Summer Work

Since I've been doing lots of random things lately, working off several to-do lists, I figured I'd share lots of random photos with you today. :-)

First and foremost, let's point out that top cow dog in the photo above. :-) That's Lucy working cows last Saturday morning when we were up at the ranch to brand late calves and turn our bulls out. Lucy continues to be a good hand to have around, and she's very eager to do her work. She would work cows all day long every day if she had the chance.

We got up to the ranch about 5:30, but still didn't get too early of a start. It's been pretty hot lately, so it would have been nice to have been an hour ahead of where we were.

Scott, Jamie and I gathered the cows off the meadow, which is a small pasture close to the house, so it didn't take too long.

When we got down in the bottom Trav and Bob joined us, also.

The grass in the meadow is still very lush and green and pretty.

And here we are about to the corrals, which are on the right edge of the photo.

And here is an accidental shot, but one that shows how much my belly sticks out now - to the saddle horn.

I've been riding Deets this summer, since my mares are on nursery duty. Most times people don't like to ride him because he's so tall and almost impossible to mount without a step, but I figure I need a step for any horse these days, so I might as well ride him. And once I'm on, I'm on, and everyone else has to open the gates. :-) This photo marks 33 weeks of pregnancy.

Once we gathered we had six calves to brand and a few to dehorn before turning the cows back out. Bob grilled steaks for lunch, then Scott and I headed back to town for a nap before heading to the county fair's rodeo that evening.

Sunday morning I woke up early and made my favorite pancakes - the whole wheat ones with no sugar and the beaten egg whites that give them fluff. They're delicious. The recipe is for blueberry, but this time I made them 'mixed berry' because I had partial bags of blueberries and raspberries in the freezer. The bummer about frozen blueberries is that they turn the whole batter blue/green, and then your husband is suspicious. :-) I have yet to make them with chocolate chips, but I'm sure that would only take them up another notch. Someday I might remember to post the recipe here - I have it on a card in my recipe box.

Since it's been hot during the day, Scott and I did some yardwork before Sunday heated up, and then took it easy the rest of the day. I edited a group of photos, and we watched a new show on Netflix instant called "American Pickers," which is actually a couple of guys from eastern Iowa who travel the region, sifting through people's barns and sheds, looking for good junk. I also got started on the log cabin-patterned quilt for our baby, of which I've already made two for the new babies of college friends earlier this year.

This was last night's project - waxing Scott's black truck.

Isn't it pretty? We really should have taken before and after photos, because for some reason our vehicles are covered with tree sap this summer, and it was pretty dull and awful before. Our theory is that the cottonwood trees drip the sap with the high heat - last summer we didn't get nearly so hot for so long, so it didn't happen to the vehicles before.

Now the question is - when will it be the poor white truck's turn? Perhaps next week, as the rest of this week and the weekend are pretty scheduled already, with another baby class, a wedding in Meeteetse, etc.

Scott and the pups take a break with some sun tea after waxing the truck. We've been making lots of sun tea this summer, and it sure is delicious on the warm summer evenings. Notice how green the lawn is, though! I've been working hard to keep it deeply watered, and it's doing pretty well through the dry heat and scorching sunshine.

And I'm not complaining about the heat, because I know we've got about another month of summer before the temperatures will cool and we'll trend quickly toward winter again. I'll take all the 90s I can get!