Crazy Busy Beginning to the New Year

Thought I ought to at least check in with ya'll and let you know that I have not fallen off the face of the earth. Seems the more I try to slow the world down, the faster it spins and thus, January has been a complete blur, but I haven't been flung off just yet.

All is well, I've just been on the go far too much. Today was a cold, rainy, slow, relaxing day - just what the doctor ordered. I didn't cook for a single soul - well, I did warm up breakfast burrito fixings for DH and Grandpa at 6, but that was the extent of it. It was so wet that we sent Grandpa back home because there wasn't any use tearing up all the roads or getting stuck. DD was in town for her college classes(she mudded her way to the pavement) and DH and I had a rare day at home together, alone. DH couldn't go anywhere because the roads were a mucky mess, so with the exception of 2 trips to the barn to chore, we holed up inside. He rarely spends much time indoors, but today he had a chance to catch up on his paperwork and work on inventory. Later we curled up and watched a movie with mugs of hot tea and a quilt while the good Lord blessed us with an entire day of gentle rain. I love it that God knows what we need, when we need it!

After the chaos of the holidays, I was looking forward to a quiet January, but it started it out with some company (which I enjoyed), friends over for supper, an 8 day trip to help my Mom with taxes and business paperwork, 1 day home, repacked and headed to Albuquerque for a 3 day Senior Leadership Retreat with 250 teenagers (a fun, but exhausting trip), back home to buy groceries and cook for a crew of 12 for 3 days, another batch of company, and then finally take a breath for a day. Yesterday we shipped out 200 steers and tested the Corrientes and I was in the kitchen again. It's been nuts and January has come and gone in a whirlwind of activity.

While I was in Albuquerque, a dear friend whom I hadn't seen in about 3 years (far too long!) drove in and I snuck away for about 4 hours to catch up with her. It wasn't nearly long enough, but it was a huge blessing!

Blessing #2 - We're having a wonderful, wet winter. 5 snows at last count intermingled with occassional rains. Makes me long for spring...minus the winds, which never fail to make their mark on an otherwise glorious season. I'm thinkin we'll actually have a green spring and I'm looking forward to getting my hands in the dirt!

The other day I jumped in with DH and we went to feed bulls. I was in need of a big dose of fresh dirt road air after spending so much time in urban areas. As soon as we hit the paved road, we met a snowplow. They actually closed the road sometime the previous evening, but the sun was out and I thought it would make quicker work of the snow than the snowplow. We only had about 2 or 3 inches the day before, hardly worth the time and effort and money and much of it had already melted.

Bulls don't move very quickly, but you might get them to lumber a bit faster when they see the hay headed their way.

Every other day we drop a big bale for them to dine on and with a call of the siren, they eventually make their way to the breakfast table.

Where they devour a ton of hay at $170 in no time.

They never seem very appreciative about it either. Seems as if this fella woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Oh well, I suppose we all have our days.

Oh my, look at that scowl! Hope he makes time for a nap today.

I wanted to snap some pictures of DH doling out the hay, but someone had to drive and DH frowns upon me snapping pictures while I'm supposed to be driving across the pasture and avoiding the mesquite. Go figure.
Not everyone's disagreeable today. This ol' boy kept grunting his thanks.

A nap actually sounds pretty good, but when I take one, I wake up grouchier than before and I love my family too much to do that to them, so I think I'll just turn in early tonight and hope that February isn't quite as packed as January was. Grin! Looking at the calender, it's safe to say that I might have to wait until March...of next year!

Ode to a Horse: Remembering Poncho

Yesterday was the hardest day. We had to put down a very special horse, the best horse in the world. Poncho was 28 and he had been with us for 24 of those years. He enriched our lives and gave us so many wonderful memories for many years. It was so hard to let him go.

DH bought him in Dripping Springs, Texas just after he graduated from college and before we were married, so technically, he had Poncho longer than he's had me! Poncho turned out to be a great roping horse and a super little cow pony. He never got real big, but DH could put him in any situation and Poncho would always tend to business. When I rode, he was the one I chose. Then the kids came along and he turned out to be worth his weight in gold. Priceless, really. Any of you that are around horses and kids know that a good kid horse is hard to come by. Poncho was a horse you could count on and he had a sweet disposition. The kids have been riding since before they could walk and I never worried when they were partnered with this good old boy. They would often mount up and ride out into a pasture just to see the sights, in search of the next great adventure, which we all know, is just over the next hill. He raised them both and they formed a bond that can never be broken.

He was the parade horse, the roping horse, the show horse, the cowhorse, the reliable horse, the 4-H horse, the reining horse, the cutting horse, the sweet horse, the "let's go on an adventure" horse, the kid horse, and the "I'm really feeling sad and I need someone to talk to" horse.

He was DDs first love and as far as I'm concerned, every little girl should be so blessed.

DH has had lots of horses through the years, but they all pale in comparison to this amazing equine. He wouldn't win any beauty pageants, but he was the most beautiful horse to all of us. He had heart and we will forever treasure the memories.

There are countless memories that swim through my mind when I think back through the years, but I'll leave you with just a few of the pictures that show how very much he was loved. After all, he was a very important member of the family and he will be dearly missed.

Sorry, the slideshow is in the next post so just scroll down.

Thanks Ol' Boy!

Texas Caviar

Happy New Year Ya'll! Hope everyone had a safe and fun slide into 2010. I don't know about ya'll, but my January is filling up fast...too fast. I thought January was supposed to be the quiet month.

We had friends over last night and here's a recipe I made that I wanted to share with ya'll. I grew up with the tradition of having to have Black-eyed peas on New Year's Day and this is a yummy way to enjoy that. Even folks who don't care for black eyed peas seem to like this.

I'm not sure where the whole 'black-eyed peas will bring good luck' story originated and I'm not going to promise you good luck if you eat this, but just enjoy it because it's good stuff!

Texas Caviar

2 (15-ounce) cans black-eyes peas, drained

1 (15-ounce) can whole kernal corn, drained

1 (10-ounce) can Rotel

1/4 c chopped red bell pepper

1/4 c chopped green bell pepper

1/4 c chopped onion

1 chopped jalapeno

Dressing:

1/2 c red wine vinegar

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 Tbsp Dijon mustard

1/4 tsp sugar

pinch dried oregano

1/2 c olive oil

1/2 c vegetable oil

Just combine the first 7 ingredients. I combine the dressing ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid and shake to blend. Then just pour it over the pea mixture and stir. Let the mixture set in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight and then serve with Scoops tortilla chips.

Oh, and if you're really short on time and in a pinch...just substitute Italian dressing.

It's such a colorful dip, and a good salad /side dish for those summer get togethers. Before you know it, we'll be planning those!

So here's wishing all of you a healthy, happy, blessed New Year!

One Last Christmas Project

Hey ya'll! Hope everyone had a blessed Christmas! We had snow on Christmas Eve and that always makes me happy! Yesterday we had another 3" or so. 4 snows so far makes this an unusually wet winter. If this keeps up, we'll have a really amazing spring!

I just wanted to pop on here for a minute and share the last Christmas project of the season. I know most of you are tired of Christmas, but I've had some requests to share this and this is the first chance I've had to do so and it's easily adaptable for other occasions.

On the 23rd I decided I needed to make this. A neat gal (Thanks Elaine!) on a site I frequent (Hi SS buddies!) made one and I thought, "well that looks like a quick, easy project". The original idea came from here:

http://www.modabakeshop.com/2009/11/fabric-wreath.html

Then I started thinking how you could make these for different seasons and holidays and how they would make great gifts. So I made one and I really like the way it turned out, but if any of you attempt one like it, it comes with a warning....

The project starts with a jellyroll bundle which is a thick roll of fabric cut in 2 1/2" widths. Then you just cut those into 5 1/2" lengths and start tying them to your wreath form. Well, first off those jellyrolls are expensive and I found some fabric on sale and added some that I had in my stash. Thus, you have to cut it yourself and use pinking shears on the edges. It's a lot of cutting folks. I used 6 yards of fabric and then added some brown tulle, which by the way, is very uncooperative. I purchased a wire wreath form at Hobby Lobby. And I tied...and tied...and tied....for 2 days. And here's the warning...your fingers will hurt... that night... and the next day...a lot.

And no, I don't need any reminders about the fact that I am no longer a spring chicken.

I imagine if you just worked on this a bit every day instead of tying for 4 hours straight at a time, you might not run into the achy finger dilemma. However, once I start a project, I have trouble walking away from it. My Mom even called me a bulldog, referring to my stubborn determination. But, I did finish it, and I ended up giving it to her, but here's the end product:



As the stiffness and aching faded, I must have forgotten (once again, nothing to do with my age!)my resolve to never make another because when I was in town the other day, I found myself purchasing the perfect material for a Valentine's wreath...