Happy Birthday to Me!

I received an unexpected check from my parents in my birthday card. I about fell out of my truck when I opened it. The husband said, "Now you can go buy that camera you want so bad." You don't have to tell me twice! I bought me a Canon digital SLR!! I'm so excited.

Thanks Mom and Dad!! And hubby for letting me spend it on the camera!

Gobble Gobble

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

W is for.....

Usually W is for Wordless Wednesday but not today! I've gotten something else in store for ya.

I finally requested a letter from A Cowboy’s Wife to participate in her meme. She was nice enough to give me a letter I could work with instead of something like Z or X. Here are my 10 things that start with the letter W.......

1. Wife, of course. I am very proud to be The Wife to The Wonderful Husband.

2. Worship. Cause Lord knows I need all the help I can get!

3. Workout. Have been such a slacker the last several months. Need to add Willpower here too. I used to race, emphasis on use to!

4. Wildflowers. They are my favorites!

5. Wrestling. What the husband and I were doing when he got knocked out! Looked a little something like this when I put the whammy smackdown on him!

6. Weekend. My favorite part of the week.

7. Warm fuzzy, something I'm not! I have a Master's degree in Counseling, go figure that one! My professors told me I was a cold prickly!

8. Well Water. The bestest water in the whole wide world courtesy of the Ogallala Aquifer.

9. Woof, woof. The sweet words of my wacky children.

10. Wedding pictures. Some of my favorite pictures of the husband. His face is priceless. If you haven't see the post, take a look at our western wedding here.

Sweetness Overload

Leading up to Thanksgiving, I have decided to post on things I am thankful for. Gonna start with a sappy one so contain your gag reflexes cause here we go......

The Husband

He is my bestfriend and the love of my life.

Most of the time I post silly things the husband does or says but rarely do I ever say what a great person he is or how lucky I am to have him in my life. So today and everyday, I am thankful for my husband.

When I first met him, he had buckle bunnies waiting for him behind the chutes. Why you ask? Cause he was a hot bullrider guy! I always wondered how I ended up with such a goodlookin' fella.

Over the years, we have had our share of struggles and issues. Being so young when we met, we have matured in thirteen years. I am thankful we have grown together and not apart.

I am thankful that we laugh at each other all the time. He loves my goofness and believe me, I'm full of it! It's great to know that after a long day, we can come home and laugh at each other.

I'm thankful he still thinks I'm pretty after all these years and tells me so everyday. Some days I think he is full of crap and is up to something but he truly means it.

Most of all, I am thankful the husband doesn't mind doing dishes and laundry! He got the short end of the stick with me regarding domestic chores. I apologize frequently for not being a good housewife. But he doesn't mind and I am so lucky! Just the other night, he said, "Honey, I'll do the dishes while you do your blog." I mean really, how many husbands say that?!

So here's to the husband and him putting up with me all these years. I love him so and am thankful for every minute we share together.

A Day of Work

Sunday we went to work early building a pen to wean the last of our calves. The original pen we built several months back is now housing our bulls so we had to reinforce another place for our wild little children.

They knew something was up with all the commotion of the tractor and truck in the pen. They came up to see what was going on.

First, we started by putting up some wire panels over the 6 strand barbwire.

Then we had to move very heavy bull panels with the tractor to build a pen inside the pen. That way we could sort easier and use it when loading.

The husband worked hard setting t-posts and wiring the panels together.

While he did that, I did a lot of this.....

standing there looking at my feet and this......

ahhh....the princess on her royal perch. Hmmm....looks like the princess has had a few too many royal sweets!! I digress....anyhoo...

While setting up the panels, we almost had a royal disaster. The husband had the princess, oh I mean, the wife hold three very heavy bull panels up while he tried forking them with the tractor. The weight of the panels plus the pressure from the forks pushed them over. At one point, the thought of broken and mangled arms flashed thru my head. I managed to let go of the panels and they fell against some wooden posts. Phew! Death by bull panels would not be my ideal way to go!

We finally managed to get the pen set up and the calves caught. I managed to avoid some other near misses involving an angry momma cow and her crazy bull calf while sorting. My goodness it was a stressful, life flash before your eyes, sorta day. The husband even yelled at me a couple times worried the cow/calf were gonna run me down. Stupid me, I stand my ground. Lucky me, they were just bluffin'!

So we have our calves penned up and the bawlin' has begun. Next Sunday, we are goin' to buck 'em. See if they are keepers or off to the sale. That's the fun part!

You Want Me to Put That Where?

The husband started dippin' again awhile back. He had quit for seven years and it was so nice. I hate spit bottles, they make me gag. And I don't care for copenhagen kisses. So the husband ordered some Dip Stop Non-Tobacco Chew off the internet. Yesterday, when I got home, the box was in the yard. Guess the dogs wanted to try the Dip Stop! That or the UPS man threw it and ran back to his truck! We will never know. Anyways, I left it on the counter for the husband.

He got home from work and opened it up. This was our conversation as he read the box....

H: "It says here that your partner needs to help you."

W: "What, your partner needs to help you? Why, where are you suppose to put that stuff?"

H: "Haha, very funny."

W: "Seriously, why would your partner need to help you with snuff? Am I suppose to pack it somewhere you can't reach?"

H: "Nevermind!"

W: laughing hysterically with my finger mimicking shoving the snuff up "somewhere".

H: "It says your partner should mix the non-tobacco with the tobacco so you don't know if you are using the non or the real."

W: looks at the husband with the "are you serious" look

H: "I think I can handle it myself."

Ahhhh, that's what I'm talking about!

The Great Cookie Swap

My bloggie buddy, CindyDianne, is trying to get a cookie swap going during the holiday season. It sounds like a lot of fun. I signed up for it but I think we are in need of some more cookie volunteers. So go here and check out the rules. With a little effort on your part, you will be greatly rewarded with a mailbox full of cookies. How sweet is that!

The Silver Bullet, Part Deux

In the light of day, I took a look at the Silver Bullet. Wanted to see the extent of the raccoon damage and the magic of zip ties.

We decided it would probably be best just to take the bottom of the front end off. We didn't see a real need for it so off it came.

Once we got it off, you could see the big dent on the left-hand side. That must have been the original point of impact.

As we discussed the damage, Zena decided to impersonate the raccoon.....

Then the husband got busy zip tying.

The coon busted the plastic from the screws underneath the car so the husband was trying to zip tie it up so it wouldn't drag or rub the tires. It's amazing the damage a little animal can do to a plastic car. Just hope a big animal never steps out in his way!

The Silver Bullet

I must tell you about the husband and his vehicle, the Silver Bullet. But first, let me give you the background story.

The husband bought a brand new pickup last year. It is very nice, however, he took a job about an hour and a half away from the house. When fuel prices started to soar, he decided he needed to buy a small car being it was the most affordable option at the time. One day, as I sat at my desk, he called and asked me to search the internet for a Kia Spectra. Which I did and he wanted to know what it looked like. Well, a regular 'ol car I said, why? He had found one at a local dealership and thought he would buy it.

A day or so later, he asked me if I could drive him into town so he could sign the paperwork and pick up the car. You really bought the car, sight unseen?? Oh my. I could never do that but the husband, not a problem for him. He had arranged for our banker to have the paperwork ready so all he had to do was pick up the car and take the signed papers back to the bank.

We get to the dealership bright and early. Go in and get the keys. We walk outside and this is what we see.....

Not a Kia Spectra but a Kia Spectra5. Not the same color they said, not the same options. Totally different car than the one he thought he was buying. We both looked at each other and said this can't be the car. The sales guy comes out and says, "whatcha think?" The husband said, "This isn't what I was told over the phone." Of course, we got the "oh yeah? Humm, this is what we discussed. Maybe you just misunderstood me or something." The sales guy left and I stood there in awe. I finally blurted out, "Damn, this is ugly!" I couldn't believe my bullrider of a husband was now the proud owner of a hatchback!

Over a year later, he has driven the tires off the little sucker. It gets him where he needs to go and doesn't cost us an arm and a leg in fuel so it's served its purpose. But Monday, he and the Silver Bullet had close call. On my way home from class, I spoke with him on the phone. It went something like this....

H: "I wrecked my car tonight."

W: "WHAT!! What do you mean you wrecked your car tonight?"

H: "On the way home from work, I hit a raccoon. And it tore my car up."

W: "A raccoon? What did a raccoon do to your car?"

H: "It busted the fog light casing. And tore the front end up. I had to stop and pull the fender out too."

W: "WHAT!"

H: "I pulled over but it was dark. So I went to the truck stop. Had to buy some zip ties to fix the bumper."

W: (laughing hysterically) "You zip tied your car together! That must have been like a super strength raccoon!"

H: "Well, when your car is only about 2 inches off the ground, it doesn't take a very big animal to tear it up."

When I got home that night, I shined my truck lights on his car. Sure enough, zip ties holding the bumper together. I laughed again.

The next day I asked the husband how the car was doing. He said he thought the zip ties were doing a great job and reinforced it quite well. Then yesterday he gets home and tells me he hit another raccoon. Another one??? Yep, but this time it only busted one of the zip ties. Those zip ties really did reinforce the front end of the car!

Maybe for Christmas, I can have a grill guard specially made for the Silver Bullet. However, by that time, the husband may have killed all the raccoons in the area. I'll just make sure we stay fully stocked on zip ties.

Just a Quick Funny...

Two sisters, one blonde and one brunette, inherit the family ranch. Unfortunately, after just a few years, they are in financial trouble. In order to keep the bank from repossessing the ranch, they need to purchase a bull so that they can breed their own stock.

Upon leaving, the brunette tells her sister, 'When I get there, if I decide to buy the bull, I'll contact you to drive out after me and haul it home.'

The brunette arrives at the man's ranch with $600, inspects the bull, and decides she wants to buy it. The man tells her that he will sell it for $599, no less. After paying him, she drives to the nearest town to send her sister a telegram to tell her the news. She walks into the telegraph office, and says, 'I want to send a telegram to my sister telling her that I've bought a bull for our ranch. I need her to hitch the trailer to our pickup truck and drive out here so we can haul it home.'

The telegraph operator explains that he'll be glad to help her, then adds, it will cost 99 cents a word.' Well, after paying for the bull, the brunette realizes that she'll only be able to send her sister one word.

After a few minutes of thinking, she nods and says, 'I want you to send her the word 'comfortable.'

The operator shakes his head. 'How is she ever going to know that you want her to hitch the trailer to your pickup truck and drive out here to haul that bull back to your ranch if you send her just the word 'comfortable?'

The brunette explains, 'My sister's blonde. The word is big. She'll read it very slowly....

'com-for-da-bul.'