Feeling Like a Slug

It's simply one of those days. Every bone in my body feels lazy. I wish I could enjoy it, but I feel terribly guilty. There is always something that needs to be done and here I sit, not wanting to do any of it. To make matters worse, DH is out working. He is always working. Ranch life affords us so many incredible opportunities and I get to live this amazing life! However...

the hours are anything but normal. No 40-hour weeks around here. Honestly, you can put as much time into it as you want to, but DH doesn't have a lazy bone in his body and he is always working on something. He truly does ride for the brand and he works 7 days a week. He has an amazing work ethic which much of society seems to be lacking. He doesn't work more hours for more pay. His income is the same whether he works 30, 40, 60, 80 hours (or more) although the ranch is more profitable if he runs it correctly and then the end of the year numbers are much more to everyone's liking.

Its not as if we don't see him though. I like to go on feed runs with him and the kids are champion fence builders. The kids have been horseback with him for as long as they can remember. Every aspect of ranch work is a family affair. We work hard and we play hard together. There's often time to throw a fishing line in the dirt tank in hopes of catching dinner. It's an incredible way to raise a family although I have learned more about windmilling than I ever wanted to know. My degree's in Animal Science and I never knew a thing about windmills except that they make great photo subjects! Through the years, that has changed and I am now well versed in sucker rod and checks and cylinders and pump jacks and leathers and blocks and tackles. I have enjoyed every moment with the exception of the morning he woke me to fix the same windmill...for the 5th day in a row and when the mindmill had to be fixed even though the wind was blowing in excess of 50 mph.

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My BIL and his darling trio headed out on Friday. They spent a late night spotlighting on Thursdayand I tried to keep my eyes open until they came back to the house. At 11:30 I finally sighed and gave up. They came in some time after that.

It took me most of the day just to put things back in order. Wash sheets and towels. Pack up the last of the holiday decorations. Scrub down the kitchen. Put trundle beds away. Clean the bathroom. Wash the floors. Stand still for a minute and absorb the quiet. Get ready for a trip into town.

The last place I wanted to be was town, but there was a 4-H dance at the Elk's Lodge and DH and I had made plans to take some friends out to eat. We rarely (very rarely) eat out, but when we take the kids to a 4-H dance, DH and I enjoy a date night. DS was feeling under the weather and opted out. I envied the fact that he would be heading to bed early although I hated that he wasn't feeling well.

Very recently, a dear friend that we have known for 20 years moved to the ranch that neighbors us (about 15 miles) on the east end. With the holiday craziness, we have been unable to get together and I was looking forward to meeting his new wife. We ended up enjoying a wonderful supper with good company and great conversation. I adore his new wife and look forward to getting together with them often.

DD brought her best friend home from the 4-H dance and they stayed up laughing and talking until the weeeeee hours of the morning. I, however, was oblivious to it all. My head hit the pillow and I was out like a light and morning dawned much too soon.

I took DD and her friend over to the neighbor's yesterday where her friend's brother was working to drop her off, but there was a last minute change of plans and she came back home with us for one more night. Love this kid and she's welcome here anytime. Then I spent a bit of time visiting with said neighbor who is a hoot. She has become a very dear friend and when she and I and dear friend #3 get together, gut busting laughter will be the 4th ingredient and there will be plenty of it. I have been blessed with amazing friends!

This afternoon I planted the Canna bulbs that my friend shared with me yesterday and they will make me smile every time I look at them when they bloom. She has an amazing green thumb and graciously shares her gardening gift with her brown-thumbed friend.

I guess I wasn't completely worthless today. I did make bacon and biscuits and gravy this morning and bread and roast and potatoes and a salad for dinner. We have enough leftovers from the past two days so we are having a YOYO (you're on you're own) supper tonight.

3 late nights in a row are more than I can handle these days. I want to crawl into my bed by 7 and curled up underneath my flannel quilt with a good book.

The day of the slug is officially over.

Favorite Photos

Well, just a few of them. It would take until next Christmas to share all of them. I am a picture taking fool.

Due to the demise of my beloved camera, I am feeling low and in order to lift my dampened spirits I thought I would post a few of the memories we've shared together.

These are from 2003 and 2004.

Here is DS in the creek. He has always gravitated towards snakes and lizards. As he lay in the creek, this little frog hopped up his arm onto his shoulder. Love the expression on his face. Our children spent much of their childhood in the creek.

Unless it looked looked like this. Same creek, same spot.

The water would move so much rock that we were unable to cross it even after the water had receded so we would have a day of dueling tractors

Here DH is hauling tractor tires into the canyon via his trusty horse because it was the only way we could reach the tractor that was 2 miles back in the canyon. This was a fun day. A monday morning fieldtrip for us.

At one point we had trouble with the lions killing the deer and calves.

Branding day:

Cowboys are never too busy to take time out for a donut break. On the last day of works, I always make homemade donuts:

Here is DS tending to one of our doggie calves:

Branding time is family time and everyone pitches in:

We work hard, but we play hard too. Fishing is one of our favorite ways to relax. Love this photo of DS and DD:

DD's love for horses is quite evident in many of the photos I have snapped.

Here's another favorite:

Here are DH and DS moving the mares and colts across the ranch. The majesty of these mountains just takes my breath away. I love everything about this photo.

Lean on me:

A couple of friends came over to scrap one day and when I turned around and peeked into the living room I saw DS snuggled up with one friend's little girl. So sweet!

Baby birds nestled in an old tin can:

Maaaaammmmmaaaaa!

Snapped this one early morning. We left out at 4 one morning to haul DH and the kids to the other side of the ranch. As I was coming back, I stopped to admire the sunrise and snap a few pictures. I was so thrilled to have captured this shot!

That's all folks! I'll add some more at another time. I am feeling a bit better because browsing through my photos makes me smile.

Death of a Camera

It is a sad, sad day at the end of the dirt road.

Sob.

Yesterday I had to say goodbye to my camera. It died.

No, I know it doesn't seem very important to you, but it's my blog and I feel the need to write about it.

Sob.

I loved this camera. And for those of you that know me, you know that I am not a materialistic person. THINGS simply do not mean much to me, although I will admit that I wouldn't turn down a dishwasher if it just happend to find it's way down my road.

However, my camera is my companion. It rarely leaves my side ~ just ask my kids or my DH.

5 years ago I was suddenly dragged into the digital age when my film camera took a dip into Madera Creek as I was taking the perfect photo of the kids playing in the rushing water. It was an old camera, but I was still sad to see it go. The repair shop said that parts would be hard to come by, if not impossible. It would cost more to repair than to purchase a new one. My mom sent me money to buy a new one for my birthday.

A new era was upon me.

After reading everything I could get my hands on and spending 4 hours hounding the very patient man at the camera shop, I was the proud owner of a new Olympus C-5050. It was one of the only 5-megapixel cameras on the market and it was mine. There was only one problem.

I was scared of it.

Go ahead and laugh, but the fact remains ~ an entire 3 months of my family's life is lost and unchronicled due to the fact that I was afraid of that camera.

That nice man who owned the camera store told me that it was a "thinking man's camera". Yikes.

I brought it home and there it sat. On the dresser. In it's pretty box.

Six weeks passed and the nice camera shop man called me. How did I like my new camera? I really liked George when I met him. Now I liked him even more. How sweet of him to call and check on the crazy lady.

Uh, George. I'm certain I'll like it very much....once I take it....out of the box.


He reassured me that I could handle it. Such confidence! Such assurance! Such belief!

I was still scared.

So what prompted me to release my newly acquired camera from its confined box? DD. She was about to pack up for her very 1st Horse Judging Competition and here I was without a camera.

I grabbed the box and ran out the door.

I have never looked back. The first picture I ever took with it was in the hotel room as DD's horse judging coach yelled, "Dogpile!" and everyone jumped onto the bed. Yes, it is sad that I remember that 1st photo so clearly, but that camera became my new best friend that day and my children will look back on the past 5 years with clarity and fondness because my camera and I were there to capture the moments.

Call me silly. Call me sick. Call me odd.

Once again, after 12,573 photos (no wonder I can't seem to get caught up on my scrapping!), my beloved C-5050 is no more and I find myself wading through a digital jungle that has grown exponentially since I first set foot in it.

Once again I am afraid.
I am afraid of spending that much money.
I am afraid of making the wrong choice.
I am afraid of having to learn a new camera all over again.

But mostly, I am afraid of not getting that next shot. So today is the day. The day I will make my selection.

Maybe.

Ringing in the New Year

Gee. The new year has only just begun and I already feel as if I'm running late. Happy New Year everyone! We didn't do much ringing in on the 31st. We turned down 3 invitations from friends to get together and I feel badly about doing so. We just did not have the energy.

I've had 2 days to recuperate from all the holiday company. 4 of them will be returning tomorrow. With the exception of the past 2 days, we've had overnight company for 2 weeks straight.

This morning I took down all the holiday decorations and packed them back up. The house looks empty and naked.

I've caught up on laundry and spent much of the past 2 days working on a holiday puzzle. We love puzzles even though it seems we only do about 2 a year. No-one seems to want to work on them until I pull one out. The kids didn't work on this one too much. DH and I were kind of puzzle hogs. That means we spent much of New Year's Day hovering over missing pieces. I cooked the proverbial Black-eyed peas and a pork loin for dinner, but shied away from the kitchen as much as possible. We had enough leftovers stashed in the refrigerator to see us through these past few days.

The kids started out the new year with sore throats and that icky, achy feeling that often signals an onslaught of "Momma, I don't feel well". We all needed these two days to just lie low and hibernate and fill up on vitamin C. Thankfully, they are feeling better.

I am not feeling very hospitable today. I am simply companied-out. This time my BIL and his kids are only staying one night ~ I think. DS will give up his room, make his bed in the office and we'll pull out trundle beds for everyone else. I adore this bunch and wish they could come more often, but I am just wore out. That's what happens when you get old...so I'm told.

I wouldn't know.
I'm not old.
I just feel that way.