Baby Update: 37 weeks

Well, here we are, three weeks from the designated D-day! I thought this would be an appropriate time to get around to posting these baby room photos that I took even before our trip to Iowa in July... I apologize for the low photos quality... I just took them quick so that I'd have something to show people in Iowa, to give an idea of how the room was shaping up.

The above photo was taken from the door to Scott's and my room. There are two finished rooms in the basement, plus a full bath, and they will be the sleeping quarters for all three of us.

This photo is from the corner with the window, and the door to Scott's and my room is on the left, and the door to the bathroom is on the right. Behind the open door is a closet.

Here's my crib project, with the Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. I'm really happy with how the color turned out, as pink as it looks in the can, and the light and dark wax turned out well, except it still remains a little tacky... not really sticky, but not really smooth. I'm curious to see how it wears over time.

I lined the drawer beneath the mattress with kitchen liner - not the sticky kind. I was glad to find something I could just cut to size and lay in there, without having the permanance of contact paper.

This little toddler chair came from my mom, along with an even tinier chair to match. The tiny chair I now use for a little cowboy teddy bear on the bookshelf.

There's the tiny chair, when it was in the corner, next to the saddle from Uncle Bob.

I'm really happy with the dresser stain project. Last night I finally purchased the drawer pulls for it and for the armoire - I've been waiting three weeks for them to go 50 percent at Hobby Lobby. Have you looked at Hobby Lobby's drawer pulls lately? They have a great selection of all types.

This is the box my little Western hankies came in. The box itself is pretty adorable. :-)

And here are just a few of the hankies... I haven't done anything with them yet. Still debating all my options...

The dresser and armoire also got lining for their drawers - this time a blue pattern.

I've been collecting enamelware for the room, to use for storage, decoration, etc. Little did I know these enamelware canisters I bought in Pendleton last September would fit in so well!! Or what I'd end up using them for. :-) The lovely C} wood piece is a gift from Emily in Missouri - she made it and stained it for me, and I love it.

This is my old camp coffee pot... It was a cheapy from Walmart, and the little 'glass' knob on top of the lid melted one morning as the coffee was simmering, so I removed the lid, kept the pretty red pot, and will use it for something, if only decoration.

My mom has done a great job collecting things for the baby room - these books are just another small part of the things she's found for Baby Martinez. They're all Western cowboy books, so they fit perfectly with the theme.

This is the view from the baby room window...

So that's what the baby room looked like in mid-July. Since returning from the Iowa trip I've worked on putting away baby gifts from the Iowa baby shower and have washed and put away most of the clothes in the dresser and armoire. More pictures to come, as soon as I get the room to a more put-back-together state. Right now I'm working on a slipcover for the rocker, and after that will come curtains. Those pink sheers just have to go soon. I'm tired of looking at them in pictures!

Then and Now: the Pets

Continuing with the 'then and now' theme, I thought I'd do a post about the aminals that have been around over the last five years... You'll have to forgive the randomness of the photos, they're just the first ones of the appropriate animals that I came across on my external drive.

Then: The photo above features the one animal, besides my mare April, who came to Wyoming with me and is still with me... That would be Link, who continues to be a character with quite the personality. He was about three or four months old when we moved to our apartment in Wyoming, and he has been a great companion ever since.

Now: This is a recent photo of Link, showing a little bit of his personality... Apparently it's too much effort to stand and drink at the water bowl..

Then: Lexus joined Link and me in the summer of 2007.

Now: Lexus stayed with us through November 2010. She was a sweet, lovable little kittie, but had to move on because of unresolvable behavior issues. It was a sad decision to let her go, but I enjoyed having her for the few years that I did.

Then: April is the bay horse leading the line, and she came with me in 2006. At that time I kept her in a pasture west of town with several other horses, before moving her in to Galles's so I didn't have to drive so far to get her.

Now: April lives west of Casper again, in a friend's pasture, and recently had a filly. She's 18 now, and starting to show her age, but is still in good health.

Then: Jazz came out from Iowa in the summer of 2008, I think. I can't remember exactly what year I got her, but it was the summer my dad got fed up with putting up with her harrassing the cows and calves. :-)

Now: It's been good to have two horses around, as over the last couple summers I rode enough that both got consistent use and I alternated what jobs and trips I used them for. Jazz came with me on last summer's pack trip to Gannet Peak from Dubois.

Then: In February 2010 Lucy joined the family as a four-week-old pup. Needless to say, Link was not impressed with my decision to get a dog.

Now: Lucy's a year-and-a-half old, and has grown up to be quite the cow dog. She loves to work, and would do it all day, every day if we gave her the opportunity. She's also a nut, who always sticks her nose everywhere where it's not wanted, and her curly tail is her trademark.

Then: Foxy joined the clan in June 2010 at about eight weeks old. She came from a friend of ours who has a ranch near Thermopolis, and the first day we had her in Casper she was very grouchy and growly and didn't like anybody.

Now: She's actually turned into the sweetest little dog, and her trademark is her slouch and her eyebrows. She's a lot more calm than Lucy, and she loves to be loved. It took her a little longer to come into her own working cows, but now she's a tough little girl who will bail in and bite them wherever she can get a hold. We thought she was a non-shedder. Turns out, she just holds onto all her fur and lets it all go in the span of about one week in July. There was a lot of vacuuming needed!

Now: New this spring was the addition of two fillies - Cindy Lou Who and Pipsqueak, who is the lazy one in the photo above.

Cindy Lou was born the end of March, and Pippy came two months later, I think. She was a month later than I had expected, and was the tiniest little foal. She's growing well now, and will be a very cute, feminine horse. Although she's the one with the stubborn, feisty streak. Cindy Lou is much more laid back and easy to get along with.

And the next 'now' that will be the latest addition to the family in a few weeks is Baby Martinez!!

Proud of our Product

Just a note... I wanted to pass along this tidbit from a recent visitor to the office, and write it down before I forget...

"When we had our budget cuts and lost our earmark, I told my staff to cancel all of our subscriptions at the office. A few weeks later I realized I wasn't getting my Roundup, and hadn't realized that we'd canceled it, too. Now it's the only one we've resubscribed to, because we just can't live without it." - Wyoming Wildlife Services Director Rod Krischke, who was sitting in the Roundup's entry area reading the latest copy


And here's another note that Curt recently received in his email:

"Also wanted to let you know that we subscribed to Tri State Livestock the same time we started getting the Round Up and we much prefer the Round Up. It has many more articles that pertain to our interests and way of life and we look forward to receiving it!" - Charity Crump, Crump Red Angus


We receive notes like these on a regular basis, and it's always rewarding to hear positive feedback. Sometimes it's hard to know if we're producing what the people want... I sometimes worry that the articles and features I plan are boring, or that nobody cares, so it's great to hear from people that we're on the right track, and I love our readers! :-)

Five Years: Then and Now

Driving across Nebraska, with my parents pulling the Airstream camper and my brother pulling the livestock trailer with three horses. I followed in my yellow Mercedes, which actually just came back to live in Wyoming last month.

In honor of my five-year anniversary here in Wyoming, here are a few 'then-and-nows' that I've been reminiscing about this week:

Then: When I got to Wyoming I moved into Aspen Court Apartments on Casper's east side, and lived there for nearly four years. I always liked my apartment, and didn't mind the space itself. It was the neighbors I got really tired of.

Now: About a year and a half ago I purchased my little yellow house. It was love at first sight when I first walked in with the realtor, and I still love it. This photo was from last November... that's why it's snowy but there's still pumpkin decor. :-) Living in a house of my own suits me much better than renting an apartment, though the apartment served its purpose very well.

*** no picture ***

Then: When I moved to Wyoming I was still with the 'ex.'

Now: I've been married almost a year to Scott, and it's been wonderful! Not a day goes by that he doesn't tell me I'm beautiful and how much he loves me. If I had it to do all over again, I'd have ended things with the ex when I moved here and had it over and done with. Things have been so much better since I met and married Scott, and I'm very happy.

A few short weeks after I started with the paper we got to work on our Fall Cattlemen's Edition. That was the first year we featured a county, so I got a lovely introduction to Wyoming through a trip to Sublette County for interviews and photos.

Then: I started out with the Roundup as assistant editor.

Last week I wrapped up interviews for this year's Fall Cattlemen's Edition, which will feature Big Horn County. This is the 11th Cattlemen's Edition I've worked on - we do two each year.

Now: Almost two years ago I took the position of managing editor for the paper. It's certainly been a challenge, and was a learning curve, but things are going great and it doesn't seem like five years since I've started. I can honestly say there has not been a single day that I've hated my job and/or really not wanted to come to the office. Granted, there are always things a person don't 'feel' like doing, but that will happen anywhere. I'm fortunate to have a good job with great coworkers that allows me to travel the state, meet new people and constantly learn and do new things.

With that, I better wrap it up for this post, as there are articles for this week's paper calling my name. :-)

Weekend: Checking Off the To-Do List

This weekend was a good one for finishing and starting on projects around the house. It included finishing the binding on the baby quilt, starting the slipcover project pictured above, grocery shopping, a trip to Pathfinder Ranch for Pathfinder Days and a night spent at the Association, watering the whole yard, cleaning up some spent potted plants (it hasn't been a good year for me and flowers), exchanging our blueray player (this is our third one. maybe the charm?) and spending 30 minutes on the phone with an Indian man to figure out how to get it to connect to our router, taking a couple naps, cleaning both bathrooms, vacuuming, and lots more things along those lines...

I was going to do some riding with the menfolk Sunday up at the ranch, but turns out their Saturday cow-moving task turned into two days, so I skipped out, as I didn't know for sure how long Sunday's portion would take, and I didn't want to ride more than a couple hours. Instead, I woke up with them at 4, had breakfast and headed into town, where cat Link and I got all kinds of things done.

I also worked quite a bit on sorting and folding the baby laundry and getting it organized in the armoire, along with the other baby supplies I have, like toys, feeding essentials, diapers, etc. The drawer pulls I want at Hobby Lobby still haven't gone on sale, so opening the drawers on the dresser/changing table is still a trick. :-)

This is the baby quilt - the blocks of red and green fabric are parts of the table runners I used at our wedding party in May.

And I used dropcloth canvas for the backing.

Yesterday I started on the puzzle that is cutting pieces for a slipcover for my rocking chair. This is the first try ever at a slipcover, so we'll see if it ends up fitting the chair, with no glaring mistakes. I thought about piping the edges, but then decided to keep it simple...

I didn't get much farther than this yesterday - I did get these pieces all pinned together and started stitching, but then headed over to publisher Dennis's house to pick raspberries and never went back to this project yesterday evening - I wrote all my thank-you notes for the baby gifts from Iowa, instead. I have yet to cut out the rest of the pieces. The chair is sitting up on 2x4's because I'd like to cut some blocks to raise the chair up a couple inches - right now it's kind of a low-rider.

So, a few more things were finished, or at least started, over the weekend. Just a few short weeks until baby gets here!

All in a Day's Work

After spending yesterday in the Hyattville/Manderson area and getting five interviews for our upcoming special edition, today I am headed north to the Greybull/Shell area for several more.

Last night I went out in search of cell service, and on my way back in to the ranch where I'm staying I stopped to take some photos. This is rough, dry country around here, and broad daylight is really not flattering to it, so I was glad to get some photos in the pretty evening light. There's quite a bit of irrigation in the drainages, where mostly alfalfa hay and corn for silage are grown. Most irrigation is done by pivots.

I've been admiring the blue tin roof on this barn since I got here - it's along the road back to my cabin. Unfortunately, I had lost my sunshine to clouds by the time I got this far.

So more interviews today, and possibly a stop at the Big Horn County Fair in Basin. The fair is the reason some of my interviews didn't pan out - livestock is due to be brought in today, and many ranch families were preoccupied with all the last-minutes.

And back home tonight! It will be good to be home. There are two ways to get back to Casper over the Big Horn Mountains, and I haven't decided which one I'll take yet. There aren't many cattle in the lower country this time of year, as they're all grazing on mountain allotments, so I need to get a few photos up there to go along with my articles.

Peace and Quiet

Yep, I'm still just relaxing in my cabin... the above photo I took this morning in the early light of morning, while the whitetails were still playing the meadow. I don't think I've ever seen whitetails run and play and jump just because they can, but there was a group of about five of them who were certainly enjoying being deer this morning.

I had been invited to go have breakfast with the Robertsons at 6, but even though I was up, I wasn't really around, so just munched on some cereal I had brought along. Then fell back asleep, only to be awakened by the sound of a diesel engine, and breakfast on my front porch railing.

Mrs. Robertson has to be among the sweetest hostesses in Wyoming! This is what she had delivered. The bread was still warm from the oven! She came back shortly with a note, because she wasn't sure if I was up, so we chatted briefly. They're headed to Billings today to pick up a piece of equipment.

So now my next interview isn't until 10, and it's not far from here, so I'm going to get started transcribing my Robertson interview from last night. No time like the present! It would be a great relief to have these 10 or 12 special edition articles all finished up before the baby comes.

If you ever want a secluded getaway, there are many prime opportunities in Wyoming, and perhaps you should look up the Robertsons at Hyattville and come stay in their cabin. :-)

No Cell Service...

But I do have wireless internet!!

These are the kinds of anomalies that are common in Wyoming. :-)

The photo above is pretty dim, because I took it at 9 p.m., a few minutes ago, but it shows the hay meadow and the Big Horn Mountains off to the east of the cabin I'm staying in tonight.

Yes, not in Casper tonight!! Although it's been hard to get excited for the big task that is Fall Cattlemen's Edition, one of the perks of this trip is the gracious offer of Gene and Chris Robertson for me to stay in their guest cabin, which usually accommodates hunters, fishermen, lion hunters, etc. If I hadn't been able to stay here, I would have had to stay in Worland, which is quite a few miles to the south of all my interviews, I think at least 50, and that would have resulted in a lot of driving back and forth.

The cabin is a simple affair, with one bedroom and one bath downstairs along with an open kitchen/eating area. A long covered porch stretches along one side. Upstairs is an open loft, which has a double bed and a daybed with a trundle beneath it.

Think of Prince Edward Island's 'Wee House on the Water,' only about six times the size. :-) (Visit the link! They've added on, and the 'wee house' is still miniature, but not quite to the extent when we stayed in it with six people!!)

(Look! Another whole bedroom in the Wee House! Wouldn't that have been nice. :-) )

So, back to the Wyoming cabin. Here I am, a few miles east of Hyattville, Wyoming in Big Horn County - one of the few areas of Wyoming I had yet to visit, because there's really no reason to come here, and the people who live here like it that way. I have two full days of interviews scheduled in the county for tomorrow and the next day, before heading back to Casper, where I'll stay put until after the baby's born.

More photos of the county to come - hopefully I end up with some good ones! That always makes our designer Tracy's job easier. :-)

Summer's Heat

Another weekend already over! They do go by so fast, but really, if not for the work week to separate the weekends, I don't think we'd appreciate them so much.

This last weekend I took the equivalent of six hours in naps, and it was wonderful. :-) Friday evening and Saturday morning it was just cat Link and myself at the house, so we did some organizing projects and worked on baby things before heading to the ranch late Saturday afternoon for dinner. I took a rhubarb cobbler and ice cream to share - coworker Jody and I made a visit to the Casper farmers' market Saturday morning, where I picked up the rhubarb.

All of the 'menfolk' had spent Saturday gathering and trailing cows, and everyone was pretty hot and tired, and our dogs were pretty worn out after that. I was kind of glad for a good excuse to stay out of the hot summer sun.

So Sunday morning we all woke up at 4 and they saddled their horses and we had breakfast together before loading up the horses.

They were headed several pastures in the direction of town, so I tagged along with them and pestered them for photo ops after they'd unloaded the horses. Thankfully they were obliging, as I wanted to experiment with some silhouettes, which I haven't done a whole lot of.

After they headed back west toward the cows on their horses, I slowly made my way east toward town, making a few stops on the way to try some more photo experiments. This one of the tree I'm not in love with, but it's close to what I was looking for.

And I'm not in love with this daybreak one either, but again, it's close. Practice makes perfect! I was glad for the prime opportunity to take early-morning photos.

After getting back to town the pups and I had some more breakfast - it had been four hours since the first one, so I figured it was ok - and then headed out to check on the fillies, which I hadn't seen in two weeks. I turned out staying longer than anticipated, but I did get my red two-horse trailer sold, so it was worth it. I also took the chance to ride each of my mares a little bit, and I think that's the first time they've had a bit in their mouths all summer long.

Then I came back to town and slept for two hours. :-)