running and bucking

It's kind of nice this time of year to look out the window and see the meadows covered with momma cows and their babies wandering about. The calves all run and play together while the cows stand in groups and munch away on the tender new leaves of green grass. Come to think of it, it's not all that different from your typical city park....except for the part about the moms eating the grass...

cattin' around

Chet and Kitty are the only two cats managing to survive the past year. At one time, we somehow had inherited about 8 kittens. They lived a few months and then slowly started to disappear. Nick thinks a bobcat moved into the area.

You might notice Chet is a bit larger than Kitty. Chester is part bobcat himself. I suspect it's a very small part though. He has the look, but not the personality. He's about as far from viscious as he could possibly get!

Gimli Dog

Gimli never really lets me take a decent picture of him. At least he finally sat still long enough here...even if I couldn't get him to look at me! (Try to ignore the my shadow in the picture!)

Ahhh, Spring!

Apparently, mother nature has finally decided that spring should come to north central Nebraska! With snow, cold wind, snow and more snow, March and April got off to a bit of a rocky start. April 10 and 11 we suffered through 50 mph winds and 12 inches of heavy, wet snow that shut down electricity, highways, schools, and just about everything else (except calving). April 12 was even more confusing as we found ourselves facing all in one day: wind, rain, snow, sunshine, hail, snow, sunshine, rain, hail, more snow and finally sunshine. Then, about 2 days later, it was 80 degrees! It seems even mother nature can be a bit testy during calving season!

Having finally mellowed out a bit and seeminly settling in for more "typical" spring weather, I've been able to get out more often to wander about and enjoy the sights early spring has to offer. I took a quick walk a couple of evenings ago to snap a few pictures. Our dog, Gimli tagged along as usual and my cats, Chester and Kitty, decided to follow along as well. The cats seem to think they're dogs and like to accompany me on walks. Unlike a dog however, they're never quite able to keep up. Inevitably, they fall behind, get frustrated with me, stubbornly sit down and refuse to go on, and then proceed to utter the most pitiful wailing sounds you have ever heard until I return to reassure them I'm not leaving them stranded to be carried off by an eagle or coyote or something. On this particular evening, Kitty decided she could go no further after she'd found herself on the opposite side of the fish pond from Chester and I. (Gimli had long since left us to chase a rabbit, mouse, squirrel or whatever small varment he'd gotten the scent of) After 10 minutes of coaxing (being a bit too stubborn, myself, to walk back around the pond to get the dumb cat) Kitty finally decided she could walk back along the edge of the pond until she came to a downed tree limb she was able to climb to get across. With crisis averted and the sun beginning to set, I finally managed to get home to enjoy a glass of wine and watch all three of the crazy animals curl up together under the tree in our backyard.

end of the road (literally!)

For me, as a person slightly more inclined toward the city life (or at least a small to mid-sized town life), marrying a rancher, moving to a rather large operating cattle ranch in, the very rural north central Nebraska was a bit of a .....transition. Some days I get the hang of it, but somedays not so much!

Thankfully, it is incredibly beautiful here!

I created this blog to allow our friends and family, a little farther away, to read about the sometimes mundane and frustrating, as well as the sometimes humorous and encouraging life of living at the very literal end of the road.