The Summer in photos

In no particular order, here are a few photos of what we've been up to this summer. I hinted at several of these items a week ago, but now you can see what has been happening around here the last couple months.

The weather has been crazy. We are way above normal on average temperature, and number of days over 100 degrees here this summer. Plus, several nasty storms full of lightning, wind and black clouds have rolled over pretty regularly. But, one things these clouds don't have is much rain. For the month of June, average rainfall for Wyoming was .45 inches.

 Our house water pump quit working. Then the line airlocked. So, my dad rigged this system up to pump water back up the more than 2 miles of line to our storage tanks from our house.

 This photo was taken while getting the right shot to accompany one of several writing projects I had going on this summer. From new magazines to my regular work to multiple online projects, it's been fun and busy on the writing front lately!

This is Larry, who is one half of our new Hereford bull duo (the other is Moe) that are going to make us some black baldy calves : ) He has been hard at work.

A wind storm blew the tin off one side of our "new" trailer house. So, instead of finishing prjoects inside so my brother and I can move in, we had to concentrate on this. While move-in won't be for a while now, I am getting my office stuff moved in, which will be a huge help on my work end.

 Lots of time has been spent determining how to best manage our cattle on this very dry year. We've also been diligent in checking their water, grass and how they're holding their condition. We're very thankful that the grazing association where most of our mother cows are located is having a much better year than we are at home.

 We've fought fire, but not nearly as much as the folks east of us.

I watched my first litter of pigs be born, and are they CUTE or what?!

An Update

Well, my blog, or Internet connection, won't let me upload pictures, so the vast majority of what I've been trying to post for the last couple days will have to wait (some more).

On a more personal front, things in my life are going extremely well! The transition from desk/town/career (I use that term very loosely) to outdoors/ranch/self employed has gone smoothly, and I am a very blessed and happy girl.

Professionaly I just completed my first photography job since leaving the paper, and am working on my first writing assignment as well. When not working in those two areas, I've been helping build fence, picking up bulls, branding and keeping the guys fed and clothed in my moms absence. I am also helping some family and neighbors with their ranch work over the next few months, and have scheduled that through the end of May.

Other highlights in the work area include finally being able to learn how to AI (artificially inseminate) cattle this June. Adam's (he did not like being referred to as "the guy," and requested a change) mom AI's, and will be teaching me. Getting to spend some quality time with my grandma while working at my uncle's place is another thing I am really looking forward too.

Adam and I (as in mostly him, and I get to go along) also have some traveling planned for the summer, and I'm thrilled to have a schedule that allows me to participate in such things again. Traveling and being able to attend events, and see places, of interest to me were things I've really missed.

This week Adam also surprised me with dinner at my favorite Casper restaurant, and floor level tickets to Riverdance when they performed in Casper. Next weekend we are planning a night out in Deadwood, and after that is a week of AI'ing together. If you couldn't tell, things are going extremely well in the relationship area too, and I am a very lucky girl in that area as well!

Hope all is well with everyone who reads this, and as soon as possible I'll get caught up on posts that include pictures!

A New Chapter

The sun set on my days as an assistant editor last Friday, and I am so relieved and happy. These major work related decisions are never easy, and this one was no exception. I certainly did not plan to leave the paper after a year and half, but, I am confident it was the right choice, especially after the last month since I gave my notice I was leaving.
The last few days have included a weekend at the guys house, meeting his dad and brother, unpacking more stuff than my Acura knew it could hold, fencing, making freelance writing phone calls, booking the first photography job since quitting at the paper, cleaning up the ol' personal Dell computer and a pluthera of other activities. It's been fun, fast paced, and relatively stress free, all things considered.
I am now fully inbedded in ranch work, photography work and diving into the world of freelance writing.

The Ram Sale Edition

This week we put out our annual Ram Sale Edition of the paper.
No big deal...right? Wrong!
My blissful, latte fueled, no dog barking in the middle of last night morning was going fine...until I find out, via two simultaneous phone calls, that we don't have enough editorial, so and so hasn't submitted their information, there are huge holes to be filled, and good luck Heather.
Christy is out of the office today I should note. Out of the office for work.
I suddenly didn't have enough caffeine prior to work and began frantically working to fill these holes by contacting so and so and lengthening other articles to make sure the edition was full.
One twitching eye (it is still twitching and quite annoying), multiple phone conversations, one email and one text that included a cuss word, and a trip to subway for lunch, mainly for chocolate chip cookies and a pop (two big no no's in my lunch eating world) I do believe I have things back under control (knock on wood).
Part of my filling holes technique is always pictures....no gathering of information and writing of articles...and if I'm very lucky no cutline either.
So here are a few, feel free to scan your Roundup this week to see just how and where they were used. Let me know if you don't get the Roundup but want to (that's it for my plugs for the paper) I also apologize if they seem a little light, that is necessary for printing in our paper, and I wasn't going to re-edit them...again.

This is one of, if not my all-time favorite ram photo. It was a great setting with the clouds.

This one is another all-time favorite and dates back to our very first year with sheep. It was also in my very early days with my first Canon Rebel... It's not perfect and a little fuzzy, and the focus isn't where I would want it, but in all the annual shearings since I have not been able to get anywhere close to replicating it...and I've tried.

OK, so this one wasn't sent for filling holes...but I like it. Maybe this post should be called, "Oldies but Goodies...sheep photos" This is my most successful photo to date that I have entered in a competition. I entered it in color, but also like the black and white version.

Yearling ewes. Another photo from my early days as a photographer and sheep producer.


And there's this guy, who can be seen again at the very bottom of my blog in a photo taken about 3 frames prior to this one. The snow and full-curled horns just work for me.

Next week is the University of Wyoming Edition...I'm not sure how to feel about that at this point.

April 29, 2010 events..so far

My day, so far, has consisted of:

Getting up later than planned after staying out later than planned last night

Making my lunch while eating breakfast

Leaving my lunch, which should be refrigerated, on my counter

Driving the guys jeep to work because he is working on my truck today

Driving the jeep sounds easy, it might be too, if your legs are long enough to reach the peddles. Mine aren't and it's a manual

Arriving at work before 8:00 for the first time all week, but without my lunch

Realizing I also forgot my personal computer, which I need so I can order my mom's business cards. She has asked me to do this approximately 92790977234765 times, oops

Actually getting ahold of the person I called for an interview

Writing the article after the interview

Writing the previous post on here and having it show up as wingdings, hopefully you can see it. Please let me know if you can't since it had several photos and a healthy does of my sarcastic humor :)

Driving the jeep to Murdochs

And eating lunch at Arbys. No point in being healthy after all good attempts fail!

Finding out my option to change font color on here has gone mysteriously missing

Hope everyone's day is going well!