Allison - The Idaho Rancher's Wife

A New Year

January 4, 2014 by Allison

Can you believe that 2014 has begun?!

I love new beginnings! Its so wonderful to start with a clean slate. I make mistakes (no one is surprised there) and although a new start doesn’t mean that past mistakes are gone, it does mean that you have the opportunity to rise above them.

Traditionally at the start of the new year we make resolutions. I’m big on that. Its like the ultimate year to-do list! And unlike most of my mom to-do lists, these kind of things can’t be undone, well some at least…

But this year I’m going for something a little different. I heard a quote recently that we are faced with the challenge to become. Become what, you may ask.

That is the beauty of it- you get to decide! So maybe this year I will focus a little more on what I want to become rather than just accomplishing new things. Life gives new avenues of adventure in the must unlikely places, places we may never have dreamt of. And while we may have a great list of things we hope to learn or habits to make, it might not accommodate the new road we are travelling.

Now, what is it I want to become? I’m not really sure… I guess I’m still trying to discover what that is but I can tell you it has to do with enjoying life on the ranch more and sharing it with more people.

I do know that I want to share it new ways with new people.

Any ideas?

Bring it on, 2014!

The Crew Part 2

January 3, 2014 by Allison

(He, he… the title rhymes!)

Do you want to know what was so cool about our family cattle drive last week? Well, yes the winter temperatures did make it a “cool” outing. What else made it especially cool was that we had all of The Rancher’s brothers.

There are five- that’s a lot of cowboys for one momma to handle. Thankfully she is still alive and sane.

We are always privileged to work with Cowboy Pete and Cowboy E while they still live on the ranch, and once again they graced us with their cowboy presence.

With it being Christmas brother #2 and his sweet wife were around to move cows with us. Wouldn’t it be fun to call them Bonnie and Clyde? Except that they are good kids so the name doesn’t fit. So instead lets call them The Cowpoke and The Montana Girl. Right now they are absent Eliason cowboys because they are becoming educated cow-folk.

And completing the cowboy brotherhood was brother #3. Last week we welcomed home The Buckaroo from his church mission to Kansas. In true cowboy fashion he was moving cows the day after he got home!

So already this is fun to move cows with all the brothers but something else cool was that there were four generations of cowboys out there from The Ranch Boss to The Rancher’s Sidekick. Its not too often that four generations get to work together!

The Crew

January 1, 2014 by Allison

Most of the time when we move cows we are with our neighbors and other ranchers. But now that our cows are alone we get to do it just us. Just the family. And what is even better is that we love to do it as a family.

Every family has their own thing that they like to do. We like playing games and working together.

From the Feed Truck

December 31, 2013 by Allison

I’d like to think I’m a tough girl. I mean, I have had babies. A mother by definition is tough, right?

Maybe I should admit that I do have a damsel-in-distress side that does counter my tough-cowgirl side, but as tough as I am, its ok that on the cold morning cattle drive I was invited to stay in the warm feed truck. We used the feed truck to lure the cows home. And it worked. It worked GREAT.

It took only a matter of minutes for all of the cows to come running up the hill. Every once in a while they did slow down. But all The Rancher needed to do to get them moving again was to pretend to drop the hay.

I thought I would get a little creative and take some pictures of the cows in the rear view mirror. Ya, that only works of the mirror is clean. I guess that my picture is proof that we are in a REAL ranch truck.

Moving Cows on a Cool, Clear Morning

December 30, 2013 by Allison

The cowboys decided that it was time to move the cows to the ranch now that winter is upon us. All though there isn’t a lot of snow, there is enough now that we have to feed every day. This means that The Rancher would have to take the hay to the cows each day or bring the cows home. Of course, they chose the latter.

So on a beautiful, clear morning we trailed the cows home. I really shouldn’t include myself in the “trailing” part of the move because we were at the head of the herd in the feed truck, coaxing them to come along. For once I have pictures at the front end of these cows!

Merry Christmas from The Rancher’s Wife

December 24, 2013 by Allison

It is Christmas Eve today and all of the holiday celebrations are building to make a special Christmas morning. The Rancher’s Sidekick is really gearing up for Santa to come and The Rancher Princess is totally into the wrapping paper, so regardless of how prepared I am it is here.

We have enjoyed the lights and the glitz and all of the fun that comes with the season, but tonight we are going to change our focus. Tonight we want to take a few moments to talk about the significance of that day so long ago. A small baby was born, whose life completely changed the world.

Ranch Winter Scenes

December 24, 2013 by Allison

I love winter. Pretty much everything about. The colder temperatures are so nice after a hot summer.

Winter time is calving time and there is something special about new babies.

I even love myself a little blizzard once in a while. I’m a hopeless romantic- the idea of being snugged up by the warm fire during a blizzard sounds so lovely. (Don’t let The Rancher read this… I might get in trouble by saying this out loud…)

But I especially love looking out over the ranch and seeing it covered in blanket of snow. Or the trees that are frosted and twinkling in the sunlight. Mmm… I love me some winter scenes.

Helpers of all Sizes, Especially Little Helpers

December 19, 2013 by Allison

Working on the ranch is a family affair. Partly because we all love to be out there but also because we need all the man (and woman)-power we can get. That usually means we get kid-power too because wherever I go, the kids go. So when we vaccinated the calves, The Rancher’s Sidekick came too.

This little boy loves to be on the ranch and already can be a great helper. He even has his own paddle to poke the calves through the chute. And he can “hup” with the best of them. His size is never a factor- he just finds a way to climb up or reach whatever he needs.

But sometime he needs a break. So we pull out his tractors and cars and plays on his own ranch. Life is never dull for a little boy living on a ranch…

… even though it can be very cold for little cowboys!

The Day we BANGs Vaccinated the Calves

December 18, 2013 by Allison

The temperatures have been pretty low lately. Like one day it was -18 at 10:00 am. Yuck! Of course that would be the day that The Rancher had to bring in a few stragglers from Black Pine. And move the cows to new pasture. And bring the heifers to the ranch to be vaccinated. I would say that he came in with cold cheeks but for once that silly beard of his might be worth having (can you tell I’m not a fan?).

And of course the next coldest day was when we BANGs vaccinated the calves. I’ll admit that on those cold days I’m a lot more willing to stay home to do the dishes and laundry, but sometimes I just gotta pull on my big girl boots and get to work.

You might be wondering why we just didn’t wait to do it until a warmer day. Ya that’s what I thought too. The Rancher told me that besides the fact that we would have to wait until spring if we used that logic, we had already scheduled the vet to be out here.

Most vaccines we just do ourselves, but the BANGs vaccination is state regulated and can only be administered by a vet. Brucellosis, the disease this vaccinations prevents, causes abortions in cows. The bacteria remains in the after birth, which can infect other animals or even humans if they come in contact with it. The bacteria also remains in the reproductive tract and can spread through a herd easily if a bull contracts and the breeds other cows. Its pretty serious stuff, hence all the regulations. As part of those regulations all heifers are required to get the vaccine from a vet.

To mark that these heifers have been BANGs vaccinated, they are given a special ear clip and a tattoo by the vet. Remember when I was saying it was cold? It was so cold that the tattoo ink was freezing on the brush. It took a little spit to keep it spreadable..

Look at the steam coming off the calves! Its stinking cold!

The Fruits of Our Christmas Tree Hunt

December 15, 2013 by Allison

Every hunt has its tale, which I have already shared as I began Norma’s Story. But what I didn’t share are the photos from our tree hunt. Pictures of The Rancher’s Sidekick and his grandpa cutting down a tree together (same tree, just 3 feet apart, and one using a saw and the other a small branch…) are just too fun not to share!

This year we had an extra treat. When we began to load up in the trucks, a herd (hazards of being The Rancher’s Wife- everything comes in herds…) of turkeys came gobbling through. The Rancher’s Sidekick jumped at the chance to feed them.