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Yes this was pretty special yesterday. The Wells Fargo bank here in Chinook always has visits with Santa on the day after Thanksgiving. This year they asked Michael to play the part. Of course Daniel was clueless about whose lap he was sitting on.

Later in the evening was the Parade of Lights so we all dressed up warm to go watch that. Daniel was very excited to see Thomas:

Then one of the local churches had a nativity play straight after so we went to that also. It was very good. In fact probably one of the most realistic nativity plays I have seen.

This morning the wind had died down a little so I made everyone get some outdoor chores done & we walked down to the river to break the ice. After that we came inside and started putting up the Christmas decorations. Michelle has always been our excited one about Christmas but even she said today that Daniel had her beat. He was SO excited. I think this is the first year that it has really clicked with him & try as he might he cannot say “Christmas Decorations.” That is a lot of syllables & so it comes out all jumbled but we finally figured out what he was talking about. When we were down in the field Michelle kept thinking he was talking about the irrigation ditch. By 2:30 we were done & it was time for Hannah to go take a nap. I looked at Michelle & said, “We should go to Havre & see if we can buy a Christmas project.” So off the two of us went - a very rare treat. Halfway there I suggested that maybe we should also go watch Twilight. I called Richard to see if he minded us being out longer as he both the little ones but he was fine so we went to Ben Franklins first to look for a Christmas project. What a disappointment! Can you believe that they had no Christmas cross stitches, tapestry’s or rug kits? Pathetic! Of course that is our only craft store. We did buy some little kits for making different ornaments.

We then headed to watch Twilight. Michelle has read all the books but I was clueless except that she had told me it was about vampires. It was EXCELLENT. No swearing & no sex - what a novelty. A good story line too - very romantic. So all in all a great afternoon.

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving & are enjoying your weekend,

Liz

No I haven’t completely lost it - we have not been baling hay today BUT it was another glorious day so we took full advantage of it. After lunch the little ones & I walked down to the river to check the cows water hole but didn’t have to smash it today as it had not frozen back over. (The river is still frozen though.)

So we came back up & went to the cow barn. I wouldn’t let Richard put that hose away for the winter because every so often we get a nice warm day so I can use it. The barn got a good hosing out. In the meantime Michelle was cleaning out the duck pen. Ducks are disgusting creatures as they love to get wet & poop everywhere so the pen was gross. There was also a pile of well matured eggs in there - ones we had missed in the summer so she got all those up except one which exploded in her face! LOL! Michelle doesn’t have a sense of smell so it was the perfect job for her.

Fed the rest of the animals who were all out enjoying the balmy weather and then came in to continue working on the images I was supposed to be doing.
Take care,

Liz

Montana, as you may well know, can be known for its extreme temperatures. Last week was no exception. On Tuesday it was so nice (60+) Richard & I skived off work for an hour to take a walk to check on the cows. All of our cows were happy to see us & all was well. We took Duke with us who although is seen walking in this pic did very little & got carried the majority of the way:)

Roll forward to Wednesday where the temps dropped & on Thursday morning it was 11F so a little different. Friday morning we wake up to snow on the ground & a fierce wind.

SO we figured we had better go feed the cows down in the field. PLUS Cinco had not been seen since Tuesday. Was he stuck somewhere? We took the truck down but of course the dogs followed us. We went into the top pasture first & then I got out to walk through to the bottom pasture whilst Richard drove around. As I walked to the river’s edge I was totally surprised to find that the river had nearly totally frozen over in 3 short days. Wow! I keep walking & then Bella decides to walk on the thin ice. A quarter of the way across it cracked & she fell through! OH NO! She couldn’t get out. I started yelling at Richard who was taking his time driving along & wondering why on earth I was yelling & screaming at him. Anyway he finally gets out & goes looking for a big stick as obviously we could not walk on the ice. He finds one & puts it near Bella hoping that she could pull herself up on to it but to no avail so then he starts smashing the ice trying not to hit her. Finally it breaks & she moves forward as he keeps smashing. Thinking the dog will be freezing to death we let her in the truck soaking wet & Richard brings her back to the house whilst I continue my search for Cinco thinking that maybe he has got stuck in the ice somewhere. As soon as Richard lets Bella out of the truck, guess what? She runs right back down the field. As for Cinco, we discover that he must have crossed the river on the nice day to go visit the neighbor’s herd of cows! Somehow we have to go catch him & bring him home in the trailer. No we haven’t even tried yet!

The snow has gone & the temps are back in the 40’s with glorious sunshine so can’t complain. The nights are cold though so the river is now frozen solid. The dogs walked on it yesterday & thankfully it didn’t crack. We walked down the field yesterday & Duke did better following. Unfortunately due to his eyesight & being a puppy he tends to bump into things & walk really close to your feet. Michelle put him up on the bank whilst helping me down the ditch with Hannah’s pushchair. Of course Duke didn’t stay on the bank, came right behind Michelle & she stepped on him. Talk about scream & he has been milking it since that time. He was out eating his lunch today & suddenly started screaming. No idea what he did but we think he must have caught his leg - did he tell us a story - oh my goodness. He can put weight on his leg so we know it is not broken but I’m sure it is sore but how sore or how “put on” it is we’re not too certain. I think he knows he can get extra cuddles.

Someone asked the other day if things were quieter here on the farm in the winter. I guess in some ways they are but in others winter is definitely more work. In the summer we don’t not have to feed hay, but in the winter we do. Now with cows down in the pasture we have to go smash the ice every day so they can have water so that takes extra time. The hoses are now frozen or put away so water has to be hauled into the cow barn by buckets every night & this morning the barn was a little stinky so had to be washed out with buckets instead of the hose. Am I complaining? Nope! Just stating the facts. I love to be outside still as long as I am dressed for the weather.

Hope you’ve all got great plans for Thanksgiving & have a blessed time.

Liz

Thank y’all so much for all the great name suggestions - normally I reply to all of you that comment but if I do that today I will just be repeating myself & spoil your reading this so please accept my apologies.

Michelle, Daniel, Hannah I went & picked the puppy up this afternoon. (Richard & Michael are in Great Falls for an EMT Refresher Course.) We had tossed some names around the dinner table & obviously read all of your suggestions but nothing was definite. Michelle said she was going to wait until we actually saw him. Poor thing was obviously scared stiff but settled down & was content to be stroked by Michelle on the way home So as we left the pick up place we asked Daniel what we were going to name the puppy. Now remember that Daniel does not have all his speech yet, sometimes we understand him perfectly, other times he has to repeat himself many many times before we finally decipher what he is saying. BUT this afternoon with no delay he said “DUKE!” Michelle & I were gobsmacked. That name hadn’t even been thought about, let alone mentioned. We gave him a couple other options but he was very determined that the puppy’s name was Duke so there you have it.

Duke has now been de-flead (sp?) & is in a big box with the cat basket in the utility room (no cats - they gave up their basket many moons ago - coats are far more comfortable!). He is VERY cute. He has been outside several times but we didn’t want to leave him with the other dogs in case he should follow them out somewhere & then get lost & freeze. As for having that lovely puppy smell, nah! Duke is a true cow dog & smells like a cows. I had to laugh to myself as he fits right in here. There are many times Richard will give me a cuddle & say, “Phew! You smell just like a cow!” LOL! He kisses me anyway

Enjoy the pics - Duke is pretty small well at least compared to Roxy!

He can definitely see but it is obvious when you look at his eyes that something is not quite right. I’m sure it will become more obvious as he grows & we’ll also let the vet take a look.

Here’s the proud new Mama:

Enjoy the rest of your weekend,

Liz

We got a call early one morning this past week asking if we would consider taking a very special puppy.

This little guy will be 7 weeks old on Sunday but was born with no pupil in one eye. The owners didn’t notice for quite some time as he was running around like normal with all his siblings - 9 in the litter. BUT once they did they knew he couldn’t be sold so asked some friends of ours if they would take him. They couldn’t so called us. The rest, as they say, is history. Michelle had to say “goodbye” to her dog, Emma, a few weeks ago as Emma had gotten really sick & there was nothing we could do so this little guy is going to be hers.

We pick him up tomorrow. Oh yes, you’re probably wondering what breed he is - Miniature/Full Australian Shepherd but the owner told me tonight that he was the smallest in the litter so doesn’t think he we will grow very big. Never had this breed before so a new adventure just about to begin here at CHF

Enjoy your weekend,

Liz

P.S. Richard wants to call him Pugh as has has no pupil - get it?! SO if you folks have any better suggestions please let us know - some inspiration would be great.

Hi there,

Wow! I can’t believe it is Wednesday already. Saturday was HARD work. Michael made a new hay feeder for the cows outside so as to stop them trampling on it & the rest of us cleaned up a large area of hay & manure that was 6″ thick - soggy & heavy. It was left over from last winter so well compacted but needed to be moved. I think we took 3 loads to the dump as it was stinky & full of dormant maggots - gross! On the second trip to the dump a guy was there throwing away rotten apples so we asked for them to give to the pigs. Penny & Rosco were very pleased to see us & even the turkeys enjoyed them.

On Monday & Tuesday Daniel & I went out for a bit each afternoon to dig a drainage chute from the barn to the irrigation ditch. When the workmen concreted the barn they made it drain out the door which was fine. They did put some rock down but as I have dug out I have discovered that there isn’t much rock & then underneath it is clay soil so hence nothing was draining! It was a stagnant mire -  YUK! Of course what would be ideal would be to pour a concrete chute but as that is not going to be happening anytime soon a hand dug one will have to suffice. SO yesterday afternoon I got it finished & we experimented. I told Daniel to watch & see if it drained into the ditch - he was very excited when I started hosing out the barn & the majority of the water went exactly where I had planned

Today the man that is going to be putting the wood stove in came & measured up etc so that we know exactly where it is going to be. We are going to build a “wall” behind it for fire safety - that way the stove does not have to be out so far. So tomorrow we are going to go choose the hearth & then get some matching tiles for the wall. That way the job will be done ready for the wood stove.

Always something going on here. Our big male turkey got a little too amorous this morning. Richard was on the phone & looking out the window at the same time when he started shouting “Quick! Go rescue the chicken!” Alas it was too late - the chicken had suffocated. We will be watching very closely from now on but Richard thinks the chicken had gotten injured before hand somehow as the Tom can’t run very fast so the chickens should be able to outrun him. If it happens again we’ll have to separate them.

Hope your week is going well.

Take care,

Liz

Howdy folks!

How was your weekend? Richard & I spent Saturday cutting wood again. In fact I think we piled more than we cut. We built 3 bonfires. No we didn’t light any of them but they are ready for when the weather is right. Montana has very strict burning laws due to the dry climate & you have to get a burn permit & call before you light & then call to let them know the fire is out. So one night this winter when there is no wind we will enjoy a bonfire. The wood was just too far gone for putting in the wood stove plus some of it had enormous black beetles in it, not to mention ants so we just moved that quickly! At least we are tidying up & we did get some good wood so I think we have enough for the winter now should the weather turn & we not get a chance to go out & cut more.

Sunday we just collapsed & enjoyed some family time.

I realized yesterday that I haven’t talked much about the cows recently. When I was milking Tulip I was thinking back to when we got her & her cut up teats. They are now really soft & supple. She has settled into her routine & gives us about a gallon of milk a day as well as feeding the two calves so that is excellent. I only milk in the morning - the girls have her the rest of the day. Didn’t have to milk this morning though as last night Tulip decided not to come in. It was dark when I went down there & although I called & called she didn’t come in & I wasn’t about to go searching for her in the dark.

It was a beautiful night so when I got back in Richard, the little ones & I took blankets & headed out to lie on the trampoline & watch the stars. Of course we jumped a little too. Richard saw two shooting stars whilst Daniel & I were jumping.

This morning Tulip was at the barn hungry. She only gets grain when she is milked & comes in at night so by tonight she’ll be at the door begging to come in for her grain. In the meantime we have started feeding hay. As I looked at Rosie I realized something was wrong. Somehow she had got the top of her halter in her mouth. Time for a new halter. Now with Rosie being so small she has a funny shaped head - it is not so long as a regular cow but very broad so when I put on the new halter it was too big. I had to make a new hole so out came the pen knife. Well of course that wasn’t the best tool to use. After about 10 mins I remembered that we actually have a riveting tool that we had when we used to have horses in WV so I headed up to the shed to find it. HAH! Ended up finishing the job with the pen knife & Rosie now has her new halter on.

You’re probably all wondering what Jackson has done to be naughty. That cat is totally spoiled rotten! He loves Richard & spends alot of time cuddling him when Richard is in his office. No animals are allowed in the house part. Let me explain. Our house is built in 3 sections. The main house is animal free. The other two sections - office, work areas, garage etc are where the cats are. Jackson of course, thinks he can go wherever he likes. He sits at the door to the main house & as soon as we open it he bounds in. Richard caught him asleep on the family room couch the other day. Notice the quilt & pillow (Michael had left them there) for his head. He was very comfortable!

Of course when he comes in he is not stupid & runs when we try to catch him! Here he is later in the day chasing the mouse on my computer:

Jackson is still small - has an incredibly silky coat. For those who may be new to this blog, we rescued Jackson at 1 day old. His mum had rejected him out in the barn. Michelle brought him in & the rest, as they say, is history.

Enjoy your day - don’t forget to vote.

Liz