Are Ya Lost?

The first time I came to Geraldine was to look at the little yellow house and mobile home that were for sale.  I found the ad on Craigslist for the cute, little house in a cute, little town and it also had a cute, little price.  So I had to come and see...

After looking at the house and trailer for about thirty minutes, it was decided I should go to the local feed store to inquire about a place to board my horses.  I could not move here if I didn't find a place for my four legged "babies". Perry is the owner of the feed store, the mayor and looks like he just stepped off his horse after filming a Marlboro commercial.  He would know who might board them for me....

Just as soon as I walked into his store, a older gentleman with white hair, glasses and obvious "farmer" attire, said to me, "Are ya lost?" 

"No," I said. "I'm actually here on purpose! Can you believe it?!"  I smiled my friendliest smile at the farmer and Perry. "Oh....." said the farmer. "You're the gal that's lookin' at the Bronec house."  Which of course, I was.   "Ya got any kids?  The school needs kids!"  He was glad to hear about my three sons.  Keep in mind I had only been in town for thirty minutes or so and had spoken to no one except the couple that was selling the house!  That's how fast word travels around here!

Fast forward two years....

Prairie Granny was pulling into town on the road in front of the grain elevators the other morning.  Off on the side of the road at the intersection was a guy who obviously wasn't from around here.  He was a very distinguished looking gentleman with a bright.... yellow....Ferrari....  Granny just couldn't resist....

She pulled up beside him, rolled down her pickup window and asked, "Are ya lost?"....

Bye for now,

B

A Hunter's Hideout

Mom and I had a crazy idea.... There is a real shortage of lodging in Geraldine.  The closest motel is 26 miles away in Fort Benton.  The owner of Rusty's Bar has opened a cute little B&B next to the bar, but it's only got three rooms.  Every fall this town fills with hunters.  Rightfully so, since we have an abundance of amazing wildlife in this area.  But there is like, no where for them to stay....

 

So ta-da!! Here's the project!

 

 

This old grainery building was built in October of 1962.  The date is written into the concrete floor. I love that they did that! We think it will make the most awesome bunkhouse/ hunter's cabin!

 

 

It's built from stacked 2x4 lumber.  The stacked boards offered enough strength to hold the tremendous weight of bushels and bushels of wheat.  The boards are still in beautiful condition....

 

 

The bunkhouse will have two bedroom areas and a common area with some comfy furniture and a mini fridge, etc.  However for now it is a "dry cabin".  Yup, no plumbing.... so Prairie Granny and friend Jim had another little, necessary project....

 

We didn't really make Jim dig this hole by hand.  We used a little trencher.

 

 

 

If there is such a thing as a cute outhouse, I'd say this one is cute!

 

 

We hope to have this completed by the start of hunting season.  Wish us luck!  I think it will be a very fun thing to have visitors and I hope it's good for the community as well.  If the hunters stay here in town, they'll buy gas here, eat here and frequent the little grocery store.  Let me know what you think!

 

Bye for now,

B

Magic Morning

The rugrats are my alarm clock.  They wake up early and come find me in my bed.  Sometimes I can grab them, hoist them up there with me and steal a few minutes of snuggle time.  But not this morning.  I woke up to both little ones saying, "Uh oh!" and repeating it a few times.  I don't think anything makes a momma move faster than those words first thing in the morning!  I rushed out to find them staring out the picture window in the living room....

The fog was so thick that I had to wait to take these pictures.  We couldn't see anything beyond the yard.  But after a little bit our world was revealed again....

Why does everything seem so magical when there's fog? 

 

 

While I was out in the front yard enjoying the dewy grass in my bare feet, I could hear the horses galloping towards me.  They seemed to appear out of nowhere and galloped past me, back into the mist....



Then the sun started burn it's way through a little more....

I was able to sneak a couple more minutes of magic while the rugrats ate their breakfast....

Then it was time to face the day.

Have a great day everyone,
B

Old Things

I love old things.  It drives my oldest son crazy because he does not understand why in the world his momma scrounges for old, rickety, banged up things instead of buy new shiny ones.  I always hear, "Mom! Why do you like that old thing?!"  I laugh and explain to him that old things have history to them that can't be bought.  I go on and on about the history of this or that and he just shakes his head.

One of my latest "old things" got moved into the house today.  I bought a little table for five dollars at a farm sale a few weeks ago.  It had seen better days.  It was covered in greasy dirt, the nails on one edge had worked their way out and the paint had chipped off to a perfect patina.  I love it!!!  The folks that were moving off the farm had lived there for forty years.  But it seems this table is probably about twice that old.  It's just a guess though.  I imagine that maybe a sweet farmer had built in for his wife to set in the parlor. I can see years and years of beautiful history when I look at it.

A little TLC with an electric screwdriver and the edge of the little table was repaired.  Then I gave it a good scrubbing and it was perfect!

At first I thought I'd put it out on the porch.  But I decided I liked it so much it needed to live in the house.

So I found a little spot next to the couch that looked lonely.  Now it's the perfect place for the phone I got at Pottery Barn that is designed to look really old, but isn't.  The cool thing is, it actually does work! I admit I am a little obsessed with the phone....

My living room at the farm is finally starting to come together the way I had imagined it.  An eclectic blend of old and new.  Western, but not too western.  Know what I mean?  I will be the first to tell you, I am NOT a interior designer.  But I think if we really focus on the things we love, our homes can reflect our lives in a beautiful way.

Bye for now,
B

Porch Time

The weather has been truly amazing this summer.  We have had some heat, but cool days as well and quite a bit of moisture.  The mornings on the farm are such a gift and I'm not even a morning person!
Almost every morning you can find us out on the porch, in our jammies and bare feet.  Me with my coffee of course!

We look out over the critters and listen to the rooster crow.  The little boys get excited when the crop duster planes fly over on the way to the tiny Geraldine Airport. For a few moments everything is perfect.... 

The cares of the day aren't allowed on the porch.  That stuff has to wait until after breakfast....

Have a great day out there everyone.  I hope you all are able to find your own "porch time"....


Bye for now,
B

Holy Hail Storm!

This evening as we were getting ready to head out to do chores, my girls were calling me, "Hey Barb come take pictures of these clouds! They're so cool!"  There was a storm on the horizon. 

We headed out to the barn and quickly realized we had just enough time to get the calves into the barn before racing back to the house.  I did not want to be caught in the barn when I had a nice safe basement waiting for me!

We got back to the house just in time.  I'm thankful that a tornado didn't appear in the clouds.  But boy, did it hail!

This was some of the biggest hail I'd ever seen.  And there was a lot of it!

 

 

Now for the damage report:  Do you remember those beautiful tomatoes in the first picture?

Here they are now....

 

 

Fresh cole slaw anyone?  It's so fresh it still has roots!

 



 

 I lost everything in the garden.  Yes, I'm totally pouting!  Mom and I started many of the plants early this spring and have babied them for so long.  Now they are trashed.

 

 



The barn took a beating too.  All of the sky lights are completely broken out.  Prairie Granny is going to have to get up on that roof and replace them soon.  Because this girl does not do heights!

 

 

Here's a fun fact!  This tree used to have leaves on it!  Now.... not so much.

 

After it was all said and done, I did realize how much I have to be grateful for.  No one was hurt, the animals are all fine, the house seems to have avoided damage.  The good Lord even gave us a beautiful reminder....

 

Pony is at the end of the rainbow!  No wonder I call him "Black Gold"!





I leave you with just one more fun photo.... I don't think I have ever included so many photos in one post!

 

 

We were lucky enough to have both ends of the rainbow on our farm! 

 

Blessings,

B

The Three Little Pigs

Today was the hottest day we've had so far this summer.  I would just like to say how grateful I am for air conditioning.  It wasn't even that hot compared to what folks in other parts of the country experienced today, but still hot enough for me!  It's rare for us to have the kind of humidity that causes things to fog up, but this evening there is a whole lot of moisture in the air.  It made for a pretty picture of my little town.

This morning I loaded up the kids and headed over to my old stomping grounds to pick up some piglets.  We took a quick tour of Cascade to show my kids where I grew up and then stopped in Ulm for the pigs.  Originally we had planned to get six weaned piglets from the little gal that raises them for her 4-H project.  But the day I had planned to pick them up, I ended up in the hospital instead.   By the time I got the all clear from the doctors, she only had three left.  So here are our three little pigs....

They are a Red Wattle cross.  Red Wattles are a critically endangered, heritage breed and I am all over that.  I also love their little wattles!  So dang cute!  Now I am off to study up on how to raise pork in the healthiest, most natural way possible.... Wish me luck!

Bye for now,
B

The Fullness of Nothing

Sometimes there is a lot of substance to nothing.  Interior designers are always clearing out spaces just as often as they are adding to them.  In emptiness there can be peace.  One of the things I find most beautiful about where I live is the enormous emptiness.  While others might feel overwhelmed by it, I thrive here.  Wanna see what I mean?

This is the view to the West of the house.

This is what we see to the Northeast.

Looking directly North.

Behind Miss Gwynne is the pasture to the East.

Of course the Southern view is always impressive!

My little fleece covered friends live in my Southeastern view.  But you'll notice I don't have any human neighbors.
 

My grandparents love to come over in the evenings and just "porch sit".  We sit and revel in how beautiful it is and they love to watch the animals. I'm so thankful that I can share this part of their lives and enjoy the fullness of nothing with them.

Bye for now,
B

Pistol Packin' Momma

*Disclaimer: If you are anti-gun, you may not want to read this post.  But it's ok, I'll still love ya....*

Tonight I got to sneak out and ride my Fancy mare.  She's enjoying becoming a horse again after a year of pretty intense training.  She isn't used to being ridden out in the world right now.  The safe confines of the arena are what she has gotten used to.  So out across the pasture we go.  Looking at every little thing, spooking at the dogs when they pop up out of the grass.  Not so fun for me, but necessary....

After our ride....

After she had settled a bit and we were slowly walking up to the barn gate we heard a slight buzzzzzz.... Oiy! Snake!  Fancy jumped backwards and shied away.  I hung on while hoping I wouldn't get dumped on top of a rattle snake!  I hollered across the field to Prairie Granny, who was out in the yard with the rugrats.  "There's a snake!"  Then, "Get my gun!"  I led Fancy to the house, calling the dogs along so they wouldn't get snake bit.  Unsaddled, turned Fancy loose and grabbed my gun.

At first I couldn't find him when I went back.  Of course.  But just as I was hopping back on the four-wheeler, there he was climbing up the big manure pile next to the corrals.  I quickly aimed at his beady little head and fired.  Missed!  That was actually the very first time I shot my gun.  It's a .41 caliber, single action revolver. I have sot some .45's so I figured it would kick a bit.  But it wasn't too bad.  Mostly it was just really loud!  Shoulda wore ear plugs, but I didn't....  I couldn't hear a thing for a few minutes after the shooting.  So when I'm a really deaf old lady, we'll know why!  I promise I'll have ear protection next time!

Anyway, I shot that dirty bugger three more times.  There is no better target practice than a rattlesnake on a manure pile!

See how well they hide?  It's easy to step right on them!
 

Prairie Granny dragged him out so I could take a better photo.

After we disposed of Mr. Snake, we did our evening chores to the chorus of a pack of coyotes somewhere nearby.  Ugh.  But it's ok, Momma's gotta gun....


Bye for now,
B

Small Town Fun

Today, this tiny town of 266 or so swelled in population!  Maybe to even a thousand or two!  Today was the annual "Geraldine Fun Day".  This town goes crazy on this day.  There's a parade of course, games, bed races down main street, beer tastings, cowboy shoot outs and live music.  I never make it to all the events. But I make a point to do the parade.

Our friend Dustin is the shady character in the purple shirt.

Dan is all ready for the bed race!

Watch out! The kids are all driving!
 

Payson and I entered our little Topper in the parade.  Most folks around here haven't ever seen an alpaca before.  With his funny summer haircut, he got a lot of looks and laughs.  He was a perfect gentleman the whole time we were in town and made us proud.

I'm so glad to be living in this tiny, prairie town. 


Bye for now,
B

The Ordinary Not So Ordinary Day

It seems the ordinary day for me is now pretty much anything but ordinary.  I sat down to write tonight and thought, "I don't know if I have anything to write about.  Nothing extra ordinary happened today....it was just an average day."  But wait just a minute.

This morning I got up and actually put on clean jeans and did my hair and makeup before going to do the chores.  No, I haven't lost my mind.  This morning we had a visitor that was due to arrive right at chore time.  A lovely young gal from Oregon came by the farm to interview us for the Fort Benton newspaper. We got to give her the grand tour.  We showed her how we are now raising the calves so we will be able to sell grass fed beef.  We showed her the young Barred Rock pullets that will soon produce fresh, all natural, free range eggs for us.  She got to meet the lambs and the horses and of course the alpacas.  The main focus today was on the alpacas.  It's a new industry in our area and folks might like to see more about them. 

It was also fun to ask Miss Bethany questions.  I learned she up and moved from Oregon to take the job at the newspaper and for some reasons of the heart. Seems there is a lucky farm boy between here and Fort Benton.  She might just end up another of a long line of women who found themselves out on the prairie as a farm wife.... I guess we'll see.  But it sure was fun to show her around and I hope the article lets people know what we're up to out here.

This afternoon I just spent some good quality time playing with the rugrats.  Sometimes the pressure of getting this farm going makes me forget to just play with the kids.  Yes they love going with momma to do chores, pull weeds, plant things, water things and move critters around.  But sometimes we just need to hang out and do nothing productive at all.  Then I had to go haul hay....

 

My big boy came with me for that and he's becoming a lot like his momma and took his camera.  My little staff photographer.  I'm glad he likes taking pictures.

Tonight we also had another not-so-ordinary sunset.  I wonder if I'll ever get tired of seeing the amazing evening skies we get here?  I hope I never take them for granted.

Bye for now,
B

The Tenant

Ok, it's time ya'll met my "tenant".  (I once lived in Texas long enough to claim the use of the word "ya'll".) When I bought this farm, the sellers found an adorable cabin over in western Montana.  It was perfect for them.  Except for one thing.  Sherry's prize elk mount would in no way fit in the house.  The ceilings of the little cabin are not vaulted.  So they asked me if I minded if he stays right where he is until they figure out what to do with him.

If you know me personally, you know I have never hunted, not counting gophers.  (But I am pro-hunting, as long as it's not me doing the hunting.)  I haven't ever sought to hang any mounts on the walls of my home.  Never was a look I was going for.  However, Sherry's elk was absolutely not in the way, hanging on his wall, below the skylight.  So of course I said he could stay as long as he needs to.

I've become quite fond of him really.... I don't know how long he'll get to stay, but I think I'll miss him when he goes.

Sherry shot this elk near here, in an area on Arrow Creek.  So to my readers that are hunters, come visit!  You don't have to travel to wild and obscure places to hunt trophy elk.  Just Geraldine!

I had a thought....  Would this happen anywhere else?  I think I might be the only person with this kind of "tenant".  But it's another reason I love this place.

Bye for now,
B