Rock Stomping Fuchsia Farmgirl...

sometimes a prairie girl must trade her cowboy boots in...

show her feminine side a little more...

she must become a fancy farmgirl...

please note...this prairie girl has NEVER owned anything in this color before...she is going all out for a family wedding this weekend...a little nervous these shoes will clash with her pasty, winter white legs...a little nervous she'll fall flat on her face in these beauties...she really has no idea what possessed her to make this purchase...she really can only blame her husband for her becoming a crazed fuchsia stomping fancy farmgirl...he'll think twice about keeping her out in a field of rocks all week long... ;0)

Field Workers...

hello girls...

i really need to say *thank you* to all the amazing words and comfort you gave me about the previous post...

five years...you would think the longing would fade just a bit...

sometimes i'm not so sure that time heals...

but on we go...

what else can we do...

i also need to apologize for my absence lately...

you see this has been me lately...





well...okay not exactly...

i don't live in cotton country...

but just imagine a field of rocks instead of light, fluffy cotton...

sigh...i never knew that rocks knew all about the reproducing thing...but we definitely have the field to prove it...

i promise to be back soon with some really exciting news and a little something for you faithful readers...

that is if i can find my way through the field of rocks we are growing here on the prairie...

sheesh...

A Cowboys Life....

*this is a post i wrote the 5th year after my daddy's passing, it has now been 7 and i miss him more than ever...as i gaze upon this land and my wild prairie children, i am filled with such gratitude for his sacrifices and strength.* 


a cowboy's hat can tell many stories...


this hat for instance belonged to a man that i *love* dearly..
and miss terribly...




the sweat ring comes from years of being a steward to a land...


a land his great-grandfather worked and cared for...


from trying to live for the cattle that had been trusted into his work worn hands...


a dirt patch tells of the day he dusted his daughter off when she tumbled from a frisky colt...


another of the grueling day of trailing 1000 head of cattle over a slick rock trail with a 500 foot drop on your left...


that day a calf fell off that trail...


this hat and it's cowboy were lowered over the side of the sheer drop off by lariats tied together...


the cowboy rescued that baby calf that day simply because that is how this cowboy lived...on the edge...


the red sand embedded into the grains came from the year he took his daughter on her first views of the only free roaming buffalo herd in the united states..


we ran with the buffalo that day...


the sounds of their thundering hooves keeping time with our quickening hearts and our horses long strides...


the water droplets were left behind on a day where his most trusted horse, and friend moved on to greener pastures...


the round burn marks were left behind by the dying embers of a camp fire...while he sat listening to the coyotes howl at the full moon rising over the snow capped peaks of the henry mountains...


among the dirt is patches of flour....this hat watched over the cowboy while making many of his famous sourdough biscuits...there has yet to be one made that sticks to your ribs better than what this cowboy made...


the crimp in the brim came from a day full of anxiety...the day that his first grandson was born...


....this daughter is blessed....not only can i gaze at the life of this cowboy each day....but i am able to hear him in the breezes that sway the grain fields...i am able to hear him in the lone coyotes howl...i am able to hear him in the crackle of the camp fire...i am able to feel his love in the land that i work with my hands...


we love you dad and miss you so...

A Vintage Day...

did you know that this prairie girl *loves* etsy...

there are so many things that i could spend the husbands calf check on...sigh...

one favorite category is photography...

that is after i've gone through all the pages of vintage industrial goods...dream...

i believe my new favorite photographer has to be Jude McConkey

the texture in this is divine...





oh.my...

does this one not transport you to a faded prairie...

one day hopefully my photography will come close to this...

sigh...

until then at least i have etsy!! :0)

all photographs can be found in jude mcconkey's etsy store

Organic Lamb...

{not the actually doggie...you will soon find out why...}

This is a story...

of a prairie girl and a doggie lamb...

{a doggie lamb is one that has lost it's mom...poor things...}

usually doggies have to bottle feed...

we usually end up with one or two doggie calves a year...

but that is another story..

this story may have a happy ending...

depending on who's point of view you take...

it takes place in the spring time...

{cue the spring like music...imagine fields of green...grass that is....}

well okay...

maybe not...exactly...

you see this doggie lamb and his brother had to stay in a corral until they were used to us, so as not to run away...

so we begin our story in a corral...

a corral that has had heifers in it all winter...

heifer+long winter = quite a bit of that all organic fertilizer...

if you know about heifers at all...well they are rather curious beasts...

they are rather bothersome most of the time too...

particularly when they learn how to rub against the water hydrant and flood their all organic fertilized corral...

hhmmm...

yep, huge mess...

so enter baby lambs, curious heifers, organic green mud pit and prairie girl coming to check on the doggies in her flip flops...

yes, this prairie girl *loves* her flip flops...

even though they are not ideal farm working shoes...

well you see those curious bothersome heifers just had to inspect those cute cuddly little lambs...

so when this prairie girl entered the corral...

she saw the organic green mud pit kicking...

sees only one baby lamb...

what the !*$% she exclaims....

without a moments hesitation our prairie girl runs into the green mud pit...

yes she did...in her flip flops...

scoops up the barely kicking green baby lamb...

cradles it against her....{white tank top}

and makes a mad dash for the house...

without her flip flops...

they have been sucked into the muddy green mass of...well...you know by now...

no time to look for them now...

so...

running across the corral in her bare feet...

the prairie girl enters her farmhouse and heads for the sink with a barely alive baby lamb...

water running she cleans the gooey mess out of the baby's eyes and mouth trying to get it to keep breathing...

once the baby is somewhat organic free she snuggles him in one of her bath towels and sets him in the prairie sunshine to warm...

the baby lamb grew to be old and fat...

he now graces someones freezer...{not mine yuck..remember i'm a beef girl...}

i know...sad for the lamb but he did really have a nice life...

after the little incident...

happy for the person who has a freezer full of meat...

sad for the prairie girl...

she lost her favorite pair of flip flops that fateful day..

she wasn't about to go back after those, they have never been found...

needless to say her husband had to buy her a new pair...

and a couple other goodies for being farm wife of the year...

the end...

Prairie Ruffles....

hi girls...

spring has finally arrived here on the prairie...

there is a lot of this going on...

i'm sorry i've been absent for awhile...

i'm finally feeling like i'm getting caught up...sigh...

thank goodness...

today i received an email from a sweet, sweet girl...

erin...

she owns an amazing etsy shop...

creekbedthreads...

awhile back she purchased some of this from me...

with a promise to share what she created with it...

when i opened the email today i found a link to this...

oh.my.

i know...

ruffles...

sigh...

bliss...

you can bet one of these will be showing up here on the prairie soon...

erin...*thank you* so much for sharing...

you are absolutely amazing!!

Quiet Moment...

sorry girls...

i know it's been awhile...

i know i promised some good ole cowboy wrangler wearing goodness...

but guess what...

this prairie girl forgot her camera...

yep...

between that and being stuck in wal-mart parking lot for two hours in the middle of the night about 5 hours away from the comfort of my bed on our colorado trip has left me not really wanting to talk about it...

not enjoyable...

so...

sorry...

i will make it up to you...*promise*...

but right now this prairie girl is busy trying to get her brick and mortar store open...

trying to help with some of the ranch work...

trying to wrangle some wild prairie children...

trying to remember to breath...

i will be back soon...

*promise*

photo found here

Blue Cowboys and a winner....

this is blue...

the newest member of our prairie family...

sigh...

i know he is cute and all...

but really...

must he live in the house?!?!...

must i run around like i'm an old cow so he can heel me?!?!...

that is asking just a little too much of this mom...really...

sigh...

on a better note...

the giveaway winner!!

random.org picked number 67...

~*~*~*~* Tracey *~*~*~*~*~

this prize really couldn't have gone to a sweeter girl...

i am so glad to call her my friend...congratulations tracey!!

if you get a chance be sure to swing by her blog...

oh.my.drool....

oh...and don't forget to visit her online store French Larkspur...

please don't even get me started on this girl's place...you know that cattle check of the husbands...

well i really did spend it all over at her place...

ssshhh...our little secret right?!?!....

i hope you all have a fabulous Easter weekend...

the husband and i will be spending it in colorado...

trying to pick one of these...

did you know that i *love* going to bull sales?!?!

i think two words sums up why i enjoy them so much...

*cowboys + wranglers*

yep...

do you i hear you daring me to take a few pics so you know what i mean...

no problem...anything for my favorite girlfriends... :0)

thank you to all who entered in my giveaways!! i really appreciate each and every comment...it has been so fun getting to know so many of you!! absolutely incredible ladies here in blogland!!