Buckaroo Bundles and a Box Supper

The kids are preparing for the 4-H Valentine's Dance today. Along with the dance, they are having a Box Supper. Not sure how many of you remember box suppers (I don't), but I have read enough historical fiction, heard stories from grandparents and seen Little House on the Prairie enough to know what they are.



According to the 4-H leader, the kids aren't supposed to do anything fancy. She said that a pizza would be fine, but something in me just thinks that is wrong. I know that she is trying to make it easy, people are awfully busy these days. Yes, everyone will probably want to bid on the pizza ~ who doesn't love pizza, but I guess I'm just old fashioned enough to think that there should be some element of 'homemade' to this box supper. Fried chicken with all the fixins seems to be the obvious choice, but since we're cattle ranchers and I have a freezer filled with beef, fried chicken will have to find its way into someone else's box.

The kids are making Buckaroo Bundles and Cowboy Cookies. I thought it would be fun to have a western theme for their box. Since nobody knows how wonderful these Buckaroo Bundles are, we should be able to buy our own box back. Don't know if that's against the rules or not, but hey, it's a 4-H fundraiser and we've got to eat anyway!

So I thought I'd share my recipe for these yummy meals in a pocket:

Buckaroo Bundles

3 loaves of frozen bread dough

2 lbs lean ground beef

1 chopped onion

pepper, garlic and seasoning salt to taste

5 potatoes, peeled and cubed (I cut these pretty small)

green chile (if you can get your hands on fresh green chile, I highly recommend it! It really does make all the difference)

*Thaw out the bread dough (don't let it rise, just thaw it out enough so that it can be rolled out)

*Brown the ground beef and onion and season to taste.

*In the meantime, cook the potatoes (I fix mine in the Wok and they look like this)

*When the potatoes are done, add them to the cooked ground beef

*Toss in green chile (amounts will depend on whether you like it with a bit of heat to it or not) Here's what it looks like when the potatoes and the green chile are added to the ground beef:

*Roll out a loaf of dough and cut into 8 squares like this:

*Roll out each square. Place a couple tablespoons of meat mixture in the middle and seal the dough around the meat. It will look like a baseball.

*Place on cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 20-30 minutes or until lightly browned.

These are so good! They are equally tasty when they are cooled and they freeze well. Makes 24 Buckaroo Bundles.

I used to make these for DH to pack into his saddle bags when he would take off to check cattle on horseback and not be back for dinner. They were a great alternative to a smooshed sandwich! This past fall I had to fix them for the crew because one of the guys said that I was famous for my cooking. Hmmm... that could be good or bad. Turns out he was talking about these Buckaroo Bundles. I fixed them for the crew once when I had to haul a handheld dinner to them on another part of the ranch about 7 years ago. Apparently one of the guys who had never helped us before, walked up to the tailgate and saw the bread. He thought, "Man! All we get is rolls?!" He grabbed one and bit into it and he told everyone after that that it was the best meal he had ever eaten. Seems that story has made the rounds. And just to set things straight, I did not only have rolls. They had a couple different bags of chips and sticks of cheese and stuffed jalapenos and baby carrots and 2 kinds of homemade cookies for dessert. They did not go hungry.

I have made these hundreds of times in the past 20 years. They are great for picnics, potlucks, ropings, ranch rodeos, road trips and stock shows. Enjoy!

Here's what their box looks like. Still need to add some ketchup and a couple of drinks. Yes, they filled the box with hay from the barn and wrapped it in western paper. I think it looks neat! Wonder how much I'll have to shell out buy it back.

12 on 12 ~ February

Happy Valentine's Day y'all! Hope your day is filled with hugs and kisses and all things sweet~ which of course includes much chocolate!

I frequent a scrapbooking site that is filled with amazingly creative people and and they have presented a fun project that I am going to try. If photography's involved, you've pretty much got my attention. Its simple ~ take 12 photos on the 12th of each month and scrap them in one layout. I missed January and I may have to recreate it ~ ok, cheat, but I enjoyed viewing the day through the lens of my camera. Since the 12th fell on Tuesday this month, it meant a trip into town for us, so many shots originated there.

I have to admit that this project even made a day in town fun for this dirt road girl. Photos of town don't generally make their way into my scrapbooks. In fact, I don't even have a scrapbook for me. I scrap our lifestyle and the kids have lots of scrapbooks, but I haven't yet made a book of me yet. I have a few ideas floating around, but they have yet to make it onto a page. Maybe this will get me started.

So here is a peek into my life on Tuesday:

1. It started out early! DH was heading to the northern part of the state to pick up 4 bulls. I really wanted to jump in with him, but DD had her piano lesson so he made the trip solo. See, even the camera has blurry eyes this early in the morning!

2. Getting an early start to the morning means I've got some extra time to work on my Bible study lesson. Truth be told, I often let most of the week get away from me before I sit down to work on this. Don't know why because I am learning so much and thoroughly enjoying the Monday night fellowship with this amazing group of ladies:

3. DH left before the horses came up so we went out to serve them their breakfast. What a glorious morning! I certainly didn't relish the thought of spending it in town!

4. I really needed to complete my lesson plans for the week before the week disappeared so I spent some time getting that on paper. I make my lesson plans in pencil because more often than not, I will be erasing them and making changes.

5. Aahhh! The bookstore! One of our favorite places to spend time. I picked up "The Grapes of Wrath" for my next book. I've always wanted to read this. Not sure why, it's not exactly a 'fun' read, but I have been slowly working my way through some of the classics. I checked this out at the library last summer, but I never got around to it and the library wouldn't let me have it for the entire summer. Hmph! Now that we have it, I think we'll all read it.

6. Next stop ~ piano lessons ~ DD has the most amazing teacher and they started out working on their present duet, "Give Me That Old Time Religion".

7. I treated myself to a quick trip to Hobby Lobby while DD was practicing. Hard to resist their 50% off sales. I picked up a couple pieces of paper, a stamp and some brads ~ all half-price or on clearance.

8. After picking up DD, it was off to peruse the aisles of Valentine goodies at the store! 9. ...and pick up a few groceries ~ ick! Yes, those are BOXED blueberry muffin mixes! I want to make heart-shaped blueberry muffins for Valentine's Day and the fresh blueberries are WAY too expensive. This mix actually has 2 cans of blueberries in it and it's less expensive ~ go figure. Oh, and I have a coupon too! Hmmm...I see that DD managed to sneak in a few boxes of granola bars as well. She said that she needs to stash them because DS, who is 17 and always hungry, can devour 3 of these bars in a matter of minutes.

10. Ever since the kids were little, we would stop for a treat at Dairy Queen when we made our monthy trips to town in the summer. Somewhere along the way, we all developed a taste for their strawberry shakes. Yes, I know it's not summer, but it was a beautiful spring-like day and that shake was calling my name. Hey, it's a tradition!

11. On our way home, we made a quick detour and stopped in at the neighboring ranch. My friend L. had hauled in some really good dirt from her Dad's farm and she told us to come and get what we wanted for our flower beds. So we threw a couple of molasses tubs into the truck that morning and filled them up on our way home. Ok ~ go ahead and laugh, but I was really excited about this dirt! I can't wait for spring! One of my favorite things to do is dig in the dirt ~ I suppose I just never really grew up. Added bonus: we got a workout lifting those tubs back into the pickup! Heave Ho!

12. And last, but not least, here are the newest additions to our ranching family:

And here's the subsequent scrapbook page. I am giving myself lots of brownie points for actually getting this scrapped just 2 days after the 12th! That's a huge accomplishment for me! I even used the paper I bought on Tuesday and a couple of the brads.

That was fun! Can't wait for next month! Whew that was a long post ~ sorry!

Blame it on the Kidneys

No, I have not deserted you. And I have not come here to pile on the excuses either. I've simply been the victim of a kidney infection for the past week. Between running to the bathroom every 15 minutes, homeschooling, cooking, cleaning, and scowling at the wind, the week just disappeared.

I spent the entire week drowning in a river of cranberry juice until a dear friend clued me in on the fact that cranberry tablets are available. Who knew? Between the cranberry tablets, cranberry juice, Cystex, Activia, lots of water and prayers from the great gals at Bible Study, I am no longer dependent on having access to a bathroom at all times.

Last night ~ or rather this morning ~ at the not-so-convenient hour of 3:00 ~ I found myself wide awake with voices running through my head, "You haven't blogged lately...", "Shouldn't you be writing something...", "You do know that blogging comes with responsibility...", "tsk...tsk..".

Grrr...thanks a lot! So here I sit.

The bright spot in my week was when I was hired for a photography shoot!

Well, kind of...

No money changed hands, but I did get a kiss!

DH asked me to take some photos of the Corriente steers so that we could send them out to prospective buyers. I jumped at the chance to leave the schoolbooks and dishes behind and grab my camera. He knew that my kidneys were having issues so he offered to reschedule, but I told him it would be fine. Ha! Let's just say that I don't recommend climbing over fences, sitting on tops of gates and standing on the top rail of a fence with one arm wrapped around a pole for support or dodging cattle when you are plagued with a kidney ailment. Just thought I'd share that piece of information for future reference.

By the time I saw the boys heading towards the pens that morning, the thermometer had risen to 42. With no wind and the sun beaming, it was absolutely beautiful. I was really excited to test out my zoom lens and I'm tickled with it's capabilities. I was pretty far from here:

And even further here, but I had to laugh when I saw this photo. Our dog, Sam, is a 12-yr old, retired cow dog. I wasn't even sure whether he would make it through the winter and here he is, acting like a puppy doing what he loves to do and what he does so well:

And here's what I was supposed to take pictues of:

No, Clint, please don't say anything funny because the bathroom is W...A...A...AAAAY over there and I'm not sure I can scramble off the top of this fence and run through all these pens fast enough to get there:

I should have used a higher aperture on these because the automatic mode yielded a shallow depth of field, but in the end, I kind of like how the guys aren't in focus:

Alas, the only thing they really want pictures of is the horns anyway, but I had fun although I forgot just how far it was from the top of the fence to the bathroom.

The Typical Day

The wind has finally stopped blowing, but just in case you haven't had enough, I thought I would share the following:

Below you will find the story that accompanies this photo that I shared with y'all the other day:

This particular day took place in March of 2004.

It's been an interesting day. I guess I should begin by saying that I plan to incorporate today’s happenings into the book that my mom suggested I write. Its title will be, “If My Mother Could See Me Now” and the chapter will be entitled, “The Typical Day”. The title of the chapter came to me as I was standing in my attic today amidst 50 mph winds (they had died down considerably) gazing at the brilliant, blue sky. Suddenly I broke out into laughter and received a very perplexed, albeit amused, stare from DH. Let me start from the beginning.

This morning I received a request via e-mail from a few wonderful people on a scrapbooking group I am a part of. They had asked me what a typical day would entail for me. I thought, "That sounds like fun! Why not pick today?"

After what we experienced today, it suddenly seemed quite comical to think of this as a typical day. A typical day?! Do people really have those?!

This morning I had planned to get a full day of school in. Ha! I should know better than to plan something like that! It all began in a very orderly, quiet manner, even going so far as to have everyone on task and working on math by 7:30 (that should have been my first clue). All was quiet, with the exception of the wind whistling itself into an uproar outside. Homemade cookies were baking in the oven and my 2 students were working diligently. DH came in at 9:00(2nd clue), smuggled a couple of cookies and asked for my assistance on a windmill. I took one look outside and asked him why this seemed to be so urgent and could it not wait for things to calm down a bit. His reply was, “No. We need the water at Big Mill and the wind is blowing now”.

Let me add here that this well has been down for about 10 days and a couple of guys came down from the Frying Pan Ranch to help pull it on Tuesday. All that was left to do was connect the rods. Yesterday, DH and DS cleaned out the storage tank so all systems were go.

DH packed up the truck with all the essential tools, we all clammored in and we made our way to the designated area. I was really apprehensive when DH began to climb the tower. He just looked at me and asked, “Do you want to climb it”? No thank you very much, I will choose to keep my feet planted very firmly on solid ground. So DH proceeded to give me directions (which I might add is very rare, very rare indeed as he seems to think that I possess the uncanny ability to read his mind. At times I am quite capable of this. Then there are times, as when we are working on a windmill, when the gift seems to escape me entirely and I require a bit of instruction).

So DH ascends the tower and I begin to pray. I might also include here that I spent the rest of the day doing so. The wind was really out of hand and it was only the grace of God that kept my husband attached to that tower. Needless to say, I was supposed to communicate to him when the sucker rod was connected as he turned the fan blades. I thought I did that, however, the wind kept my message from reaching the man that was clinging to the side of the windmill. Now, I can be really loud when I need to be, but the wind had the upper hand and try as I might, I could not be heard and my hand signals were apparently not sent in He-man language. So DH made his way to the ground where I proceeded to tell him that he still needed to move the wheel a bit more so that I could fit the rods together. He is not happy at that point and tells me that I should have told him that before he came down. (Um, I TRIED!) He then says that the wind is only blowing about 10 times harder up on top of the tower and he can’t hear me.

So up he goes once more and we are successful in our attempt to connect the sucker rods. Hey, I didn't even drop the rod back into the well casing! For those of you that don't know, that means the well must be pulled again. Don't ask me how I know this. I didn’t even get grouchy when DH sprayed the pipe that connects the windmill to the storage tank pipe and the lubricant ended up lubricating my face more than it did the pipe. Nasty stuff. Not recommended as a facial moisturizer. Reminder, keep mouth closed.

Our children, who were 9 and 12, wisely chose to find refuge in the truck after DS decided he had run after his hat one too many times. He collected his sister who was very nearly on the verge of being blown away and safely deposited her in the cab. Their eyes were wide as saucers and they were most surely thinking that their parents had taken a leave of their senses.

I released the brake and the windmill creaked and turned to catch the raging winds. The sucker rod brought that cold, clear mountain water to the surface in record time and we breathed a sigh of relief as it began to splash into the empty storage tank. Glancing up at the windmill housing and watching the blades whip themselves into a frenzied blur, I remember thinking that there is no place on earth I would rather be and I gave a quick prayer of thanks to God.

Thank You for letting me live this amazing life.

Thank You for protecting my husband while he was plastered against the windmill.

Thank You for not letting the wind carry my children away.

Thank You for the wind which brings this precious water to the surface.

You can turn it down a notch or two whenever You're ready.

As soon as the tank is filled would be good.

Just a suggestion.

Thank You.

DH followed us back to the house in the tractor. The kids and I drove up to the house about 10 minutes before he did and settled back into our schoolwork. Not 5 minutes after we got back, we heard this horrendous, ripping sound that sent chills up my back. The house shook and rattled! After holding our breath for a minute (and sending up another prayer), I cautiously ventured outside and saw that the roof of our home was perched at an unusual angle. DH drove up as I stood in front of the house in disbelief. He parked the tractor and we walked around the house. The west side of the house was now sporting a very large, gaping sunroof. The tin had folded over on itself and was gathered at the north side of the house, with an unusually large overhang outside our bedroom. The sky was quickly filling with angry pieces of pink insulation that were whipping around the new opening and we noticed numerous loose rafter pieces that were hanging askew, threatening to join the others that littered the ground.

DH climbed up into the attic and I followed after checking on the kids. DD was scared and DS was simply stunned. I comforted them before climbing up after hubby where we began to pile what insulation we could into a protected corner. (This is when I began to laugh) It was either laugh or cry and I couldn't help but think about the request I had received this morning. DH then chained part of the roof down and we called it good.

The North wall in DD's room had shifted away from the house so she is calmly sleeping in our bedroom tonight. The pipe that vents our water heater has disappeared and the light fixture in the laundry room is askew as well. There are little pinholes of light peeking through the dining room and kitchen ceiling and some sheet rock damage, but we are safe.

Tomorrow a carpenter is coming out to assess the damage and at the moment, all is well and the wind is behaving itself. It’s been quite a day! Sigh ~ I hope that your day was much less exciting, but thank you for letting me share my ‘typical’ day. Let's hope we don't have too many more of these! There is never a dull moment around here, but this kind of excitement, I can do without!