Projects with Pluhars

It seems like we've had some big projects in our household in the last couple of days. First,and most impressively, I got our deepfreeze defrosted and cleaned! In some people's houses, this would not be such a huge deal; my mother-in-law's, for example. Frost doesn't dare accumulate in her freezer...it's not allowed. So I'm including the before and after of our deepfreeze so you can appreciate what I'm talking about.

Maggie has been doing dishes everyday to earn her china tea set back. She had a wad of toys on the floor in her room and despite constant scolding, declined to pick them up. The final straw was when she told her mother, "It's okay, I'll get more." So my darling daughter is earning some of her favorite toys back with slave labor. She's on day four and I believe she has the idea. She feels like Cinderella

Today we worked on Valentines. I tried something new, with vintage images in frames, and it was fun! They are by no means professional, but I don't think my sweet friends and family will mind. Maggie came out while I was working on them and wanted to do valentines of her own, so we got her stuff out, too. By the time Angus joined us, we were elbow deep in hearts. He did some train valentines and growled off to the living room to break a gingerbread muffin in little teeny crumbs. So here are the fruits of our labor! PopPop wants to know when Valentine cookies are forthcoming. Maybe we will have to make a "trial" batch, to see if they will turn out.

Comment on my silliness

I think I may have fixed the comment form.

I'm going to go back to pen, paper and envelopes. Or send my articles to the Jordan Tribune. Don't you think EVERYONE in Garfield County wants to know about me cleaning my freezer and the angst over the purse?

I'm guessing everyone in Garfield County already does know....

I'b geddig a code..

So not only did I blow my blog to bits, I came down with the cold that Traci has been fighting for about 5 days. Talk about crummy luck! I'm sitting here, sipping on a vat of Market Spice Tea, trying to breathe, and hoping I finally repaired this silly page. That'll teach me to get all confident and artsy! I'm almost to the point of having someone create a template for me that would incorporate books, coffee, old maps, retro pictures, garden-y things, French stuff....maybe an antique-retro Parisian cafe' theme. With cows. I'm guessing that's why I haven't found anything that really suits my style! How does one incorporate ranch-y things with French things?

Moving on...I'm going to lay my soul bare...do you think you can take it? I've found myself, during the winter, becoming increasingly dissatisfied with my abode and the size of it. I feel like the kids and I are constantly all over each other and that it causes us to start chewing on one another, like too many lab rats in too small a cage! So each time I go to town, I get a "Dream Kitchens and Baths" magazine or "Floorplans for Fabulous Homes" and drooling my way through them. And instead of helping, it's making me more covetous of big houses! One recent day, after thumbing once again through the kitchens of my dreams and imagining what grand food I could prepare with 6 burners and a double oven, AND the manditory prep sink, I picked up an old Reader's Digest to throw away.

Now, I don't know about you, but if it's print, I read it. Even old stuff. Even shampoo, syrup and ammonia bottles. Where two or three letters are gathered, it's an opportunity to read. So instead of throwing the dang magazine away, like I had intended, I thumbed through it and accidentally(by God's hand) read an article about some women in an African village that had to gather fuel for their cooking fires everyday, and in doing so, were raped and beaten and their children harmed. A woman in the U.S. found out about them, somehow, and developed a simple solar powered cookstove for them to use. She found a company to design and manufacture them, and sponsors to pay for the stoves to get to the villages that needed them. The village women's lives were transformed, because they only went to get firewood about once a week, and had been able to cooperate with each other to protect one another. So much good!

I guess you know that I had a change of heart about my warm, safe little kitchen on the prairie, and a huge kick in the butt to start thinking of AND doing for others. I'm not sure what I can do; I'm still praying about that. I can tell you this: those magazines were donated to the library, and I'm treating my four burner propane stove a little more tenderly.

All the lessons I've learned this week include:

1. Don't fix a blog that isn't broke.

2. Faux giraffe purses really are worth $49.95, and oddly, go with everything.

3. Defrosting a deepfreeze will take all the backbone you have.

4. Good friends share everything; germs, danish, laughter, tears, and seeds.

5. If you ask a two year old what he's doing, and he responds with "Nofing, mama...", it's going to be somefing and you will need some of that deepfreeze backbone.

6. Little houses just mean you get to see more of the people you love. A LOT more.

7. There IS a world beyond the porch, and I need to invest more in it.

That's about all the philosophy I have for today. The tea is gone, and I hear somefing going on in the boy's bedroom.

I may have broken it beyond my abilities...

I really should call someone, right before I do something really stupid, and have them talk me down. Really.

I was all inspired by the new purse and decided my blog needed a facelift. Well, here's the thing: those with no surgical training, shouldn't go near a face, if you know what I mean. You'll notice my blog has a decidedly different look....but I broke it! I don't know how to get my list of friends to show up on the side, again. (I can see HALF of the title, hanging there, taunting me.) I don't know if I can add widgets....maybe part of this template is protecting morons like me from adding widgets, gadgets and midgets. At least something is protected from me!

Does anyone know how to edit HTML? Would you coach me? Can this blog be saved? Are there 12 Step programs for people who blog too much? "Hello, I'm Mary, and I'm a blogaholic. I just deleted crucial html and wacked the widgets...I'm having withdrawels. Somebody intervene, please!"

CUPS of sanity

Look what came in the mail from the Grand-cup in Idaho! (I think she loves us. I know she loves us, because there was chocolate in the package.)

The two youngest attendees, Cupcakes, in their weekly snuggle.

Just so you get the idea of how completely huge Madame Serengeti is, and what different personalities Traci and Mary are....this is a major photo, since Traci had sincere reservations about coming that close to a handbag this wild.

This week, CUPS nearly didn't get thrown together. Traci had been in Billings the day before, Anne had been buried in pork paperwork and potential problems, and Mary had worn herself to a frizzle worrying about whether her bag would make it to the house. (You see what drama we have, what issues we face every week. Don't whine to us about your stacks of bills, health problems or bad manicure; we have REAL concerns. Will Traci make it to Costco? Will Anne know what form the producer needs for slaughter? Will the faux giraffe be a gaffe? Nailbiters, I tell you.)

And when we did finally meet, it was more like a meeting of MUGS (Mothers Under General Stress). We intended to make more valentines with the fun supplies, and not eat so much. We actually ate most of the danish Traci brought from Costco (she DID make it) and talked and drank coffee with whipping cream that we didn't actually take the time to whip. But it was good and relaxing, and so sweet to be with loving friends that accept each other and laugh at foibles in each other's lives.

Next week CUPS goes on the road, for a visit to a Grand-cup who promises to make us a scrumptious dessert and show us a good time. (This dessert had better not be made with Splenda or skim milk, I tell you. Wednesdays are for the good stuff!)

So, would that make us travel MUGS?

The moment you've all been waiting for!

It's HERE!!!

I'm pleased to announce the arrival of Madame Serengeti, the wildly (roll your eyes) controversial purse! Okay, the word "purse" doesn't begin to describe this bag. When I told you it was a BIG HONKING PURSE, that was an accurate accounting. If I decide to suddenly hop a plane to Paris, this is the only luggage I'll need. I can carry a romantic dinner for 4, with dessert and beverages. If we want to get into a theme park without counting my two year old son, we'll sock him in Madame Serengeti and no one will be the wiser. I've been afforded tremendous opportunity with this valise!

I'll take a picture tomorrow, at CUPS, so you get the full effect; although I'm not sure any camera can truly capture the spirit of Madame Serengeti.....

(My wardrobe is looking a bit drab, now. Do you suppose they make Nutra-Lix sweatshirts that go with faux giraffe?)

Bobby Burns Night 2009

Bagpipes thrill me. They are wild instruments that defy description, and inspire strong memories and feelings in those who have the privilege of hearing them. It is my personal opinion that in order to truly appreciate them, you should hear them outside with hills all around to echo back the song and the wind to carry it for miles. When I hear them inside, they seem trapped....still beautiful, but constrained.

Once a year, we have the privilege of hearing the best bagpipes and drums in the country play in celebration of Robert Burn's birthday. For three hours, the gym of the community college in Miles City, filled with around 800 people, rocks with traditional Scottish music and dance. This is a 101 year old celebration and if you ever get the chance to attend, don't miss it!

This is a picture of our friend Scott Glasscock, playing for some of the dancers. He's the head piper and deservedly so. We didn't know for the longest time that in the Caledonian world, he has acheived sort of rock star status and is asked to sign autographs and have photos taken with starry eyed fans! And this year, I noticed a difference in the stockings that the pipers wear. I asked Traci, his wife, about this and she said puffy socks are all in fashion right now. Who knew?!! So if you encounter a bagpiper, wandering around with flat socks, you might want to let him know that all the cool Caledonians are wearing puffy socks. It's all the rage.

My husband is Czech/Bohemian and can't keep a beat to save his life, and I'm Irish Norwegian, so we are sort of Scot wannabes, I guess. Scott and Traci graciously allow us to sit at their table anyway and never say a word about our lack of clan tartans. This year I tried to take pictures but was completely stymied by the poor light and constant motion! The result was that all the pictures have complete movement and soft edges, and oddly captures the feel of the evening. I was hoping for crisp, professional images and instead got really dreamy, active ones that make you feel like you forgot your glasses!

There's really no way of blogging this to do it justice, so I'm going to add a couple more pictures and call it good. Hope you enjoy them, and if you're ever in the Miles City area the end of January next year, hunt us up and we'll try to get you in to Burns. And if you buy Scott a Guinness, maybe he'll sign your puffy socks.

For Your Information:

Because I know you are all just so interested in my life, and are hanging on waiting for more tidbits....things like: What was that growing in the back of the fridge? or Which laundry detergent works best in your water, Tide or the store brand? and Did she order that purse? Is she going to indeed wear it with her red heels?

The wait is over, my friends!

The purse will be here February 3rd!!! (Pause for applause) And you're going to love this; it's a BIG HONKING PURSE. In fact, it was billed as a shopping bag. I won't give you the dimensions, but rest assured, it will stand out in a crowd. (Unless, say, I'm in a herd of faux giraffe with red collars... But what are the odds of that?)

Thank you for all your comments! I've never had more fun with a post. And I had no idea there were so many opinions about fashion or the lack thereof, among my readers. I had a couple of emails, instead of comments, too. My aunt from Texas said those bags are all the rage down there, it just hasn't migrated North apparently. (No matter what I type, the animal stuff just keeps coming...I'm SO sorry! I can't stop!) And one of the other emails suggested we use it for a prop in one of the Cohagen Plays.

The bag has taken on a life of it's own, and when it gets here, will probably be named. Send me your ideas! Now, I'm off to investigate what is growing in the back of the refrigerator. Another day, another mystery....

C.U.P.S.

The second regular meeting of C.U.P.S. (that's Coffee Under Pretense of School) was called to order at approximately 8:47 a.m. by Perpetual Hostess Anne Miller in her kitchen. Members responded to roll call with "How My Husband Proposed To Me" and the super-secret club handshake.

After all 3 members were accounted for, our Refreshments Director, Traci Glasscock provided the ladies with the most scrumptious peach scones, covered in freshly whipped cream, and French Roast coffee. (Also accompanied with the freshly whipped cream. Calories are not allowed in the meeting place, and are checked at the door. All decadence, with regards to food, are permissable.) The club unanimously voted this week's refreshments as worthy candidates for the bake off contest Traci may enter. Suggestions were made for possible variations, all graciously accepted and noted by the Refreshments Director.

Our Arts and Crafts Co-ordinator Mary Pluhar, presented us with a plethora of ideas and supplies for Valentine cards. The club set about creating frothy and fabulous greeting cards for friends and family, while listening to a riveting narrative about the days of courting. (Member who shared these details will remain anonymous, according to Bylaw I Section I that states all members will be protected by the strictest of confidences observed by all.)

There being no further official business, the meeting was adjourned at approximately 10:42 a.m., with the next regular meeting scheduled for Wednesday, February 4; same location and time.

Respectfully submitted by Arts and Crafts Co-ordinator and Secretary, Mary Pluhar

*Unofficially, we had a blast! You can see more photos on Farmchicks Frantics blog. Traci's scones are the bomb!!! Seriously. I'm really pushing for Frozen Dog Bakery and Catering. And yes, there is really a bake-off contest that she's going to enter. She's trying out all her stuff on us. Pretty soon C.U.P.S. will have to be DD, if you know what I mean. We may check the calories in at the door, but they hitch a ride on the way out and follow us home.

Fashion (non)Sense

What do you think of this purse? Really. I can take the truth. I can't tell if it's the coolest thing I've ever seen or just so tacky I can't take my eyes off it. There's a fine line there.

It would be perfect with my red pumps, but do you think Miles City is ready for a handbag like this? Would you be seen shopping with me if I was carrying a handbag such as this? Hypothetically speaking, of course.

Maybe it's a January thing, or a Monday thing, or a I'm-so-tired-of-everything-in-my-closet thing; I really like it! But if I'm about to commit fashion suicide, stop me now! (Unless that's your evil plan. This should weed out the real friends from the token ones, huh?!!!)

Not what I had in mind...

Have you had the chance to visit the Pollywog blog in my list of blogs I'm following? It's stunningly beautiful, with photography that makes your heart sing and narratives that inspire. I have been looking at her images and decided, the other day, that I was going to go out and find beauty in the world around me.

Let's just say my surroundings lack the same romance. In my yard, I found evidence of dogs, a couple of unloved, forgotten toys that didn't get taken in for the winter, a couple of frazzled cats and a really dirty car. I've included the pictures of the car and the cats. They were the least offensive of the images.

Indoors, the surroundings had a different flavor. I found the usual half-dressed kids, a preschool paper plate frog, smiling cocoa mugs and a serious bullet loading project going on at the table. Not nearly what I had in mind.

Inspirational photography is bleak in Eastern Montana in January. And it's tough to wax poetic about the nature around me, when it consists of dust bunnies and dirty snow! But this is our life, right now.

Preschool...at least we get out of the house!

Actually, Mavis and Sue (aka Mary and Traci) were going to leave the kids at preschool, but realized they had left their REAL phone numbers on the contact sheets, so they had to go pick them up. Oh well, we did sorta miss the little boogers.

We took Ben and Maggie to preschool in town today and had three hours to kill. That's right; three hours away from our chores, laundry, dishes, dustbunnies! We hardly knew what to do with ourselves! But then, inspiration hit: we'll call ANNE! She's a stay-at-home, work-at-home mom (sitting duck) and we can share our magazines and contraband doughnuts with her. Besides that, she makes great coffee. And has a kid-proof house for the two year old that came along. Perfect.

Anne actually answered the phone, (I used Traci's and she's unfamiliar with that number...totally messed her up.) and put on a brave face and a pot of her famous coffee. She gave us some big line about how she was looking for company, but I'm sort of suspecting she really had no place to run, since Gwennie had been up crying from 4:30-7:30 a.m. She's far too polite to tell us that she's polishing the silver today and can't possibly recieve guests.

And it was a delightful three hours. Her wall o'windows faces South, and the house was warm and bright, AND she had put chocolate chip loaded chocolate muffins in the oven. Gwennie was sleeping peacefully and there were garden catalogs on the counter. We had coffee with real live heavy cream, doughnuts and the muffins, and soaked up sun and friendship. I tell you, it was good medicine!

Time passes quickly when one is pigging out and before we knew it, we had to leave. Anne enquired as to whether this would be a weekly event, (enabling her to make hair and doctor appointments every Wednesday, thus avoiding Perpetual Hostess Syndrome) and we told her the truth...yes.

When we got back to preschool, Ben and Maggie appeared to have had a good time and brought their little paper plate frogs out with big stories to go along with them. The teacher asked whether they were coming back, after I handed her the checks. Upon reflection, I wonder if she was asking that because, like Anne, she may change preschool days to avoid us. She DID say the kids in the room were unusually wound up and loud this time. I'm going to pretend it was the barometric pressure and assume we are still on for next week.

It WAS such a fun morning, and now the kids are napping their little hearts out, despite initial protests. I hope every Wednesday goes this way...it will be like having bookclub once a week. That is, if we figure out what day they move preschool to, and if Anne is screening her calls.

Thank God: For Dirty Dishes, Smelly Clothes and Unmade Beds.

My dishwasher is broken. It's been broken for two weeks now, and after the repairman examined it and declared it fried, we were informed it would be another two weeks to get parts and fix it. I really don't mind washing dishes; it's a contemplative time for me and my brain drifts away "to the Vesuvian Bay" with my hands in the soapy water!

I ran across this poem, author anonymous, that I hung near the sink to keep my attitude where it needs to be and I wanted to share it. I have a couple of friends with toddlers and preschoolers, and we are constantly fighting the mess in our houses. So, Traci and Beth, this is for you, too!

Thank You, God

Thank you, God, for all I have to do today.

Thanks, God, for this sink of dirty dishes,

It shows we have plenty to eat.

Thanks, God, for this pile of dirty, stinky laundry;

It shows we have plenty of clothes to wear.

Thanks, God, for those unmade beds in there.

They were warm and so comfortable last night

And I know there are many who have no beds.

Thanks, God, for this bathroom; complete with all the

Splattered mirror, soggy, grimy towels and dirty commode.

They are so convenient.

Thanks, God, for this finger-smudged refrigerator

That needs defrosting.

It is full of cold drinks and enough leftovers

For two or three meals.

Thanks, God, for this oven

That absolutely must be cleaned today.

It has baked so many things over the years.

The whole family is grateful for that grass that needs mowing,

The lawn that needs raking; we all enjoy the yard.

Thanks, God, even for that slamming screen door.

My kids are healthy and able to run and play.

Lord, the presence of all these chores awaiting me

Says you have richly blessed my family.

I shall do them all cheerfully

And I shall do them all gratefully.

Amen

5 Words

What are your five favorite words?

My kids and I watch Word Girl in the afternoons, when they get up from their naps. At the very end of the show, they ask two kids what their favorite word is. Today, while I was holding the gate as an integral part of the Heifer Sorting Project, I thought that I should pick my 5 favorite words. Then I wondered what my friends would choose. (I had some time. The word "integral" may have overstated my importance in the operation.) So here are mine, in no particular order of importance:

1. Grace- As long as I live, I will never be able to wrap my brain around this, but am infinitely grateful for it, and want to learn to better extend it to others.

2. Whimsy- Just saying the word makes me smile!

3. Mama- At one time, I didn't think this word would ever be assigned to me...it's sweet to hear, and sweet to say.

4. Welcome- A warm, loving word that beckons dear ones and strangers, alike, to share hospitality.

5. Hope- I'm an optimist, a hopeless optimist, and this word embodies that.

What are your five words? If you need to go sort some cows before responding, I understand!

It's A Date!

Once in a while, I just have to laugh about living in Garfield County. It's a life like no other, I can tell you that. (Some who are reading this are currently living here, or have lived here, and they are nodding at the screen, saying "Amen, sister! Preach on...") For many of us, it's 25+ miles and half an hour to the local grocery store, when the roads are good; we can't see our neighbor's house unless we get in the pickup and drive to a big butte, but we certainly know they are there, especially in fire season; we get our mail twice a week, again, when the roads are passable.

SO, when I read the rare women's magazine, in the doctor's office and encounter the articles that encourage couples to have a date night once a week, with no children, to strengthen thier relationship, I laugh out loud! (Drawing stares from the other waiting patients....they all of a sudden get VERY interested in that Outdoor Life magazine.) Where, in the wide, wide world of sports should we go, and what magic hat shall we pull the babysitter from?

Yesterday we bangs vaccinated the yearling heifers all morning and trailed them back to their pasture. I got home about 11:00 and started a very nutritious, artsy lunch for the family. (Chicken nuggets in the oven, big green salad, milk. Gourmet magazine hasn't seemed to help this kitchen, but it looks good on the coffee table.) Wayland walks through the door at ten minutes to noon and on his way to wash his hands, tosses over his shoulder that Vern said we could go to the Winter Grazing Series in Jordan, if we wanted, and they would watch the kids. It started at noon. We both smelled like cows and I'll spare you the description of my hair.

I'LL TAKE IT! So we showered up, stuffed the babies' faces with chicken nuggets and cucumbers, threw them into the car, threw them out at Grandma's and drove to Jordan for our date.

The Winter Grazing Series is comprised of 4 or 5 speakers from MSU and Ft. Keogh Experiment Station, and you spend the afternoon learning things about cow's nutritional needs and how it affects their breed back and subsequent progeny. We learned about range management after a fire, distillery by-products and their benefits and drawback as feed suppliments, how much colostrum a calf needs in the first 12 hours of life. Very romantic.

When the lectures were done, we stayed and visited with another couple that attended, about thier operation. Group date! To wrap up the evening, we went to the grocery store and saw all sorts of friends and neighbors that came to town for the ball game that night AND bought cookies and a newspaper for the grandparents. Honestly, it was the nicest afternoon we've had in a long time!

I'd really like to write to Women's Day or Today's Christian Woman about our date, but they'd never believe me. They'd never believe this was the last outing we've had without the kids since the first part of December when we went Christmas shopping in Miles City, and picked up parts, too. But there are a few women who are reading this who will shut down the computer, walk over to their husbands, punch them in the arm and say, "You didn't take ME to the Winter Grazing Series!!!" Maybe next year.

Warts and all...

I'd like to say this is my last bookclub plug/post, but you know I can't promise that! Once a month, after each bookclub gathering, I just feel inclined to sing the praises of this group of women. So if any of you reading this post are an Underground Bookclubber, you can come to my blog after we meet and read glowing accounts of yourself and compadres and know you are completely loved and admired by the Farmer's Wife!

We had a new member join us this month. Now, that's saying something because we don't add new people very often. I think two years ago was the last time.

ANYWAY, we carried on like we normally do, even though Thelma and Anne weren't there and that left a hole in the group. There's always 3 or 4 conversations going, at any given time, and some are about deep, thoughtful things (death, isolation, independence), some are about shallow, frivolous things (new red purse, kittens for give-away, toddler letter exchange) and some are about the meaning of life (why do men DO that?). Usually we pull it all together at meal time and do the literary thing and discuss the book. And for the most part, it's uncensored, meaning if you didn't like the book, you can say so, or if you completely embraced the book, we'll want to know why. It's a totally safe place and I'm sure if you looked in on the scene from outside the window, it would be a beautiful picture of friendship.

I called the new member, the next day, to see what she thought. (If you love a group, you want to hear good things about it!) She said she had a good time, but was worried that everyone seemed to be too hard on the author and thought the woman who chose the book would have her feelings hurt. Wow! The thought had never crossed my mind! In fact, I told her that we'd had a couple of books in the last 10 years (one of mine, included) that a lot of people didn't like, but that it sure opened up discussion! I'm not sure she is going to join us for good and maybe she's worried that the book she chooses will be a bad choice. (Here's the funny thing: sometimes we like a stinker of a book, because we can worry it like a dog with a slipper, thus avoiding that same action with our husbands and family!)

Here's our menu from UBC this month, and our book selection:

A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains, by Isabella L. Bird

We ate toasted garlic bread with choice of nutty/pinapple/cream cheese spread or sort of tomato salsa, fruit salad, loaded pizzas, choice of New York or Chocolate Truffle cheesecake, Moscato or Gerwitztrameiner wine, peach or pomegranate italian soda, and coffee.

You see why I will move heaven and earth to get to bookclub! Doesn't that bring you near tears? Traci made the cheesecake and I'm pushing for her to start Frozen Dog Cheesecake Factory, because she lives on Frozen Dog Creek. I know, I know; tacky name. But Traci's Tarts and Sundries doesn't have quite the same stick-in-your-head ring, now, does it?

Old Horsethief Moon...

Well, the calves are gone! We sorted the heifer calves this afternoon, sixteen different ways, and the sale heifers are contemplating thier fate in the lot. They don't get out much, so they have no idea what the truck ride means. I don't know if you've ever seen the movie "Chicken Run", but the stooge on there warns the mean villainess that "Them chicken's is organised, like." I'm hoping our cows never get organised.

And did you see the moon, tonight?!! We were putting the replacement heifers back in the pasture, and on the way back I couldn't take my eyes off that moon!

I was thinking of an Ian Tyson song, Horsethief Moon. He describes it as being "gold and shiny, like a Spanish doubloon...". Just the name, Horsethief Moon, conjures up all sorts of pictures in my head. I'm so tired, I can barely stand it, but it would be so much fun to cross country ski tonight, with the snow all glossy and blue and the moon throbbing it's light.

I guess that's as far as I'm going to get; wish and a promise. Tomorrow is bookclub and I'm only halfway through "A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains" with miles to go before morning! What a great way to end the week...calves sold, calves sorted, bookclub and friends.

Voila! C'est perfectione!

As I type, I'm sipping a cup of coffee made in the new French press coffee pot my friend Traci gave me for Christmas. It is DIVINE!! She said it is supposed to make some of the best coffee in the world. She was wrong. It absolutely, without contest, makes the best coffee in the world. (And if you challenge that comment, I propose we make a world coffee tour and find out. Maybe I should anyway.)

It's odd that I've not owned a French press before, because I love all things French. I know that's about as un-American as not ordering garden seeds from Gurney's, but it's true. I love that the French plant flowers and vegetables together in a big, voluptuous jumble. I love the slow, elaborate recipes that require you to all but raise the chicken from the egg, to ensure zee pairfect flavoure. I think Pepe Le'Pew is the bomb. I've never been to France, obviously, but I think I'll hit it on my world coffee tour.

Excuse me, time for a coffee break...

Okay, I'm back. The only thing not wonderful or perfect about this cup of coffee is the absence of a friendly face across the old 1950's kitchen table, someone to rave with about the aroma and complexity of the blend. I have books to share, knitting to do while we visit, Audrey Hepburn movies to watch and sigh over.....won't you join me? The kids are napping, so we won't have to have the same soundtrack in the background. I've got jazz! Come on over!

Geranium Wishes and Salvia Dreams, Dahling!

The seed and plant catalogs flooded my mailbox, today. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. Is it just me, or are they sending them earlier and earlier every year? I'm thinking these companies sense that gardeners may have gotten cash for Christmas and they hit us when we are most vulnerable...in the dead of winter.

I will tell you right now that the best gardens I've ever grown were virtual gardens, planted in the fertile soil of my imagination with wanton disregard for my actual zone, soil and water situation. I've raised absolutely stunning lavender in huge clumps, with dinnerplate dahlias and rambling roses....in my imaginary garden.

In my REAL garden, the only stunning huge clumps are white yarrow, which I despise, and saucer sized dandelions, and rambling virginia creeper. (Would anyone like some yarrow, by the way? Free! I'll throw in a kitten, too.)

And here's a painful confession: (as most confessions turn out to be) I am a seed catalog snob. There, now you know. I don't know if it was Mrs. Greenthumbs and her books, or the Master Gardener program with Bob Gough, or Barbara Damrosch and her Garden Primer....it's hard to say. But I wouldn't be caught dead with a Gurney's catalog in my house. (I'm SO SORRY! I know lots of my friends adore Gurney's. I hope we can still be friends, after all this.) I drool over Cook's Garden, WhiteFlower Farms, John Scheeper's, High Country Gardens. There are actual wrinkled spots in the catalog that I blame on my kids spilling milk. It's me. I have to have the Latin names, the snooty descriptions, the hand-drawn seed packets. It's a curse, I tell you!

What's worse is that I'm not really that great a gardener! I love plants, love gardening, love garden shopping, love greenhouses and for all that, I'm a pretty average gardener. With really cool catalogs, and an inordinately wide botanical Latin vocabulary. Even if you call it Hemerocallis, it's still a daylily. And you can describe it how you will, it's still orange.

Well, I'll save some garden thoughts for later. The picture included here is one of my planters on the deck last summer. Actual, unretouched photo! It makes my heart ache for June! But I have lots of snooty garden catalogs to get through this week, and thousands of miles of flower and vegetable beds to plant in my head.

What catalogs do you like? (Or, for those WhiteFlower Farms girls, catalogues...)

Hallelujah! The Calves Sold!

I'm going to warn you beforehand, this is a total ranchwife post, so if you are allergic to anything rural, you'd better go find another blog to read today!

My father-in-law just called to tell me that we sold our calves today!!! This is a huge, huge answer to about 3 long months of anxious prayer. December, in particular, was very stressful, as these beautiful calves that we poured ourselves into, started getting sick. We lost at least 4, and it was so hard to watch! In explanation, they were getting the human equivilant of kidney stones, because they weren't watering often enough, due to the extreme cold and wind.

So we sold our calves; they go on Friday. And 60 head of bred two year old heifers are consigned for next Tuesday, at Miles City Livestock. Please pray with me that they will sell well. I'm getting a little teary, here, so it's tough to type.

I don't know how to express how personal it is, raising cattle, to me. I know some people can separate themselves from the process, but I can't. Typical girl, right? When we calve in the spring, it's great to see those cows mother the little black babies...since having kids, I empathize with them. All summer, we watch them grow and (hopefully) thrive. Since we have Angus cattle, there's nothing prettier to me than shiny black cows in the pasture. In the fall, it's such a great feeling to see how big and healthy they are, and to put them on trucks and to get ready for the next round. All winter, we feed them and anticipate the calves in the spring.

We really get to know each bunch, and a lot of the individual cows, too. I used to think it was crazy, when I was a kid, how my dad could look at a bunch of cows and tell me how that one was the one that always raised the biggest calf or how this one lost her calf in a washout last year, but this calf looks good this year. Now I understand. Now it's personal to me, too.

Anyway, we are going to get our paycheck this month! If you know anyone who wants some really good bred heifers, steer them to Miles City next Tuesday and tell them to look for the ones from Lang's Fork, Inc. If those old girls bring a good price, and there's happy hollering from a crazy lady in the sale barn, you can send another prayer of thanksgiving up for that, too.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to blow my nose and get busy baking cinnamon rolls for the truckers and cattle buyer on Friday!