Last day of March

Here we are the last day of March already.  I know, you hear it everywhere..."time flies".  It does seem that time goes quickly these days and there doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything done that you would like to complete.  I think we all have had those feelings at least once in our lives?! 

But if I may encourage you to slow down and appreciate what is really  important in your life! 

Slow down and really listen to your child. 
Slow down and visit with a friend you run into while you're doing errands in town.
Slow down and ask your brother/sister and their family over for dinner.
Slow down and walk around your home and yard and be thankful for the things you see.
Slow down and tell your significant other how much they mean to you.
Slow down and write a letter to a friend/grandmother/mom/dad/etc
Slow down and cook a meal from scratch!
Slow down and just realize how fortunate you really are!!!

Homemade butter

Butter...ahhh, the creamy texture of homemade butter!

I have tried to make real butter a few times...yesterday, I succeeded!  Isn't it beautiful?  I started out by saving the cream off our fresh cow's milk.  I had about three quarts saved.  We started out shaking it in the masson jars, but it seemed to take too long.  So I poured our (slightly shaken) cream into my KitchenAid Mixer and turned 'er on!  It mixed for almost an hour. As I was in the dining room, I heard my youngest daughter yell out about the mixer.  As I entered the kitchen, to my amazement, there was butter in the bowl and the buttermilk was sloshing out of the bowl (so that corner of my kitchen got sanitized yesterday too).  I washed the butter with cold water and patted it dry with a cloth.  I added some salt and...here it is...my beautiful homemade butter! 

We had it last night on some bread.  It was delicious! (But next time I will add a little more salt.)  Give it a try...it's a great experience! If you don't have access to fresh cream, you can purchase heavy cream from the supermarket. 

Let me know how your's turns out...

another perspective

There's always another perspective on things... 

When you are looking at a situation from one side, don't forget to view it from another angle...it could look totally different than expected!

This photo I snapped shows off the relaxation of the rider.  He was watching a steer run down the side of the arena as his horse was also relaxed and both waiting their turn. 

springtime

SPRINGTIME ...what a word!  Today was the perfect definition of "springtime".  The sun was warm, the wind was strong, daffodils are blooming, and the animals are enjoying a much needed break from the cold winter we had this year. 

                                                           A true sign that spring is here.....

keepin' kids

Well, today has already been a great day...
This morning our good friends that are visiting from Guatemala dropped off their two young boys for our family to keep while they take a mini-vacation.  I am so glad they asked us to watch them.  These boys fit right into our family.  They love to hang out here at our place and feed the animals with my kiddos, but I think their favorite thing to do here is to ride the "range-range"...aka Polaris Ranger.  Oops...gotta run and catch these boys...getting used to have little ones running around today

day one...

Well, I have decided to enter into the world of blogging.  Forgive me as I'm sure I will make mistakes along the way.  I hope to share ideas about ranching and living life as a rancher's wife...preparing meals, house keeping, orgainization, keeping track of the kids and their chores, homeschooling, hosting, gardening, caring for multitudes of animals.  Follow along as I share my journey...