IT'S A BOY!

Very pregnant Lucy cow was not herself yesterday afternoon - not eating and swishing her tail a lot.  Sure enough, just as we were about to go to friend's for dinner, one last check showed her in labor.  Luckily, our friends who are ranchers also, understood and re-scheduled for tonight.  Lucy did an amazing job for a first-timer.  I did have to help a little as the calf was pretty big and Lucy is a bit overweight so she was puffing. Of course, she picked the ONLY spot around that was dirt!  Very healthy, BIG bull calf Rob named "Dusk" as he is the color of a late sunset and was born at about 7:45 pm.  Lucy is a such good mom -she let me help him get started nursing with only a few low moos to let me know she was still in charge.  GRAPHIC photos follow:

DAY OFF

I'm calling today a "day-off" - don't get many of them around here and this was only part of the day....after morning chores were done and before evening chores began.  Son Jeff and family were camped for the weekend up the road a bit so we had lunch with them and then hiked in Whiskey Basin up to Torrey Creek Falls - saw bighorn sheep and a cool petroglyph - perfect weather and a change in scenery - yea!

SOLAR COOKING

Home-grown, grass fed beef (thanks Chuck the steer) roast cooked for 6 hours in a sun oven solar cooker.  I browned the pot roast on the regular stove, added salt, pepper a little port wine and put it all in the solar oven at 10:30 this morning.  I turned the cooker several times during the day, following the sun and added parsnips (the very last from 2012) during the last hour or so.  It stayed at about 240 * for the duration.  Incredibly moist and tender and NO fossil fuels used - only Marcia fuel.

THE FIRST DAY OF SUMMER 'ROUND HERE

GESTATING COWS AND FORBES

Contentment at its best....

and....by mistake a picture of my foot....but it also shows the great grass forbes we have going on in this pasture - all kinds of good stuff in there.

DINNER TONIGHT - MEATLESS MONDAY

A couple times a week I try to fix either a fish dish or a meatless meal.  We live in cattle country and raise our own beef, pork, lamb and chicken so it's a treat to have something a bit different.  This is homegrown tomato sauce enhanced with herbs, onion and garlic, honey, a little Merlot, salt and pepper, with fetticine and paneer cheese (frozen) from Molly cow milk.  We are anxiously awaiting the births of 3 calves the first part of July....missing fresh Molly milk SOOO much.  I froze lots of butter, cheese, cream and skim milk to get us through her 2 months resting period before starting up again.  Paneer cheese is easy and is similar to tofu -it will take on the flavor of whatever it's cooked with and hold up to cooking heat. 

Paneer cheese instructions:

Heat 1 gal. milk to 180 degrees, add 1/2 cup white vinegar.  Curds will form at this point.  Pour all into a fine cheesecloth (I use butter muslin) lined colander and let drain for about an hour, stirring often.  Tie up the corners of the cheesecloth and hang it on the sink faucet for another 2-3 hours.  Remove cheesecloth and use right away or freeze.  Cut into cubes and fry in butter or just add to sauces.  It makes an incredible curry also.

FATHER'S DAY

I got to spend a little bit of time with each of my boys today - and wish them a happy Father's Day.  They are both such incredible dads - makes me proud.   This weekend on our Grandsons/Grandma Yellowstone adventure, both of their sons spent a lot of time picking out just the perfect present for their dads.  This has been a hard day for Rob - missing his dad so.  My dad was and still is my hero.  I don't think one day goes by when I don't think of him - what he would have thought of what I was doing, advice and encouragement he would give.  My favorite picture of him doing what he loved!

RED CLOVER

Red clover buds picked this morning in the hay fields to dry with peppermint leaves for yummy tea.

• Red Clover Tea appears to reduce bad cholesterol levels. 
• Red Clover Tea may help reduce the build-up of plaque that contributes to heart disease.
• Red Clover Tea may help in the flow of blood to the arteries and to the veins. 
• Red Clover Tea may help delay bone loss due to osteoporosis. 
• Red Clover Tea may help in treating inflammation and infection.  

Red clover and peppermint tea: A yummy blend to try is red clover and peppermint. Mix 1 cup red clover blossoms with 2 tablespoons mint leaves, add 4 cups near boiling water, cover and steep for 10 minutes. Strain and add honey to taste.

AND SO IT BEGINS.....

We eat seasonally here except for canned and frozen veggies and winter greens from the passive solar greenhouse.  This means LOTS of stored carrots, onions and potatoes which besides getting a little tiresome, are getting wrinkly and sprouty.  SO, that first fresh salad from the garden is a big treat!

LOUNGIN'

MORNIN'

Good morning from Wyoming!  Warmer weather the next few days which should get the gardens (and weeds) going...looking forward to garden salad later this week...yea!

HOME!

We just returned from a very quick and sad trip to Minnesota to attend Rob's dad's memorial service.  It was a time for lots of family catching up, tears, laughter and memories.  I so appreciate son Jeff and grandson Austin staying here nights and doing chores. It's hard to be gone when so much depends on you!  

I noted a couple of things while back in the fast paced world....

*I was SOOO out of place on the airplane when I took out my actual paperback book among all the e-books, kindel readers, i-pads, i-phones, smart phones (and I'm sure I misnamed some of those)

*You can eat ALL sorts of ethnic food in ANY terminal in Denver - and WOW!  $3.00 for a bottle of water and $9.00 for a sandwich.

*There are SO many people in and around large cities ... all hurrying to be somewhere else.


My "to-do" list is very long for today - best get started.

FELINE DILEMMA (OR DEMENTIA)

As I keep saying...."We only started out with two!"  

We have 3 inside/outside house cats and WAY too many outside/barn cats.

This is Barn Cat Connie (named by granddaughter Brooklyn) who apparently has decided to share her mom duties.  This afternoon she brought all FOUR up on the side porch and settled right in, so of course I had to fix them a scrambled egg with a little cream in it and make them a little nest box so they'll be safe and comfy.

Anyone need a good mouser complete with family?

A LOOK AT MY MONDAY MORNING

Early morning irrigation - trusty shovel tucked under my leg for the 4-wheeler ride up the field.

A spring perk - wild iris - my mom used to call them "flags"- blooming in the middle of the hay field with the snow covered mountains in the background.

I'm getting much better at setting dams - so much so that I may even add it to my professional resume'!

Water going in 1 of four gardens.  I'll leave it there for 2 hours then move on the the next.  It's a challenge to provide all the food for the humans and the animals in desert county at over 6,000' elevation.  Sometimes you make it....sometimes you don't.

 
Monday morning laundry.  Because we live off-grid and provide all our own electricity, solar/line clothes drying is the only option.  It doesn't take long in our breezy country to dry and soften them all at the same time.

TURKEY VULTURES

There is a deer carcass on the other side of the far buck & pole fence.  I'm not sure what happened to it - the highway is just up the hill and it may have been hit and made it that far before succumbing to injuries.  Mother Nature is working hard to take care of it.  We counted 27 turkey vultures having a feast.  I found out some interesting facts that I didn't know before thanks to the internet:

The turkey vulture is a gentle and non aggressive bird.  Like storks, the turkey vulture defecates on its own legs using evaporation of the water in the feces and urine to cool itself down.  They excrete a high concentration of uric acid that acts as a sanitizer that kills any bacterial it picks up while getting its food. It gets its name because of its red bald head that resembles the male wild turkey.    Its head is small in proportion to its body.  This vulture's head is bald because it often sticks its head into a carcass to reach its meat.  If it had a feathery head, it would capture unwanted pieces of the meal as well as bacteria.   Adults are about 30 inches long, weigh around two pounds and has a wing span of six feet.