Trials, Transitions, and Trust

I think after the last few weeks of truly living out these three words, they have become three of my least favorite.  My silence has partly been due to computer problems again, but mostly because life has been heavy for us lately.  I told myself I would never use this blog as a sob session and I don't plan to start now.  Instead I'd rather be an inspiration and an encouragement to others.  I don't know that I have anything inspiring to share from the last several months, but I hope this may be encouraging to some.

It's difficult to sit here and encourage others to trust God, to say that He will carry you through whatever storm you may be experiencing...difficult because I wasn't such a great example of this myself many times throughout the last few months.  It's easy to trust when everything seems right, but it's a different story when life seems to be changing from minute to minute.  In the past two weeks, my life has literally changed from minute to minute at times and thank heaven for our family and friends who have graciously supported us and religiously prayed for us.  I'm still not sure what lesson God has wanted me to learn throughout all of this, but I do know that in His time He will show me and I will some day understand why.

The transition part of my life seems to be never-ending lately and just as we transitioned to moving to Montana six months ago, we find ourselves transitioning and moving once again.  Jamie and I both felt that the Lord was leading us somewhere else.  We weren't sure where, but we looked into several opportunities and finally, through many tears and disappointments, He has lead us to another ranch.  Things have slowly...and I do mean very slowly...fallen into place for us.  My prayer is that we are finally starting to see some real light at the end of this tunnel.  It's been difficult to be so far away from my family and friends through all of this.  I never imagined how a simple hug can change your day and boy, do I ever miss the hugs!  But I do know that through the difficult times God has always been there and as much as I've wanted to be angry at God and stomp my feet, I still knew in my heart that my God was standing there beside, ever faithful.

I came across this song a few years ago when Jamie and I first learned of our infertility and it has brought my great comfort through tough times.  I'm reminded of the love God has for me and how sometimes He allows difficult times to happen to improve on the person that I am.  I hope and pray that I will walk away from this experience as a better person, not a bitter person.  It may take some time, but maybe someday my experiences will help others in ways I never dreamed possible.

To the friends and family who have loved, supported, encouraged, prayed, and even cried with us from miles away, our deepest thanks goes out to you!  It may not have felt like much, but to us it meant the world.  May the Lord richly bless you for acts of friendship, kindness and love. 

http://listen.grooveshark.com/#/song/He_Will_Carry_Me/2415555

I Challenge You....

...to a snowball fight!!!!!!!  Any takers?

So the first week of October brought with it our first snowstorm of the season.  Unfortunately we didn't get as much snow as they did in town on Sunday night, but trust me when I say, everything was white!  I also did not enjoy that snow as I had to experience first hand how horrible the gravel roads can be in the winter.  I was exhausted till I got home but I'm proud to say that the truck never slide off the road at any point...and I personally think that's worth bragging about!

Today, though, I am thoroughly enjoying the snow because I know that I don't have anywhere to be until Sunday night.  So this morning when I looked out the window, this is what I saw.  Sorry, the pictures are a little dark...it's really quite bright here right now.  The snow was coming down so heavy that I couldn't see up the road.  That didn't last for very long, but it made for some very pretty scenery.  Anyone who is in the mood for a snowball fight and willing to take Jamie on, I'll brave the roads to come pick you up the airport...I'd love some good company about now.

Cow Work

Harvest has ended for this year but there is still plenty of work here on the ranch.  The ranch hands recently rounded up each group of cows and brought them into the corral.  The cows and calves are seperated once again and the cows are given shots and this year they also received a special ear tag that sends information electronically.  Papa Smurf will be disappointed that I don't know all the specks on the ear tags, but I do know it has GPS capability.  They can tell exactly which cow they need to cut out if there is a problem...I think.  The picture above I think are the calves they seperated from the cows.  They do not like to be seperated.  The picture below are cows that are waiting to be herded down the shoot.

The cows travel down through this shoot...

(Sometimes they need a little persuasion.)

 

(Hmmm, wasn't expecting to see this at the bottom of the shoot.)

...where they are then stopped at the hydraulic shoot and recieve their shots and new ear tag.

The electronic ear tags look like this and are about the size of a quarter.  (OK, give me credit for something here, Papa Smurf)

The cow is then released from the shoot....

...and returns to mingling with her other cow friends.

And sometimes the cows don't cooperate the way they are supposed to.  I'm not sure where they put the ear tag on this one cause there certainly wasn't an ear on that end!

This is a picture of the operation from the back of the shoot.  The walkway allows them to keep the cows moving and also spray the cows with mineral....I think.  (I can't remember all the details Papa Smurf...next time I'll take notes...just for you.)

Well, there you have it, Papa Smurf.  This post is especially for you.  It doesn't come without much agrivation and hard work, but nevertheless, it's dedicated to you.  Hope you enjoy it.  Love ya, PS!

5 Years and Counting!

First, let me apologize for the sad state of this post. When I was trying to edit and place my pictures exactly where I wanted them, I was unable. I just got my computer hooked up after it spent a few days in the repair shop recovering from a nasty virus. It appears as though maybe it still needs a little recoup time. So, the following are a few pictures from 5 years ago...we had such a fun day and it's so fun to think back to the memories of that day. It was exactly the day I had wanted....a few frills, but a lot of fun! Thanks to all those who put in a lot of hard work and love to make our day so enjoyable and for your continued support and love. We appreciate and love you! This picture was taken on the first day that we met. We had been talking on the phone non-stop for weeks before we ever met face to face. I only knew him through the voice on the other end of the phone and a few pictures we had exchanged through letters. His brother had called him one night and left a message for him with my number. He had kept the message on the answering machine for a few years, but eventually someone erased it.

Today Jamie and I celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary and what an interesting 5 years it has been! I can't say that on my wedding day I thought the last 5 years would turn out as they have, but I can say that as much fun as we all had on that day 5 years ago, I wouldn't want to turn the clock back and start it all over again. I've so enjoyed the journey we've gone through together...the struggles that have made us grow...the tears that brought us closer together...the laughter that gave us joy...it's all been an amazing journey! And the best part, I wouldn't have wanted to go through it with anyone else! God gave me a wonderful man 5 years and like a fine wine, he has only gotten better over the years

Jamie, I love you so much more now than I did 5 years ago! You have proven that no matter what difficulties may come our way, that you'll be by my side through it all. You've been my best friend and my lover and I wouldn't want to walk through the next 5 years with anyone else. Thank you for continually loving me, even when I didn't deserve it. Thank you for being different from all the rest. Thank you for the sacrifices you've made for me and for never being afraid to say I'm sorry. I know it hasn't always been easy for us over the past few years, but we've made it. I will ALWAYS love you! Here's to many more years together! ~Babygirl

Wool Gathering

Well, it's high time I write about life here on the ranch again. I apologize I've been somewhat slack in getting my pictures posted. Harvest time kept us all busy and I thought it would never end! But harvest has finally ended here and life seems to be slowing, at least a little for now. I have also started my job at the "local" hospital. By local I mean the hospital that would be closest to us....an hour and a half away. Nothing by any means is local around here! But enough chitter chatter, I'm more excited that harvest has ended and that means some more time with my hubby. Last weekend Jamie's boss gave him Sunday off and it was a beautiful day! We enjoyed church (which I will hopefully be writing about soon) and then spent the day just enjoying the weather, one another, and the fact that there was nothing on our agenda for the day. So, when another one of Jamie's co-workers came in and was going to work at weening his lambs from the ewe's, Jamie decided that maybe this would a prime opportunity for the dogs to earn their keep. So, camera in hand, we headed to the corral to do a little "wool gathering".

The dogs were more than a little ready to "herd" something. Although they haven't quite figured out how so Jamie has been slowly working with them.

"Come on, man, let me at 'em!"

It didn't take long to get the sheep all corralled into one area and fence it off.

The tricky part was separating them. Jamie headed into the pen, ready for some bruised shins and squished toes.

But check out my studly man as he catches them and then proceeds to "pitch" them over the fence. It was quite comical to watch and I think secretly he was enjoying this little "rodeo".

But after a while I think he had had enough of the rodeo and decided that maybe it was time to utilize the "big guns" since the ewe's were finding that they could jump the fence and the few lambs he had caught had now "magically" multiplied and included ewe's.

Impressive what a dog's presence does. I think Jamie was taking a break at this point, deciding what his next move would be. He kept moving the pen around, so that when they finally got some lambs separated from the bunch that we could chase them out, instead of pitching them over the fence.

It worked for some time...

...and I was even able to get a shot of them doing this (they all did this as soon as they were chased from the pen...I got a chuckle out of it every time)...

...and then this happened. Jamie's co-worker never did come out and join in the fun and Jamie decided he had enough for one day. Oh well, I guess the rodeo was fun while it lasted.

The moral of this story....put up a better fence before you decide to separate sheep. Trust me, it only works as well as the fence that holds them.