Allison - The Idaho Rancher's Wife

A Preview

September 20, 2013 by Allison

I have beans processing so I am having a late night blogging to you, dear friends. The Rancher is keeping me company. He is sleeping of course but can you blame him? He has had some really LONG days the past couple of weeks. We are heavy into weaning and everything that comes with it. Not only that but the Rancher’s Wife is also busy in the kitchen doing some canning. All of the fun fall things seem to come together at once. But we love it! All of it!

I realized today that when The Rancher has big things happening that either he needs help (I’m sure he doesn’t need me but I like to think that he does) or its worth taking pictures of. That means I put off the house stuff like laundry (who need underwear, right?) or canning or… BLOGGING?! Ya, I want to get out there to experience and capture the ranch, which means sometimes I neglect the sharing.

I guess that makes this a bit of a preview. I have LOADS of pictures. And stories. And some interesting things you might enjoy learning. Until then (hopefully that’s just tomorrow), here a picture or two to hold you over.

What do we do when we wait for dad?

September 15, 2013 by Allison

What does any little boy do? Throw rocks, of course! Last week we helped The Rancher move the cows and we had a little down time. Call it intermission- they had two different groups of cows to moves so on the in between we had some time to play. We were lucky enough that we parked the truck and trailer by the one small trickling stream that comes through the valley.

The Cenex Man

September 13, 2013 by Allison

We took a quick jaunt up to Montana to visit my folks before we all got too busy with the fall work. It had been since Christmas that The Rancher was able to make it up there so thought it was time for a road trip. We ended up going in the middle of the week, which doesn’t leave a lot of playing time since my parents both work. No matter, the Rancher’s Wife is always up for a challenge!

My dad works for CHS (Cenex Harvest States) delivering practically whatever his customers need. He does any kind of feed, mineral, salt, gates, panels, fencing materials… whatever you need he can get (usually). Currently The Cenex Man is working to get the materials for a group of ranches to build about 13 miles of fence through some of the most beautiful country. On our way up to make the delivery I had to stop to take a few pictures because it was just beautiful. These are my mountains and ranges. Yes it is all covered with the same grass and sage brush but it has a special place in my heart. Its home.

Made it to the Finals!

September 13, 2013 by Allison

After the summer of team penning and brandings (and sortings… I don’t know why we don’t ever mention that in the name…) the winners have a chance to come back at one final competition. The Rancher made it on a team for the team sort. The team wasn’t too competitive but The Rancher did good. And more importantly he looked good doing it!

The Rancher’s Sidekick even took some pictures on my phone. Yes, kids are so tech savvy…

Can you see all of the MUD in the arena? We had a beautiful, wonderful rain storm the night before that soaked the arena. Along the side of the grandstand was especially bad because there was runoff from the roof as well. It made for a fun ride!

My Favorite Kind of Day

September 9, 2013 by Allison

The ranching men were moving cows again and they did it in the best way. They brought them in front of the house so we could easily grab some pictures and come along. They initially were only moving one bunch but since they had the men and the time they moved another group. It was really time that they did too because this darn bunch of cows were always getting out! Funny how being without feed makes these cows get out…

The Super Rancher

September 6, 2013 by Allison

There is a lot that being a dad requires. Probably more than what The Rancher ever thought he would have to do (you can imagine some of the icky things has been privileged to do). But there are days the cool days when he is so much more than a dad. Days when he gets to strap on his Super Hero cape and save the day!

Like Friday. I opted to not do laundry and go on a ~~rough~~ romantic ride to help fix fence (read wrangle kids while The Rancher fixes fence). This fence was by a water trough, that had a hole. Which meant there was mud… everywhere. That innate-boy-instinct to get in the mud got the best of The Rancher’s Sidekick and before long he was in the mud UP TO HIS KNEES. This momma was so thankful he was in shorts and water boots (minus socks). Ya, we have learned over time…

But when you are up to your knees in mud you need a little help. A Super Hero to save the day! Like The Super Rancher! What a dad!

The Color Green

September 6, 2013 by Allison

The Ranch Boss, The Rancher’s grandpa, was looking over the hay fields and commented how he loved that color of green. We looked out across with him at the new seeding that was just popping up through the dirt. He turned to the other end of the field and commented with an air of satisfaction that the only color of green better is the rich color of the growing alfalfa hay.

He is right. Nature’s shades of green are so beautiful, but especially these shades. This color of green is more than a hue. It shows the hard work, diligence and commitment these men have had to grow their crops, especially in the midst of a drought. The straight continuous lines of sprouting grain give hope of a new harvest. I think mostly this kind of green means success and satisfaction.

I guess we like to GO GREEN after all, just not the green most think of.

More Than a Milk Cow

August 29, 2013 by Allison

We have two milk cows on the ranch. One dear old cow has been around for 10+ years. She is called Jersey, even though she is actually like a Brown Swiss not a Jersey. She is more of a pet than anything else. Kids all over the valley know Jersey because she has gone to school where they have learned all about a dairy cow. The Rancher’s Sidekick always says that he will be the one to get her into the barn when milking time rolls around.

We have had a few others but currently we have a Holstein that I like to call Millie. You know, Millie the Milk Cow. She is isn’t so pet like but still a pretty chill cow. But poor thing, she doesn’t have a tail…

Jersey has mostly been used as a milk cow for the family but recently they have been used as nurse maids for the bum calves we get. It is so much easier and cheaper to have a surrogate momma than to buy/mix/feed powdered milk. It is amazing how many calves these cows milk for! I actually feel bad for them a little. Ow… Ya, that’s all I have to say… Ow.

Good News

August 27, 2013 by Allison

I am elated to say that I have terrific news… my camera is on its way home! I have hated not having it around with me. I guess I hadn’t realized how much I have grown to LOVE taking pictures. Now I am going to go on photo overload and take pictures of EVERYTHING! Maybe the rest of my life can slow down so that I can make more time for you. Lets hope it all falls together. : )

At the County Fair

August 16, 2013 by Allison

Oh how we love fair week! I thought I would drop a line to tell you I am still kicking, just busy playing at the fair. I don’t have any pictures for you today… Sorry about that… But soon, very soon!

In fact, I don’t know if I have told you or not (I don’t remember very well) but I am having camera problems. One afternoon I picked it up to take some pictures and I noticed the sensor had gone haywire. I took it in praying it was a simple fix. Of course it ended up being bad enough we had to send back into Nikon. That was two weeks ago… I checked in on it and they haven’t even done the diagnosis yet. I am beginning to feel IMPATIENT!! Thankfully The Rancher’s mom has the same camera and will loan it out to me when she’s not using it. But then I still need to grab pictures from her… I know, I am letting you down.

So lets talk about the fair instead, it is much happier to chat about.

Even though we don’t have any kids old enough to be in the fair, we still have been averaging about one trip a day and which are usually followed by LATE nights. Starting with Monday, the Team Penning and Branding that besides The Rancher roping we also provided the heifers. This is such a fun one to go because so many of our friends and neighbors come out to it.

After sleeping in the following morning (I’m not going to admit how late we slept) we began the work of prepping to go over once again. Besides gathering dinner, jammies, blankets, and tractors every cowboy and cowgirl needs, I had a little extra work of getting together my pictures to enter into the fair. Don’t worry, we made it amidst all of the craziness and all I forgot to do was my makeup, no biggie… Besides entering my pictures the fair that night we took found a seat in stands for the free concert- Charley Jenkins! He is an up and coming country singer from Utah. His songs were so awesome- they were all about The Rancher, I swear!

We weren’t terribly interested in the sheep show so we chose to stay home Wednesday. Oh how I loved it! I even swept and mopped my floor! Of course you would never guess it at this point. Living with a little boy that plays in the dirt and a big boy that work (plays) in the dirt all day means that this house doesn’t stay clean.

Thursday was our big day. Cowboys Pete and E had their steer show- a must see! And to know surprise they did a great job showing. When the cattle are all done they do an open showmanship class that I borrowed Cowboy Pete’s steer. We totally took first place! I’ll have to see if anyone took a picture for proof. The night ended with the Family Fun Rodeo. This isn’t a typical rodeo, in fact when The Rancher did his team roping he was minus a horse. That is what we call the poor man roping. I can guarantee that if they don’t catch right out of the chute that they won’t chase that calf down the arena.

Now I am sitting in sweats in my nicely air conditioned house, debating if it is nap time or lunch time. I think that this day calls for relaxing because tomorrow is more craziness. Oh how we love fair week!