How Much My Husband Loves Me

Before writing this post, I asked my husband if it was ok to brag about him to the world. He said it was. :)

Some women receive flowers, some jewelry, some vacuum cleaners or KitchenAid Pro stand mixers, or a new car. 

I received a cow.

This may not seem so strange for those of you who know that my husband is a cattle rancher. A cow would seem normal. This little story, however, shows the deep love my husband has for me. 

I will start at the beginning. 

We were married in October of 2005, right between busy seasons. The season of haying during the summer was over. The season of winter and feeding cows hay every day wouldn't happen until the end of November, depending on snowfall, and then calving wouldn't start until March. 

I was pretty nervous for calving season when it approached us. I'd never lived on a ranch and been involved in this before. New babies, late nights, not being able to leave the ranch for very long due to keeping an eye on the pregnant mothers. 

I had no idea what to expect. Now, six and a half years in, it's not quite so intimidating. Especially not after that snowy Sunday in March of 2005. 

We checked on the cows shortly after church. They all have numbered ear tags to tell them apart. Marty noticed that 010 was calving. We brought her into the barn since it was cold and snowy outside. That year she was five years old (A cow has her first calf when she's two, and until she has a calf, she's known as a heifer. I guess having a baby makes a female bovine a cow.). Marty said it looked like she was having a little trouble, so we brought her to an area of the barn where he placed her in a structure that secures her body and helps Marty see what the problem is with the upcoming baby calf. 

Marty ended up helping 010 deliver her calf. It was an incredible sight! 

(It's hard for me to describe it with words, so you'll just have to come visit sometime during calving season.)

As soon as the calf came out, 010 looked back behind her and mooed the most gentle moo I've ever heard. It seemed as if she was saying, "It's ok, baby, Mommy's right here." 

Just like humans, calves are born wet. But unlike cows, humans don't lick their child clean. At least not any sane people that I know. A cow's tongue has been created by an awesome and powerful God to be rough. As she licks the newborn off, her tongue helps to circulate the blood and within minutes the calf is trying to stand. I'd not witnessed something so precious before in all my life. 

The calf was beautiful. Mostly black with a few white speckles on her face (what is known as a broco faced calf). As any normal person would, I named her "Snowy" for the lovely weather on her birthday.

010 quickly became my favorite cow. She's beautiful black, with a few white speckles in places. She has a gentle face, and she's HUGE. She's always done a fantastic job of raising a calf for us.

Fast forward to November 2011. Each year we "preg check" our cows. We gather them up, send each of them one by one down an alley way that is set up in the corrals just for cows. The local vet, Doc K, inserts his arm down her backside (I'll keep this G) and tells us if she's pregnant or not. I have yet to try this out, as I'm sure it's fascinating being able to feel a tiny calf growing inside the cow/heifer. The ones that are pregnant, we keep. 

The ones that aren't, are sold. Because an "open" cow isn't raising a calf it doesn't make sense for us to keep her. Since we are a cow/calf operation, our business runs on a cow raising a calf for us to sell. 

My son and I were watching the days activities from the pickup, near the end of the alley way. I could closely see the vet as he worked, and each individual cow as she came. 

010.

My heart stopped. She's now 12 years old. A lot of ranchers sell their cows once they get to be this old. We haven't as she's done such a good job of raising her calves, and we have several of her daughters in our herd who are doing a good job as well.

The vet stepped behind her. 

He was taking a little too long. 

The tears started flowing. J looked at my like I was crazy. Maybe I am. Maybe I've come too attached to this cow. She will move on someday, but I just didn't want it to be that day.

Doc K took out his pink maker and placed a large pink "O" on her back. Open. 

No! The tears continued to stream as I watched her being sorted into the pen with all the other open cows. 

It was J's nap time, so we conveniently headed back to the house. 

Tears were still streaming. 

Then, I had an idea. 

In the past, Marty has had a "fall" herd of cows. A small group that calves in August. We've sold the calves the following April as a means of income at a time of year when cash flows pretty tight. In November 2011 we didn't have a fall herd. 

We do now! It started with 010, and a few other cows were added. The vet was out here a few weeks ago to preg check our fall herd. 

010 is carrying a calf! 

Normally, Marty wouldn't start another fall herd. But, because he loves me and knows how much I like 010, he's building up the fall herd again. 

I think he's kind of partial to her, too. 

Taken 2010 with her calf.

Spring Evening

What a glorious spring day this turned out to be! This evening was no exception. Birds singing in full harmony, the sun cascading it's golden beams upon the earth below. The wind was a gentle breeze as J and I went for our first bike ride of the season. 

With all this training I've been doing for the Deadwood-Michelson Half Marathon in June, I haven't had any time for biking. Saturday my training schedule had me running eight miles. I ran from my house to Murdo and my family met me at the local pizza parlor. It was great to say that I ran eight miles, but the last two days my body has been feeling more pain then since I started training in February. Last Saturday I ran seven and didn't seem to feel any effects. Must be my age creeping in, right? ;)

Sundays are my off day from training. Today I was supposed to run four miles, but instead I biked the four miles. I realize I don't get the same workout, but I was still able to get one in and ease into running tomorrow. I'm supposed to do six... Sigh... It will be all worth it in the end, right?

This past winter I acquired a biking trailer and today was our first time testing it out. It worked great! I hardly felt the extra weight behind me. 

Upon arriving home, J and I sat on the swing and shared a water bottle while watching the sun set.

Now he's in bed and I get to spend time with my husband. Enjoy your evening!

A Glimps of the Beauty From My Garden

The flowers in my garden are popping out in exuberance as the sun shines upon them. 

I wanted to capture them in their peak of glory. 

The wind has been wild, so I brought a few inside for a tame photo shoot. 

Here are my results. 

Enjoy!

Easter Photos

Attempted Easter photo shoot. It's so hard to stand still and smile at almost 2.

Dad came home from checking the cows and there went any further pictures. :)

Playing with his tractor.

 

I love this little grin!

Birds

Every morning (that I'm at my house) I sit at my special end of the couch and spend some time in peace and quiet with Jesus Christ. 

I love spending the mornings with Him as this little corner of His creation wakes. Today I was gazing out my window while talking with Him. There is a large tree with part of the branches bare and part of them loaded with small leaves as they make their appearance in spring. 

There was one lone bird sitting quietly. By himself. I imagined him basking in the beauty of the morning that God gave him to see, as He gave me. 

Then, 

he was joined by a few others. 

I could hear them singing. 

I could see their wings expand as they burst forth in song. 

What other purpose could a bird be singing for than to it's Creator? God. Jesus Christ.

When I open my mouth, does it bring such a sweet joy to others as the bird songs do to me? And as they must do to God Himself?

Update - My Lent Experience

I just realized how long it's been since I've posted something and I've been meaning to let you in on an update of my "Lent" experience. 

I can't say that giving up dessert has been the most "spiritual awakening" experience I've ever had, but it has shown me several things.

The most important one is:

• Chocolate is not a necessity. 

    No matter how crabby or how stressed or how frustrated I am, chocolate is not going 

    to fix whatever problem I have.  

The issue is not in the pit of my stomach, but in the pit of my heart.

    I do agree that sometimes being hungry can influence moods, but I am the one who   

    ultimately controls them. 

A few other lesson are:

• Dessert is not a necessity for every meal.  

     Rarely do I usually make it, but have realized that I over indulge when I do have it. A  
    small piece, one cookie a day would be more than sufficient. 

• I feel so much better without an excessive amount of sugar. 

     I don't believe that sugar is "bad" and "of the devil" as I get so tired of hearing some  
    people say. Everything in moderation, right? If all I ate was kale, I would probably turn 
    green. I need nutrients from many things that God has created, including sugar. It adds  
    excess to my body if I eat too much, so therefore I will enjoy a small portion. It might  
   do different things, or nothing at all to your body, so you might not need to control it 
   as much. Your body might have issues with brussel sprouts or something... :)

Going through this experience I have discovered that I do have great self control over what I eat. I have also discovered that my attitude is not linked to food, but to the darkness in the pit of my heart. These things are slowly changing. 

Please pray for me. Some days I feel as though there is a huge battle raging within my soul to give in to fleshly anger over menial things. I have been learning (some days much harder than others) to rest in the Lord and not try to go about in my strength alone.

I'm not sure if this all makes sense and tied together like I'd hoped, but I hope that you have been encouraged by it as you go along your journey.