Greener Pastures

Well, it has been awhile since I have taken the time to write anything! Much has happened since spring. We took an awesome job in the mountains of Colorado and just about went crazy while trying to get the house remodel finished so it could go on the market and get everything packed. Plus figure out what to do with our assortment of animals!! We had chickens to downsize, figure out where to winter our milk cow, and downsize our horse herds to usable horses only. We got moved three trips and a few flats later! Two days after moving Brian started working and I started two days after he did! Needless to say we haven't had much time to unpack. Although I did unpack the important things like my kitchen and the horse tack-the high priority items! The best part about the ranch was the lack of cell service and internet-talk about simplifying! Well we finally have Internet so back to posting on the blog!!

Our days here are long and hard but I wouldn't trade them for anything. The 10-14 hour days in the saddle chasing cows through the mountains are definitely my highlights from the summer. We finished haying about a week ago and despite our preference of being horseback over tractor work we understand the importance of haying. The cattle need fed in the winter so we have to do our part to make sure they have feed for the winter. We have already started gathering cattle to begin preg-testing and shipping. The fun has begun! Despite this crazy time in the cattle business I have still managed to can tomatoes and peaches! I will try my darndest to keep you all posted on our adventures chasing cows in the mountains as well as share some funny stories about my attempts at canning!
Until next time-too da loo!
The Buckaroo Bride

The iris' are blooming and the mud is ...still here.

Whew! What a crazy few weeks! I haven't had the time to sit and write! Much has happened since my last blog. Where to start......how about my adventures in the mud! It all started with me trying to get stuff done  so we could make a quick trip to Dayton, NV to see some ranching friends and do a chicken swap with there son. I decided to be a good wife and feed the horses so Buckaroo Man wouldn't have to worry about it. All of our wonderful snow had melted, but it had been warm for a few days so I thought the tractor would be fine.....I had to move a stock trailer with it anyway. I hadn't thought about the fact that lifting a 1 ton bale of hay would change everything!!!!! Once I had the bale the tractor quickly sank. I used my ingenuity and found some boards, shoved em under the tires and hoped for the best. (All I could do was hope since I had the rear wheels buried over a foot!) With a lot of prayers being said I was able to finagle the tractor out. I still can't figure out how I did it!!!! I was able to get everything done to head out to Dayton. We had a successful chicken swap and got half a pallet of feed so that we don't have to worry about going that way for awhile.

We received a rooster named Clyde in our trade. He is a......special rooster. Poor guy. He can only see out of one eye, so to look at you he will turn his head almost 360 degrees to see you! Its very disturbing to watch. The other rooster doesn't want a one eyed rooster stealing his hens so poor Clyde is an outcast. He even has his own little coop. Poor guy.......I don't think he even has enough meat on him to stew him. So little one-eyed Clyde will just stick around and add to our chaos.

We have another addition to our chaos as well............

Louie

He is a welsh corgi and as cute as can be! We have been wanting to get a pup for the boys so that our working dogs can stay working dogs! He has a HUGE personality and sure keeps us laughing! 

Other than all the traveling and gathering of more animals my days have been filled with work(working 4/10s at a state park) and keeping up with my Buckaroo Man! Yesterday we went and helped some friends move pairs(mama cows and babies) that they just had shipped in. It was quite an adventure as always but I sure could spend all day every day moving cows. My little red dog did awesome, she made it go real smooth! Well, off to the yard to try and see if I can resuscitate our grass. Another busy day filled with yard work, horse trading, lunch with Buckaroo Man, cleaning the house, and having folks for dinner! Until next time(I won't let it be so long) Too-da-loo!!!

Snow...I mean...water....I mean...mud

We had an awesome weekend of snow! Meant less got done outside but it was nice to get some moisture. Now our lovely snow has turned into water.....the last 2 days have been so warm that the snow has been melting and pouring off of the roof...my poor rosebushes never saw it coming!!! They are strong.....they will survive! Thankfully there is still a good 5ish inches covering the ground and the dreaded mud lying underneath(I know you are there mud-you can't play tricks on me!). I despise mud. Mud has never done anybody any good!!! While in college in the northwest I spent many a day trudging through the knee deep mud feeding 50+ horses, hauling flakes of hay to the trees. Oh the memories....I already went looking for muck boots when I was in town this week....unhappily discovered a large leaky hole in my beloved 15 yr old pair of faithful muckers!!!( muckers I stole from my dad that he has had since the 80's when he worked in alaska). I guess they deserve retirement... maybe they have earned the right to sit on a shelf with other memoirs...not sure Buckaroo Man will go for that.  I never did find any muck boots in my size...I think everyone got the bright idea to prepare for the upcoming slush and mud. I better find something...or I will be doing a lot of sock washing!!!

We almost have our wood floor put in. 3/4 of 1 room left. Will be sooooo happy to not live in a construction zone!! I will probably be as happy as when we finally got internet today! Yep finally got internet no more borrowing anybody else's!!! The floors look awesome.....for now. Until the mud comes. ( looked up and noticed a trail of muddy paw prints-its already reminding me that it is here) The horses look lovely as they have already found and created much mud around the bale feeder. Good thing they are all brown and hide the mud well!! My chickens on the other hand are having way too much fun. The coop is muddy and the chickens feel that they have all died and gone to heaven. They are so happy that they are laying more eggs than I know what to do with!!!! I had the brilliant idea of getting enough chickens to be able to sell eggs. Good eggs.....free-range chicken eggs....happy chickens.....fed only USDA Certified Organic feed......tasty eggs!!!

Aren't they lovely? (thats only 4 days worth of eggs!)I have just been a little slow in the advertising of them. I mean-come on-I am not busy or anything..I should of had flyers up months ago, but nope, instead I am having to come up with recipes that involve using eggs for every meal!!! Speaking of eggs.....I see 70+ eggs waiting to be cleaned and candled....I suppose I should head over there and start cleaning. Until next time! Too-da-loo!

Floors n' more!

Well, it has been a bit since I got on the time consuming internet! Our lovely internet went down and we are in the process of figuring out something new!

Since our last mentioning of chaos we have been busy! After coming home from our awesome trip to Winnemucca my amazing in-laws arrived to help us put in some flooring. We were able to get one level done amidst the other things that kept us busy!!! We even found homes for all of our Border Collie puppies! It is very very nice to not have a bunch of mischievous puppies running around!! I do miss the cute litter boogers. Most of them will end up being working dogs which is awesome. Some will be cow dogs and some will work sheep! Mamma dog is sure happy! She has more energy than she knows what to do with!

Last weekend we went to pick up our boys and are having a blast with them during their spring break. We have played tractor scrabble, the 12 yr old made us brownies, the 7 yr old is my faithful chicken man, and my husband and the oldest have been very busy shoeing horses!!!

Yesterday the boys decided to cut down some sagebrush.....with a saw.....then a shoeing hammer......then a few kicks! They then decided to take a break and the lovely cut down sage was then hauled off by our Cow Dog Skunk! He has a thing for wood....rubber......plastic......garbage(he steals garbage and stores it by a tree)....drip hose(means lost of fixing for me this spring).......stuffed animals......socks.......shirts.....slippers......pretty much anything that can be hauled away!!!! Funny thing is-he doesn't chew on it! He just stores it. He is a kleptomaniac. He needs to see a phycologist! He used to gather my husbands shirts, socks, and sweaters-he stored it under the dining room table! Now he just stores socks and dishtowels under there! Well, Skunk is busy digging outside so I best go advise him otherwise!! Until next time...too-da-loo!!!

Chaos.....udderly chaos

It has been quite chaotic over the last few lovely weeks. From our busy week with friends here for the poetry gathering and then busy building some working gear alongside my Buckaroo Man preparing for the winnemucca ranch hand. We just got back home from visiting our wonderful boys and meeting up with my in laws as well as an interview for a ranch job. What a neat place! So refreshing to see a place that holds dear to tradition. They still stack hay instead of baling it and feed with a team all winter!

As soon as we arrived home I had to do some rush grocery shopping as Buckaroo Man invited some working friends over for dinner! Its wonderful being married to a man that never slows down! I whipped up dinner last evening and even had enough leftovers to send home with one of the fellow buckaroos. Thankfully my mother was coming for a visit and got here early enough to clean up the house a little for me! Thank God for mothers!

I love chaos. It keeps us on our toes. Hopefully it will make me skinny again. I have heard it can do that. Its like the magic diet. Take 1 dose daily and you will lose 1 pound. Only problem is chaos makes me eat more. So maybe its more like 1 dose daily and you will gain 1 pound. Hopefully not. Well time to start some more chaos.....clean the house, move furniture, pull baseboards, and whatever else needs done to paint the walls! Oh and try to finish selling and delivering puppies through out it all......as well as sell 3 horses.....as well as find a safe horse for a dear older friend....as well as more chaos.

Oh how I love chaos, please stay busy life, but could you make me lose a pound instead of gain one?

Poor mamma dog, she is weaning and joining in on our chaos.

Well, back to the chaos! Until next time! Too-da-loo!

Calf nuts and a buckaroo slide show

Buckaroo Man has been busy taking a rawhide braiding class by Doug Groves. The week of the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering is always a fun busy one. We see many dear friends and get the pleasure of seeing some amazing silver, rawhide, and leather goods. Last year at this time I met my Buckaroo Man for the first time. I will share that story later this week.

Every day I have stopped in to visit with him and his fellow braiders. The knots and buttons they build are very intricate and very much put together like a puzzle! There work is absolutely beautiful. Raw hide has been used in cowboy gear since the beginning. Buckaroos, cowboys, and vaqueros used either grass reatas or rawhide reatas.  A reata is the rope used as a lariat. Now there are many other options-nylon, polyester, cotton, and many different blends. The buckaroo man is building a pair of rawhide hobbles. Hobbles are used instead of tying the horse to encourage it to stay put. The hobbles attach both the front feet of a horse together to restrict the range of motion...although some horses can run just as fast in hobbles as with out them...imagine it like stepping into a potato sack for a race.

Last evening we had a big get together with all the braiders and a bunch of folks from all over the country. I spent all morning baking bread for it. We spent an hour skinning frozen calf nuts then breading them and tossing them in the fryer. Women and men all jumped in to get the job done. Have you ever had fried calf nuts...aka rocky mountain oysters? They are incredibly divine! Absolutely the best appetizer you can have! After dinner was served we  had the pleasure of being entertained by a little girl and her father. They sang and played the fiddle. Then we all headed downstairs and watched a slide show a man had from his days buckarooing in the 1950's. The stories and history I heard throughout the evening are still swarming around in my head!

This week will continue to be a wonderful busy week. A few friends will be arriving today so we will be busy helping set up some booths. I suppose I best get the chores finished and head into town! Until next time! Too-da-loo!!

I love the DMV

Its down right chilly! I am procrastinating this morning so that I can have just a few more minutes next to the cozy stove! Soon I will be busy in the kitchen and that should keep me plenty warm. My husband's cousin came and spent the weekend with us and boy did we have fun. We decided to make a bunch of meals for our freezer as well as for some dear friends who are fighting cancer. I would post the recipes but  I have to figure out how to override this blog thingy in order to do so!!

Yesterdays adventure included 3 visits to the DMV! Did you know that policies can change over night? Or that state to state could be soooo complicated!? My advice......avoid buying a car out of state if you can help it! What a blast to sit and observe people-I thought people watching at the airport was good but its got nothing on the DMV. If you are ever bored and want some free entertainment then head on down to the DMV.......its free of charge to enter and your welcome to stay as long as you like!!

It sounds like a pack of chimps have entered the house! The pups are a little over a week old and it wont be long before their eyes open, but boy can they make some noise!!! They sure hate when their mamma has been out in the below zero weather and she comes in and lays on them-you should hear them holler!! The little red dog has definitely been feeling better because she spent over an hour herding her chickens!

Time to get to doing something this morning. The Buckaroo Man and I have to get ready to go to a Gun Engravers Guild gathering this weekend and then off to MSHA training! Once we come back I will have to whip the house into shape, plan some meals, and get some more things built for the upcoming Cowboy Poetry Gathering. Our house will be full of friends and cowboy gear!

Until next time! Too-da-loo!!!!

The Puppies

P1080768, a photo by The Buckaroo Bride on Flickr.

My little red dog is finally rested after her long weekend! Her little ones are all healthy and very demanding! While she has been resting I have been trying to clean our too big of house. I have decided that I would prefer to live in the wall tent, then dirt on the floor would be completely acceptable! 

Well, enough of this brief break and back to removing all the regularly tracked in dirt and hay! Too-da-loo!

Chicken Thief

I never imagined it would be so hard to sit down and get on the computer this winter but who knew it would be so warm? Hard to stay inside when there are so many interesting things I can be doing outside.  There are always dogs to chase, chickens to herd, and plenty of potting soil to clean up after the dogs have dug all my bulbs out of my whiskey barrels!

Speaking of my Buckaroo Man's dog; this weekend was a bit adventurous for us! A week or so ago Buckaroo Man's cow dog pup, aka... Skunk, decided that chicken was for dinner so he helped himself to my laying hens. (he already helps himself daily to my beloved brown eggs!) The surviving chickens are still disturbed by his presence! After getting walloped a few times with what was left of my favorite chicken he has decided that he no longer desires chicken upon his pallet. Due to our chicken loss and severe egg reduction we began hunting for laying hens for sale. We found some and headed to the armpit of america(battle mountain, NV) to pick them up. We planned on 5 but brought 10 home!

Once the beloved chickens were deposited in their coop we headed inside to warm up. The moment we walked in the door we were greeted by the sounds of new born puppies! What a wonderful sound! My little red border collie, aka....Reata, spent the last 15 hours in labor. The birth of puppies is probably one of my favorite births to be a part of! As soon as that puppy came into the cold noisy world her mama would swiftly clean her face so she could breathe, sever the umbilical cord, and nudge her until she squirmed and cried! This was followed by a detailed cleaning and help on finding her new food supply! Aren't maternal instincts amazing! We now have 8 cute little puppies! New life is such a wonderful thing!

Time to let the little red dog out. Until next time.....too-da-loo!!!