Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!  Now, honestly I love the thought behind Mother's Day.  But truthfully, good bad or otherwise, it's usually just another day.  Now don't get me wrong, I don't forget to acknowledge my mother or grandmother, it's just that we don't do fancy dinners, or day the spa or any of those things that Hallmark and tv commercials tell us we have to.

Growing up, most of my Mom's Mother's Day were spent either at a rodeo, branding, going for a ride through the calving pasture, or we helped her get the garden ready.  Now, there were gifts, or fresh crocuses plucked from the pasture and presented to her in a old cup found in the garage.  We would make cards.  It's just the way it is and was.

Now that I am a mom, I really don't expect or want much.  We are usually farming, of course still calving and what ever else needs to be done around here.  Hubby will usually make me biscuits and gravy for breakfast (my fave) if time allows, or I get an IOU.  I am ok with that.  Last year when I was asked what I wanted for Mother's Day, I informed my family of 2 things.  1 was that Tally and I could go for a horse ride and 2 was just to spend some time and go tag calves together as a family.

I thought I would take a few moments of your time and introduce you to the Mother's in my life.

Now of course there's my mom, Mother Tracey.  She's tough, strong, stubborn and bossy, and still with us.  She has lived 12 years longer than any doctor gave her when she was first diagnosed.

Mother Tracey and Mother Marilyn

Mother Marilyn!  In no way is she related to our family, but when her and her husband became friends with my parents....she became Mother Marilyn.  She's been there through the good times, bad times, fun times, wedding, baby times.

Me and Mother Marilyn, wagon train circa 2009

My mother in law, Canova.  I have said many times that I won the lottery when it came to mother in laws.  She's a great friend, great mother, great mother in law and an awesome grandma to my children.

Ruth Ann was one of the first neighbors my parents met when we moved to North Dakota.  I spent so much time at her house through grade school and high school that she probably disciplined me as much as my parents.  Her oldest son is one of my best friends, and was a part of my wedding.  Ruth Ann also made a beautiful cake for our wedding.

Now that I have children there are 'mothers' in my kids' life that I would be lost without.  They have given me advice, helped with babysitting, given me advice.  They've laughed at me whenever I tell whatever recent shenanigans  my kids have pulled, and are just there whenever needed.  Most have kids way older than mine, and some didn't even have kids when I had my first.  The saying 'it takes a village to raise a child' is so true, and I have come to believe and rely on that.

Laura, friend, babysitter, and everything else.  

Me and Tam.....there's nothing we can't talk about or bitch about when it comes to life and our kids. 

No matter what you do or how you do it, thank your mom tomorrow.  Thank those moms that treat you like one of their own.  A simple phone call or text is worth a lot.

Lauri, she's takes my kids, helps me out and lends me her daughter to take on road trips to babysit.  

Pamela, a great friend, cousin, and god mother! 

Uncle Jess, (no that's not a typo, kids same the darndest things).  Sister in law, god mother and she's got my back when I need help or a babysitter.  Thank God she moved closer and is willing to help with my crazy kids. 

Wild Bunch.  These gals rock and have been and are awesome to my kids.  They help. they discipline and they give this mama a break.

I am truly blessed. 

Happy Mothers Day to all my Mom's and every other Mom out there.





Disclaimer; there are plenty more other mom's out there that help me out that I didn't mention or find pictures of.  All help me tremendously to help make my world keep going around and my kids happy.  

Help Wanted.

I am drawing a blank.  I've got nothing.  Paper is blank, computer screen is blank.  I need help!

You may or may not know but lat fall I did a guess post over on the blog Housewives of Rural America.  It was scary, fun and nerve wracking to write and then push that send button.  I am so glad I did, as it was a great experience.  My post titled 12 Confessions of a Mediocre Housewife got a few chuckles and connected with some readers.  That's way I was hoping for but didn't expect.

Now this brings me to why I need help, I am scheduled to write another blog post to be published the end of February.  I am excited and honored that they are allowing me to write for the blog again.  That being said, I am drawing a blank on what to write about.

Shall I blog about my infamous Knephla soup recipe or another recipe?  Shall I blog about sugar beets  or my cows or farming in Montana?  Shall I blog about the craziness of working along your husband with 2 kids in tow?  Shall I blog about some of the hurdles we faced starting to farm and are facing now?  Maybe a craft idea?  Maybe I should blog about the steps I take to make and can my salsa?  OR maybe I should blog about how important it is to have your girlfriends and being able to talk to them and planning a girls night at home?  Shall I blog about and ask others on how they keep farm records, cattle records and book work and what apps and programs are available and they use?  Bull season is upon us, maybe a post on buying bulls.  Throw some of your ideas at me.

I need your help!!

Now I must get going and get corn shoveled to feed replacements and cull cows.  It's cold and snowy out so I have been procrastinating this morning.

In honor of #tbt, I thought I'd throw in a couple of pictures from a few years ago.  We were at dad's house and him and T were on a mission to catch 'her' horse Abe.  Unfortunately we lost Abe to botulism a year or so ago.  Enjoy your Thursday and the pictures
!

Family Friday Night

Family Friday nights around here in the summer are not your typical family outings.

Nope, on any Friday night (and really any night of the week) we load up the kids and dog and head out to go check cows, check crops, go do some irrigating or a hundred other things that need to be done.  We take this time to be together as a family, but do get our work done and teach our kids.

T and TC just love going to check cows and helping putting out mineral.  I could say its because they are with mom or dad, or because we are spending time as a family but I would be lieing.   They enjoy putting out mineral so much because 'mixing' and 'stirring' the mineral is just the most fun!  It really is, just ask the two little blondes in the picture!

Putting out mineral is just one of the many things we do together as a family.  We irrigate, we seed, we hay, we move cows, we work cows, we harvest, we play, we fight, we hug and we love.  Its just what we do.

The kids, though they are young, have already learned you can't go check cows, put out mineral without checking on the water!  And maybe so mom can snap some pictures.  

 I just love old windmills.   Our Family Friday nights may not be typical, but they are who and what we are and do!  Pretty sure I wouldn't change a thing!

Flower Girl

My cousin got married a few weekends ago, on a gorgeous October Saturday.  The day started out cloudy and spitting rain, but the skies cleared and turned into a beautiful day.  My cousin and his bride to be asked T to be their flower girl!  She was so excited!  But who wouldn't be, beautiful princess dress, sparkly new boots and center of attention!

My niece, who's rocking the zebra skirt and zebra boots, was helping out with the guestbook and gifts.  2 beautiful (not so) little girls!

And of course we had the stagecoach out to give the wedding party a ride.  Cuz, ya know, that's how we roll!!

My little (i.e. younger than me) sister was an out rider for the stagecoach.

After the wedding party was dropped at the reception, T and a few of us hitched a ride in the stagecoach.  In other words, we climbed in and (those old enough) enjoyed an adult beverage as they took the stagecoach back across the parking to the horse trailer and then we helped unharness, and load the stagecoach.  And possibly another adult beverage.

Picking Sugar Beets with Daddy

Tally is her name & Mutton Bustin' is her game!

Besides our weekly summer series, we went to several other kids rodeos this summer. Tally participated in the barrels, sucker plucking, keyhole, barrel crawl and MUTTON BUSTIN'!

Last fall was her debut in the mutton busting' and she took first place. She was all about climbing onto the back of another sheep this summer. The first one she rode this summer I think she was more excited that her Papa was going to be there to help and watch her than she was about riding the sheep. She rode that sheep to the ground literally, and won a squirt gun and candy for her efforts.

My little Mutton Buster!

Way to go!

The second one she rode she was a little more apprehensive. I was not at the chute with her, as she did not need her mom! My dad (papa), our good friend Jason and her auntie were with her. I was across the arena videoing. As it was getting closer to her turn she kept repeating 'papa, seriously I am not sure about this. Seriously papa'. Papa and Jason kept telling her tough, she was riding the sheep. She had signed up for it, she was doing it. The banter between the three of them had the chute help and flagger (family friends) laughing and giggling. My sister was hollering at me from across the arena that she was not going to ride. Being the good mom I am I hollered back 'yes she is. Papa will make her. Just promise her a Mountain Dew!'.

She did it~for a Mountain Dew!

She rode the sheep. And got third place. As she got her award she said 'Boy, I'm glad papa made me ride!'.

Very proud of her duffel bag!

Checking on the Horses

We caught a glimpse of the horses the other day and headed on over to the corral to give a look over and a scratch on the head.  All of our horses, besides ol' Fred, are kicked out to pasture during the winter to take care of themselves.  If the snow is deep, or weather is bad we will take pity and go roll out a bale of hay for them.  They do have to come all the way into the corrals at home to water which makes it easy to keep tabs on them.  

TC is all smiles as Fred says hello.

It was a nice day right after the first of the year, and T had been out enjoying a ride on Fred.  We had TC in the stroller just messing around in the yard when the herd came in. TC was all laughs as the horses were being curious and sticking their noses into her stroller checking her out.  I ran back into the house to snap a few pics of the girls with their dad and our horse herd.

Preacher was very interested in the stroller and TC.

Preacher is kind of a camera hog/poser!  

Just a little bit closer.

Dusty, my good ol horse who is in retirement.  Man I love that horse.

Squirt and 6pack (brother and sister) were quite curious of the stroller also!

 I am trying to play catch up here.  And of course brag a little bit.  It's my blog, I get to brag all I want!!!

Last September I loaded Tally and Baby TC up and good ol' Fred and headed down the highway about 50 miles to take T to a little kids rodeo.  Her first rodeo, besides the fun nights we have at home.  For several weeks I had been building up to her about riding a sheep.

*Ride a sheep, all the cool kids do it.

* Did you know your mom used to be a heck of a mutton buster.

*Honey, it runs in the family your auntie has a buckle or twos he won from riding a sheep.

And so my 4 year old agreed to try and ride a sheep.  But of course I knew nothing about riding a sheep, and she needed Handsome Larry (family friend) to take her to the bucking chutes and help her.  I was ok with that, because then this mommy got to take pictures and video of her little cowgirl riding a sheep.  

And ride a sheep she did!! My 4 year old cowgirl won the 8 and under sheep riding for the 2011 Go Getters Rodeo!!  I was so damn happy and proud I cried!  That's right, I cried and I am not ashamed to admit it!  But not only did she win the sheep riding that day, she also for the first time off her horse by herself  to do the goat tail tying, which was also a first for her.   She met some new people, as did I.  She did her events all by herself, some successfully and some not, but she did them.  And most importantly she had fun!!

A shot of the sheep riding.

Getting of her horse by herself for the first time!

Trying and trying to tie that ribbon on the goats tail.

And we are still trying, but she ran out of time.  

Walking up to accept our sheep riding winnings.

A great bunch of young cowgirls and cowboys! 

My cowgirl didn't want the day to end.  She rode ol' Fred over to the corral to give him his grain.

Tally and Fred posing.  She wanted me to take a picture of her and her horse and her rodoe winnings so her Papa knew that she had 'done really good and was taking care of her horse'.


Yep, that's my bragging post!  That horse is worth at least a million bucks in my mind!  He makes Tally smile, and she has so much fun with him and wants to take care of him!  Every kid should be so lucky.

Winter Fun without any Snow

Snow has been quite scarce in North East Montana this winter.  I would go as far as to call it nonexistent this winter.  And the temperatures have been incredibly warm.  What I am trying to say to is it is the end of January.  There is no snow.  It's been 40 degrees out.  AND did I mention it is January in North East Montana!!  

But since we aren't doing any sledding or snowmobiling....  Course even if there was snow I, myself, wouldn't be doing any snowmobiling; we're are still doing some fun winter stuff around here.

Fun stuff like riding Fred.  Course, the little Cowgirl is thinking it's fun, but Ol' Fred has given me the look a time or two that I read as "Really????  I thought I got to spend my winters with my head buried in the hay feeder."  But as tough as he may want to be, Fred sure does take good care of his little cowgirl.

And off they go.  Nothin' like saddling up and stickin' the spurs to him!

If you look hard enough you can see the big grin on my Cowgirl!

T and Fred.  Fred and T.

Yes.  You are seeing things right.  Fred has his ears pins back because he is not happy!

Her sled hasn't even left the corners of the garage this winter.  But, her saddle isn't sitting around getting dusty!

Flower Girl

Last week Little Miss T was a flower girl in a friends wedding.  After the wedding, there was a few free moments so we headed over to the John Deere lot and Angela took some pictures of her in her flower girl dress, and her Purple John Deere boots.  That's right!  Purple John Deere boots!! The bride and groom gave them to her to wear with her flower girl dress.

You can check out a few of the pictures over at Angela's blog:

Cali Girl Out On The Prarie

Branding 2011

Branding has been a long drawn out process this spring/summer due to rain, farming and everything else Mother Nature has thrown at us.  We finally got Schledewitzs' done the other week, and the day after we got ours done.  

The old wooden post, woven fence round pen is not the easiest to rope out of, but its tradition

A shot of the branding stove and irons

The Boss

Getting the job done

Ragtag Crew.  Jakob, Tally and Tenley.  Tenley was a trooper all day long.