white barn farms

Update

2010-11-04T07:42:00.000-07:00

Haidyn had her 4 month check up on Monday. She was officially 18 weeks.

Weight: 12 lbs 8.5 oz 25th percentile
Height: 24.75 inches 50th percentile
Head: 38 cm

It's amazing how much she has changed in the last week! Rolling over, rocking on her hands and knees, she found her toes, and yesterday I made her some applesauce which she loved.

We are in full swing with harvest. If all goes well, the milo will be done soon, Jason has cut all but one field of hay, and there is still the chile....which we always hope to be done by his birthday in December. And we already have grass up and growing to graze calves this winter. Needless to say, Haidyn and I haven't seen much of Jason!

Halloween....sort of

2010-10-28T20:47:00.000-07:00

We had an impromptu photo shoot this evening with our cousins! The school was having their Halloween Carnival tonight so we took advantage of the opportunity. And this way we have pictures of Haidyn's 1st "Halloween".... even though we aren't going trick or treating.

Jason loves this picture. He thinks Haidyn is saying "What's up Willis?"

My happy little Baby!

"Baby's 1st Halloween"

Sydney wanted to be a UPS driver and Brooke was a queen. Haidyn was a tiger....for about 5 minutes!

It's nice to have my smiling baby back! Last Wednesday morning Haidyn woke up with a fever and in the afternoon she threw up. Called the doctor and they told me it was just a stomach bug and to keep her hydrated. Thursday morning it wasn't any better so I took her in to the dr. and by the time we got there her fever was gone. I know that they thought we were just "first time parents". By the time we got home her temp was 102 degrees. Still wasn't any better on Friday. She would wake up with a high fever, drink 6 oz. of pedilyte, fever would go down, lay her down for a nap, wake up and have a high fever again. So on Friday evening we ended up in the ER, and it turns out that she had a UTI. They gave her a dose of antibiotics and within a couple of hours she was already feeling better. We are on the mend now, but it was scary there for a little bit!

And today we finally petitioned the court for adoption. So now they tell us that on January 7, 2011, our adoption will be final! It's been quite the journey so far, and we are looking forward to having this thing final! Thank you to all of our friends and family for all of your prayers and support through all of this. We could not have done it without all of you.

Haidyn's Check Up

2010-09-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

Love this picture!! It was taken a couple of weeks ago at my aunt's house when we were making green corn tamales. Last week Haidyn had a check up and shots, which I think are awful!! You take in a perfectly healthy baby and get a sick one in return! Thankfully it didn't last too long.

At 9 1/2 weeks:

Weight: 9 lbs. 15 ounces
Height: 22 inches
Head: 36 cm
New things: Smiling...a lot! Talking...a lot!! Last night she slept from 9pm to 6am!!

Personally, there is nothing better then when she looks up at you and gives you the biggest, cheesiest smile!

New Beginnings

2010-08-30T17:57:00.000-07:00

It's funny how quickly life can change. Haidyn Rae was born on June 25, 2010 at 5:02pm, and our lives will never be the same. Two and half months ago today we received a phone call. A birth mom wanted to meet with us that Wednesday. All we were told was that the baby is African American, the gender was unknown, and that the baby was due soon....that Saturday soon.

We met with Stefannie that Wednesday and talked for about two hours. We talked about nothing really. It seemed that Jason and I were asking the hard questions. All she asked us was if we had a name picked out. We didn't have a first name, but we wanted to give our middle name to the baby.

It's hard to describe how we felt when we left. More confused than anything. We had just met with a young woman who was about to place her baby with an adoptive couple, and all she asked us was if we had a name picked out.

Thursday had to be the longest day of our lives. At VBS, my six year old niece asked me if we knew anything yet. I told her that maybe by the end of VBS we would know, and she said "OOHH, that long!" Trust me, I knew how she felt. It's hard to hand over control to someone. But to wait for someone to make a decision that would either completely change your life forever or you just keep going on as you did the day before can drive you to insanity! Finally, at 5pm we got the call saying that she had chosen us. After reality sunk in, panic set in. Any day we were going to become parents.

I expected that the baby would come on Saturday or maybe Sunday. And I hadn't done much because I didn't even know where to begin to get ready for this baby. I figured that maybe Friday night or Saturday morning we would head for Tucson and I would do some shopping while we waited to hear from the agency. Well, I get a call Friday around 3 pm saying the Stefannie was going into labor. Jason was 30 minutes away from the house, and I was trying to pack things in a hurry. It just seemed like it took us forever to leave. And as we are walking out the door, I get another phone call saying that the birth mom wants me in the room during the delivery and that she was 7cm dilated. Things were moving quickly!

Needless to say we didn't make it. Haidyn was born at 5:02pm Friday evening. We got there about an hour after she was born. She weighed in at 7lbs. 2 oz and 19 inches long. Jason likes to say that we had a 24 hour pregnancy....but it was years of labor. I will never forget the feeling of walking into the room and Stefannie handing me this most precious baby girl. Stefannie choose the name Haidyn and we gave her my middle name.

This is considered a high risk adoption because the birth father has not been found or contacted. This week we were brought back to reality that nothing is final yet, and that he still has his rights to claim her. I guess this is what faith is all about. Trusting in God, knowing that He knows the bigger picture.

For now, we continue loving this beautiful baby that He has placed in our care.

It's hard to argue.....

2010-05-16T06:31:00.000-07:00

with logic! This is a video from a Tucson City Council meeting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShkpO9Rf1bo&feature=player_embedded

Perspective

2010-05-06T07:40:00.000-07:00

A little different perspective than you have been hearing recently. Wish
all senators, local to federal would explain things like this.

"I'm Arizona State Senator Sylvia Allen. I want to explain SB 1070 which I
voted for and was just signed by Governor Jan Brewer.

Rancher Rob Krentz was murdered by the drug cartel on his ranch a month ago.
I participated in a senate hearing two weeks ago on the border violence,
here is just some of the highlights from those who testified.

The people who live within 60 to 80 miles of the Arizona/Mexico Border have
for years been terrorized and have pleaded for help to stop the daily
invasion of humans who cross their property . One Rancher testified that 300
to 1200 people a DAY come across his ranch vandalizing his property,
stealing his vehicles and property, cutting down his fences, and leaving
trash.. In the last two years he has found 17 dead bodies and two Koran
bibles.

Another rancher testified that daily drugs are brought across his ranch in a
military operation. A point man with a machine gun goes in front, 1/2 mile
behind are the guards fully armed, 1/2 mile behind them are the drugs,
behind the drugs 1/2 mile are more guards. These people are violent and they
will kill anyone who gets in the way. This was not the only rancher we heard
that day that talked about the drug trains.

One man told of two illegal's who came upon his property one shot in the
back and the other in the arm by the drug runners who had forced them to
carry the drugs and then shot them. Daily they listen to gun fire during the
night it is not safe to leave his family alone on the ranch and they can't
leave the ranch for fear of nothing being left when they come back.

The border patrol is not on the border. They have set up 60 miles away with
check points that do nothing to stop the invasion. They are not allowed to
use force in stopping anyone who is entering. They run around chasing them,
if they get their hands on them then they can take them back across the
border.

Federal prisons have over 35% illegal's and 20% of Arizona prisons are
filled with illegal's. In the last few years 80% of our law enforcement that
have been killed or wounded have been by an illegal.

The majority of people coming now are people we need to be worried about.
The ranchers told us that they have seen a change in the people coming they
are not just those who are looking for work and a better life.

The Federal Government has refused for years to do anything to help the
border states . We have been over run and once they are here we have the
burden of funding state services that they use. Education cost have been
over a billion dollars. The healthcare cost billions of dollars. Our State
is broke, $3.5 billion deficit and we have many serious decisions to make.
One is that we do not have the money to care for any who are not here
legally. It has to stop. The border can be secured. We have the technology we

have the ability to stop this invasion. We must know who is coming and they must come in an
organized manner legally so that we can assimilate them into our population
and protect the sovereignty of our country. We are a nation of laws. We have
a responsibility to protect our citizens and to protect the integrity of our
country and the government which we live under.

I would give amnesty today to many, but here is the problem, we dare not do
this until the Border is secure. It will do no good to forgive them because
thousands will come behind them and we will be over run to the point that
there will no longer be the United States of America but a North American
Union of open borders. I ask you what form of government will we live under?
How long will it be before we will be just like Mexico , Canada or any of the
other Central American or South American countries? We have already lost our
language, everything must be printed in Spanish also. We have already lost
our history it is no longer taught in our schools. And we have lost our
borders.

The leftist media has distorted what SB 1070 will do. It is not going to set
up a Nazi Germany. Are you kidding. The ACLU and the leftist courts will do
everything to protect those who are here illegally, but it was an effort to
try and stop illegal's from setting up businesses, and employment, and
receiving state services and give the ability to local law enforcement when
there is probable cause like a traffic stop to determine if they are here
legally. Federal law is very clear if you are here on a visa you must have
your papers on you at all times. That is the law. In Arizona all you need to
show that you are a legal citizen is a driver license, MVD identification card,
Native American Card, or a Military ID. This is what you need to vote, get a
hunting license, etc.. So nothing new has been added to this law. No one is
going to be stopped walking down the street etc... The Socialist who are in
power in DC are angry because we dare try and do something and that
something the Socialist wants us to do is just let them come. They want the
"Transformation" to continue.

Maybe it is too late to save America . Maybe we are not worthy of freedom
anymore. But as an elected official I must try to do what I can to protect
our Constitutional Republic . Living in America is not a right just because
you can walk across the border. Being an American is a responsibility and it
comes by respecting and upholding the Constitution the law of our land which
says what you must do to be a citizen of this country. Freedom is not free."

The Rain Maker....

2010-05-05T06:58:00.000-07:00

that's what Jason calls it anyway. I, however, like to call it The Skunk Eliminator! I am referring to the hay swather. I have had the joy of swathing hay. On Saturday, I swathed the last half of field for Jason. As I was driving along, I hear the "thud" and thought to myself "huh...that was weird". And then the smell. Being this was my first experience to actually run over a skunk in the swather, I wasn't sure of proper protocol. I did just keep driving and the smell did go away more quickly than what I had anticipated.

Yesterday. Yesterday I was given the opportunity, again, to swath hay. This time, however, I found out about a skunk reunion that was happening out in the hay field. Had I known that this event was happening, I probably would have waited for a more opportune time to cut the hay. However, I was uniformed and naively thought that family reunions only happen on the weekends! Needless to say, I knew that by the time I finished swathing, I was going to need to take a tomato bath to get the stink off of my body!!

Jason did let me into bed last night....so I'm guessing I didn't stink too bad!

Wordless Sunday

2010-05-02T08:33:00.000-07:00

Again...why?

2010-04-30T18:10:00.000-07:00

All this up roar about Arizona passing a law that says it is a crime to be in AZ illegally is silly. It's already a federal law, why shouldn't our police officers be able to do the same thing as the border patrol? If you are here illegally than you are breaking the law, and if you are breaking the law then any law enforcement should be able to enforce the law.

And, now, the violence has continued. An Arizona deputy has been shot out in the desert by an AK-47 in a known drug and human smuggling corridor south of Phoenix. According to the news, they are still searching for the down officer. When will this stop?? Our friends' home was vandalized today, while they were home, and last week a vehicle was stolen from the farm.

People just don't get it.

April in AZ

2010-04-22T14:27:00.000-07:00

Today is April 22 and it is raining, snowing, and the wind is blowing about 100 mph! Today is also my dad's birthday, and 53 years ago on this day all the cotton in this valley was lost due to rain, snow, and hail. And 53 years later, my father's daughter is glad that the cotton is still in the ground!

Jason and I did plant cotton this year....and chile. It feels so good to back in the groove of things. We went from farming chile, milo, barley, hay, to only farming hay, to farming hay, chile, cotton, corn, & milo again. We are so thankful that God has blessed us with the opportunity to rent some land this year.

Speaking of hay, Jason has (or will soon) shut off the water to some of the hay. So it looks like next week we will start our 2010 hay season. Am I ready? No. Still tired from last year....

Cisco (my colt) is growing like a weed!! And he is full of add-it-tude! ;) He is two weeks old today, likes to run, filling out with some serious muscles, likes to drink water and "gum" hay, and his front two teeth are in. He also likes to buck and kick, especially at humans. I just wonder when I can start working him in the round pen.....

Cake season has also begun today. I am in the process of making two cakes right now, a cake next weekend for my sister's graduation from nursing school, and two wedding cakes in June and July.

It's shaping up to be a wild and crazy year, but I love it!

NPR

2010-04-13T09:03:00.000-07:00

NPR has published some good stories about life and the violence on the border. I know that it is hard to fully understand what it is like to live on the border, but I thought that these stories did it some justice.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=125737965&sc=fb&cc=fp
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=125792592

Please be praying for our nation. We are continually heading in the wrong direction, and farther and farther away from God.

He is Finally Here!!!

2010-04-09T08:45:00.001-07:00

We have been waiting since Saturday for this little one! Finally, last night he was born while we were gone. My mom stopped by the house, and actually got to witness his birth. Jason and I were at Tammy & Steven's, which she didn't know, so she couldn't reach us on our cell phones! He was born at 7:25 pm on April 8, 2010. It was 9:30 pm before we got home, but we were able to help him nurse. The picture above is of Teaspoon when she was a day old. He looks so much like his momma!

All four feet are white and he is full of sassafras!! Momma and baby are both doing well, and Coffee Pot hasn't gone far. My 29 year old gelding LOVES babies and this is the third birth that he has been here for. Also, I don't have name! Any ideas???

Blah, Blah, Blah!

2010-04-07T10:22:00.000-07:00

I wasn't expecting much, but seriously???

Thank you for taking the time to share your
thoughts with me. I value your comments and inquiries. (sure ya do)

I greatly appreciate the outpouring of messages
from Americans across the country and around the world.
Some comments are supportive, others are critical, but all
reflect the desire of Americans to participate in a dialogue
about our common concerns and challenges.

To learn more about my Administration or to
contact me in the future, please visit
www.WhiteHouse.gov. Thank you again for writing.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama

To be a part of our agenda for change, join us at
www.WhiteHouse.gov

Wow. I can sure feel all that "love" coming from D.C., where they say that have such on open administration and that they want to hear from the people. Yeah. November 2010 can NOT get here quick enough.

Thankfully, I have a faith in a great God and find comfort in His word.

Deuteronomy 1:13
Choose wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men from among your tribes, and I will make them heads over you.

I guess that we have to keep praying that we, as Americans, will choose wisely in 2010.

Did you know?

2010-04-05T17:57:00.000-07:00

Did you know that you can contact our very own president and he will get back to you?!? Yep, I tried it out. Well, I just sent my email message and asked to get a message back. Check it out www.whitehouse.gov/CONTACT/.

( I don't know why it won't get off of italics!) But, anyway, I sent my message asking for help down here on the border. Seems a murder of an American rancher isn't a big enough deal to get Washington's attention. I have also wrote to our own governor and several media outlets. We can no longer be silent.

I'll let you know when I get a message back from the President........

War Zone

2010-03-28T17:31:00.000-07:00

I live in a war zone. I live in a war zone, and I live in the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. Today was the first time in my life that I spent time with a family who just lost a son, a husband, a father, a friend who did not die of old age, he did not die of cancer, he did not die in a car accident, he died because he was murdered. He was murdered by a Mexican who was here illegally. He was shot as he was out checking water on HIS ranch. We live in a war zone and we live in the USA.

Every politician wants to turn their heads, close their eyes and ears to the war that happens everyday on this border. When will they wise up? When will our rights as an American citizen be more than those who come here illegally, and break our laws, take away our freedoms, and kill our neighbors? I am tired of being told that I don't count and that I do not matter.

People really don't understand what it is like to live close to the border. Our friends don't even think about leaving the house without a pistol and a rifle and they are ranchers. They live in a war zone. These are dangerous people, who are not afraid to take anyone's life so that they can continue to haul their drugs into the US.

How many lives have to be lost before Washington will stop playing games? This is not a game. And don't believe for one second that our borders our secure! That is a huge, HUGE lie. Check it out for yourself at www.borderinvasionpics.com. This is all happening in our backyard.

I have been pondering all day as to what we can do. First of all, pray. Pray for our friends and family who risk their lives everyday just by being out on their ranch. Pray for our leaders in Washington that they will finally use a little wisdom. And second, we have to voice our concerns. We can't just complain about what Washington and our state governments are deciding for us. We have to get involved.

They did not catch the man who murdered the rancher. They should have, but they did not. When will we the citizens finally say "enough is enough". Or will we have to stand by the motto of "live free or die"?

Winter in the Desert

2010-02-27T06:27:00.000-08:00

The winter here has been incredible! We have enjoyed rain in the valley and lots of snow in the mountains. Last weekend Janette was here, so we spent a little time up in Turkey Creek. It is so beautiful!! It is a special time to get to see the water in the mountains. It's amazing how the sound of water is so peaceful and refreshing. As farmers, we pray that this water will help our water situation in the valley.

I love living in AZ where the scenery can change so drastically in just a 20 minute drive! We had fun with you, Nette! Ready for you to come back soon, and maybe the water will really be running when the snow starts to melt!

Jason

2010-02-22T14:17:00.000-08:00

I came home for lunch and this is what I found. I've been teasing Jason about not getting me anything for our anniversary or for Valentine's day. He keeps telling me that he is looking for that "special something".

Well, today is special and for him to think of me this day is way more important than either of the other two days. Today it has been one year since I miscarried. It's hard to believe that a whole year has gone by, and that I still miss and think about that baby everyday. But, today, my sweet husband remembered me and my pain, and along with the card he wrote me a note. I have decided to share it with all of you.

It seems hard for me to understand the pain and the loss completely the way you do right now. But I feel it, too, as much as I can. And I love you deeply and can't even express in words what you and your happiness means to me! Thank you for being who you are, even when I'm not who I need to be. Your support, encouragement, and love promise me that we can handle whatever is to come in our future....with God's help!

I praise God for such a wonderful husband who I do not deserve. His compassion and understanding is what helps me endure days like this. I love you, Jason!

Playing catch up

2010-02-12T13:33:00.000-08:00

I'm still alive, I promise! This is just a "catch up" blog. Usually, the winter is what we refer to as our slow time...not this year. Our calves kept us SOOO busy and now that they are gone I feel that my life is without purpose. OK, it's not really that bad but I do miss them terribly! Last month we sold one group of calves here in Willcox, and the other group we shipped to La Junta, CO. As a bonus, I got a small vacation out of the deal!! The calves left on a Saturday morning and we left Sunday morning.

We went straight to the sale barn in La Junta to check on the calves. They remembered me!! That was my last moment with #36. Sad isn't it! But once we knew that they were all ok we headed to Colorado Springs. We called a few people and gave them "hey, we just happen to be in town......what are you doing?" We were able to spend time with Jason's friend Eric, his wife and new baby, and his parents. We had a really good visit with them, and then we went and saw my cousin, Aaron, and his wife, Christina. We had a great visit with them as well. The next morning we went to Focus on the Family! That place is so awesome!! And if you like Adventures in Odyssey, you will LOVE their Whit's End wonderland park. We both agreed that one day when we have children old enough we are going back!

We left there and went back to La Junta to watch my babies sell. I was so sad when we left....I cried. Jason looked at me like I was crazy, but I just couldn't help. Even now, as I write this, tears. I told him that I would rather just have yearlings all year than farm. It was so much work, but so much fun! I miss them so much.

Anyway, since then we have added to our family. Her name is Daisy and she is a yellow lab puppy. And she is all puppy! She has been bitten twice on the face by one or both of our other dogs because she doesn't ever stop biting....ever! Jason loves her, but the jury is still out for me. Not really into the whole puppy stage. She is cute though.

My mom and my grandparents are in Israel at this very moment! She sends a text everyday and they have been to the Jordan River, where they could be re-baptized if they wanted, the Mediterranean Sea and now they are on their way to Jerusalem. They are going to Egypt as well. I can't wait to hear about their stories and experiences in the Holy Land. I'm jealous!

A fun filled Christmas

2009-12-26T12:17:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a fun, safe, and a very Merry Christmas!! Our tradition is to start off Christmas morning at my Grandma's house for her famous cinnamon rolls, a family picture, and our gift exchange. Then we head over to my parents house for another gift exchange and Christmas dinner.

Here my parents are modeling the wild rags that I had got my mom. Aren't they cute?!?

This is our White family picture. My grandma has so many Christmas pictures hanging on her wall, and we all agreed that we are looking better as we age!

Rocky, Preston, Andrew, Dad, Jason, Chris
Paul, Paula, Kathy, Mom, Jodie, Grandpa
Denise, Brooke, Grandma, Sydney, Me

Two of our very sweet cousins! Denise is a nurse at the hospital in Sierra Vista, and Andrew is playing college baseball in Oklahoma.

Denise, Me, Stacey, Andrew

My parents always fry their turkeys. So this year my grandpa thought that it would be a great idea to fry a sand hill crane. My dad looks proud, but my Aunt Kathy doesn't look so sure.

Now we are waiting for Jen Jen's Circus to come to town so that we can finish celebrating!

Busy Times

2009-12-20T17:39:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from Arizona! Good friends of ours had there annual Christmas party yesterday, and this was her Christmas tree. She had the local FFA chapter make the ornaments which were brands from ranches in the area.

Jason and I have been so busy taking care of our calves. This pretty much consumes most of our day everyday!! But as you can tell I'm in love with some of them. That is 36 giving me a kiss on the check. He is so sweet.....I'm going to miss him the most when they are gone.

My most recent cake. Not only did it look good, but it tasted really good! I think that I've found a new cake recipe.

Hope you have a wonderful Christmas celebrating the birth of our Savior!!

Tis The Season....

2009-10-27T19:12:00.000-07:00

for cotton harvest!! Dad started stripping cotton yesterday, so I took the opportunity to snap a few shots. The field is so white that from the highway it looks like snow. This could possible be one of his best fields ever, and he has grown some pretty good cotton these last couple of years.

This picture is blurry, but he had just dumped a load onto the bowl buggy, which my brother is driving. And Preston is moving the cotton around so that they can get more into the buggy. The first time you see this done you think that they are going to dump it on the ground!

Here he is dumping the cotton into the module builder, and from there is gets pressed into a nice block of cotton that can be hauled away.

Isn't it beautiful?

"Riding off into the sunset"!

When I was little, my family raised lots of cotton as did others in this valley. I remember getting to jump in the cotton trailers to smash down the cotton so that they could get as much as possible in the trailers. We also lived right next to the cotton gin, and I remember one time spending the night inside of one of the trailers. All those fun memories came flooding back yesterday with the smell of the cotton! What a wonderful life growing up as a farm kid....and being a farmer's wife!!

One of those weeks.....

2009-10-18T18:23:00.000-07:00

Side Note: Had my blog done ready to post and it erased this picture. So, it's story is below!

OK, so this is a random blog for me to vent a little bit! I'll start with this picture that I took back in May, just thought that it looked really cool. Last May, when my mom and I went to Denton, I found this wagon wheel at an antique shop...still haven't done anything with it, but it looks kind of neat leaning against my house! ;)

This month marks a year since we put Windy down, and got Praise. I was browsing my old pictures and found this one when Jason and I first went and looked at him.

This is Praise this summer. I just talked to the lady that we bought him from this last week. When I called her and told her who I was she was SO excited to hear from me. She lives close to where we go to church and she had been driving around the different church parking lots trying to find our pickup!! I gave her an update on him, and told her that he is the best horse that we have ever owned, which is true.

Now, for this last week.....it basically started out bad. I was filled with frustration, disappointment, and sadness, hoping that the week would get better. Well, it didn't. We finally got a combine on Thursday to harvest out pinto beans, and that night as Jason was backing up to dump the last load the back axle broke. Did I mention that it's not even our combine? It's still not fixed, but it is no longer sitting on the ground. On Saturday, we were able to get another combine here and we will be done by today.

It rained last night, on our hay that was ready to be baled. Lovely. How in the world we have had so much rained on hay, but yet are still so dry is beyond my comprehension. And the clouds are building again today. We have had lighting and thunder, just like it is monsoon season. Weird.

Sick calves. Coccidiosis to be exact. I told Jason that this is more stressful than a newborn baby.....I think anyway! Every night I'm dreaming of these calves and trying to keep them alive and healthy. And with harvest being in full swing, I find myself there a lot by myself. But I really do enjoy spending time with them.

Maybe this week will be better!

Our Latest Project

2009-10-12T14:41:00.000-07:00

For weeks, Jason has stayed up late crunching numbers and building spread sheets. For weeks, all he talked about were calves, what we would buy, where we would keep them, how to turn our rained on hay into money. Well, after weeks and weeks and weeks, we finally have calves!

These two pictures are some calves that we bought right from the ranch last week. There is one in this group that I call Stitch, from the Disney cartoon "Lilo and Stitch". And once I get a picture of him, you'll know why but he is the cutest little thing!

These calves came from the sale barn two weeks ago and there is more of them, but I did not want to bore you with pictures of calves, that is if you are still reading this! ;) We have had to doctor them several times to get them over shipping fever. As of today, everyone is fat and happy!

So, basically, what all of the this means is that we are going nowhere this winter. Just 8 miles down the road to check on our sweet little calves and back again!!

Where does the time go?

2009-09-17T16:14:00.000-07:00

I did not realize that it has been two months since I have blogged....if feels like just a couple of weeks have gone by! Good News, we are alive and well. Just an update on what's been going in southern Arizona.

1. Hay...and lots of it! We just cut two pivots of hay, so starting very soon our days will get long and the nights longer.

2. We painted Nina and Papa's house. And when I say "we", I mean Jason helped me! We had a lot of fun, and really enjoyed the coke floats in the afternoon.

3. We have spent some time helping our friends as they are vaccinating calves and getting ready to ship. That's been a lot of fun and it's nice little get-away for us.

4. Mema and Karen came from Arkansas to visit. And I'm embarrassed to admit that we only spent one afternoon with them. It just happened to be during our hay time.

5. Janette came to visit, and she is going to be here today. WhooHoo!!

6. Coming in 2010....a baby!! Teaspoon, my mare, is pregnant and she is getting the cutest little tummy.

7. Last weekend we finally got away to the White Mountains. It was cool and damp and perfect! We saw elk, lots of turkeys, and antelope. That has too be one of our favorite past times, and it's hard to believe that we have only been up there once this year! And there would be pictures but I have misplaced my camera's battery charger.

8. Roasting chile......and LOTS of it! Since we just planted a small block of chile in with my dad's red chile, I did not expect to roast a lot of chile this year. Well, on Labor Day, we picked and roasted 520 lbs. Thankfully, I had the help of my parents and Tammy. On Thursday, we roasted 180 lbs. for the people at Valley, and now I have another 150 lbs. for Monday for more people at Valley. Ask Virgil about who got me in all of this work! Actually, he has made it a lot easier being organized and helping to get the chile distributed. Thank you!! And a big thank you to my parents who have helped me everytime I've had a big order. My dad is getting to quite the chile roasting expert!!

That's about it for now. This week is county fair, and we have kids that we support showing everyday, but at least this year it's only a one hour trip both ways instead of two hours!

God has been so good to us this year and we continually see His hand in our lives. I hope that the past two months have been good to you!

Wedding week

2009-07-13T07:21:00.000-07:00

Well, we made it!! All went pretty well, and a big "thank you" for everyone who was praying for us. This picture is of Jodie, Rosanna, Stacey, Me, B and S waiting in Gadabout for our pedicures.

This is S and B being so cute! I can't believe that I didn't get any pictures of them on my camera all dressed up. I'll try to find a way to post wedding pictures when they come in.
Me and my parents after the wedding. Stacey's colors were truffle, wine and candy pink. I just happened to be in wine, but there were 16 bridesmaids and we all were in different colors. It was really beautiful.
Jason and I together....we clean up pretty good! He was happy that he got to wear maroon. And I wish that I had taken a picture of the back of my hair. I had my Italian man, Giancarlo, do my hair. It was so unique and very modern which is ironic because I was the most country girl of all of them there! There wasn't one curl in it, it was all braids and twists. Crazy! And I had 68 bobbi pins in my hair, it took a little while to get them all out.

The day of the wedding all of us girls were getting ready, and I went to find my dress. I could not find it anywhere. So I went to ask my mom because she was bringing it with all of the other dresses. She forgot it. So Jason had to drive 30 minutes back to her house to get my dress and another 30 minutes back. She was so upset with herself! Jason and I missed out on all of the pre-wedding pictures, but we were both in the wedding!

The ceremony went very smooth and was very beautiful. My sister is gorgeous anyway, but she was picture perfect on her wedding day!! Again, no pictures with my camera! We arrived at the reception hall, took some pictures, and then the DJ was going to announce all of us and it started raining and the wind was blowing hard. So there was quite a delay, but eventually we made it out there. Jason and I were first and then so on. We had to walk down these steps and then to our tables. Well, Rocky's sister and her husband were a couple of people behind us. As they were walking down the steps, she completely missed the bottom one and hit the ground. He husband, Scott, stood over her and yelled "SAFE"! She was OK and handled it very well, but she's had lots of practice being graceful....she was runner up at the Miss New Mexico pageant a few years ago.

After we ate, did the toasts, and cut the cake it was time for the dance. Stacey and Rocky danced first and then they handed the microphone over to Stacey. She announced that the first father/daughter dance would be with me and my dad. I bawled!! The only regret at my wedding was not getting to dance with my daddy, and she gave that to me on her wedding day, before she danced with him. My eyes fill with tears as I write this. It was the most precious, most thoughtful, most priceless gift anyone has ever given me, and I will forever be grateful! Thank you, Stacey.

It was a wonderful wedding, and I could not be prouder of my sister and my new brother-in-law. He absolutely adores her, and she could not have picked anyone better. They are perfect for each other, and we love you so much!

The Cake.....from finish to start.

2009-07-13T07:01:00.001-07:00

Blogger was putting my pictures up in a very random order! But anyway, I guess that we'll start out with the finished cake first. By the way, the post is for you Nette!

I did not get any pictures of it that night, only when I had set it up. I was fairly happy with it, but I was really happy with the taste of the cake. Rocky wanted a strawberry cake with chocolate icing, so that's what he got! And it TOWERED over the wedding cake. My sister was upset that she didn't ask me to make her wedding cake. It looked more like a child's birthday cake. I'll post pictures of it when I can.

(These next pictures are all mixed up! Sorry.) My very messy kitchen! You can't make cakes without making a huge mess.
This is part of the icing project. From here, I am going to start smoothing the sides.
This is my huge bowl of icing.
This is my cake right out of the oven.
And right before the oven.

Well, Nette, I hope this is what you were wanting!! Sorry it's backwards, but just scroll up! ;)

2009-07-07T19:19:00.000-07:00

Hope y'all had a great 4th of July! I've been reading about people spending time on the lake, having BBQs, and fireworks. Well, my 4th consisted of driving tractor.....all day. But this was the fireworks that I got to see, not bad, huh?

I have been on the tractor for days, working on my cake when I am able, and trying to clean house before I leave tomorrow. My sister's wedding is on Friday, and things on the farm are CRAZY trying to get the wheat out so we can plant beans, swathing hay, waiting for it to dry but it keeps getting rained on, ect. Oh, yes, and yesterday as I was bringing the disk to another field I had a blow out on one of the tires on the disk. Nice. But it did give me some time to work on my cake!

Please pray for my whole family as we prepare for this wedding, and please pray for me and my cake!

Good Humor

2009-07-02T12:35:00.000-07:00

We had a surprise 40th birthday party for my aunt last Friday night. All of my other aunts thought that it would be a great idea to dress up. This is my wonderful husband (cute, isn't he!) and my soon to be brother-in-law (he's pretty cute, too!).

I think they better go see a dentist before the wedding next week! And maybe, Jason, you could go see someone about your hair....just a thought.

Bridal Shower

2009-06-27T20:09:00.000-07:00

Today we had a bridal shower for my sister, Stacey. This is a group picture of all of us that attended. And this next picture, well......it's priceless!!

This is my five year old niece helping Stacey open her presents from her soon to be mother-in-law!! Poor little B will see this picture the rest of her life!

And I really don't know what I would do without friends. Thank you, Jayne, for taking pictures today!!

Here it is

2009-06-25T05:31:00.000-07:00

Well, this is a picture of my first attempt at a wedding cake. It was for my cousin's wedding a couple of weeks ago in Las Cruces, NM. She sent me a picture and I did that best that I could, I just hope it was what she was wanting.

It was a little stressful....OK...a LOT stressful. We had a few mishaps, like dropping a tub of icing on the bottom layer of the cake, but all in all I think it was a success! Thank you, thank you for everyone who encouraged me along the way and for everyone who was praying for me!! We could feel your prayers! And a HUGE thanks for Tammy who came at just the right time and did the flower placement on the cake.

Sorry, Nette, I did not take pictures of it while I was making it. But, I will when I make the cake for Stacey's wedding!

Wisdom

2009-04-22T07:39:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I have to wonder....What is going on?? Seriously, where is the wisdom of the people who are elected into a public office? Check out California, Senate Majority Leader Dean Florez, is writing a new bill that would ban all antibiotics in animals used for human consumption. He is going to ban them from schools first. But what are the effects of antibiotics used in animals? He is concerned about our long term health, but for how long have we been consuming meat from animals that have been given antibiotics? For me, it's probably been pretty close to 27 years now and I'm doing great! More importantly, how will consumer safety be affected when we have sick livestock everywhere that we can not treat?

Along those same lines, I heard a statement made the other day that made me so furious!! A young person told me that they had heard on the news (and we know that it HAD to be true) that 8 to 10 year olds are having a stronger sex drive because of the food they are eating. WHAT!!! I was thinking.....HAVE YOU WATCHED TV LATELY?!? I've decided that if you are a Christian or a farmer you are always under attack....try being both!

All of this just proves that the only truth in our lives comes from God's Word. Not from our friends, the news, or our "oh so wise" politicians!!

"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind." James 1:5-6

Spiders, Snakes, & Scorpions....Oh My!

2009-04-16T13:38:00.000-07:00

We love our new house, and we love living here.....we do not love all of our "roommates"! This house breeds spiders, I don't why, oh and crickets. I have sprayed the house from top to bottom, before we moved in and twice since then. Yet....spiders and crickets.

So, I can live with spiders and crickets but last week there was a scorpion in our bedroom. Nice. So I sprayed it too! It had crossed my layer of poison because it was dying, but needless to say.....I sprayed AGAIN!

Last night, Dakota would not stop barking. So finally I asked Jason to go and see what she was barking at. Turns out she was barking at Milo because she was in Dakota's dog house. When I thought that Jason had everything straighten back out between our two "kids", he didn't come back in. Pretty soon he was standing at the sliding glass door asking me to come outside.

He had killed a baby rattle snake that he had nearly stepped on. This house also breeds rattle snakes!! But I didn't expect it to begin so quickly. So my top priority this afternoon is spreading Snake Away around the house. Sure hope this stuff works!!

Happy Easter

2009-04-11T08:27:00.000-07:00

This was sent to us, and it is a great reminder of what Easter is all about. Hope you have a wonderful Easter!!

Thank you, Father, for sending your son to take my place on the cross.

http://videos.komando.com/2009/04/10/brad-paisley-and-sara-evans/

Dreams....

2009-04-04T08:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my good friend, Jayne, stopped in to see me. She told me about a conversation with her daughter, Katie. She had crawled into bed with Katie one morning when she was waking her up for school. Katie told her about this dream she had about having surgery on her leg and she was the one doing surgery. Jayne always tells her that she needs to be doctor because she likes stuff like that. Well, Jayne again told her that maybe she should be a doctor. Katie told her that she doesn't want to be a doctor, she wants to be a farmer's wife like Candice!!

What a compliment!

My SB09! ;)

2009-03-18T15:23:00.000-07:00

Okay....so everyone's blog has been about SB09, and I've been feeling a little left out. No spring break for me or my "kids". However......I was involved in some SB09 activities. Yesterday and today I have been at the Agape Youth Ranch to teach my ever so popular horse science class, really it's just b/c they can't get anyone else to teach it b/c I'm not a great teacher. Anyway, I started the class out yesterday by asking a very important question to make sure that all in the class would be able to handle and understand what I was going to teach. So now that I have 17 teenagers' attention, I asked how many people knew what a horse looked liked. You should have seen there faces!! They looked at me very strangely, like this lady is out of her mind, and slowly raised their hands. What a great way to start out the class!!!

Today I asked them what came to mind when they thought about horses, and one girl responded my saying "an appetizer of Heaven". I also was asked a question...

Victoria: Can I ask you an off the wall question?
Me: Sure!
Victoria: Are you a White?
Me: Why yes I am.
Victoria: You people are EVERYWHERE!!!

Never a dull moment.....

Hardships and Heartbreaks

2009-03-11T19:11:00.000-07:00

I came across a blog this evening, thought you might like to take a look. Sunday, Jeff preached about God knowing the "bigger" picture. I'm so thankful that He does, and it's refreshing to know that others know the same thing even in the midst of their deepest pain. Life is hard, but God's love is so GREAT and BIG!

For what is your life?

2009-02-25T05:39:00.000-08:00

In January, we painted, did some remodeling and moved. Crazy, busy time in our lives all filled with excitement, worry, and some sadness. Our world as we knew it was changing.

In February, Dakota came into our lives one week and the next Cody left our world. We had an engagement party for Stacey and Rocky where we announced that our world was forever going to be changed with the birth of a baby. One week later, our world was changed again....

I knew something just wasn't quite right. I wasn't sick, tired yes, but not sick. I even told Jason that maybe I needed to take another pregnancy test just to be sure! Sunday morning I started spotting very lightly. Thought that maybe I had just been overdoing it so I laid down. The spotting began getting heavier followed by cramps. Sunday was a hard day for both of us. We have waited for this child for such a long time, and to be loosing this baby was heart breaking.

Monday morning we went to Tucson to see the doctor. As we waited a very long time in the office, it began to wear on me. As teenage girls with their moms, women who looked like they were on the drugs, etc. came in, I wondered why I was the one having a miscarriage. Wasn't I a better candidate to raise a child? But as I sat their I realized how arrogant that was of me to even think that way. Who was I to question what God has planned for our lives? The best thing is is that I don't even have to understand why, but just trust that God loves me.

There is nothing like the loss of a child, whether if they are only 7 weeks, 25 weeks, 3 years, or 40 years old.

James 4:14
whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.

More changes......

2009-01-30T12:52:00.000-08:00

More changes are coming our way....we are adding to our little family! Yea! Cody and Milo are going to have a new sister!! Her name is Dakota, she is 4 year old lab and we will be getting her this weekend. My soon-to-be brother-in-law, Rocky, hooked us up with dog. I'll keep you posted if he got to us or not! Just kidding, since they are not married yet he is still trying to earn those brownie points!

By the picture I would say that she is good with kids. Do you see that smile, or is just me? Have a great weekend, and go AZ Cardinals! Who says that God doesn't work miracles!

Changes

2009-01-27T16:16:00.000-08:00

Wow! It's been a month since I have blogged!! So for all my faithful readers (haha) I have been in the process of moving. Big changes are in store for Jason and I, and we have moved 30 miles south to Elfrida. Jason's granddad sold the farm and we have moved to my parents' farm to help my dad out. Please remember us in your prayers as this is a HUGE change for us!

We have been in our new house for 1 week now. On the second night, I had this incredible urge that I just wanted to go home. Things are better now that we have settled in a little more, but it's weird to be back in the house that I grew up in. But I feel that we are where God wants us to be at the moment, and we are stepping out in faith.

And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and the He is a Rewarder of those who seek Him. Hebrews 11:6

Merry Christmas!!

2008-12-24T05:25:00.000-08:00

I find myself not sleeping very well lately due to the unsettled feeling that surrounds my thoughts. This year has presented many new (and old) challenges and struggles, and next year proves to be more of the same. Sometimes I wish that there was a clear answer from God. Things are changing in our little farming world, and Jason and I have been praying that we make the right move. But it seems that the harder we try, the more opportunities that present themselves the harder and more confusing everything becomes.

So Jason and I have found a verse that I would like to share.

"Wait on the Lord;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the Lord!"
Psalm 27:14

To wait on the Lord is to demonstrate confident expectation. The Hebrew word for wait may also be translated hope. To hope in God is to wait for His timing and His action!

Don't you just love that?! So I wish you a very Merry CHRISTmas, and that whatever situation you find yourself in this Christmas I hope that you too will find yourself waiting on the Lord.

Christian Bigotry?

2008-11-16T18:04:00.000-08:00

A letter to the editor was written to our little newspaper about Christian bigotry in the Bible Belt States. This man claims to be a "minister", yet he condemns Christians for not voting for a black who stands against Christians. I am a white voter who did not vote for Barack Hussein Obama because he is pro-choice, I am pro-life, he is for gay marriages, I am for marriages between one man and one woman, and he is against our Second Amendment rights, and I carry a gun! So does that make me a bigot? NO! It makes me a Chrisitian who stood up and voted for a person who would do the best job of protecting what I believe in. It would not matter if that person was white, black, green, purple, or yellow, if they had strong Chrisitian values and stood by them then they would have my vote.

He also wrote how sad it was for the black people in those states whose vote didn't count. Well, I'm sorry but if they got out and voted then their vote counted! And even though the man that I voted for did not win, and still feel that my vote counted. What's sad is the fact that people call white people bigots or racist for not voting for a liberal black man.

He just had to say something negative about President Bush as well, and that if he was running again with only a 28% approval rating that the people in the Bible Belt would have voted for him. Well, sir, I would have voted for President Bush!! How rare these days to find a man who will stand up for what he believes even when it is not popular.

I'm leaving on a jet plane.....tomorrow

2008-10-30T14:37:00.000-07:00

This country girl is going to the city!! Tomorrow my mom and I fly out of Tucson heading to Washington D.C., and we are so excited!! But I can't lie and say that I'm not a little bit nervous about the metro. You see I've got this thing with my personal space, and I'm not so great when it gets crowded. Luckily, Nette will be able to coach us through all of that!

This is also the first time for me to leave Jason for such a big trip. I'm not sure how to handle it! I've been cooking all week, and coming up with a list so that he knows what needs to be done. You really don't realize all that you do until you have to leave it to someone else!! But I think that he is going to be OK.

So here's to a very happy weekend, and happy (if that's possible) voting on Tuesday, and I will see you, Nette, tomorrow!!

Trouble In The Wind

2008-10-16T12:24:00.000-07:00

She was born on a very cold, very windy Easter Sunday morning. April 16,1995, Trouble In The Wind came into this world and forever changed mine.

We called her Windy and she was quite the little whirlwind. So tiny that she fit neatly under her mama's belly while she nursed.

It was definitely love at first sight, well for me anyway....I'm not sure about Stacey.

Every young girl needs a passion in her life. Mine had always been horses, and Windy came along right before I entered high school. Just good timing or God's hand at work? I would say God's hand at work!!

We entered her into halter classes, dragging her along with us to all the shows.

This was her first blue ribbon. I believe that she is just a yearling in this picture.

I was showing her in all the classes when she turned 2 years old. She was my baby, my project. I started her, I trained her, and she rewarded me greatly! Together we worked so hard and in the end it paid off.

She was my best friend and I relied on her through my high school years. I am so glad that I had some of my senior pictures taken with her!

Many people do not know that we were on the cover of Brio, a Christian girls magazine. (Please, don't hold the horse "whisperer" title against me! I was not so thrilled when they put that on the cover. Besides, there were many times when I was horse "yeller"!) This was definitely another God thing.

I believe that this was after one of our stressful photo shoots for that magazine. She is drugged here (she got over stressed), but I just love her crossed legs. She stood like that for quite some time!

Arizona State Fair! As a 2 year old we placed 2nd in our Western Pleasure class, but for some reason I don't have those pictures. Here we placed 6th in showmanship, which was one of the toughest classes.

Lots and lots of waiting in between classes. I miss those days.

This is Windy and Teaspoon, her first and only baby.

It's hard to know when to make that call to end the life of a pet, and it's something that I wish we never had to do. But Windy was suffering from bad hips and she was declining quickly. She came into this world on April 16, 1995, and she left this world on October 9, 2008.

Thank you to my two mama's for coming over to cry with me. Thank you, Jason, for taking care of everything because I could not. Thank you, Father, for the opportunity to own such a remarkable horse. And thank you, Windy, for the time that we spent together, the memories made, the person that I became through you, and for Teaspoon. When you died a piece of me forever died with you. I love you and I miss you.

Goodbye my friend.

Reflections.....

2008-10-01T14:52:00.000-07:00

Jason and I had the opportunity to go and help out Tammy and Stephen, since they have so graciously helped us out lately! It is their "harvest" time as well and we were helping gather yearlings to take to the sell. Jason had helped on Saturday, but some managed to get out of the pasture so yesterday afternoon we gathered again.

For a little background information, my family has farmed just on the other side of the mountain where Tammy and Stephen have their ranch since the early 50's. Yesterday was my first time to be one the backside of that mountain. WOW! I know that I have posted this before, but it is amazing how much AZ changes within miles of it's self!

ANYWHO...... At one point Teaspoon (my horse) and I were left by ourselves holding some cows and calves while Jason and Stephen were scouting for some more. The view I had was absolutely breath taking!! As I had a few minutes to myself I was praying and thanking God for the opportunity to even be up there, when I started thinking about the ranching life style. Now, farming is hard but ranching....that's a whole other kind of hard.

I was thinking about all the sacrifices that they had made to be up there, everything that they had done without. So many times we want to find our "security" in our checking account, or where we live, or what vehicles that we drive, or how new our farming equipment is.....but here's a family who love each other and I mean really love each other. The 3 kids are grown but they still look out for one another, at Will's wedding his dad was his best man, at Shay's wedding her brothers were her attendants and it is important to Shay Lynn to have her children close together so that they too might have the relationship that she shares with her brothers.

They built this relationship not by buying all the newest and greatest things for their children, in fact, Tammy told me that when the kids were little she would go into town and pick up free cardboard refrigerator boxes for the kids to make forts and countless other stories! But they were given a wonderful life by all of them working together, sacrificing together on that ranch. Now their family is not perfect, but to me it is a beautiful example of what God had is mind when he set up the family.

I pray that someday when I have a family of my own that I too will instill in my children a strong work ethic, the meaning of sacrifice, and what life is really about....a relationship with our Savior.

I wish that I could have carried my camera with me! It was so peaceful and to me, there is no better quiet time then when you're sitting horseback looking at God's beautiful creation!

The Chile Roaster!

2008-09-25T06:54:00.000-07:00

I finally have some chile roasting pictures! Yesterday, Tammy and Stephen came back over to help Jason and I again!! Tammy and I roasted 320 lbs. of chile and we were able to get some pictures. Now mind you that we mostly roast green chile, but after we were done we decided that we would pick some red and try it out.

(the pictures are out of order) This is the final product. Red chiles are so sweet and flavorful! More so than the green.

We threw in a green pod just for fun!

This is the roaster in action.

You very slowly turn the roaster (by hand with this one) and let the flames blister the skin.

Close up of the chile while it is cooking.

The idea is to blister the skin but not over cook the flesh. It usually takes only 3 minutes to roast 20 lbs. So why does it take all day to do 320 lbs?!? It's the process afterwards of stopping the cooking by cooling the chili down with water.

This is right out of the roaster.

Thanks again to Tammy and Stephen! It's wonderful to have friends that you can call in a pinch and they will be there. We are looking forward to be able to help you out on the ranch in the next couple of weeks!

AAHHH.....Monday

2008-09-22T06:53:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm actually happy to see Monday and a start of a new week. We survived last week and the weekend! We picked 10 loads of chile, 5 loads of pumpkins, and I have lost track how many bags of chile, well over 100.

God has blessed us with such great friends and family, and we utilized them this week! On Thursday night, Tyler came over and he and I picked up bales out of the field while Jason finished baling. On Friday, Tammy and Stephen came over and she helped me roast chile all morning and we're not exactly sure what Jason and Stephen did.....drove around maybe?? No, they did keep very busy, but it sure felt like Tammy and I were doing all the hard work! ;) But talk about a wonderful friend because she brought with her breakfast burritos and sandwiches so that I did not have to worry about anything extra. Plus she sent all the extras with us on our unexpected trip to New Mexico! Thank You, Thank You, Tammy!!

So to top off a very LONG week, on Friday at 4pm we headed to Roswell, NM to take care of some unexpected business. Long story, long trip! But we made it to Alamogordo, NM around 11pm and could not find a room. Dream works production was in town filming the new transformer movie, they were having a hot air balloon festival on Saturday and Sunday, and a bike rally in Ruidoso. We finally got a room at the third hotel that we stopped at and we we got the very last room there! We had a hay rake on a trailer and we were asked if it was a transformer! I told Jason that we could probably sell it for lots of money!

We made it back home the next day around 7pm and Jason baled hay until 11:30pm. So on Sunday we slept in, he raked more hay, we napped, and then we picked up more bales until around 8pm last night.

Just a little side note, we are now down to just 2 dogs. Cash bit one of our biggest fresh chile customers on Wednesday, so now we just have Cody and Milo. It's really strange not to have Mimi's dog, Coco, or Cash around anymore!

Power of Prayer

2008-09-16T14:55:00.000-07:00

This morning my sister-in-law, Jodie, and my niece, Brooke (4 years old), came over to pick up some roasted chile. Brooke needed to use the bathroom so we came into the house and while Jodie and I were visiting Brooke went into the bathroom 4 different times. So Jodie went in to check on her and told her that they were fixing to leave and that she would stop and pick up some medicine for her. Brooke told her not to worry about it because she had already prayed!

Have you prayed today? ;)

No Rest for the Wicked?

2008-09-15T06:01:00.000-07:00

Reading other blogs inspired me to write about our "not" so restful weekend. And for once we did not have any rain! Wow....who would have thought that out here in the desert?

Let's begin with Friday.....that morning "we" picked 3 semi loads of chile, 100 bags of chile, I roasted 160 lbs. of chile, and shipped 2 semi loads of hay. I also finished cleaning and putting back together my disastrous guest bedroom. Then we loaded up a trailer with hay and headed towards Wet Stone to deliver more chile and hay. With 8 ton bales of alfalfa hay pulled by a gas pickup.....the going was slow!! Those hills around Benson are tough! But we finally made it and we were able to see Travis and Nicolette's house that they are going to be moving into soon. We had dinner with them, and got home pretty late.

Saturday I started out by roasting another 160 lbs. of chile, plus I am having problems with my big roaster with the motor on it, so I had to switch to my little roaster (which I just picked up a few days before that) and hand turn the it.....little more work involved with that, and we were only able to pick 1 semi load of chile because our crew was small. I did some more cleaning on the house and then looked into my Green Chile Bible for some good recipes. Then Jason calls.....

Jason: What's for lunch?
Me: Oh, I've made buttermilk chile cornbread and pollo ranchero!
Jason: Wow! Something new and we aren't even having company over!

When I called him to let him know that lunch was ready, he asked if Nicolette was there. So we ended up having company for lunch! We both had a great time with them and the kids, and I really enjoyed rocking Heidi most of the afternoon! ;) After they had left I roasted 120 lbs. of chile and we took them to Elfrida. We ended up getting home late again that night.

Sunday, we slept in!! Papa called and needed Jason to help get a ram out of the pen of ewes. When he came back we ate breakfast and then he went out to rake hay and I started some more house cleaning ( I know, I know, we should have gone to church!). I hung a new blind in the guest bedroom, washed that window, and then I shampooed the carpets in that bedroom and the office. I also made these really good sugar free peanut butter oatmeal cookies. After Jason finished raking the hay, we left to go the the mountains to have picnic with my family. We ended up in Turkey Creek and the water is running and the grass is so high that you can barely see the cattle! BEAUTIFUL!!!!

On the way home, we had to stop at a Border Patrol check point which they were in the process of setting up. Anyway...people we everywhere and here is how the conversation went between Jason and the agent.

BP: Good evening. US Border Patrol. Where are you heading?
Me: (oh no!! How's he going to answer?)
Jason: Home.
Me: (whew)
BP: Where's home?
Me: (Oh NO, he just had to ask!)
Jason: Cochise.
Me: (whew)
BP: Where are you coming from?
Me: (OK, here we go....)
Jason: Turkey Creek.
Me: (oh...THANK YOU, LORD!)
BP: Have a nice evening.

as we drive away.........
Jason: I don't like to be questioned.
Me: No kidding.

Fun times this weekend! This week looks to be our busiest of the season. This morning Jason already has an order for 90 bags of chile, and, hopefully, we will have a big enough crew for 2 semi loads as well. We start shipping pumpkins on Wednesday, I have chile orders to take to Tucson on Wednesday, and out of 240 acres of alfalfa - 180 acres have been cut and will need to be raked and baled probably by this weekend. Oh well, looks like next weekend we won't be doing much resting either!

I Love The Fall

2008-09-11T16:03:00.001-07:00

I really do love September and October. It brings back good memories of county fair (showed horses so I was able to stay out of the politics!) and of corn harvest. One of my most favorite memories of growing up as a "farm kid" was spending time with my dad on the combine harvesting corn. Love It!! Love the smells, the sights and the sounds.....I highly recommend trying it! ;)

These days I'm no longer showing horses, my dad now has his corn custom harvested, and we don't go corn but I still love the fall! We started picking chile last Friday and things have been crazy. And the crazier things get, the happier Jason gets.....yes, I said "happier". I do count my blessings!! And I have fired up the roaster and have gotten a few bags roasted. I had a couple yesterday come and get 80lbs. of roasted chile and they told me that it was the best chile that they have ever had! Last year they canned some of it and gave it away as Christmas gifts and everyone asked where they had gotten the chile. They told them that it did NOT come from Hatch, NM! I just love it when people finally realize that chile doesn't just come from Hatch, and that it's actually better from Cochise, AZ!

We will start picking pumpkins next Wednesday. This year has been so odd! This is the latest start to chile that we have ever had, and the earliest start to pumpkins that we have ever had! I'll get some pictures of chile/pumpkin harvest, and of my chile roaster.

Oh yes...I mustn't forget....along with the chile and pumpkin harvest we are still putting up hay. Well, we are trying, but it won't seem to stop raining. They say that as soon as you plant hay then the rain will start, well.....they are RIGHT! But as my new favorite quote says, "Life is not about learning how to survive the storm, it's about learning how to dance in the rain!"

So if you'll excuse me, I have some dancing lessons to attend to! And, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JENNIFER!!

Craziness!

2008-08-27T16:16:00.000-07:00

I know that for the most part those who read this blog all ready feel the way that I do. However, having said that you MUST watch this video on you tube of Obama. If there was ever any doubt in you mind about if he has "faith" or not, this should clear it up pretty well for ya! I can not comprehend the fact that we as Americans would even consider such an ANTI-American and ANTI-Christian for our President. Also, Obama is counting on the Christians NOT to get out and vote this November.

http://www.youtube.com/v/4FCNKwHRCQM

Anyway, on a little lighter note.....today Jason and I went to my brother's house to practice shooting our bows for our up coming elk hunts. Well, actually we had planned on going up to Turkey Creek, but it was raining so we ended up staying at their house. Their house is in Sunizona and it sits right next to Turkey Creek. Lots of farm land all around, not many houses. As we were playing around a small blue car drives up the road close to their by one of their pivots. It goes up the road aways and stops, 7 guys run out of the creek to meet the car carrying big, bulky bags, then the car comes back, and the 7 men run back to the creek. We all look at each other, and the first word everyone thought of was drugs. We called the border patrol, but we called the Willcox station not Douglas, so then we called the Douglas station (government for ya) and waited. I guess it was about 15 minutes later when the BP showed up, and about 30 minutes later they had all 7 men caught. Thanks only to Jason, Preston and my Dad! After lunch they including another BP agent went back up the creek to see if they could find anything and found several burlap sacks all tied together. They were empty, but they definitely had been carrying drugs. Plus, that was the second time that morning that that car had been by the house. And I'm talking maybe 200 yards from their house!!

So back to Obama vs. McCain, we NEED the right to own guns! Most people don't understand that, but it is so important. So I'll leave you with this.....By not voting, who are you electing?

Special People

2008-08-26T13:07:00.000-07:00

Do you have a special person that when after you talk to them you always feel better? Well...for me that is my cousin Sarah. Even though we don't get a chance to talk very often we always laugh, cry (most of the time from laughing) and just have good conversation. So this post if for you Sarah, I love you so much, I am so proud of you, and I'll never forget "35"! LOL!! It was so wonderful to talk to you today, and I can't wait to see you in a couple of weeks. Hang in there!

Romans 8:28

Happy Birthday to Me!

2008-08-13T20:17:00.000-07:00

It's been a crazy day, and I have been shown love in so many different ways! My mom and I went riding this morning, and I got to ride my new-to-me saddle that Jason bought for me. As we were headed out for our ride, my brother called me and wished me Happy Birthday and said that they wanted to come over.

As we were riding my sister, Stacey, called me and wished me a Happy Birthday. After our ride, Preston, Jodie, and Brooke showed up and they gave me some really cool hunting stuff and some Mary Kay stuff as well. But the fact that my brother picked out my present was the best gift of all.

Then I fixed a quick lunch for Jason, and got on the rake tractor for a couple of hours. I had just walked in the door when our neighbor, Tina, and her baby came over with a card and flowers! As she was fixing to leave, Jayne and her kids showed up with a cake and presents in hand. Then later on Helen came over with more gifts, and John Deere gifts and a wild flower lip color at that!!

So, THANK YOU to all of my very loving and thoughtful friends and family! You all sure know how to make a girl feel special! And I love all of you very, very, very much!!!

And.....Happy 35th Anniversary, Helen & Virgil!

Pictures

2008-08-07T11:31:00.000-07:00

O.K.! This is for Stacey, so I better see a comment from ya! ;) This is the cake that Janette and I worked so hard on for Stacey and Rocky's birthday. Hence, the Happy "46th" Birthday. On Rocky's side we did a mining theme, and on Stacey's, well.....I just had to do a monkey theme. And there is a awesome story that goes along with the monkey theme, but I definitely have to tell it in person! Right, Stacey?!?

On her (their) birthday, we went out to eat at Claim Jumper, and this is them enjoying all of those candles. We had our fingers crossed that the smoke detectors wouldn't go off!

They were the good sparkler candles, so they had to blow hard! :)

This next picture is kind of gross, so if you have a weak stomach you might not want to go any further. This picture is also for Stacey.

Coffee Pot has acquired a new sore under his chest. Not sure why or how it happened, but here it is.

And this is sweet 27 year old Coffee Pot who is enjoying is time out eating. If you look closely on his back he has a hitch hiker! That bird was just chillin on his back as he walked along.

What a crock!

2008-08-05T19:04:00.000-07:00

"What a crock: Blaming biofuels for food prices ignores reality." That is the title for an article in Western Farm Press. The article is quite good, and the title cracked me up! I think that biggest thing here is people ignoring reality! Everyone wants to cry wolf on ethanol raising food prices, but no one wants to take a look at the real data of whats really happening in our markets. So let us look at what happened in 2007 with corn....in 2007 U.S. farmers produced a record 13.1 billion bushels of corn, 22% of which was used for ethanol.

Still, there was enough left to meet domestic needs, achieve record exports, and have a 10 % surplus. What?!? Did I just write surplus? Had not a single bushel of corn gone to ethanol, food prices would still have risen because of the tremendous burden of $100-plus oil, burgeoning world demand for grains, and crop failures due to drought and other disasters.

And speaking of burdens, this afternoon Jason and I were figuring our input costs for our wheat this year. When we came to fertilizer, Jason said that a particular kind that we used we had purchased at roughly $500 per ton, and now it is over $1000 per ton. Unbelievable! I hate to beat a dead horse, but......crude oil again plays a mighty big factor in our food prices.

If you like imported oil......you're going to love imported food!

Don't Worry About Tomorrow

2008-08-03T09:29:00.000-07:00

It's been on crazy week around here! So much to do, and not enough of me to do it! Ever feel like that? It started a week ago when we went with Helen & Virgil to get Janette from the airport. It's so good to have her home again, although she has all ready left again.......but it's still good to have her in the states.

Monday, Janette helped me decorate a cake for my sister's birthday. We had so much fun and she learned how easy it really is. After words I took dinner to Jason out on the tractor, and ended up staying out there with him until after 11pm.

Tuesday, I baked over 11 dozen cookies and then Jason and I went to Tucson to celebrate Stacey's 22nd birthday. We had a great time, and got home again after 11pm.

Wednesday, I went back to Tucson to help Janette move out of her apartment. I had a great time hanging out with her and eating at Chopped! Ran back home, helped unload Janette's belongings, then went home took a shower, and Jason and I went to Dan and Kristel's house. We had a great time there as well, but managed to get home after 11pm.

Thursday, I was supposed to pick up Janette at 6am to work on a pivot but didn't actually get up until 6:30am. So around 7 I picked her up and around 10am we were finished. Nicolette and her two babies came over to Helen's house so we spent most of the day with them. I took Jason some dinner again on the tractor, and then ended up driving tractor for a little while. We finally made it to bed by 8:30pm, and it was wonderful!

Friday, I was supposed to be at my mom's by 8am but I ended up driving tractor for a little bit in the morning. Left my house, got to her house around 10:30am and my mom, sister, and I starting cooking for 125 people. We were asked to cater an anniversary party for my sister-in-law's parents for Saturday. I think I got home around 6:30pm or so.

Saturday, I met my mom and sister and her friend in Willcox around 9am. We finished making beans, spanish rice, chicken enchiladas, chile relleno bake, green chile meat, two kinds of salsa, guacamole, and 3 edible fruit bouquets. We only had one accident....I was trying ever so carefully to move on chile bake from one oven to the next when the rack tipped over and chile, cheese, and eggs went every where! But God does work miracles, b/c for one thing my mom just laughed and the other is that we had 2 chile bakes left over! We didn't feed 5,000, but we did have food left over! I left there around 8pm, and came home to lighting, thunder, and a little rain.

Sunday, Jason was supposed to teach class this morning, which he has been preparing for all week. However, with the rain last night and 50% chance today, he is instead baling hay. Thank you, Papa, for covering for him!

So in a nut shell, that has been our week! And I'm going to close with a verse that was a going to be part of Jason's (now Papa's) lesson....

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble! Matthew 6:24

A Few Days Get Away

2008-07-24T16:36:00.001-07:00

Jason and I ran away to Flagstaff, AZ for a couple of days this week! We had such a great time. On our way there, we stopped at an antique store in Payson. Actually, we passed it and Jason turned around and I was HAPPY! It was a huge store with lots of cool stuff, but found it to be pretty pricey. I'm to cheap.....don't really like to pay a lot for "junk"! But as I was wandering around Jason found me and he had 3 books in his hand. All of them were about women and ranching. How sweet......bonus for sister-in-laws who enjoy those types of books as well!

As we pressed on our journey, we happened into a saddle shop in Camp Verde. Jason was like a kid in a candy store! They had lots, and lots of stuff as well, new and used. We ended up with a few used items and headed out.

Our destination was actually Mormon Lake which we made it there safe and sound. We met up with the Smith's and others, ate some dinner, visited, and then headed to our room. Tammy had booked our room for us and we were in the Roundup Rooms. It was a long building with four rooms. Tammy's dad was on the end, then Stephen's parents, then us, and another room on the end. Very small, but quaint rooms with a good bed. We bunked down for the night, and we were both reading the new books that Jason had purchased when our "other" neighbors showed up.

First they come stomping down the front porch, opened up the door to their room, the man (excuse me for including this, but you need to the full picture) passed gas loudly, then they began their conversation. It didn't take long to figure out that they were intoxicated. Bonus! The walls were paper thin, so it was like they were standing in our room.

They couldn't believe that the room didn't have a TV! And how small the room was, and that he promised to get a better cabin next time. And how they would like to have room service in the morning that included champagne......like they really needed more to drink. Then the door opens, and someone leaves, comes back, and now we get a radio blasting!

Finally, Jason gets up and gets dressed and goes back down to the restaurant to see if you could change rooms. Small place, and the reservations office was closed this time of night. Some punk of a kid told Jason that they were all booked for the night. So Jason comes back to the room, and we decided that maybe things would get better.......well, they didn't. Things got so X-rated that we packed our stuff and drove 30 minutes into Flagstaff! And we hoped that Stephen's parents hadn't heard anything b/c it was so loud they might have thought that it was us!

We ended up with a great room in Flag. The next morning we called the lodge to let them know that we did not spend the night there last night, and to cancel our room for that night. The manager was very kind and helpful, wanted to know who Jason had talked to b/c they did have rooms available and we should have been moved, and that they would give us a free night. All of that was great, but we decided that we liked our quiet room in town!

Later that afternoon, we went back to the lake for Will and Trisha's wedding. It all turned out very well. Except, that she didn't have a photographer and I ended up taking a lot of pictures with another girl. Actually, I had a lot of fun doing it, but it's not that same as having someone who knows what they are doing! I sure hope that they turned out, but we did take an awful lot of pictures! (sorry, Will) And I got some more good Hagen time! That is one of the cutest little boys ever!

We took our time coming home yesterday, we went through Cottonwood, to Jerome which is a cool little town. It was established in 1876 (same as A&M I was told) on a mountain side. Now, if you have ever been to Bisbee that is steep, but this is insane! Cool place to see if you ever get the chance. From there we went to Prescott, to another saddle shop. Again, Jason- kid in a candy store. Then we headed back home around Roosevelt Lake, which is almost 100% full! It was beautiful, but it really made us just want to be on the lake fishing!

We really had a great time just exploring this wonderful state! You really don't have to drive long before the scenery changes. And between Steve Lindsey (the pastor who did the ceremony) and Jason, I laughed almost the whole time! And if you get the chance, ask Jason about the girl who hit on him! He'll try to blow it off, but I've got witnesses and good ones, Tammy and Stephen! Tommy saw it too, but he thought that it was cool....not so much me though. ;)

Rain, Rain, Go Away

2008-07-09T15:50:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of wheat harvest before the rain set in. This is Jason in the combine in front of me on the grain buggy.
"When you're the grain buggy driver the view never changes." If you look closely you can see another combine heading towards us on the left of Jason.
We were able to get some help this year, and that is R.L. fixing to dump his load onto the buggy.

OK.....can't believe that I'm going to say this, but this rain sure is a pain! We have 60 acres of alfalfa that we can't get baled and out of the field, and wheat that is too wet to get out of the field. It has been cloudy all day, everyday, since Saturday. But I guess that the bright side it is only 60 acres of alfalfa, and 100 acres of wheat. How can rain be such a blessing and a curse all at the same time? And I also can't complain too loudly knowing that the people in the Midwest would trade our problems for theirs any day!

Just a quote that I found that made me think of some women in my life!

"If a woman is sufficiently ambitious, determined and gifted - there is practically nothing she can't do." -Helen Lawrenson

Praying for our Nation

2008-06-27T17:21:00.000-07:00

I'm not one to get in the middle of all of this political mess. And since Jason and I turned off our TV, that has been one of the MANY blessing is not hearing about day after day. But I feel that this is important enough. Check out www.focusonthefamily.org if you haven't already and click on the link that on the bottom left that says something about "Dr. Dobson and the 2008 candidates".

I don't know about the rest of y'all, but I feel that these are crazy times for the US. This election makes me more nervous than I can remember. Then after listening to Dr. Dobson, Obama really scares me! As Christians we need to come together and stand united. It is my personal opinion that we are voting for the "lesser of the two evils" this November. When I listened to Obama speak over the Internet, not being able to see his face, I could hear the evil. I could hear the voice of man who wants God to have NO part in our nation. And I fear the day when the United States turns its back on God.

After listening to his speech and if it bothers you as it did me, please tell someone else to listen to it. We need to know the hearts of these men and women that we will be voting for this election. I read a bumper sticker just the other day: Be smart about voting, Hitler was elected in a free election!

We need to be praying for this nation, and praying for God's wisdom in whom we should put in office.

Horse Camp & VBS

2008-06-18T17:32:00.000-07:00

WOW! First of all, where did June go?!? I guess I've been a little busy! Let's see.... Last week was the first week of horse camp. There were 10 kids from the ages of 8-10. Everything went fairly smoothly for handling city kids, and at the end of the week they had to take a test which they all passed. Reflects well of the teacher I suppose! ;) There was one boy who liked to tell me that he couldn't. If you know me, that answer gets you no where and that I'll show you that you CAN do it. When I asked some others about him they told me that he had been violent towards animals, had ADHD, but they had seen some improvement in him. On Friday, part of their test was to demonstrate to me how to properly groom a horse. When it was this boy's turn, he had the soft brush so he was able to brush the horse's face. It happened that I was the only one watching him, and as he very loving brushed the horses face he bent down and kissed her. Needless to say, I let him take a little extra time when he was grooming.

Vacation Bible School...... it has been so much fun! We are doing a Veggie Tales theme this year, The Pirates Who Did Nothing. My mom and I are doing the story and the snacks which are together. Each day we have silly costumes, which keeps the kids interested in how we will be dressed. Tomorrow I am the Sea of Galilee. I tell the story of when Jesus walked on water. Today the main theme was that God is always in control. I'm sure that I got more from this lesson than the kids did. But isn't it wonderful just know that God is in control. In our world where everything is changing so fast it's nice to know that we, as Christians, can have a peace about everything. Sometimes that's the only way that I can get any sleep at night.

Also, last week we had a really great time with Jennifer and the kids! Now Jason always gets lots of lovin' from R, but this trip, even I got some good lovin'! A and I were able to drive around the farm on the 4-wheeler and check all the dripers at the pumps. We also saw LOTS of jack rabbits, quail, and even a coyote. Then to finish the week off, I even got lots of good lovin' from Baby Hagen! He even cried when I left him! OH, that just touches my heart. :)

Well, I guess I better start memorizing some more of my story for tomorrow. Here's a little preview:

Welcome to Spyglass Bible Theater, where true heroes reach out to Jesus! I've got to warn you, it's a little wet in there today. In fact, we're about to go underwater! Everyone take a deep breath and hold it, so your cheeks are puffed out like this. (demonstrate) If you've got a good deep breath, I'll let you jump in one by one.

"It's Been A Long Month This Week"

2008-06-05T15:50:00.000-07:00

That's what Jason told his mom last week. I've decided that it is going to be a long year this month! We officially have our first field of alfalfa under our belts. On Monday morning we were up at 2:30 am, at the field by 3:00 am, and quit baling at 7 am. Came in for some breakfast , went back out and picked up bales off the field. Came home for lunch, took a little nap, and then back out to work. Tuesday morning, up at 2:30 am, at the field by 3:00 am, and finished baling at 7 am. Came in for some breakfast, went back out, and picked up bales. (actually, we had to call the vet to come get my mare up, but that's another story for another day) Came home for lunch, took a little nap, went out and finished picking up bales. YEAH! First field done! Luckily, our second field won't be ready for another week or so.

For some reason or another, June has always been crazy and this year is no exception. The next three weeks I have horse camp, VBS, and horse camp. Plus, all the duties that have to been done around the farm. Then the first of July we should start harvesting our wheat. Needless to say, we are going to be very tired and, hopefully, not to grouchy! I'm glad that Jennifer is going to be here at the very beginning of all of the ciaos! Allison, I want to know how you managed to get such a long vacation!! And, um, just maybe you have room for one more?!? ;)

Oh my goodness, the UPS driver just arrived and my pup Milo jumps into the truck. Before I could get up there to get her out, he reached down to pet her and, you guessed it, she relieved herself right there in the UPS truck!! I was SOOOO embarrassed! And of course it was a new driver that I have never met before! Thank you, MILO!

Input Costs

2008-05-23T15:39:00.000-07:00

This is for all the "ethanol haters" and people who think that us farmers are just cutting the fat hog. On Wednesday, Jason order a tanker load of diesel. This is red (actually it looks more pink to me) fuel and it is not legal on the roads. It has always been cheaper than gas. Well...... the price on Wednesday was $4.22 a gallon, by today, when we actually got the load, it was $4.32 a gallon! It went up .10 cents in 1 full day!!! My bill was $17K! What in the world is going on?!? And Jason and I are small farmers compared to a lot of people, so you can only imagine their fuel bill. Fuel is always one of our lower costs as well, but, you know, these farmers are just getting so rich with these high corn prices. Did I mention that Jason and I aren't even growing corn.

This is a shout out for all of you Aggies. In the Farm Futures magazine there was a report on study done by Texas A & M. The study found the high oil prices, not ethanol, is the driving force behind higher food prices. The TAMU study dispels the food-vs.-fuel debate. I knew that I liked A&M!

I don't know how people farm who are not Christians. There is not a day that goes by that I don't find my self "on my knees" casting my anxieties upon God. Besides our input costs going through the roof and praying that we will be able to pay the bank back, the weather has been strange. The last 3 days we have had wind up to 50 mph, which is very hard on little chile that is trying to grow. We are behind anyway due to the cold weather this spring, and we have already lost some of our crop to the wind. Last night it started to hail, not a lot, but it made it hard to sleep. I'm not sure at this point how the chile survived, I'm afraid to ask!

A few days ago, when I went on that field trip, it was about 96 degrees. Today we have reached a high of 64 degrees, the wind is blowing, and it has been sprinkling on and off all day. We did get about 1/2 inch of rain, which wasn't a bad thing because, luckily, Jason decided not to cut our hay until Monday. Sometimes the only thing that brings me comfort is knowing that God knows our needs, and He is going to take care of us. It may not be how we have planned, but He is still in control.

On a little happier note, I did discover a very cool cleaning tool today! I used Pledge with lemon on my shower door, and it removed the soap scum like you would not believe! So since it worked so well on the door, I used it on the whole shower. It removed all the soap scum that I have tried to remove with a number of different cleaners. Also, it's kind of like giving your shower a "spot free rinse" like at the car wash. My hope is that it will help keep my shower cleaner, longer! You should try it!

For Janette, this verse is simple but I like it.
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me."
John 14:1

My First Field Trip

2008-05-21T17:24:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had the privilege of attending a fourth grade field trip! My friend, Jayne, invited me to go along with the class to the Cochise Stronghold. Her, Janette, and I have "run" the particular trail that they wanted to hike, so Jayne thought that I would be a good addition to the adults. However, I did not realize that I was going to be leading this expedition!

Yesterday just happened to be the hottest day of the year, 96 degrees. So we head out about 10 am, I think, and we get started along. I guess in my naivety I thought that fourth graders could handle a 2 mile hike up to the Half Moon Dank and back. Well...... not even a 1/2 mile into our hike, I started noticing how red most of the kids faces were. We did stop and rest for a few minutes here and there, but by the time that we made it to the 1 mile mark I was a little concerned. Two boys that were close to me we really red in the face, and when I asked them if they had water, of course they said no. So I ended up sacrificing my water so that we would actually make it back with some of the kids still alive.

We rested about 10 minutes, asked the teacher if we should turn back or go on, and then we preceded up the trail. I don't think we had hiked 5 minutes, when I realized that half of the group had turned around. So are now small group continued on. It was HOT and by the time we got to the the Half Moon Dank, there was not much water between all of us. I hadn't had any. We rested 20 minutes and headed back down, which is so much easier and faster. I felt fairly confident that we would all make it back down since everyone had survived the trip up. Wrong.

Two or three kids fell as we were heading down. Nothing major, just a few scrapes, and then about 3/4 mile back down we stopped to rest and poor little Katie was so hot and thirsty, and out of water. I was carrying a water bottle for another little girl so I let Katie have a drink of hers. Boy, did I get some dirty looks!! But I just looked pleasantly at her, thinking that she had met her match! Katie drank a little, then the little girl, THEN she passed it to the boy behind her who said that he was thirsty. HA, who won that one?!? We finally made it to the 1/2 mile maker and waited for some of our group to catch up. When the teacher finally came she asked if I could run (and I do mean run) back down to camp and get the father of the boy who was about to pass out!

So I took off, soon realizing that I myself may pass out because I had become very, very thirsty! I prayed the whole way down that God would give me the strength to make it back. (Again, the hottest day of the year!) I ran most of it, but the last part of the trail is mostly sand so it was difficult. However, I made it back to camp, grabbed some bottles of water, and we headed back up. The boy didn't pass out, and they were walking back down by the time we got to them.

But poor Katie, she had gotten over heated and was sick to her stomach. I felt so bad! I guess only having 2 kids get sick isn't too bad. I guess that I'm not a very good guide. I wonder if they'll invite me back next year?

It's A Goldilock's World!

2008-05-16T09:59:00.000-07:00

I was reading one of Jason's Farm Future magazines and I came across an article by Steve Ford titled "More mouths to feed". If you are at all interested you can go to www.FarmFutures.com to read the whole article, which I would recommend.

But I want to quote some of what he said, becuase it is exactly our feelings as well.
"I still can't get over how critical our society is of farmers. When we aren't being accused of harming the environment, we are targets of those who think we make too much money and consequently need no farm programs. There are others who think we do economic harm to the world's poor. A few years ago our critics argued that government programs were causing us to overproduce, depressing world food prices and hurting small farmers in the developing world. Now our critics say that biofuel subsidies result in world food prices that are too high, hurting urban poor in the world."

He goes on and asks the questions, do we have a moral responsibility to feed the world cheaply? Does that responsibility outweigh the need for a renewable and domestic alternative source of fuel? The food vs. fuel concern is very real. However, US corn production has expanded much more quickly than the ethanol use for corn, BUT (this is for everyone who blames ethanol for high food prices) prices have remained high DUE TO INCREASED FOREIGN DEMAND for US grain, meat and dairy exports!! It gets so old to hear people complaining about ethanol and our food prices, how about our demand on exports and the price for crude oil?

There is "talk" about the government stepping in and cutting corn prices, which is all fine if the cut crude oil prices as well (which they won't). The input prices to grow any crop are unbelievable and cutting corn prices won't change the cost of food for the better, but will cause food prices to go up because farmers will not be able to produce corn and survive! My uncle put it best the other day when he said that one day the rational people of this country are going to have to take over! Unfortunately, I don't see that happening anytime soon.

In the words of Mr. Ford, "It is as if farmers are the three bears and we live in a Goldilock's world, but one where there is no porridge that is just right."

Road Trip

2008-05-11T20:34:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday my mom and I left AZ and headed to Sanger, TX. It was 1pm before we actually left Cochise, so we decided that we would try and stay in Big Spring, which is about 8 1/2 hrs from our house. When we made it to Big Spring, there were no rooms. So we continued on to Sweetwater, and luckily found a room on our second try. (Just a little plug for the hotel we stayed at. The Best Western was very clean, and the people were very nice! So if you ever need a room in Sweetwater, that's where I recommend!) By the time that we got to bed it was 2:30am. At 5:30am I got up and by 8am we were on the road again. This a picture of my mom texting my dad. I just think it is so cute that they text each other!

We made it to Sanger, exchanged pickups, and then mom and I hit the antique stores. We ended up spending several hours "antiquing", and eating lunch in the Tea Room of antique store in this picture. We do not have antique stores like this in AZ, so we had a blast! And I found an old wagon wheel that I am going to make a table with. Very excited about that! We also passed by the Texas Motor Speedway, so mom had to get some pictures of that for my dad.

We passed this rig 3 different times, but just wanted to show everyone how "wisely" our politicians spend money! This is a Mercedes-Benz.

We had a really great trip, and I enjoyed showing my mom Texas. She just couldn't get over how green everything was. And I was sad that we didn't have time to stop in and say "hello" to everyone, but it was one of those, get there & get back, trips.

2 Vets, 1 Day!

2008-05-02T20:28:00.000-07:00

OK .....here goes my first post! Thank You, Allison, for the beautiful design. And thank you, Jennifer, for the encouragement!

Today has been a rather lively day, and it all started yesterday. Yesterday my mom, sister, and I went to Phoenix to attend my cousin's graduation from Grand Canyon University. We left Tucson at 9am and returned to Tucson 9pm. I was so tired that I decided just to stay at my parents' place for the night instead of coming home.

So this morning, my mom, sister, and I went to a local nursery to pick up some flowers. And with over an acre of flowers to choose from, it takes some time. By the time that I arrived home it was 12:55pm, and I had to have our dog, Cash, to the vet by 1:30pm. He had a run-in with one of our local javalenas a couple of weeks ago, and he needed to have the 8 staples above his eye removed. I think that we arrived around 1:40pm, which I thought was pretty good, and we were back home by 2:10pm.

(This is Cash when I brought him home from the vet. He has a mangled ear, and, lucky for him, he still has his eye. The vet said today that his scares shouldn't interfere with his social life!)

From home, Jason and I left and headed down the road to go and check on our friends' horse that had hurt his hind leg. They are gone to CA right now, and asked if we would be "on call" basically while they are gone, which we are more than happy to do. I received a call today; they left yesterday. After we had washed and examined the wound, we couldn't decide whether or not it was a snake bite or if he had just hit it really hard on something. The swelling was pretty bad, and he was having some trouble walking. So now the tough decision, do you call the vet or not? After talking with Dan & Kristel several times, we decided to go ahead and take the horse to vet. We hooked up to their trailer and then after a few tries we had the horse loaded. (He is only a yearling & I think he has been in a trailer twice). Long story short, it was a bad bump. He now is resting at our house so that I can give him his antibiotics and clean his wound everyday.

Now, I'm going to bed!

The little colt not only had a hard time getting in, but getting out proved to be challenge also!