Putting the Orange away

The countertop is filled with used hand-warmers, bullets and compasses.  Farmer Rick has been emptying the pockets of blaze orange bibs, jackets and coats, getting ready to pack them away for another year.  This is one job that I don't look forward to doing, but if the gear is going to be ready to go for next year, it all needs to be washed and packed away in our "hunting" barrels kept in the loft of the garage.

All-in-all, we had a wonderful season.  Everybody got atleast one of their tags filled.  We had a great time in the woods, tromping up and down the hills and getting great workouts that would rival any that they throw at contestants in those weight-loss programs on TV.  The scenery in the woods can't be beat either.  Once in awhile, we come across bitter-sweet vines that grow amongst the bushes in the woods.  They stand out from quite a distance when there's snow on the ground.  Beautiful.  Just looking at the tree branches and how each and every one lifts toward the sky.  It's as if they're praising their Creator night and day, lifting up their joy.

The only thing I don't like about the end of the season is seeing everybody pack up and go home.  I still choke up when the last one pulls out of the driveway as they begin their journey home.  Some travel back into a busy life that is so different from our own.  But, for ten days each fall, we enjoy one another's company, and have a wealth of memories and stories to repeat over the years.  I think that these good times together just adds to the "pull" that brings them back, year after year, to a long-standing family tradition that is being passed on to future generations.

Just a few more tags to fill

Deer season is about half done and the deer take is going well.  Most all have atleast filled one of their tags and have meat already in the freezer.  Farmer Rick shot two bucks yesterday, having four come right out to him from behind a big round bale.  It's such a blessing to have meat in the freezer for the winter.  When you work long hard hours outside, it's nice to come in to a full pot of chili, simmering in the crock pot with a little bit of cheese and sour cream.  Mmmm, I'm getting hungry! 
The time spent with the guys on the deer hunting crew is always a blast.  The stories of past hunts, practical jokes and just plain old fun is such a welcome break for everyone.  Whether your drive a tractor or a desk, being in the woods, enjoying God's creation and harvesting meat for your family is a long standing tradition on Farmer Rick's side of the family.  Being a family tradition that I married into, I've adapted, and have come to look forward to this time of year just as much as Farmer Rick and the rest of our family.  These times together just can't be compared to.  When everybody pitches in to help get chores done, the work seems so much lighter and it's so much easier to spend a whole day in the woods, knowing that you'll have someone to push that wheelbarrel around the barn, or slop some hungry hogs, just to help you get in the house a little sooner.
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving! We'll hunt in the morning, then enjoy a relaxing day, filling up on turkey with all of the fixings, sweet potato pie, buttery mashed potatoes and gravy and an assortment of desserts.  Cards and games await us after chores, along with several re-visitings of  past hunts, passing on stories that grandpa shared of his time raising a family in the northwoods.  Traditions. Family. Being Together.  Again, we truly are blessed.

Tomorrow is deer season

Family and friends will be spilling in the doorway soon.  The house will turn blaze orange and wet muddy boots and gloves will be scattered about.  But, for one week, to spend time, eat, share stories (some embellished?) and hunt with family is worth it.  We look forward to this time of year just to hault the farm work, shift gears and spend time in the woods that we love.  There's just something about being out on your stand, listening for that "big one" to come trotting into your range.  Most often, all I hear is a tiny red squirrel who chatters at me every year for disturbing his food gathering route.  When scurrying about his business, he'll come right up to me on my bucket, stand up on his hind legs and let out a "chirrrrrr" and quickly scramble back to his hole in the log behind my stand.  As the season goes on, his courage builds and he comes out sooner each day, chattering and complaining about my presence.  But by the last day, he comes to accept having me around.  I think we both know that it's time to pack up, haul the bucket home and settle in for a long, snowy winter.

Isn't she Lovely?!



Sandy!

We have been looking for another Border Collie puppy for quite some time.  There have been many in the paper, but most were out of our price range.  We have had several over the years here in the farm and have enjoyed them so much as reliable cattle dogs and friends.  When riding in the woods, I always take the dogs with me since we have so many bear and now we hear of big cats around too.  These dogs are very smart and active.  Sandy already has lots of energy and is practicing her herding instincts on the barn cats.  She comes down to the barn morning and night, then comes back up to the house when we're done.  She's too small to leave in the barn with the other two dogs for now, but when she's older, she'll fit right in.

Here comes thd snow!

Wow - is it ever snowing!  As we're pulling on our chore gear to head to the barn, looking out the window, it's rather hard to make out the barn in the dim pre-dawn.  All of the machinery and buildings are being covered in a thick blanket of white.
The last few days have been long and hard ones.  Farmer Rick has spent a goodly amount of his time in the combine, pushing it to get the last of the corn in before this snowstorm.  As has many farmers in this area.  Once the corn is out, though, many are having a hard time finding a place that will take it.  All local elevators are filled to capacity.  We had three loads waiting at the scale yesterday which we weren't sure if it was going to be taken or not.  But once the moisture was tested, we were waived on in since it was down to 14.2.  The loads went directly in to the feed mill.  Thank God!  There was a parade of wagons and trucks behind us - I sure hope they were able to get in also.  Now that the snow has finally come, everything comes to a standstill and the corn is at the mercy of the deer while it stands in the field all winter.  Once the corn is covered by snow, it will cause all kinds of trouble if it gets into the combine and freezes.  If by chance a bright sunny day comes along and all of the snow is either blown off or melted off of the cornstalks, we might be able to sneak back out there and get the rest, but when I rode my horse through the remaining two fields yesterday, we were sinking a good four inches in the muddy corn rows.  They will probably have to wait until spring to dry out.  But I am so thankful for what we got in.  It truly was a blessing.

Penden is stunned

I knew Penden would be a little confused when he came into the barn to find Brandy not there.  But he was totally stunned.  When he finally gobbled down his grain, he realized where he was and had such a stunned bewildered look on his face.  Trying to console him didn't do much good.  I hadn't seen that look on his face since we had to put our old stallion down.  Penden knew he was gone.  When the rendering truck came to pick up the old horse, Penden just stood at the gate, longingly looking down the road, his gaze following the truck until long after it was out of sight.  I don't know who I cried the most for - the old horse - or the way in which it impacted Penden.

But now, Brandy is gone.  It will take some time for Penden to adjust without his old friend.  I stayed in the barn for quite some time last night, talking to him, brushing him and pulling a stray bur from his mane here and there.  He refused to eat anything beyond his grain. I'll have to check on him first thing this morning to see if he's any better.

Brandy is going Home

After many happy years here on the farm, Brandy is going home.  It's not a sad thing, but I will miss her.  This mare has been here and has given many lessons to both kids and adults alike.  She is owned by a former student who did not have a place to keep her while attending college and starting a family.  In exchange for providing her a home free of charge, I was allowed to use the mare as a lesson horse for beginners.  Now that her life has settled down a bit, with two girls who just adore horses, she's ready to have her mare begin a new life on her own farm in Minnesota.  Brandy is in her 20's now, but still has lots of energy, but tempered with a little bit more patience and forgiveness after having students of all kinds riding and handling her.  She's at a good age to slow down and enjoy the little ones.  There's no doubt, though, Brandy was and will be the mare in charge, putting all of the youngsters and wimpy geldings in their places.  No one challenges Brandy - when meeting a horse for the first time, she has the sweetest little nicker that draws them into her range, horse speaking in such soft tender tones that she's irresistible.  But once they're close enough, WHAM!  Brandy turns in the blink of an eye and fires with both hind feet!  It only takes one time for her to establish who's boss in the herd.  We've had no other horse seriously hurt, thank goodness, by Brandy's herd initiations!

Well, it's time to go.  Before loading her up in the trailer, I have to let her say goodbye to her friend and companion, Penden.  He's managed to escape her antics over the years and remain her #2 horse in the herd.  He's a 26 year old arabian gelding who has been in the stall beside her at night ever since she's been in the herd.  I know the old guy is going to miss her.  But she's going to a good home and will be well taken care of.  I introduced a companion to him who has become quite a little buddy.  He's a very mischevious oversized mini who shares a corner of Penden's stall when they come in at night.  (He also helps himself to some of Penden's food, too!)  They've developed a good friendship which I think will help buffer the sadness when Brandy goes home.

What is that SMELL?!

Believe me - you can find all kinds of smells in a farmhouse.  But this one was different.  We've brought baby kittens, pigs, and even a calf into the house from time to time to warm them up and nourish them back to health.  No matter how much I investigated, I just couldn't find the source of the smell.  When just about to toss both housecats out the door, blaming them for the infraction, my eyes happened upon something that Farmer Rick had left in the back window of the mud porch.  A bladder.  A camouflage bladder that he hangs in the tree on the well-worn deer path that meanders past his ladder stand.  OH YUCK!  He had filled it the night before, intending to take it out to his stand the next chance he got.  But that next chance wasn't soon enough for me.  GONE!  No wonder we don't get much company!  Time to break out the candles . . .