I'm Back! Did Ya Miss Me?

Hello dear readers! I hope this finds you all well!

Welcome to the new subscribers! The sheep hope you brought them some peanuts while you are visiting!

I apologize for my absence lately. Too many things going on and no time, or gumption to write.

First, I came home from the Glenrock show with a nasty bout of bronchitis which knocked me on my ass for a week. I am so grateful for my son picking up the extra chores that I was not able to do. I couldn’t even walk up to the sheep corral without hanging onto the clothesline halfway there and hacking up a lung.

I’m still not 100% and it will take me several weeks to recover from this one.

COPD sucks.

Secondly, on the heels of the cough fest, I finally got a date that I could get the rest of my winter hay. WOOHOO! That is now home. Please put up a prayer or good thought that I have enough to get me thru the winter. If it is mild here, we should be ok. If it’s a hard one, I’m going to be in trouble.

We are already supplementing what little graze there is with hay. This weekend’s project is to get the stack yard fenced off so that we can let the flock out to graze the side acreage. We let it grow and use it as a few weeks of extra graze. They do a pretty good job of cleaning it all up before winter, fertilizing for next year, and clearing out the garden raised beds for me.

On top of this, all my cucumbers decided that NOW was the time to mature and be picked. I’ve made 4 batches of dill pickles and 2 of pickle relish this week. Saturday will be the day to pick the remainder and make another 2-3 batches of dills. Then we can use the corral panels around the garden to fence the stack yard. The only thing left will be the pumpkins, and they are turning a beautiful orange. They will stay there until we get a good frost, then the sheep get to eat them.

Pickle days!

The reason the sheep get the pumpkins is this. The seeds act as a natural dewormer, meaning I don’t have to dump chemicals into them. Plus, all the fiber, vitamins, and minerals give them a great boost before going into the colder months. And they love them. It’s like candy to them. It will pretty much be the last “fresh” food they get until the grass comes in next spring.

The weather is slowly starting to cool down, thankfully. Still getting close to the 90’s most days. No rain for weeks now. It’s scary dry and there have been so many wildfires in the area. Some really huge ones west of me that are devastating the ranchers in that area. They have lost much of their winter graze and are on the hunt for extra hay. There is going to be lots of cows going to the sale barn this fall so they have less mouths to feed.

Miss Lucy is still getting around fairly well. She comes down to the house every afternoon for her treats. I’m worried about her for this winter though. I suspect she will be spending most, if not all of it, in the barn. Safer for her to not slip on ice and snow, warmer for her to be dry. No competition for food. I’ll have to try and find a good way to secure a heat lamp in there so her water doesn’t freeze and she can have a bit of extra warmth. I have a table I can nail them down too, and then I won’t worry about them falling into dry hay or the water bucket, thus causing a fire.

Just a heads up for you dear folks. I’m coming up on the 3rd anniversary of losing my Rob. This time 3 years ago, I was already sick, and it was a huge downhill slide into hell from there. I’m feeling pretty emotional about all of it. Honestly, I f’ing hate it.

I was sitting outside for a few minutes on the deck yesterday and thinking about our Friday afternoon ritual of Jack and cigars. That started when we were in Colorado as our way of reconnecting after a busy work week. We would talk about kids, cows, sheep, and who did what at work.

The best talks were our dreams for the future. Where we would live and love when he retired. What we each were looking for in our new place. Once we did get here, the dreams changed to what did we need or want to do now that we landed. No cell phones, just us talking, watching the sun set, and the traffic go by. Perfect afternoons.

I have not been outside for this ritual once since he left this world. I just can’t bring myself to sit there without him.

I miss him so very much. That has not diminished one bit.

Blessed be.