Every year, hubby has to leave for a few days during calving season and attend his company’s annual meeting. Most years, it means several things fall through the cracks as I am working and the kids are at school. This year was a bit different as Son 1 graduated from high school and was finished with … More Fifty Shades of Stuck – Arguing Semantics with a Teenager
I have previously written about some of the knowledge gained while raising my three sons. Here, here, and here. As a mother of boys, I frequently come across situations where I wonder, “What were they thinking?!?” Here are some scenes I recently came across at home and my best guess as to what was in the … More What Were They Thinking? A Mom Guesses What’s In the Minds of Her Sons
The quest for the perfect Christmas tree is fairly universal. The definition of “perfect” differs from person to person. In our house you will find “straight”, “cheap”, and “big” as preferred adjectives. Each of those words comes from a different person, of course. After years of cheap trees that were crooked with bald spots, I finally put … More Oh Christmas Tree…
Out here in rural America, “working out” is different than large cities. There is no need to go to a gym when there is a pile of fence posts that needs to be sorted and stacked. There is no need to run in the park when you have miles of gravel roads or a wayward … More My New Workout: The Catwalk
Dear step counter/fitness tracker: We had a deal. Every day I am supposed to drag my sorry carcass out for exercise. You are supposed to whistle, beep, and send me shiny icons and provide motivation to continue doing that. Most of all though, you are supposed to count. Imagine my surprise when I looked and saw … More An Open Letter to a Malfunctioning Fitness Tracker
We spent a lot of time last night bringing the cows home from their winter corn stalks and getting hay bales set out for them. Why? Because of winter storm “Kayla”, which was predicted to bring 8-12″ of snow along with 40 mph winds to our little corner of the world. Livestock can handle harsh weather … More Blizzard February 2, 2016
You may, or may not, be aware that Nebraska is among the many states that was affected by the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). Nationwide, around 47 million birds (chickens and turkeys) died or had to be euthanized because of this disease (late summer 2015). One of the possible vectors (ways to spread a disease) … More Avian Influenza, Toy Chickens, and County Fairs
My garden tendencies are a matter of public record on this blog. Too much. Too close. Great ideas gone awry (not posted in previous stories to protect the innocent). I tried to behave this year. I actually planted those tiny seeds and transplants far apart – like the label and catalog recommends. Really! I did not … More Garden Update: Invasion Of the Pumpkins
Those of you that are regular readers know that I have three sons. No daughters. Just sons. I was always a tomboy and never a ‘girly’ girl. So, I thought that if anyone could adjust to living with all these males, it was me. I was wrong. Even a tomboy brain like mine does not process things … More Life With Sons – Some Lessons Learned As a Mom of Boys
I have written in the past about extreme gardening in the Great Plains. Between wind, drought, and more wind, I have often wondered if I should seek some type of therapy. I have gotten used to a gradually-warming climate (welcomed it even). One side effect of climate change is the uptick in extreme events. We have … More May 18. Frost Advisory. Unhappy Gardener.
Fence Post Diaries 