The Plan So Far

Well after a good Thanksgiving without a camera, all I can say is that it was a great time. We spent it in Cache Valley with most of Daniel's family. We all pitched in to help with Thanksgiving because Daniel's mom recently had an operation. Kiley woke up early on Friday and went back to sleep, so I decided to sneak out and go shopping while everyone slept. Then the guys went pheasant hunting that afternoon and we had a pheasant bar-b-que that night. We drove home Sunday night after stopping to sign papers with our APX manager.

The loan agency would like to see us have a bigger down payment on the ranch, so we are going to wait until next year. In the mean time we will work for the Millers until the end of the month. They need someone to get here and learn the place before they start calving in January. Daniel is planning on selling pre-season starting the new year. We're going to house sit for my parents while they are in Utah for the Winter. Daniel starts the APX season mid - April. Then when Cailin gets out of school we'll go be with Daniel for the Summer, until the new school year starts. Colten will start school too, (My little boy is growing up!) That fall we hope to get into our OWN PLACE. That's the plan for now, but it usually changes!

Puppies ,Puppies, Puppies! Border Collie, Healer Cross. Reserve yours for Christmas now- only $50. Working mother- good cow dogs!

They are so cute! The white one is female, the brown one male. The rest are some of each!

Deep Thoughts

I usually don't leave my deepest thoughts on my blog, but there's always a first time for everything.

When I was in high school I ran in a big track meet called the Tiger Griz. This was a big meet with lots of big schools and awesome distance runners. It was a cold wet April morning in Idaho. Fifteen to twenty of us toed the line for the 2 mile run- which is 8 laps. The mile was my specialty, but my coach always had me run this race along with the 1/2 mile and sometimes a 4x400. I started out in the back as usual. Then slowly I made my way up passing most everyone. The girl in first place was way, way out there, more than 100 yards ahead of the second place girl- from Firth. I was tired when I came upon her. She was setting a good pace with 3 laps to go. So that's where I stayed. My coach kept encouraging me to pass her and move on- and catch the lead runner. Now there were only 2 laps to go. Still I stayed there behind her. It was a lot of work to pass someone, and look way ahead for someone else to catch. But it was so easy to run off of her energy, just run with her and make myself stay with her. My coach kept telling me to pass her and move on, but I didn't. I was comfortable that I could beat her on the home stretch. Of course things sped up on the last lap. With 200 yards to go things got fast. At the 100 meter mark we were head to head, me on the outside. Then, with 75 yards to go I just blew past her. I got an easy second place at a big meet. I was pretty proud of myself. Now second place is not first place, but it was an easy way to go about enduring the race.

Daniel and I have been married for almost 8 years, and have worked for 6 different ranches, and moved more than twice that many times. We have worked for some great people, and some not so great people. We've been comfortable, and thought the grass was greener on the other side, just to find out that it wasn't, but gained other blessings. Before the ranch we are at now, we were at the worst ranch job and just wanted out. Daniel would do anything to get out, and he did. He went door to door selling security systems this summer. We went with him for most of the time, but I was practically a single mom for almost 5 months. That was a great sacrifice for our family. But because we did that we now have an opportunity to do something that most people who are not given their famly farm or ranch could ever do. With a lot of work and more sacrifice we could have our own place, buy our own small ranch. Now, there's absolutely nothing wrong with the ranch we are at now. These people are super nice and great to work for. We make an average ranch hand wage, get housing and free beef, our horses eat for free. We can even run some cattle. It's a comfortable place to be- fairly close to both of our families, a good country school for the kids, a great church ward. We've lived in this area most of our married life. We love it here, and are comfortable. I feel like I'm on lap 6 in an 8 lap race and I'm running pretty good, comfortable at least, in second place. Do we make something of ourselves? Go out of our comfort zone to take control of things and shoot for something better? Or do we stay where we are comfortable, just live a simple, easy life as an average ranch hand? Part of me wants to settle for second place- it would be so easy! But what could we have if we moved on? It's been easy up until now to say that we want to have our own place, but now it's reality. We'd have to move to somewhere we could afford, (No, we didn't make millions with APX!) That somewhere is Eastern , or Northern Montana, or even Nebraska. The papers are in at the loan agency. Do I just have cold feet? What's wrong with me? We're trying to live our dream. I guess only time will tell.

Our Snow Day

One night last week about a foot of snow fell here in the Ruby Valley. It was beautiful to see it all layering life outside. So we went out to play. I LOVE SNOW!

Sara's NINE Puppies

Sara finally finished having her puppies between midnight and 3am. I went to bed at 11:30pm. They are so dang cute! There are 7 black and white ones with neat markings, all have stripes down their faces. Then there is one brown and white one, we like that one a lot! And one white one with black ears, isn't that intersting? Sara is doing a great job being a mom, we have to make her go out for a break. The brown one is a tank and always eating! Looking at them it's hard to believe they were all inside her little tiny self!

Something New at Our House

Sara was bred by accident at my parents house like the week before we moved here. We think they are going to be red healer. But this first one looks like her. We are excited, but hoping she only has 4-6. Not 10- that's how many pups can eat at once... She just started.