scott and i had planned a date night, with dinner and a movie tonight, since it's been a long time since we've had time to do something like that. then i remembered my sister's coming over from lander to spend the night, but she won't be here till later, so we're going to go ahead with our plans, then she'll be here and i'll take her to the airport at 5:30 in the morning, at the latest.
and guess what? that leaves just enough time to get up to the ranch and head over to pathfinder, where they're meeting to start branding their late calves at 6:30. i'm supposed to drive my truck for getting back in to the corrals, and not my car. that must say something about the road.... but it's just 200, and a well-run operation, so we'll easily be done by noon.
then i don't know if i'll hang out at the assoc or head back into town to get some work done, because that evening we're headed to hiland for steak and bringing our branding irons to brand some new wall or fixture or something they've got out there. i've never had the hiland experience, so i figured i probably needed to get out there. it's nothing more than a blip on the 90 miles of emptiness between casper and shoshoni.
here's a brief explanation of some of the places around casper that i visit the most:
as you can see, the oregon and mormon trails go right through the association, and many of the covered wagon ruts are still visible, so that kind of neat to see when we're out moving cows around.
so anyway, the better part of my weekend has filled. hopefully i still have sunday mostly free and in town. i need to mow my yard. it hasn't been done since before july 4, and although it's quit growing, it could use a little evening up.
in other news, i went to one of my favorite stores, ross, yesterday, and couldn't resist these salt and pepper shakers for three dollars. are they not adorable? and they were only one small part of my purchases.
and then i made this beef salad for supper, and when scott finally got off work - he's been working late a lot - he came by, and he really liked it. i ate it with crackers and he ate it with tortilla chips, since neither of us was hungry enough for a whole sandwich. the recipe's another keeper!
i forgot to take pictures while i was putting it together, but here's the recipe, listed below and linked from pioneer woman cooks:
Beef Sandwich Spread
Prep: 15 min Cook: 0 Difficulty: easy Servings: 8 (mine didn't make that much. i used one large package of ground beef)
1 pound leftover cooked beef (pot roast, steaks, etc. i just thawed ground beef since i have tons. literally.)
3/4 c mayo (i used kraft's new reduced fat to lighten the calories. i suppose you could also use part plain yogurt)
1 T white vinegar
1/2 small white onion, finely chopped
4 whole hard-boiled eggs (i used five)
6 pickle slices (i used one whole dill pickle)
3 T sweet pickle relish (left this out, because i don't use relish that much, and didn't want the whole bottle sitting in the fridge)
Salt and pepper, to taste
Optional: pimentoes, green pepper, jalapeno (i added red pepper from my drawer)
Preparation:
If using leftover beef, grind finely in food processor. I just sauteed the ground beef until cooked through, and didn't drain it. Combine all other ingredients and add to ground beef when cool, adjusting quantities to taste. Add salt and pepper. Best if chilled before serving. Spread on toasted wheat bread, serve as a salad on lettuce, or eat with crackers and chips.
easy! and a great, quick way to use ground beef other than hamburgers....
