Lazy Days of Summer My Hind Foot!!!

  Who ever coined that phrase must not have had a job!!  I have to admit that I am glad summer is coming to an end.  Maybe we'll see some cooler temperatures. I have heard tales of a miraculous event that happens where water falls from the sky.  Maybe I'll get to see that happen too.
  Busy days on the ranch keeping all the animals fed.  BB is still coming up twice a day for her feed laced bottles of milk & I now have a little bull calf who has figured out that food comes from this house & from me.  Those two spend quite a bit of time in my yard helping keep what grass I have mowed.  Dog loves having visitors in the yard, but doesn't quite understand why that little white dog with the funny ears won't play with him!
  My main goal these days is finding & buying hay.  I've been lucky with two loads of good hay & have a nice prospect that I am going to check out later today.  Fingers crossed, it will be good stuff & I can order 4 loads.  That should help out & keep me in hay until winter.  Fingers double crossed that it will rain & I can buy hay locally instead of from Louisiana or Kansas!
  Had a fun weekend with friends & should have a busy week this week before heading to Houston for the weekend.  Am off to visit my Mom.  It is important to actually get away from the ranch so that I can relax over the weekend instead of working through it.  No complaints though.  Hot & dry as it is, I still love being here & getting my day started every day.  We'll see if I do get to relax as my Mom usually has more than one project for me to help with.
  OK - time to get back to it before it is  800 degrees in the shade.

Bad Blogger

Jeez!!  These last two weeks have been a whirl wind, three circuses & a foot race all in one.  Thank goodness that even though it has been hotter than Hades during a heat wave, it was a great two weeks.

Two of my very dear friends entrusted me with their children for a week.  We went horseback riding, they drove the Kubotas around exploring, I think we shot every day, went to a single action shoot, visited Cabela's, swimming, set up a flag pole and of course, taking care all the numerous animals that require daily feeding & care.
This picture is from the SASS shoot.  Tyler's (L) alias is Blazing Bullets & Hunter's (R) alias is The Kid.  I wanted them to be The Kid & The Other Kid because I think that is funny.  But that is just me!!  :-) 

We had big ambitions for projects that week, but the flag pole was the one I wanted to make sure got done & so glad it did.  The boys had a grand time digging a hole, mixing the concrete & setting the whole thing up.  WB was & is happy with the results.  He's wanted a flag pole for some time.  I love the Come & Take It flag!  One of my favorite battle flags.
The chicken coop didn't get done, but at least I have the lumber & just need to get started.  It's so blooming hot by the time I get done with my morning duties that I can't get motivated to get started.  I'll think about it & maybe get started tomorrow.  Yeah, right Scarlett.  Tomorrow!  Uh huh.  We'll see about that!
It was a great week with the boys.  I think they really enjoyed themselves & are ready to come back again any time.  They especially loved their last night's supper because they could eat what ever they wanted.  Yes, they both had cake & ice cream!  Oh yes & a few squirts of Redi Whip directly in the mouth - only way to eat that stuff!!
Once the boys went home, it has just been the usual routines here - make sure all animals have food & water, water the yard, laundry, run to the grocery & feed stores, sneak in some visits with friends &, my personal favorite, naps.  This week is trying to nail down my hay deal, get air compressor fixed, get hydraulic hose on tractor fixed, make a run to Austin & Lord only knows what else will plop itself on my plate this week - it is only Monday. 
Bring it cuz I'm ready!!

Time Flies When you are Having Fun & Working Your Tail Off!!

As the saying goes, all work & no play makes you axe murder your family in a snowed in deserted hotel in the mountains. Oh wait!! It doesn't go that way!! Besides, too long & clumsy to coin that phrase. No worries about that anyway. Too busy with ranch duties & visiting friends to even bother to think about where the axe is located.
Let's see - just another busy week after the tequila tasting. Run the usual errands in town to the usual stores which usually are: grocery store, feed store, lumber yard & maybe Wal-Mart or Tractor Supply. Oh! And don't forget the Vet Clinic. Got the house & my room all ready to receive friends for the weekend last weekend. Pictured here is Dawn who has, obviously, made fast friends with Little Red. If she were small enough, I think Red would have crawled in Dawn's lap to take a little nap. So sweet!
Earlier that same morning, I killed this copper head. I was just walking through the yard & saw movement in my peripheral vision & there this guy was. No bueno since they are very poisonous & we've carried a vendetta against them ever since my sister got bit on her big toe when she was 5 - she still has the fang mark scars to prove it! So, I got the trusty snake killer which is an old putter. I managed to hold his head down & started to cut its head off, but my knife was a little dull & he managed to slip from the putter grip. Needless to say, he was a little mad that I tried to chop his head off. Instead, I had to putt him in the head then hold him down & then cut his head off. I also changed the blade on my knife! Those plastic hay strings dull the blades so fast!!

Brenda the Brindle had a cute little brindle baby. Brenda looks quite menacing with that set of horns she has, but she is one of our "eat from your hand" cows. I mean, I'm not going to try to pet her when we are in the pens together & she'd probably try to eat my lunch now that she has a calf, but she is a sweet girl as long as you have a range cube or two to share with her.

Another busy weekend & week ahead...Get ready for more company, go to cousin's for a birthday, take my CHL renewal class, pick up kids in Houston & get them back to the ranch. Going to be a fun week with those two boys here. On tap is to build a chicken coop, set a flag pole, horseback riding, a cowboy action shoot & lord only knows what else we'll find to do next week!! Those boys are going to be worn out by the time they head home. Can't wait!!! :-)

repost pictures

Not sure the pictures came through yesterday so here they are.

Playing Catch Up!

Busy busy days on & off the ranch. I hardly know where to being since I can't remember the last time I updated this blog! So, I'll just start with this month.
I had a great time at a natural spring for the July 4th holiday. It was hot outside & the water was 68 degrees which made the 100 degree weather quite tolerable. I look forward to visiting that spot again & maybe not on a holiday weekend so that it isn't quite so crowded.
While I was away, it rained at the ranch. This picture here looks lovely but those are WEEDS!! Sweet little purple flowers on the goat weed which is confused that it is spring time since it is blooming like crazy. WB keeps threatening to whip out the big weed sprayer for the tractor so that the grass has a chance at that ground water.
These two ponies were too cute the other day. A little mutual back scratching going on . The sorrel is named Boots & the paint is Blaze. Neither horse can be ridden due to hoof issues as well as age & are quite content to be pasture ornaments. It used to be hard to get them to come up to the barn at all, but they don't seem to mind getting a little breakfast horse kibble every morning! I guess food bridges all gaps even between species!
Here we have Sugar being thoroughly investigated by Pest's baby girl, Pestette. The young heifers are always very intrigued to know what Sugar is exactly & we were fortunate that only Pestette was around. There have been a few times that I have had to rescue Sugar from no less that 8 curious noses. For an 18 year old dog who had a stroke, she can move pretty quickly when those heifers start poking her with their noses!
WB gave me my grandfather's saddle bags a while back & since they are old, they needed some major repair work done. We know a wonderfully talented leather craftsman who basically rebuilt the saddle bags for me. I just got them back this past Saturday at the SASS shoot & could not wait to put them on my saddle which also belonged to my grandfather. Now to go for a ride & put some cold beverages & horse treats in those saddle bags! Last Saturday was an exciting day since I shot a clean match - no misses out of 50 pistol & 50 rifle targets. I did have to take a few extra shots with my shotgun a few times, but that only effects the time score as I had to reload & shoot at them again. Getting the saddle bags back from repair was nice enough & then to shoot a clean match was a real bonus for the day! Tired & worn out from the heat, WB & I made it home to a nice cool house.
This picture is from last night. My cousins have developed a tequila & premiered it to the market last night in Houston. Look for it - Izkali in Blanco, Reposado & Anejo. All are very delicious & can just be sipped straight from the glass. No salt or lime necessary! I'm here with my other cousins - Kelly, me, Elizabeth (my sister) & Kristin. Besides sampling all 3 tequilas, we tried 2 cocktails - the classic margarita & a paloma. All 4 of us agreed that the Paloma is our new favorite cocktail & we'll teach a bartender to make it if they don't already know! So tasty - Reposado tequila, Squirt grapefruit soda, a little fresh lime juice & maybe some Cointreau to taste. OMGosh!!! So yummy. We had to cut ourselves off since we had to drive home! Come on Pee Wee! Let's dance on the bar & sing the tequila song!!! I'd even wear your patent leather white platforms for that!
Back at the ranch today & reorganized from being away for a few days. Gotta get busy tomorrow with all the animals & preparing the house for company this weekend. Can't wait for them to get here!! We are going to have a super fun weekend!