Fence Building

We've spent a day and a half building fence this weekend. We need to wean some calves so we had to make a calf-proof pen. Lucky for us, the husband built fence for over 10 years so figuring out how to do it was nothing. Just doin' it was the issue. This was the first free time we've had to do it so everything is crammed into a couple of long days.



The first thing we had to do was use the tractor to get the wire out of the grass. Ya think it's been awhile since we did some fence building!

Here's our wire chia pet!

The crowd grew as we laid everything out.

Here I am working. I do my best work on the ground, less likely to hurt myself there.

The husband tying the ends off. Very tedious work, not for me.

We've almost finished. Have to clip the last remaining 100 feet or so in the morning. Then it's time to work the cattle. Here's hoping that runs smoothly.

Cattle Working Boots

911 Call

This could so be the husband! Take a listen.....

Cows

That's right, cows. What else do I really have to talk about. Nothing, so you're getting cows today.


I want to introduce you to Laverne and Shirley. They are not bucking stock, just plain 'ol commercial cows. We bought 'em awhile back to use as recips for our embryos. And they did a spectacular job. They both carried the embryo to term and had sweet little calves. Turns out Laverne is also an excellent babysitter/nurse cow. The calves just love her.


Now their babies have gotten older and don't need them much anymore. So I found the two girls out in the pasture, tending to themselves for a change.


Shirley was polishin' Laverne up.



Maybe she had a hot date with the bull later that evening.

I mean, really, look at that face. What bull could resist it?

Okay, maybe she's not the cutest girl in the pasture but she has a wonderful personality!

Wordless Wednesday

My Newest Accessory

I just love being me because I never know how I'm going to hurt myself next. It's always a surprise! Late Saturday evening, I told the husband my wrist was hurting. Had no idea what from, nothing out of the ordinary had happened. It hurt all night and worse on Sunday. I had finally broke down and wrapped it Sunday evening so I could help move the cattle around, muck out Priss' stall and feed.

On Monday, it was still hurting. I broke down and made an appointment with the doctor. I never go to the doctor. Okay, once a year, but that is only because I have to. So I went and she told me I have tendinitis in my wrist. What? Tendinitis? I don't play tennis....don't tennis players get that in their elbow?

She said it should go away in about 2 weeks but if it changes in any way to let her know. I am to wear a brace to immobilize the joint and take 4 advil three or four times a day. Man, getting stepped on by a horse didn't cause this much grief! Of course, the husband didn't believe the doctor made the correct diagnosis. He said he knew he should have taken me to the vet! Oh my goodness gracious.

So I got my brace and went back to work. I was so embarrassed I parked in the back and snuck up the back stairs. I don't even have a good story to tell if someone asks me why I'm wearing a brace. The best I have come up with is, "just cause I'm a tard."

I need your help....give me a good story to tell! I have faith that someone out there will come up with something better than I. I will be patiently waiting, hiding in my office........

Close Encounter with the Four Legged Kind

We had lots of dealings with the bulls this weekend. Saturday evening as the husband was pulling in the drive, he saw our yearling bull, Stubby, jump the fence into the cow pasture. He thought he needed to strut his stuff with the girls I guess.

Here's Stubby....the pain in the rear.

The husband and I called the cows up and attempted to get Stubby back where he was suppose to be. I stood at the gate, trying to keep the other bull, Death Wish, in as the husband tried getting Stubby out.

Here's Death Wish....Mr. Attitude!

Well, I went round and round at the gate with Death Wish and the husband had the same luck with Stubby. Finally, it concluded with the husband throwing his cap to the ground and yelling a few expletives. And if you know the husband, that is the usual outcome! So I decided I should give it a try. I went out amongst the cows and calves in an attempt to herd Stubby back. After chasing him around for a bit, I finally got him towards the gate. We managed to get him and two cows out. Then we sorted the cows back over. Success!

On Sunday, we decided to pen the bulls up close to the house and let the cows into the top pastures. I was in the pen when the husband sooked the bulls up with cubes. When I attempted to leave the pen, Death Wish thought it would be fun to come at me. At which time I decide it best to run. The husband is standing at the gate with a funny look on his face asking "Why you runnin'?" About that time, Death Wish rounds the corner. Then the husband yells, "Get up the fence!" I scramble up the fence and luckily Death Wish stopped. He didn't want me too bad. Then I thought, the husband was at the gate, why didn't he just let me out? Hmmmmmm.

After my escape, Death Wish needed to take out his frustrations. So he went postal on the hay bale.

But I'm good with that.

Beauty

Got my hair done today. The lengths I go to try and look pretty. Emphasis on "try." I couldn't pass up the opportunity to take a picture of this. Do you know how hard it is to slide your camera out of your purse and take a picture of yourself in a salon full of people without someone saying, "Hey, look at the crackpot over there taking a picture of herself!" I was in ultimate stealth mode.

Apparently no one saw me do it cause not a word was uttered. Or they thought I was a crazy lady with aluminum in her hair so the aliens can't suck her brain out and they figured it best not to ask too many questions. Whatever the reason, I didn't embarrass myself at the salon by whippin' out my camera. Can't say the same about the silver mohawk.

I Received an AWARD!!!

I know, I can't believe it either! But an awesome lady I found a few weeks back has given me one. Go check her out at Cowboys and Sunsets . We are a lot alike. So if you like me, you'll like her too!

Okay, a part of getting this award is that you have to give it to seven others that you enjoy. I am pretty new to the blogging world but recently I have been venturing out and finding some really great peeps. So here is my list for "I Love Your Blog."

Country Mouse Funny girl. A little neurotic at times but that just adds to it!

Dreams of a Country Girl Her stories of the twerps as too funny.

Another Day in Paradise Jamie has had a pretty rough week or so. I thought she needed a little cheering up. Maybe this will do the trick.

County Doctor's Wife I love anyone that will blog about tooting at work. Real funny stuff.

Scary's West She has great pictures on her blog.

One Cowgirl True ranching lifestyle. Gotta love that!

The Horseshoeing Wife Awesome sense of humor and you just never know what she is going to blog about.

Now here are the details about this award;
1. The winner can put the logo on her blog.
2. Link the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of those you have nominated.


So go forth and spread the love and admiration!

Nothing.....

But two asses!

Finally!

IT RAINED! But not just a shower or sprinkle.....6+inches of hard, pouring off the house, get your boat ready, and put your swim trunks on, rain. We were in need of it too. The cracks in the ground were about to swallow up the dogs!

Poor Pepper fell off in one the other morning. Had to get my coal mining hat out and rescue her.

She's so happy to be out of that cavernous crack!

But the best thing of it all.....

I get to wear my awesome blue mud boots! Cause you know, it's all about the shoes!

And You Think Your Day is Bad!

I'm just surprised the husband and I haven't made this reel! Luckily there hasn't been a camera around for our "incidents."

Grace

That's what the husband calls me, Grace. Not for my smooth fluid movement thru life, for my propensity to hurt myself. Be it running into a wall, tripping on a crack, or just smackin' myself with something. It's a common occurrence with me.

So he's been hounding me to put a picture of my foot on the blog. It just so happened that the night Priss got hurt, I was injured as well. Trying to unload her at the vet, she stepped on my foot. The swelling has gone down but it's still a little sore. I have to choose my shoes wisely. I did manage to wear a pair of heels to work yesterday though. That was a good improvement. The husband was sweet enough to offer to take me to the vet to get it x-rayed. But I declined!

See, it don't look so bad.....

Just a ting of blue and purple is all....

R.I.P. Boss Hog

So what happens to a bull that doesn't buck....well, this time, he becomes our evening meal. Boss Hog was quite the disappointment when it came to buckin'. He was the laziest bull I have ever seen. If he wasn't eating, he was laying down. So when it came time to make a decision about what to do with him, we decided he would be the perfect steak. So late yesterday evening, we loaded him up and took him to the packers.

I kinda felt bad. But then I remembered the prices of meat at the grocery store.....

Bye Boss Hog! I will have fond memories of you every time I eat a burger or steak or stew or ground hamburger or well you get the idea!

Now, let me tell you about Priss, Super Horse. We rebandaged her leg yesterday. Gave her shots and cleaned all her other wounds. She was a champ during the whole process. Still has her ornariness so I know she is going to be okay.

Anyways, back to Super Horse.....We pull in to the house after dropping Boss Hog off. It was late and dark. Just so happens our barn lights quit working the night Priss got hurt. So the husband parked with the truck lights shining in. I watched him go into the barn and stand, looking at Priss' stall. He had this dumbfounded look on his face and raised his hands up. I got out of the truck and yelled what is it. He said Priss is gone. WHAT?? I knew I closed her gate earlier. Cause I have been known to leave a gate open. Okay, just once, but once was enough. So I go around to her stall and see that the panel we used to close her in on the backside was busted down. How in the world did she do that? It was tied in 6 places! Luckily, we had closed the gate to the pasture before we left so she was contained in a small area behind the stalls. But when we went to catch her, she tried running from us. Doesn't she know her back tendon is severed! Hello! We managed to get her back in the stall, much to her disappointment, and reinforce the panel.

This is what we came home to, her empty stall.

I found the panel laying in the back pen. Looks like Super Horse busted it down.

Found her near the gate to the pasture with Sally, the paint. She so wanted to escape her confinement!

Big Doings at Church Today

Our church is at it's one year anniversary. Today we had a big baptism day. Twenty-five people got dunked (saved is the more appropriate term, I suppose.) It was awesome to see all those people accept Jesus into their lives. As some of ya know, cowboy church does things a little different. And for those that have never witnessed a cowboy baptism, I took some pictures. Our services are currently held at a sale barn. So in the middle of the sale ring, we set up a water trough and brought them up one by one to get dunked.

After church, the husband and I went to eat at the local mexican food joint. We like to eat there on Sundays cause if you take your church bulletin, they give you a 20% discount. How cool is that! I could hardly eat my spinach and chicken quesadillas. I was full as a tick after two sections. I don't know what the deal was. I usually can eat my weight in mexican food. Well, really in any food! Hence, my fluffy days!

The husband full and happy!

I noticed when I added the sugar substitute to my tea, it was called "Sweet Thing." I told the husband I should pin on to my shirt cause that is exactly what I am. You can imagine his response to that!


On a side note, the husband was reading my post last night. He asked what fruition was? I told him the definition and he told me that I needed to quit using such big words on here. That other people won't know what they mean either. I told him that our readers are smart peeps and I'm sure they can handle it. He said he guess he needed to go back to college in order to read the blog. Drama King!

Coming to a Realization

With the latest injuries to Miss Priss, the husband and I have came to the realization that we were not meant to be horse people. Both horses I have gotten this year ended up crippled. My thoughts are God must be trying to tell me something. Apparently, I'm not suppose to ride a horse! I see the writing on the wall! I don't need another two by four between the eyes or a vet bill!

Our joke of being the Home of Crippled Horses has came to fruition. So we have decided to keep the two mares and breed them eventually. Maybe God will have a change of heart by the time the colts are ready to be started! Let's hope. The husband said he was going to have a talk with the girls about not having crippled babies! And we are getting rid of the new gelding. The husband believes he had a lot to do with Priss gettin' into the fence so he's outta here. I didn't care for him much anyhow. Kinda glad to see him go. So what will our next purchase be?

Yep, a four wheeler!

Crisis at Home

Yesterday evening was not a good day for us. It started out like any other day. I got home from work. Fed and watered all the animals. Took the camera out and tried finding things to take pictures of. I found a spider's web and misc. other things. Decided to go out into the pasture and check out the cattle. Took this picture of the horses. Then went back up to the house.

About 15 minutes later, the husband is pulling in the drive and calls me from his car. He asks why Miss Priss is on the wrong side of the fence. She's in the pasture with the cattle. I told him no she's not, I was just out there with her. She was standing with the other two horses. He advised me that no, she was in the other pasture and we needed to go check it out.

So we walk out there and sure enough, she's across the fence. And as we got closer, we could see the blood. It was coming from her front legs and her back legs. Part of her back leg was laid open. The husband told me to stay back cause I am a big sissy when it comes to blood. At first he thought she broke her back leg but actually, she cut the front tendon. We got her up to the barn and cleaned her off. Then started calling vets. It really sucks when you are new to an area, which is mainly farm land, and there are no real large animal vets around. We were so spoiled in Stephenville to have great vets available. Finally, had one vet return our call from his emergency line about an hour or so later. He couldn't see her. Another vet told us she was out of the area and didn't think she could do anything anyways. WHAT ARE YOU FREAKIN" KIDDIN' ME!! Finally, our neighbor's son called and said he knew of a vet that would see her. We called and she agreed to meet us. Only thing was, she's over an hour away! We loaded Miss Priss up and hauled butt.

Pretty much, we found out there was nothing they could do about the tendon except wrap it up and see if it will scar together. And the odds of that, not too good. All the other larcerations were cleaned and doctored. Miss Priss was a great patient.

The vet loaded us up with lots of drugs and goodies to bring home. Even gave the husband a lesson on giving shots, cause Lord knows he needs it! And back home we went. After we got everyone settled, we managed to get in the house and go to bed. The husband got about 2 hours of sleep before his alarm went off and I got about 3 1/2 hours. Needless to say, we are dragging butt today!

Ain't Got Nothin'

The Duke

I had really high hopes for Duke when I bought him. He was going to be the protector of the property from all outside varmits. Doesn't he look vicious. Okay, not so much as a puppy! But look at that face, he's saying, "Come on, bring it!"

As some of you know, we have a bad coyote problem. At the end of last year, we lost sweet Shiloh to 'em. So in an effort to manage the issue, we bought two killer black ops special force donkeys to watch over the calves.

Their faces are concealed for national security purposes.... They have done a great job at keeping the pastures safe. But I would still like to think that Duke, the protector of all, would have the heart of a lion in protecting the homestead. Well, the truth came out yesterday. It started to rain, thunder and lightning. Guess where I found Duke......

In my jack russell's doghouse on the porch! He's such a big baby. I thought he had learned his lesson about this doghouse previously. He has been stuck in it several times needing the husband's assistance in being freed. But when I guess you're scared, you'll stuff yourself into any space possible.

So maybe Zena, the ridgeback, will step up to the plate as the protector of the land.....

Well, maybe not!

The Lake Continued.....

The first morning we were there, the husband and I walked around the banks of the lake. A kid staying in a cabin close to ours was out throwing rocks in the water.

He looked over at me and said, "Hey, you know what I caught out there in the water?"

I was expecting some big fish story so I replied with great anticipation, "No, WHAT!"

"A stupid log!" Then he threw another rock in the water. I couldn't help but laugh. And take his picture!

The husband and I didn't have much better luck than the little boy. But we did manage to get a few fish caught. Here are a couple of our trophies......

The husband and his mammoth catch of the day.

And then there is mine. I think it's bigger.

Anniversary Trip

We took a long weekend and went to the lake for our anniversary. Just wanted to get away and relax for a few days. We enjoyed it very much but not as much as our fishin' dog, Harley. He had a blast trying to catch them fish.

The first day of our trip started out gettin' the fishin' tackle in order.

Really, how many rubber thingamagiggers do you need? Apparently, more than I ever thought.

The lake levels were very low but we found a pretty good fishin' hole in the Cedar Point Recreational area. We caught more rocks than fish though! Spent a good majority of time fixin' broken line.

The husband and Harley intent on catchin' Walter!

The fishin' dog had such faith in our fishin' ability. He would attack the line every time we reeled it in, thinkin' we would have a fish. He was disappointed the majority of the time.

All that fishin' just tuckered them out!

Vignette #8- The Wedding

The day of our wedding arrived. I was calm as a cucumber. The husband, not so much! I remember sitting in my robe in the living room drinking a coke and watching music videos when my dad showed up to drive me to the park. "Don't you think you should get dressed?" he asked. I put on my dress and headed to the gazebo.

The husband, on the other hand, was freakin' out. He says he was thinkin' how he could run but was too worried that my brothers and dad would catch him. He also recently divulged that his friends and family were telling him he didn't have to go thru with it while he was gettin' dressed at the hotel. Thanks a lot guys!

He looks a little nervous, doesn't he!

I gracefully walked down the isle and tripped going up the steps into the gazebo. Wouldn't expect anything less from me. The husband was crying. Don't know if it was from joy or sadness! So then I started crying. Then the maid of honor was crying and even I think the bestman. What a sobfest.
I look happy to be going down the aisle.........

But the husband's facial expression doesn't quite express feelings of happiness.......

Okay, are the thoughts of running still going thru his head. Look at the bestman and ring bearer, they are just waiting for him to bolt!

We managed to say our "I dos" between the sniffle and snorts. And the ceremony was done. Thank goodness. Then it was off to our reception, the bullriding!

Finally, an expression other than terror on the husband's face!