was 9 and they made me sit in the waiting room. I could hear him moaning in the other room. My palms sweat and I could hardly stand it. B.J. had broken his front teeth off at school (on square boards on wheels in P.E. and they disposed of them after that!). The dentist said to leave them chipped until he started to become interested in girls, then we could do something with them!

I washed the car while Bill was at the dentist. I know it was foolhardy, but it was pretty bad and now we can see completely out the back window!! I am quite a "backer-upper" so I need to see...but that is another story!

I have a couple more pictures to post that are a week old.

Cowboy with his favorite*, Jen, and wearing the scarf she got him for Christmas. He loves all his kiddies!

Liv, she looks like a mermaid, and such a cute one!! She is growing so much! We love getting the hugs and mooches!

Here is Kamryn Grace (I love her name!) and she is the "oldest" of the younger set. She was a little over eight months old when Cowboy and I got married!

We had taken birthday presents down to her on February 16 and her "day" was February 15! It seems like we can't get the kids here at the ranch as often as we would like. Kamy has stayed the most other than Tristin and Tristin is of the older set!

*An earlier post gives the definition and if you are really curious you can call! Ha!

Nevada Grand Girls

2010-02-21T19:13:00.000-07:00

I have been remiss in getting pictures on of the grandies who live so far away. I am including some that are almost a year old. I went to Spring Creek for Baylee Alexandria's second birthday last April 1st. Rosie O'Grady had been here in March making tutus for the girls "up" here. So I made some for "down" there in Nevada. One was for Baylee and two for her cousins. We finished sewing them at Grandma Linda's and had a one-girl style show by Baylee. The sequence of pictures tells the story! Every time I look at these three I chuckle all over again!!

I can imagine her saying, "Is it really me?" "I look pretty good."

"Hey, this tutu might be okay!" "It is kind of scratchy though." "I am pretty."

"I am a Princess!" The expressions on her face are priceless. Grandma Linda is in the background.

Here is her birthday party! It was a "Dora" cake. I don't even know who Dora is or was!! But she loved it and it was fun!!It is hard to believe she is going to be three years old in six weeks. I will not be able to go down this year, but we have a web cam so can talk and see one another at least and I can see the baby grow!!

We will fast forward to December and January!

Miss Kelli Leah Murnion was born December 10, 2009. She is dressed for Christmas!

Two Christmas cuties!

Kelli is growing and Baylee is at the stage of posed smiles! Remember the days? Those of you with older kiddies!

Miss Kelli has her "own look" and I am sure as she gets older, more personality will surface! I would just love to kiss those little cheeks!

Marsha told me Kelli was getting chubby cheeks! Baylee is proud of her sister!

What can I say? Maybe Baylee said, "Uh-oh!" Mom is probably going to have to buy new lip gloss or lip stick... Don't "they" say practice makes perfect????

It looks to me like the lipstick was wiped off and then Baylee followed with powder. Aren't they busy? She will be out of the terrible twos soon. What do they call threes??

Isn't she sweet?! Smiling for Mommy...

Baylee is Daddy's Cowgirl! Notice she is wearing a skirt!

Now that is B.J.'s hair if I ever saw it! I have a special place in my heart for babies with "sticky-up" hair!! It makes me want to run my hands back and forth over it! Marsha has a cute bow "glued" in it!

Smile! Mommy wants another picture!

One last picture of Kelli Leah... June can't get here soon enough so we can get our hands on her.

Special Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T21:20:00.000-07:00

Our Valentine's Day was quiet. We had gone dancing to a "Sweetheart" dance last night. We lasted until just after midnight. The real eye opener for us was that we were the third oldest couple!! How could that have happened so suddenly??? But we had fun and danced up a storm. Cowboy loves to dance and is such a good dancer. How blessed I truly am!

This morning we opened our cards and presents. My gift I will probably be wearing in a picture one of these days!! We will show Cowboy's because before anyone can come and steal "it", the present will be long gone!!

Cowboy likes to shop at James Avery, are not all his girls and I lucky?! They got theirs at Christmas. Mine is a heart... Oh, and did I say he is good at giving cards?

PaPa's Candy is made by Tony and Tootie Maack in Harrison, MT. It is a mom and pop business, and I think they are really, really busy. They have venders in Bozeman and other places. Every piece is made with love. Cowboy is a romantic at heart and loves ALL his girls. The "big" girls get a 1/2 lb. of candy each year from him. There is a combination of dark chocolate or milk chocolate truffles. Some choose to share and some dole it out as they see fit. I feel bad for the "big" boys as I haven't stepped up to "do" for them. But I try to make up for it on other holidays. Maybe they get a sample of the truffles from the girls...

They look delicious!!! I have to admit, I took a tiny taste. They melt in your mouth!

Cowboy says a taste of wine cleanses the palate, so the next bite tastes just like the first.

I like chocolate, but I like caramel. I love it, but don't have it very often. If it has a coating of chocolate, even better!

Cowboy bought us tenderloin steaks for a "special" occasion. We had those this evening after church this afternoon. I put baked potatoes in the oven and made "real" thousand island dressing. I have forgotten how good it is on a fresh salad! Yum!

We received some special valentines in the mail from Liv and Kamy. Cowboy said, "We got Valentine's in the mail!" Receiving personal mail rates up there with packages. Although the letters are the best. They can be read and re-read. They can be looked at days later and they can be shared with one another. I love to get and give cards. I love going in the card store and have a grand old time picking cards for family and friends and having lots of chuckles as I am doing it. Some, of course, I don't ever buy...you know. I belong to the Sand Springs birthday club and we Do buy cards that one would not normally give. They have some doozy ones about age and aging! It is better to laugh than to cry!

A parting shot that has nothing to do with Valentine's Day. One of the ladies at the church coffee hour said that she was getting sick of snow and was starting to get a little crabby! I have the Mary Englebright tear off calendar and one of them said: "If you can't be a good example, you'll just have to be a terrible warning!" Ever felt like that??? Well, not today anyway!

Montana Sunshine!

2010-02-08T21:25:00.001-07:00

What did I tell you? This is Montana for sure! We had glorious sunshine and it was beautiful!! The drawback was that it was 20 degrees below zero this morning. The high around here was about zero! BUT, we had sunshine! The diamonds sparkled in the snow. I didn't take my camera when I met the mailman at noon and I was wishing I had taken it. The power lines were huge with frost and so was our mailbox. It was beautiful, and we all crossed our fingers hoping the power didn't go off with the lines so heavy with the frost.

The cows are loving that warm sun even though the temperature is cold!

More sun pics! The horse pasture.

Contented cows...

You have heard the saying, "If you don't like the weather, stick around, it will change, this is MONTANA!"

Did I Mention Snow...

2010-02-07T19:33:00.001-07:00

I don't want to whine because I am one of the first ones to say I love the change of seasons we have here in Montana. This year has been a snowy one to say the least! And, I don't even have to get out in the darned stuff and do any work! We have gone to two funerals in the last two days and the days have been dreary for both! Yesterday we traveled to Lewistown in the fog and it seemed like a really long trip.

I took the first picture earlier last week because it was such a BEAUTIFUL sunrise! We do have spectacular sunrises and sunsets. Yes, we may have had a glimpse of some sun! The sunrises and sunsets pull at the heart strings and I know that our God is the only one who could create such masterpieces. Cameras just can't quite capture the images as they change before our very eyes!!

I am having quite a time getting my pictures on my post this time. Anyway, Cowboy came to the house at 4:30 p.m. and said he was going to get a calf out of the cows and back to the pasture where the LAST of the calves are. Naturally I wanted to know how long it would take as dark was coming and it was snow fairly large flakes. I won't type his reply. I turn "things" over to God but I do my own little ritual of worrying! I know, I know... I got a good picture of them going, Cowboy and Cash. The wind was whipping a little. Once they got through the gate, I took another picture, but they were moving so fast that my picture is blurry. Suffice it to say "they were moving on out!" I read on my book, I did some telephoning, I washed a few dishes, all the while looking out the window and watching...

They are back, have the gate closed and are on their way! You can see, we still have plenty of snow. Bill can get the best out of his horses. There is so much ice under our snow, yikes!!!

Here they come to tell me what??? Oh, there is one more job and it can be done in the pickup to go get a generator and bring it back and Amy can go along for moral support. Whew! Home safe and sound, Thank You God!

Snowy Day Projects

2010-01-28T21:01:00.000-07:00

I had the bigger bag cut out since December, waiting for the "right" time to put it together. So, with all the snow, I thought it would best to be sewing instead of baking!

That is the 5th big bag I have made. I couldn't decide which colors as I did like the black, white, and red bags I have made, and the cowboy fabric too. But I really like the limely green color and it is pretty popular now in the quilt stores. A friend made herself a smaller version of the big bag and made a purse. I just cut my blocks down and used less blocks and came up with my own smaller version. My friend Sandy in Lewistown gave me a pattern for the small coin purse with three little compartments, so naturally I had to make one of them too!! One of our big girls wants a big bag, so I will cut it out one of these first days... She has picked her material. I have quite a few projects in various stages of "doing!" My Shop-Hop quilt for this year needs to be finished, the big blocks are done, I need to cut some more fabric and make some small bear paws and put it together. It is faster to type what I need to do that doing it! Ha!

This is a project that I "almost" had completed. I had the binding sewn down and decided that I wanted to do a little bit more quilting so I had put it aside. I took it out this month and got it finished so it will be ready for next Christmas.

Stranded Cows

2010-01-26T21:07:00.001-07:00

When asked Monday morning, before we had gotten out of bed, Cowboy didn't think any cattle would be stranded in the storm. We were in for a big surprise! He did come back to the house before he had gotten very far in his feeding and asked for his camera in case there were some good shots to be taken! Boy! Did he get some!

That is the Big Dry Creek that you are looking at. It is blown full of snow. This picture is east of our house.

The cut bank is behind the cattle. The 20 head went in there against it for protection from the storm. The snow swirled around them until the drift was six feet all around. Note the over hang of snow on the top of the bank. The only reason Cowboy went looking for these cattle is because his count was off.

You can see that Bill had started digging the trench (by hand). He said it was six feet deep, at least. (No wonder he was so tired on Monday evening. He could not read his book very long without falling asleep!)

Note snow overhang has fallen on the cows. The cows didn't really want to come out, but after the snow fell they were ready to come out the trench.

Finally here comes the first brave girl...

There they come...

They are one lucky bunch of girls!

This is a different pasture and Cowboy took a picture of the cows getting through the snow drifts.

Another pictures of cows crossing a coulee. Cowboy is liking this blogging bit. He likes to read the ones we are following and he likes to take pictures of cattle. We may see more of his pictures if he keeps taking his camera.

An aside...I went with him yesterday at 1:30 p.m. to "help for a little while." Ranch women every where know what that really means! For maximum health benefits, it is recommended that we drink between 6-8 glasses of water a day or more. I was prepared, I left the house and was ready for an hour or so... About two and a half hours later, I kept looking at the outside temperature, wondering how much longer we would be...knowing it was going to get colder...knowing we wouldn't get home before dark...

I really do love the ranch life and please come and visit any time you can. You may have to shovel a little snow right now!

Cowboy's Blizzard Picture

2010-01-24T15:56:00.000-07:00

Cowboy wanted his camera to take some pictures outside. He went to feed a "little" bunch of calves that will go to market when he can get them out!! And then he went to get some more fire wood. Note the snow drift in front of the deck. The big snow pile by the side of the garage is my water tank/strawberry bed. It collected lots of snow. I am just so thankful that we don't have to go out in this, unless the power goes out and then Cowboy will have to hook up a generator. We are praying that everything will hold until this is over. We just got word that The Farmer and The Farmer's Wife are out of power. Hope everyone can find a warm spot to get to.

Here is some more fire wood for us. I was going to sweep a little while Cowboy was shoveling the deck because of the big drift, and the snow is wet even though it is not 32. The wind was so strong, I didn't stay outside very long. Bill took the broom and tried getting it off of the screen and window of sliding door and it is filled again and it has only been one hour.

I took this picture of the pin-tail grouse early in January. He/She was eating the berries out of the cedar tree right outside the living room window. Margaret told me that Gramps used to put corn on the deck railing to entice them to come in and eat. Without Grandma being home, the grouse have been eating the berries in her trees undisturbed. It was fun to do some bird watching.

Drink some hot chocolate and snuggle down.

Blizzard January 2010

2010-01-24T13:37:00.000-07:00

This storm will be one for the record books. I don't know how much it snowed last night, but every time I woke up I could hear the wind howling. Cowboy got up at 4:30 a.m. and shoveled his way to the garage to let the dog out to do her morning duties. Amy came out the door and hurried right back in and was having NO part of going outside! Tiggy stayed six feet back from the door and looked out and was not going to let anyone boot HER out the door!

I took pictures of the windows early this morning. They were so snow covered we couldn't see outside. I told Cowboy that it made me claustrophobic instead of cozy and he told me to "step on outside." Well, that wasn't what I had in mind and the wind was blowing too hard and the drifts were too high to sweep screens and windows!

This picture was taken out the north living room window. There is a huge drift and if you look to where we planted the trees, they are buried except for the one on the right. You can just see the wire cage around it. The snow is level with the dike.

This was taken through the sliding glass doors looking at the deck, railing, and cedar tree. They are heavy with snow. The temperature has hovered in the 20's yesterday, all night, and today it is 24 right now. Warm, but not really with the wind chill.

This is under the deck and there is a big drift by the cooker. Looking at the center is my water pump with just the top sticking out. Cowboy and Amy walked to the barn to do chores and the gates have big drifts in them and he said he had to pick his way around. Cowboy said he couldn't drive his pickup down there without getting stuck. We talked to one neighbor today and he got his pickup promptly stuck, so he just walked back to the house and left it there until this is over.

It is a great day for staying inside. We did a joint effort and made hamburger soup for lunch and had a mini loaf of hard bread to go with it. It was a feast!

Hope you are warm and "cozy" and safe where ever you are!

Winter January Storm Day

2010-01-22T21:08:00.002-07:00

This storm has been predicted for a few days now. One never knows if it is coming or not. Sometimes they do bypass us. One can only hope! I took some pictures this morning and this afternoon. It has been foggy all day with heavier fog at times. I even filled some pitchers and jugs with water in case the power went off. The lines were getting pretty big. Bill is the one that said it might happen.

Rosie had me update my blog and now I can't write under the pictures. What kind of deal is this??? It is 9:00 p.m. and I have turned into a pumpkin. So, I guess I will write here and you can view pictures after you read! Ugh!! The tree in the yard this morning already had lots of frost and by afternoon it was really fluffy. The trees above were taken later afternoon. The cowboy hat and the scroll ironwork are under the deck and they had a fine coat too.

When I was in grade school I stuck my tongue on the swing set at school. Did every kid do that??? All it takes is one time!! Hope the BIG storm passes us by. Cowboy thinks we have 4 or 5 inches right now. I see the trees swaying the breeze so the wind is blowing. You can bet that it is blowing at the highway. Montana always has a surprise as far as the weather is concerned.

Did I make this work? We will see. Computers are great, but frustrating!

Born and Bred in the USA

2010-01-18T08:14:00.005-07:00

"My baby is American made..." Is the title and the start of this sentence two different songs??? Just wanted to show Cowboy in his "American made" clothes. (Not all of course, our companies outsource too much!)
Shirt: Ruddock Mfg. Company, Flying R Ranchwear, wool vest: Schaefer Outfitter, hat: Law Dog Hat Co., Billings, scarf ? We will give them a little free advertising. Bill has a blue wool vest from Schaefer's also.

Cowboy is pretty tickled with himself. He has lost 25 pounds and I am still working on my "freshman" 15! Well, maybe just the last 10. Why do men make it look so easy? They do lose faster than women which is a known fact. Needless to say, there haven't been many pies baked around our ranch for a while. That helps the cook!

Smoky Butte

2010-01-17T15:19:00.005-07:00

January 17, 2010

On our way to church in Jordan this morning it was a beautiful day at the ranch...it was 36 degrees! That has got to be a beautiful day! When we topped the hill on the way to the highway Cowboy said, "Look at Smoky Butte." I was looking that way and marveling at the site.

All we could see was the very tip. We backed up the hill to take this picture. Bill said he had only seen that one or two times in his lifetime. He said that it is quite a large hill as he has been at the base of it, but it is sitting in a "hole" or low area. It is one of the higher "hills" in this area. There was a little weather front hanging in there.

Here is another picture a little closer to town. They told us there was quite a fog in Jordan for awhile this morning and this must be some of the aftermath.

Here it is on the way home, back to normal! Our snow is melting!! But it is icy around the house and out buildings!

Traveling Threesome!

2010-01-14T21:00:00.010-07:00

January 14, 2010

I made a trip to Billings on Monday to pick up Cowboy as he was getting the semi worked on. My friend, Gladys had an appointment to get her knee replacement checked, so she rode with me. And our other passenger was Amy. She did well and LOVED traveling. I even got to go see Cari in her office at St. Vincent's. That was a highlight of the day!

Today was "hair-do" day, so I told Cowboy on Monday I was going to Roundup Thursday, so I could take him back to Billings to get his truck. Of course, Amy was a passenger again! Thinking that he would be headed home before me, Bill took Amy with him. He had to repair tires, get a rim replaced, and found another tire that needed repaired. He arrived home after me by almost two hours! Amy was glad to get home!
If only dogs could talk... She really wanted to ride in the front and me ride in the back! She got to have a couple of bites of Bill's snack on the way to Billings! My kids must think their mother is really slipping! I mean, after all, hauling a dog around in a VERY NICE car. I couldn't stand it tonight! I went out and cleaned the window and the seat and said to Cowboy that I was going to have to make or buy something for the seat!!
Don't you love this picture?! She is queen AND she gets to ride in the front and there isn't any room for Cowboy's Sweetheart!!!

Back to Roundup to the beauty shop. Betty Jean was getting her hair done and lo and behold, Molly Jo came to get her hair cut too! Molly Jo is Betty's granddaughter and a month older that our grandie, Baylee Murnion. This was her second cut from Doreen. She laughed and sat pretty still for an "almost" three-year-old. She will be three in March.
Below is Molly Jo with Mommy (Jenny Gilbert) and she is looking pretty serious as she knew we wanted a "beautiful" picture after her hair cut!

Grandma Betty Jean and Molly Jo...I see lots of family resemblance! What a good looking pair!

My friend Sandy liked how my hair was being done (she is from Lewistown), so she started making appointments when I did. At first she just met me for lunches when I went and then got so she wanted them to do her hair too. We both look forward to our monthly or every five week visits! We get caught up on family and whatever else is going on. Sandy and I are classmates and graduates of Custer County High School. We were wondering today where all the years have gone...
I am so very thankful that the weather warmed up and that the roads were good. I even broke down and washed the car. The windshield was so bad that I could only see out of the part the window washer cleaned and the same with the back window. As for putting stuff in or taking stuff out of the back end...ugh! Bill said that it would be a very good idea to get it washed. It probably won't last long, but at least one layer is gone not to be topped by another!

Roundup Quilting Day!

2010-01-09T20:10:00.011-07:00

January 9, 2010

Cross Country Piece Makers meet the second Saturday of every month. It never varies and those that can make it show up. This group was started by a few enterprising young women in 1993. I joined in 1994. It is a wonderful group...people move away, friends die (which is the hardest of all), and new ones join all for the love of quilting! I have learned so much by going to these gatherings. The "girls" are all so willing to share what they have learned in classes, have given classes, and we have ALL profited from each other's mistakes. Most of all we laugh a lot and pray for one another and are there no matter what. I have some pictures from today.

One of the sayings of one of the charter members is, "Quilting together is cheaper than a psychiatrist." I am sure that doesn't take into account all the fabric, notions, well, enough said...

One of the fun things for us from Jordan is that we get in lots of visiting going and coming and solve lots of quilting dilemmas...
This quilt is called "The World's Easiest Quilt." I, for one, am here to tell you that is a bald-faced lie! I have made two of them, and it did not get any easier. Cathy Kombol has made seven of these I think she said. She said, "They are so easy!" I don't know whether to try another one or not. The last time I did one, I said, "Never AGAIN!" It is all in how you place the squares that have been cut twice and that is what makes the design. Clear as mud, huh??

Here is the fabric that she started with. I think we cut 15 or 16" squares. I can't remember and I am not going to look up the directions for you. Cathy thought that some kid would like this one or an old lady, namely her. One thing it is, bright and cheery.

Here is part of the group hard at it. Some of the retired ladies quilt every Wednesday, so they bring hand projects to work on during our Saturday meetings. A few bring machines, depending on projects at the time.

We are doing two different "block-of-the-month" projects. This snowman is one and each month will be finished so that is will be like a calendar where we change monthly. I didn't have mine done, I wanted to see some of the others and what they were doing. Most of us are excited about this one as we can use up scraps and it will reflect our personalities.

This is Leah's up close and personal...

Roma is always working on something that takes my eye. Today it is a black and white and that yummy lime green. I can hardly wait to see it done!
Laura F. got Leah's Snowman quilt done and it is so cute! The quilting is exquisite. The next picture will be a close up of the quilting. Laura has a long-arm machine and says she loves to quilt and she has an artistic flare. She makes up her quilting ideas.
One of the other block-of-the-month projects will be different star blocks. I decide I would do both, can't be left out you know. Maybe it is the overachiever mode I get in! ha! I picked out of a hat from the color wheel--I am doing monochromatic and the color I picked out of the hat is purple! Perfect!! I have lots of purple. I will use scraps and I need two darks, two mediums, and two lights in my blocks.

Another project on the burner after today is sewing together 128 light squares on top of 128 dark squares and see what we get. Mark them down the middle, sew on both sides of the mark, cut on the mark, and voila!!! Two blocks! Eleven of us decided to do this project and so we all had to cut 128 6 1/2" squares of light material and 128 darks. Then we walked around the table and took one off of the top of the dark piles. When we got them all picked up, we walked around and did the lights until those piles were gone. Whew!!!

I have enough projects to keep me out of trouble for a long time!! Not that I am prone to trouble...

New Year's Blessings!

2010-01-03T19:41:00.005-07:00

January 3, 2010

That is so hard to write, 2010! I can remember when we were in high school and we were figuring out how old we would be in the year 2000. Goodness gracious! Now it is 2010 and that makes me ten years older and I thought that it was an OLD age way back! Age is relative...

Now to the blessing!!!!! I am doing a little purging. I never thought I was a saver until I had to move from Melstone to Billings and then from Billings to here. I always saved cards. I LOVE cards. I like buying them, I like sending them, and I like to receive them too! Cowboy likes to buy cards so that is a blessing for me. I digress from my story...

I was going through our wedding cards one by one, isn't that what your Mama tells you, just in case... and lo and behold!!! I found money. Here is the proof!!!
It even looks like old money, it is not like the "funny money" they are printing now! Oh, what a surprise! Both of us just started laughing!! Weren't we glad I did not throw the lot out!?! We looked at each one and did a little reminiscing about the givers.

I sat and wrote out some goals for 2010 and wrote how I would like to achieve them. I won't write them down for you, they are for me to do and strive for. Above all I want to be the woman God wants me to be this year and some of that will be getting in His word to read and study.

Hope you find a little money in your "old" cards!

Once In A Blue Moon or Kids Reveal All

2009-12-30T19:51:00.008-07:00

December 30, 2009

We were privileged enough to have four of our grand girls for 24 hours. Oh what a delight! One forgets how fun they are and knowledgeable they are becoming!!! Another couple of days with us and I would have had some blackmailing material, but I did not get to do my Art Linkletter routine and ask some pointed questions. I may have to work on that list...

The ride from town was entertaining and I got a theological lesson. I wanted to contribute, but sometimes it is better just to listen... The discussion was on Jesus and Jehovah and God and a friend of one of the girls said there is Jehovah and God. Another girl (the almost youngest) said no, there was only one God. I did say that it is called the trinity--the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one. I started to tell about water and ice and the oldest said, "It is like an egg, there is the shell, the white and the yolk. Good enough. They got the concept. They were correcting one another about different church names.

Then I was asked by Miss Maggie if I knew that her Mom was born in the house I lived in. I said yes, I knew that. (I know she didn't mean literally) She said PopPop was married to another lady and her name is Gramma Banana and then he married me. I said, yes, I was aware of all that. She then asked me why a man would marry two wives. To this I replied, "Well that is a big person reason, and people have different reasons." She then told me that she was only going to marry one man. I said that was the best way. Then she said, "There is only one Ben and I am sticking with him!" Out of the mouths of babes...

We finally got here and they were having leftovers and they must have been hungry as they did well eating!

What one does the other does...

Cowboy PopPop took their picture about 5 a.m. There is one behind Clifford on the far side, you just can't see her. We started out with the Kamyrn and Jentry in the "big" bed downstairs and Maggie and Liv were going to sleep in sleeping bags in the living room upstairs so I could take care of them if need be. Pretty soon they were moving the sleeping bags, the night lights were too bright, the floor was too hard... Liv was ready to go home and be with Mom so I told her to go climb in bed with the two older girls and I put Maggie on the couch as the floor was much too hard for Goldilocks. But Goldilocks had other plans and she snuck down with the other girls. If I had made them all sleep together I am sure there would have been an uproar!

Maggie got really very teary eyed when she found out that they couldn't sleep in the bunkhouse. I told her she probably would stay there, but the others didn't want to be out there. When they got bigger, I told her, they could stay out there! She was pretty sad that it couldn't be NOW!

Cowboy PopPop finally had to tell them to quiet down and that was about 10:30 p.m.

Maggie fell out of bed so she was upstairs by about 6:00 a.m. Liv was still ready to go home and Maggie wanted to stay. I called Jennifer as I didn't want Liv to never want to stay again. By the time Jen got here we found out Bill would need me to pick him up in Billings as he was to haul calves Wednesday and Thursday. He wanted a ride for Thursday and that was the day the older girls were scheduled to go home. This is a major undertaking to get girls here and then have to go right home. But, we will do it again. It will get easier each time for the little ones. I hear Angus was upset that he couldn't come too. Maybe we will have to have a summer visit and sleep over!
After a hard morning of play they decided to do some coloring and printing.

Liv was explaining to Maggie what she was doing and Jentry was doing her own art work. They went on the refrigerator for all to see.

Joe Gibson and his son Ty were here for lunch and everyone was seated at the table and Maggie asked Cowboy PopPop who that man was in the black t-shirt. He told her that man's name is Ty. She looked at Ty and said, "Hi! Ty! I like you!" He laughed and blushed and we told him that is probably what all the girls say!

It was a morning of blessings, I got lots of hugs and smooches. Their sweet little voices chirping...

Now tomorrow, be sure to check and see if you can see that "blue moon."

Happy New Year to you and yours and may God bless you with just what you need.

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.