Victorious Glorious Gigi

One year without treatment, cancer free, Victorious Glorious Gigi.

Christmas

JUST A LITTLE DONKEY

Just a little donkey, but on my back I bore, The one and only Savior, the world was waiting for.

Just a little donkey, but I was strong and proud--I gladly carried Mary through the chaos of the crowd.

I brought her to a stable where she made a tiny bed...A place for Baby Jesus to lay His little head.

I pray the world remembers that special Christmas night, when just a little donkey carried Heaven's Precious Light. -Rita S. Beer

End of USA

http://www.newswithviews.com/JBWilliams/williams224.htm
http://www.newswithviews.com/Wooldridge/frosty818.htm

Sons

Jack conducts his first symphony piece

Cal with #4, Catie Rose

Cherish Liberty

Not much time left until it is gone forever.

Pandering to Invaders

http://www.newswithviews.com/Wooldridge/frosty814.htm

The coup is complete.  American is in the hands of the califate, conquered from within by 3rd world leeches and elitist dreamers.  You fools who voted for tyranny own it now.  You will work as slaves to support parasites who will always vote with the X and you will keep paying and so will your babies.  Good luck to you.

Mark Levin says it for me

http://www.marklevinshow.com/sectional.asp?id=32930

Listen to his show on 11/7.  He talked me down from the ledge. 

election

My country died yesterday.  It has been a painful and slow death with only one cure.  We didn't take the cure.  Immigration had to be stopped decades ago.  How many know the numbers coming in on a monthly basis to settle in our towns on our tax dollars to take over areas displacing the people who have lived there for generations?  Untold numbers.  This is not racist talk.  It is not about skin. Look at the cities. They are foreign countries.  This is about conquering the only free nation left into global tyranny by flooding her with bodies that have no clue about liberty and self sufficiency.  They suck out the resources and impose their cultures and water down the fabric of America until they have population dominance and can vote with their X for more.  Clueless about what they have done and what will happen to them in time.  The coup is complete.  The hammer and sickle of the caliphate comes down. 

Don't forget to click on any picture to enlarge!

End of October

Goodness.  I promised the creamery I would deliver fall items and I have not made a single one.  I didn't finish the small pumpkins the girls painted when they were here this summer, either.  What the heck happens to the time the older I get?  I have to admit that I played a lot this summer.  Company, garden, horses.  Too bad the sewing machine got dusty instead of whirring away.  I wonder if I will get some wintry things made.  I can try.

Meanwhile, the weather is gorgeous this fall.  Cool evenings and warm, sunny days.  The raven pair are returning to their nest atop the giant elm tree.  My wild kitties are growing.  It is a year now since I found the teensy abandoned ones.  Since that time we have had the original 4 fixed and have seen others come and go.  One fellow, however, has come to stay.  He will be at the vet soon. That makes 5 permanent feral cats that are quite tame.  From left: Big Blackie, Tiger Girl and Tiger Boy (eating) Shelly kitty and the new boy, Tiger Two.  Their mommy has not been seen in a while but daddy cat is beginning to come up on the porch and join the others with supper or breakfast if I stay far enough away.  I hope to tame him enough to catch pretty soon.  That will make 6 in our feral colony.  Siblings have come and gone the way of the coyote.  I try to save them but some prefer to remain wild and take their chances.

Information

I just figured out that you can click on any photo in the blog and get an enlargement.  WOW.

Grand Mesa Riding Season Is Over

Rifle Season plus the coming cold has ended a glorious few months of exploring the Grand Mesa on horseback.  The photo below is the last ride of the year.  We went all the way up to CountyLine again but this time we rode on a new bike trail called MesaTopTrail.  Approximately 11k feet.  The view here is standing on a slope with the GrandyLakes a few hundred feet below and our little town of Cedaredge all the way down.  If I had a telescope I could probably see our little farm.  See those big white strips?  They are covers over apple trees in an orchard.  We live just to the right of those.

October ride

Mary brought her granddaughters and towed them 10 miles on this pony.  The girls giggled and bounced and squealed.  It was glorious up on the mesa.  We saw a giant porcupine climb a pine tree and we heard elk bugling.  Kitty rode Taffi this time.

I took this from the AlbrightHui blog

Grand Mesa in the Fall

Kitty teaches her young colt to navigate the logs

Dusty on the dropped leaves

Some leaves are still green but will turn quickly now

This summer has been dry.  Here, one of the 300+ lakes/reservoirs on Grand Mesa is dry as a bone.

End of the Harvest

We didn't have any idea that we would reap such a cornucopia.  The best garden we ever grew was this hot summer.  There are still squash plants producing as well as the pole beans and winter squash.

Gigi

Exactly 3 years ago at 3.5 years old, Gigi was diagnosed with Leukemia.  She went through horrendous treatment including spinal taps, transfusions, balding and chemo for nearly 18months.  Look at her today.  The poster girl for miracles. 

The top of Grand Mesa

Kitty and I decided to ride on the County Line at the top of Grand Mesa.  We followed some skidoo and x-country trails. 

Horses

 

Miha has to learn how to load in the trailer.  This works good.  Put her feed inside and she has to figure it out for herself.

Bountiful harvest

Gosh, and this is only some of it.  There are potatoes, winter squash, berries and grapes, plums and pumpkins.

A favorite pic

I was going to post something new when I came across this picture in my computer.  I love it.  We were at Grandpa John's in Prescott and the girls were playing outside.  Gigi was furious at her sister and no one knew exactly why.  A few months later the girls were at the farm and my friend, Meredith, showed the picture to Gigi and asked her what she was so angry about.  Gigi promptly said, "Because Bella got me all dirty". 

Early Bounty

Dusty

My wonderful pocket rocket horse.  For 15yrs she has taken me into parts unknown.  Beyond and far.  Places only a horse can go.  Today we were in a burned portion of Grand Mesa called Cactus Park.  It is steep and rugged terrain.  It burned about 5 years ago killing the cedars and pinions but the oaks are beginning to grow back.  Dusty gives me all she has and more.  I even have to request her to slow up, stop and smell the mesa.  heeheee

Apricot thief

TOXIC

The western slope has been fighting this deadly milkweed all summer.  We have so much it seems impossible to get rid of.  David has taken over the eradication process and can get more jugs done in a day than me.  My arms wear out.  The area is in a panic making sure we don't feed it in bales or let it take over our pastures.  It is too bad I lost a friend over the use of spray.  What does a person living in a planned community know about pastures?  Furthermore, I would be shocked if the HR/HOA doesn't use all kinds of 'licensed' power sprays on the common grounds.  sheesh.  But we have to produce lush fields and healthy equinelivestock and wild life.  It will kill deer as well as horses.  There is nothing fun about the job or the cost but we do what is necessary to take care of our land and animals.

August already!

HA!  I think I just posted the 'July Already' teaser for pics and fun things.  July disappeared in a blur.

We had company to the farm.  Phil and Chris Switzer from Estes Park Switzer-land Alpacas and Vicunas.  Brian and Sal of Pear Blossom, Ca.  The Hawaiians came for a week.  Dad came from Prescott, too.

A hot summer and a lot of time spent in the garden to keep it alive.  The time was well spent because we are now reaping our harvest.  Five kinds of squash, cukes, bush and pole beans, eggplant, corn, tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, watermelon, cantaloupe, pumpkins, raspberries and grapes.  The apples are abundant and so are apricots and plums.

The stream was too low to come through the yard this year so we came up with a few alternatives to keep the kids busy.  A small pool.  Well, this was ok but the water was never warm enough to actually go in despite the high 80's sunshine.  Even after a few days in the sun the water from the well did not warm up sufficiently.  CJ waded some but he would rather find things all over the place to toss in.  The 14' trampoline was a huge hit and even distracted the girls from horses.  We did ride some but the lure of jumping was always on their minds.

Weed battles continue and we have never seen such a wicked invasion.  Besides the deadly whorl milkweed we have tall stands of what I call 'sock stickers'.  The tops of these plants stick to your clothes and you can't get them off.  We have abundant clusters of bindweed, too.  I rarely hope for some winter temps below 0 but this winter I hope we get some serious freezes to kill off these dreadful pests.

I have started to buy 'subscription amazon.com' products.  I don't like to go to Grand Junction to shop.  Too far and I spend too much time and it is a metropolis.  Delta, the same.  I want to go now and then for things instead of weekly and we like to patronize the local Cedaredge store for groceries.  So, here is my list so far of items delivered to my door - Seventh Generation dish soap and laundry soap.  Dog and cat kibble, septic chemicals, Bob's Red Mill soy protein, coffee.

The Creamery Arts Center in Hotchkiss has asked me to come back.  Who would have guessed that my stuffed pieces sold continuously and they are willing to work out a special agreement just for me?  I said I would but at this point I have not had the sewing machine out for weeks and weeks.  I miss sewing and I have stacked up several things to work on if I get the time.

Riding has taken a back seat to other things this summer but I am making up for lost time.  Kitty and I are getting up on the Grand Mesa and we have been to the adobes down by Cory several times.  We have an addition to the farm.  A black colt named RiverBelle was born 2 days before the Hawaiians arrived.  He got a lot of attention from Bella and Gigi.  Dad thought he was grand.

Pics will follow.  I promise.

July already!

The Lenovo computer has been at the shop getting more memory installed and the camera software is in the Lenovo.  I have lots to say and show but today will be just 'say'.

We anticipate with delight the arrival of the Hawaiians and Jack and Amanda on 7/19.  Everything is gearing up for a wonderful week with them.

Weeds - the worst has been the whorled milkweed.  That stuff has invaded the area with fierce abandon.  There was an article in the paper put in by the county telling what to buy to eradicate it.  Expensive stuff, but I bless the chemists/scientists who have found formulas that work for the worst of the weeds and leaves the good stuff there!

A lot of heat.  Hot, hot, hot.  The stream in back is not running for the first time in years.  The front stream is going but not rushing like usual.

The garden is flourishing.  Horses are awesome.  Meredith gets her horse today and new adventures await us all.

Cookie might have her foal while the kids are here!

Pictures soon.

Horses

Taffi

Dusty

Cookie is in the maternity ward

Blue Eyes and Miha

Foxfire is languishing in a bigger and shadier place for the summer

A Hot June Day

We have been here a very long time - close to 3 decades.  Neither of us can remember such heat or so little rain.  It is cool under our trees and we have green irrigated pastures but going outside is still hot.  David works in the heat 6 days a week and he relishes the coolness inside on a hot Father's Day. The front range above Denver is burning and there was a fire near Tholow's last week but we are green here because we irrigate.

poison milkweed

David digging out poison milkweed.  Taffi is helping him

I have grumbled today about weeds.  I have never seen such a crop of poison milkweed.  It spreads via runners and seeds and it is a perennial.  If you don't stop it early you will be in a pickle like me.  I grumble that I have to spray but I would grumble more if I had to dig it out.  Thank God for chemicals.  Sure, I can dream about being in a homeowners' association and my monthly fees would pay a landscaper to spray with stronger chemicals than I can buy.  Green fees on golf courses pay for a landscaper to kill the weeds.   Municipalities and parks and cemeteries, schools and businesses have landscapers to spray weeds.  But, I am all my horses and the wildlife have and they count on me.  So, I'll give the glory to God for chemicals and the strength to do the job I need to do. 

Scarecrows and Ravens

The raven pair moved in last year and they took over the skies and treetops around the place.  They forced magpies to find perimeter places to live and the robins chose to leave.  Now the big black birds have claimed the ground as well. 

If a scarecrow in the garden won't keep out the cherry eating magpies, starlings, etc,  and the woodchucks and other pests out of the corn patch, the ravens will see to the job.  The 2 ravens have no fear of me or the scarecrow and they watch over the garden and cherry trees.

The rat terrier dogs growl and bark at the scarecrow but the ravens saunter around the ground next to him looking for tidbits.

Paper plate scarecrows on sticks move in the wind and keep the rodents out.

Too close

Tholow's house nearly went up in flames.  The fire started on a ranch below him and blew up his whole front yard and licked up the side of the house and down across Surface Creek.  5 other places were saved with unbelievable valor and skill.  That is the Grand Mesa behind his house.  whew.

Edibles Quiz

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All of these are either planted by us or come wild on the farm.  There are more, too!