Just The Way It Is

Summer Has Arrived

2010-06-28T09:34:00.005-06:00

Summer has arrived in the wintry hinterlands! With it comes mosquitoes aplenty. However, I hate winter more than I hate mosquitoes. Some things, I will tolerate for sunshine and warm weather.

Jessie and I embarked on the overnight field trip. I still don't enjoy school bus rides. That has not changed in the 15 years I have been out of school. We went to Fort Edmonton on Thursday and then to West Edmonton Mall to the Waterpark on Friday. We had a lot of fun. However, I was exhausted. Hanging on to children and their tubes in the wave pool is hard on a person. Especially one who isn't a certified lifeguard in the first place.

Then on Saturday, our daughter left us. She decided an 8 year old deserves a holiday I guess. She headed to Texas with Bobby and Cita. It is quieter here. Too quiet. We are left with a chubby baby with a crooked smile who likes to chew on his own toes. He also likes to be held. All the time.

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer. Jake and I are heading in to the saddle shop to practice with the girls. We have to sing at a funeral tomorrow. Not really the ideal job, but you can't say no to the family when they ask. Have a gooder!

Rain Rain.....

2010-06-09T14:18:00.004-06:00

It is raining here again. I'm not sure it will ever stop. I'm thinking of starting my ark. If I can just figure out how to keep the mosquitoes out. Four wheel drive is required to get down our road and when you leave you cannot go south. That road is imapassable and the one to the north is nearly as bad.

Friday was Dee's birthday. We went to Dan and Leanne's and had supper and drove down to the river and released Happy Birthday balloons. It was a beautiful day and a sad occasion, but it was good we could all be together. The river banks are greener than they have been in years and the wind was not blowing at all. The balloons went straight up. Exactly where they were meant to.

The sale is quickly approaching. I believe I have all my stuff nearly done. I can't say that everyone else is prepared, but that is just my opinion. Having one arm seems to affect more than just the physical state. I am so ready to have it done for another year. Next year, I vow to be more organized and prepared for this. Yeah Right!

I would love to post pics of the fast pitch softball games that Jessie has been playing in. However, due to the weather there has only been one. Maybe next week.

I suppose I should hit the road. The one armed husband went to check cows in the rain. Jake is sleeping after a long shift in the jolly jumper, and Jessie will be home from school soon. This house needs to be cleaned and I am the only one to do it.

I'm Considering Moving!

2010-05-30T11:19:00.001-06:00

Today, as you all know is May 30. It is still snowing! Can you believe it? I can't. I'm not all that happy about it either. Believe it or not, I am waiting for Husband to get home from checking cows so I can go out and shovel snow and wet silage out of the silage bunks so the grain I pour out doesn't just soak it all up and become mash. I hope his arm gets better soon! Please pray for early healing!

Merry Christmas! Wait a Damn Minute......!

2010-05-29T13:21:00.005-06:00

I have to apologize for not keeping up very well. Our lives seem to spiral out of control most times, and well, I just haven't had time to sit down and chronicle the goings on of the Armstrongs. I have, however, completed our sale catalog.

We lost our niece, Dee Ann in a trick riding accident on May 20. She was only twelve years old. We will miss her so much. She was a great kid and a great friend to Jessie. It is an awful reminder that we are not in control of any one thing in our lives.

It is May 29. The leaves are finally turning green. School is quickly winding down. Softball games have begun. I woke up this morning to four inches of packed snow on the ground. Yes, snow! I don't like snow in December. I really don't like it in May.

Having a one armed husband right now just adds to the snowstorm. I've been feeding bulls every morning. It isn't that big of a chore, but in the blowing wet snow, seventeen pails of barley feels like seventeen tons of barley. I was soaking wet and madder than a captured Jap by the time Kelly decided to come out and assist me in filling the bale feeders. By assist, I mean drive around in the dry tractor with the heater and radio on. I cut twines, open gates and chase bulls away from the open gates. He drives around and gives me those hand signals that I so dearly adore. I know one hand signal. I use it quite often during times such as these.

I was in the bull pen cutting twines on a bale and heard a yelp. I looked over to see the weiner dog high centered in a snow filled tractor rut. Kelly, who was out of the tractor (GASP!) closing a gate, rescued the poor soul. He finished out chores in the tractor. Now the reason the weiner dog was even out in the snow storm in the bull pen is because he is in love with Scout, the catahoula, and she had followed me out there. Kelly was cussing the dog, telling me how stupid he is and is going on and on about that just goes to show you what a girl does to you. I told him I didn't feel much smarter than the weiner dog right now, because I could be living in a warmer climate right now. This conversation leads on to him asking what I thought about something. You should never ask me that in a situation such as this. However, I am learning. I simply stated, "If I told you what I thought right now, you will get really mad, so we'll just leave it at that." You know what he said? "You are probabbly right." If you know you are going to be mad at the answer, then why ask. I then proceeded to my gate opening duties and quickly back to the house for my coffee and a dry set of clothes.

Kelly left to go check cows. We have already turned them out on pasture. With Kelly having surgery and thinking that summer was here, that was the easiest thing to do to lighten the chore load around here. However, we are still calving. I think it is safe to say he will probably come home with a few calves. I'm sure they will decide to all calve today. Why wouldn't they? I just hope he stops to buy me some Bailey's for my coffee. I feel like this is the perfect day for it and I deserve it, especially if I have to reopen the baby bovine bed and breakfast in my kitchen.

Jessie and Raina were outside building a snow man. The snow is so heavy, they couldn't get their middle piece up on the bottom. They came in soaking wet and defeated.

Hello Again!

2009-12-30T13:46:00.004-07:00

Hi there! I apologize for not keeping everyone updated on the happenings around here, however, we have not slowed down. Jake got to come home on the 12th of December. He is doing great. At his last appointment, he weighed 6lbs 11oz. He already has us all trained. Since there are not ten nurses at his beckon call, we are all having to do double duty to keep up with his expectations. Let me tell you, they are quite high for someone who is not really supposed to be born yet.

Jessie is a great big sister. She is helping out a lot. However, if he cries, she is quick to hand him off.

Christmas was great. We went to Church on Christmas Eve and then spent Christmas Day with friends. It was nice to have a place to go have a real Christmas Dinner. If it had been left to me to cook for the three of us, it probably wouldn't have been turkey and dressing. Jessie got her skateboard from Santa that is all she asked for in her letter. She also got a new pink hockey bag plus lots of other goodies. Jake got a swing, which was probably the smartest gift Santa has ever bought. It makes up for the skateboard which has been involved in several single vehicle accidents in the middle of the living room lately. I'm waiting for the broken arm, so I can say I told you so to the father figure in this house, who has been involved in a couple of those accidents. I did put an end to him skateboarding down the hall holding Jake.

Kelly is planning a birthday party for Jake on the 2nd since that was his original due date. I think he has invited everyone he knows for supper. He promised to help, but I know how that story ends.

That is all I really know for now. Jake is actually napping without someone holding him or in a sling around my neck, so I'm going to take this opportunity to get something done.

Happy New Year!

Jake Henry Armstrong

2009-11-23T10:03:00.006-07:00

Sorry it's been awhile, but I've been rather preoccupied as Jake decided to arrive two months early. He was born November 8 weighing 4lb and 4oz. All is well, he is making great progress every day. He lost weight, as most babies do, and was down to 4lbs. Yesterday, he was 4lbs 7oz, so he is gaining now. He has gone from being intubated with IVs to assisted breathing and now he is breathing on his own and trying to suck from the bottle. Most of his feedings do come through a feeding tube in his nose. However, the sucking apparently isn't developed until 35 or 36 weeks, so we are hoping he will catch on in the next couple of weeks. He is now in a cot and out of the incubator and keeps everybody on their toes. He pulled out his oxygen tubes so since then, he has had socks taped on his hands. He has pulled out his feeding tube as well and puts up a good fight when they put it back in. We are hoping that with all the progress he will be home by Christmas, but the rule of thumb is not until their due date. Jessie cannot wait for her little brother to get home. She loves to hold him and really wants to help out.

Conversations with Jessie

2009-10-20T12:16:00.003-06:00

Jessie: Mom, how long will it be before my baby brother's eyes will open?
Me: We aren't having a puppy Jessie, they will be open when he's born.
Jessie: Oh, okay.

Jessie: Mom will my baby brother be able to walk
Me: Well, not right off the bat, but in a year
Jessie: Hmmm...Just wondering.

Jessie: Dad, what all sports have I played
Kelly: Well, you've played baseball, hockey, and volleyball
Jessie: Yeah, I'm pretty good at all of them.

Kelly: Hey Jessie, would you want to be a singer when you grow up like these girls on Disney?
Jessie: Yeah, I guess
Kelly: Well you should start practicing your guitar with mom so you can learn
Jessie: Dad, those girls are like 14. I have plenty of time.
Kelly: Well if you become a famous singer can I drive your tour bus?
Jessie: Well I guess, but you're gonna have to work on your driving. You know like
your speed and your corners.

There is never a dull moment here.

Trick Riding Debut!

2009-09-09T11:39:00.007-06:00

Well, we made it through the weekend! YAYYYY! Jessie trick rode at a rodeo in Patricia. She only walks, which is completely fine with me at this stage. She is riding the world's largest and slowest trick riding horse. Big Boy, however, did great even though she had him covered from head to toe in pink. You could see the disgust on his face. Jessie, had a blast, and I'm afraid she still wants to do it. She came home and has practiced now carrying the Canadian flag while doing the hippodrone stand.

Sunday was the Little Britches Rodeo. Jessie just ran barrels and poles and did great. She was mad that she made her fastest pole run ever and didn't place. She is a little competitive. Don't know where that comes from.

Silaging is in full swing now. Kelly and the neighbors are out in the field, and I'm supposed to be planning their next meal. I'm not so good at that. However, my chicken and dumplings last night were a hit. Even Kelly commented on the chicken, which he usually refuses to eat. However, when you call your wife at 2:00, who is an hour and a half away spending her day shopping to tell her that you are going to need supper in the field for six people by 6:30, you just can't be fussy as to what you eat. They weren't supposed to get started that early, so I had taken advantage of the day off. Ha! I should've known. It is impossible for me to spend a day without interruptions. Last time, I had to come home because there was a dire need for a pail of hydraulic oil from town.

Well, I suppose I should do something housewife like for the day and maybe get something planned for the hard working men in the field.

First Day of 3rd Grade!

2009-08-31T08:39:00.003-06:00

Today was Jessie's first day of school. She was so excited. I hope it stays this way, but I'm sure it won't . I loved not having to fight with her to get out of bed this morning. Kelly is in British Columbia until Friday, so we are doing the first week of school by ourselves. I'm going to get a lot done this week!

Summer Fun

2009-08-27T08:20:00.007-06:00

Since I've been kind of lax on the posting, I thought I should catch everyone up this morning on the Armstrong family. First off, we are having a boy. So two ultrasounds say. Jessie is not quite sure how she feels about that, but she's dealing with it. I've quit riding now, so Jessie is the right hand man around here. She and Kelly went and pulled a bull off cows so he could make the trip over the rocks this week to Kamloops and Armstrong, British Columbia.

Jessie is doing quite well and enjoying it. Big Boy has definitely built the confidence.

She was doing the hippodrone stand while at the roping and riding in Stettler the other night. This, I don't have pictures of but will get some as soon as I can. She has to practice trick riding this week before we head to Patricia for her debut as a trick rider on the world's tallest, yet slowest, trick riding horse. She is also entered in the Little Britches rodeo down there. I called to enter her the other day and was asking what events they had for her age group. Now, I've heard of calf scrambles even seen a wild hog scramble, but I've yet to hear of the pheasant pursuit. I told Jessie she was entering just so I could see it. She said fine but she wasn't trying because she wasn't about to touch a bird. I can't see this going well. How many kids want to get pecked by a wild bird?

Not this grouchy one.

Big Valley had a homecoming celebration earlier this month. As with most communities, there were one room schools scattered throughout the countryside, some of which are still standing today. Every few years, Big Valley has the homecoming for all the community schools including the town school. People come from all over to attend homecoming. It lasts all weekend and is complete with a fireworks show and a parade. Well, Biff called and wanted Jessie to ride in the parade on his float. She was the youngest on the float by at least 70 years, so they needed a young viable arm to throw the candy I'm assuming. Now the Big Valley parade is like none other I have ever seen. You do see it all. Seriously! I took quite a few pics so I put them in a slide show. You just had to see it to believe it! This town is full of characters and I didn't even begin to get pictures of them all.

Dog Days of Summer

2009-08-07T09:04:00.004-06:00

Jessie and I have made it to and from Texas with no major catastrophes. This is a major feat due to the fact that our trip home involved not only the well travelled weiner dog but also a Catahoula puppy who was like travelling with Marmaduke.

We had a great time down South in the heat. Jessie loves to swim, so she spent lots of time in the pool. We have returned to 50 degree weather and rain. The rain is good, but the cool air I could live without for a couple of months.

On the way down, Jessie wanted to see Mt. Rushmore, so we detoured down I-90, were caught in the middle of a high speed chase by the South Dakota Highway Patrol, and saw Mt. Rushmore in Byars style: "Well there it is. Smile. Alright let's go. We've got miles to make." I have to say, it was very neat even seeing it for the second time.

Kelly and Jessie headed off to Olds for the rodeo this weekend with Big Boy on the back of the liner. Jessie missed him while she was gone, so she is making up for it by riding every chance she gets. The rain has put a damper on it lately. She was hoping that slack was this morning so she could chase calves out of the arena. I stayed home for a wedding shower, and then I am going over in the morning to fulfill my duties as the stock contractor's wife. These duties aren't as fun now that I can't sit at the trailer and drink beer with the pickup man's wife.

I finally broke down and bought some maternity clothes yesterday. Uckkk! What a waste of money. $70 for jeans that I'm not going to wear but a few months.

On Tuesday, I have a doctors appointment, so maybe we get to find out what it is. I asked Jessie if she wanted it to be a surprise. I knew the answer, but the look on her face was great. She looked at me like I was stupid and said, "No way, I want to start shopping."

I'm on my way to town right now to get this fly issue settled in our house. August and September are miserable here when you live 100 feet from the pens. The flies have taken over and Kelly is losing his mind. He has been dancing around like a ballerina with the fly swatter. I'm afraid he is going to fall down the stairs in one of his fly swatting fits. I moved the KONK sprayer outside because I wasn't sure it was good for any of us spraying in the house. I may hang those long sticky orange ribbons all over the house for decoration while we are away for the weekend. I hate flies with a passion and my husband is driving me crazy. I spend half the day following him around and sweeping up the dead flies he leaves on the floor. I know this is repulsive to many, but hey it's life on the farm. John Denver did not know what the hell he was talking about when he said it was kinda laid back.

The Days are Getting Shorter!

2009-06-29T18:02:00.006-06:00

So, Jessie's school year is finally over! Yeah!!! Going to school until June 26th is completely unnecessary. However, no one seems to care what I think. Jessie had her awards day on the 25th. She received the Spanish award for her grade. She loves Spanish.

We are surviving summer so far. The weather has been in the 70's at the warmest and the wind has been blowing every single day. It is so dry here that there are herd dispersals all over the country. Many of those who still have their cows are still feeding. We turned ours out, but the grass is looking grim, so we are praying for rain.

Jessie lost her second tooth. The drama that surrounds losing a tooth here is worthy of an Oscar. It is quite the ordeal. The tooth fairy is not good at staying up late, and the weiner/guard dog who sleeps with Jessie doesn't welcome midnight intruders.

We spent Saturday ear tagging calves and vaccinating cows. I have no pictures because it was just the three of us to gather and do all of this. It was, once again, a run for your life type of scenario. Words can't describe some of the events that take place here. You have to see them to believe them.

The rodeos are in full swing. We had a successful production sale, which is nice to have out of the way. Innisfail is done, Ponoka finishes Wednesday, and then the madness of "Stampede" starts next week. We have bulls out on Sunday and again on Thursday in Calgary. On Wednesday, Jessie and I are taking in the Taylor Swift concert. She is stoked.

After that, we are headed south for a while. Jessie has been wanting to see Mt. Rushmore, so we are headed to Texas via South Dakota. We are taking a well deserved vacation and leaving Kelly home to tend the fort.

Since it has taken me three days to write this, I will post some pics of Jessie from yesterday. We went to a Memorial playday type of thing yesterday. It is an all day affair. They have every event from tiny mite goat tail undecorating to wild cow milking and the hide race. We try and go every year because it is a lot of fun. Jessie entered the barrels and poles yesterday. She wouldn't enter the goat tail untying because her horse is too tall. I entered the breakaway, team penning and team roping. I got third in the breakaway and the rest were a flop. The team roping I can finally blame on the header who missed for me. However, my heeling leaves a lot to be desired. It is more of a close your eyes and throw it under and see what I come up with and then try and get a dally but don't count on it kind of thing. I am learning though. It is my goal to be able to heel in the arena not just in the branding pen where they are standing still.

The Weekend

2009-06-01T14:23:00.002-06:00

We spent this last Friday and Saturday at some friend's branding. They live west of Stavely, Alberta in the hills. Willow Creek runs in front of their house and if you ride up the ridge behind the house you can see the Rockies. It is the most beautiful place on earth. We had a great visit with lots of friends we don't get to see on a regular basis and even got 400 calves branded in the meantime. I woke up early Saturday morning hoping to see the black bear that have been roaming through the yard, but they didn't show. Jessie was highly disappointed. Of course, she didn't wake up, she just told me to get pictures. Apparently, they've been showing up early in the morning and wrecking the trees around the houses.

Kelly took his gray up to ride and gather with no intention whatsoever of dragging calves, but of course, all the old buddies were around heckling him so he tried it. He did great. He definitely wasn't bothered by the five wrestling crews and the branding pot he had to walk by. He got a little up in the bits, but it didn't last long. We are quite impressed that he takes everything so well, considering he only got broke when he was five and that was last year.

Anyways, I thought I would share some pics I took. I didn't get to take many as I spent most of the day branding and vaccinating.

As for now, we are off to the neighbors to brand this afternoon. They are short handed since Lori had an emergency appendectomy last week and she is usually a roper, a cutter, and the cook.

When It's Springtime in Alberta.....

2009-05-28T10:17:00.004-06:00

Well, spring has officially sprung here. The garden is planted, not by me, of course. Biff had that taken care of a week ago. Yesterday he and Kelly spent an hour pot bellied pig proofing it, as I've planted his potatoes three times. They put up a hot wire, so we'll see how that works. It may get the best of the weiner dog before it does the pig.

Branding season is here. All the neighbors are calling, so we have a fun filled week ahead. We start by heading to Nanton in the morning to Keeley's. That is always a fun time. Yes, Jessie is missing school to go to a branding. It is perfectly ok. This time of year, there are many missing from school due to brandings. In a town of 350, they tend to understand. I think branding could even be an "excused" absence in Big Valley.

We cut our beef calves the other day. This only furthered my suspicions of Jessie being Sarah's child. I headed down check out progress and here stands Jessie in the middle of the pen in her Crocs and a skirt holding the "nut" bucket. I started cutting after a while, so Kelly and Rolly could wrestle. Two of them crawled the fence and got in with the cows, so the just roped them and we did them amongst all the cows. I was cutting as fast as I could because the cows were not pleased with the goings on. Rolly and Kelly were getting snot blown all over them, I turn to throw Jessie her treasure, and she is standing right behind me. She had come in the pen with all these mad momma cows to do her duty. My heart skipped a beat or two. She was as proud as punch with her new job and wasn't letting fear nor fashion stand in the way of getting the job done. Afterwards, I cleaned them and we cooked them on the fire for the kids. Jessie and her friend Grady ate most of them by themselves. Be it known, that I did not bother to batter them. They were just cooked. Jessie has been asking lots of questions about heifers, steers, and bulls lately. So, Kelly took the opportunity to explain to her while cutting a calf that this was how a bull becomes a steer. Her reply: "Ohhhh, now I get it!" The kid never ceases to leave me speechless.

Well, I should get outside. I see my horse is saddled, so I must have a job to do. Kelly is out on the new love of his life, Goose, whom he now refers to as "Mine that Goose." He has found his soul mate in a free gray horse. You would know that with Kelly it would have to be free for him to like it.

Have a good one everyone.

Victoria Day!

2009-05-18T09:04:00.002-06:00

Today is Queen Victoria's birthday, so we have a holiday. God Bless the Queen, I guess. However, this is the first long weekend of what is supposed to be summer. Campers look forward to this weekend all winter. They pack up their gear, load their trailers and absolutely flood every campground in Alberta. This morning, the joke is on the campers. It is snowing! Yes, I said snow! Not funny.

Yesterday it was about 70 with a wind worthy of Vernon, Texas. This morning it is snowing and the high is in the 30's. I'm glad I'm not a camper.

Kelly has headed back out to his tractor seat. We haven't seen him much. He did come in for supper last night when some friends called and said they were coming over and bringing everything we needed for hamburgers. It was a great supper. I didn't have to cook it. They even brought paper plates and plastic forks.

I plowed for a little bit yesterday. Jessie asked if she was going to get to see her dad in the day anytime soon, so I thought I better get out there for a while so they could play together. Kelly is pulling his hair out going round and round. I think it's therapy for his ADD. He thinks it is a waste of time he could better spend doing something "productive." I informed him that since he was planning on planting a crop in this field, that plowing should probably be considered productive. I hope he has learned his lesson this time and decides to hire a real farmer to do it next time. Jessie said he should have left it in pasture, it looks ugly all plowed up. She doesn't have that farming gene either. I, however, don't mind it. You can sit on the tractor all day and no one bothers you because there isn't a person for 1,000 miles that wants your job. It is actually peaceful.

During the father daughter quality time yesterday, Jessie made Kelly paint her new fort. In hot pink letters he had to paint, JESSIE'S FORT KEEP OUT BEWARE OF DOG. We're not sure if she is warning people of the vicious weiner dog or the three legged dog. Either way, they are warned. I will have to get pictures of this on a nicer day.

Since it's a snow day better spent indoors, Jessie and I are going to Red Deer to see the Hannah Montana movie. I'm quite sure it's an Oscar winner. Jessie has been dying to see it. She already knows all the songs off the soundtrack and can dance to them while singing in front of the mirror with her air mic. It's awesome.

Have a good one.

Hello Again!

2009-05-14T14:53:00.002-06:00

Sorry it's been so long. I've been down and out and really busy. We are having our first production sale June 10, so guess who got to build the catalog. You can see it on our website, www.kicknspin.com on the sale page. It came back from the printers today, and it looks good. I wasn't as impressed as I thought I would be. However, I think I'm just sick of looking at it.

Kelly is out dummying yearling bulls right now. The wind is out of the north. There is no hint of sunshine, and I'm sure the windchill is below zero. They already broke a leg on one. I braved the weather in my North Face down coat and watched them buck two, and I came back to the warmth of the house. It is miserable out there. I'm just not that interested. Besides that, I will get the play by play anyways, whether I want to or not. There are 52 of them, so Kelly was desperately hoping to cut that number down significantly. That is way too many mouths to feed until they are old enough to haul.

Jessie is busy with softball right now. I think it should be mandatory that they all wear helmets, not just the batters. It is a dangerous sport, mostly from lack of eye hand coordination and attention span. She rode her new horse the other day for the first time. He is a hand me down from the cousins. His name is Big Boy. It is definitely for a reason. She looks like a flea on him, but he does whatever she wants and at the turtle speed she likes. He also loves carrots, so she has gone through a bag of carrots this week.

We are getting through calving quite nicely. It will be a good day when they are done and turned out to summer pasture.

Well, I should be on my way. I have a chili order for 10 that needs to be done for supper. I will get some pics on here later and try my best to do a little better job of updating this. Have a good one!

Warm Air and Warm Sunshine!

2009-04-06T13:39:00.002-06:00

I'm not going to say Spring is here, but it is definitely in the air. If I, even for a moment, begin to think winter is over, it will sure as hell snow tomorrow. For today, I'm enjoying the +11*C and the sunshine. We had our first beef calf today, so calving should be under way shortly.

Kelly has been in Nampa, Idaho at a PBR event this last week, so Jessie and I have been manning the fort by ourselves. We've become accustomed to being modern day grass widows and can handle pretty much anything that comes our way. It may mean Honey Nut Cheerios for supper because we are too tired to cook, but we survive. It is great that Jessie is old enough to ride along in the tractor and open gates. She can be a lot of help when she wants to be.

That is all I know for now. I'm heading back out to soak up the sun and check cows. Hope you have a great day.

Spring Isn't Springing!

2009-03-25T16:34:00.002-06:00

So, I have decided that the Groundhog is a moron. Next time I see him, it will be through the scope of a high powered rifle. I'm going to turn him into a hat to keep warm. It is cold here. The wind is blowing out of the north and I drove through snow off and on all day coming home from Kelly's sister's. I have had it with this wintry wonderland.

Jessie is staying with her cousins for a few days. She was very excited to be going and quite put out that I spent last night with them. I was feeling unwanted. She knows as long as I am there, I can say no to everything Auntie lets her get away with. As I walked out the door, her Auntie was talking about buying her a hamster for her birthday. Yikes!!!! Just what we need.

So, I'm hoping for a few warm days while Jessie is away. I would like to ride, nap, and tomorrow I'm going for a massage. Due to busting my butt in the bull pen the other day because of ice, getting hit twice from behind in hockey the other night, and spending two hours on the water slides at West Edmonton Mall, I cannot turn my head.

That is really all I know for now. Life has been pretty dull around here lately. Chores, chores, and more chores are all that seems to be going on.

Have a good one.

2009-03-10T08:58:00.004-06:00

I peeled myself out of my warm bed this morning at 6:45. I have to admit I stayed in bed a little longer than usual, but Kelly got up and made the coffee for once, so I thought I would wait until it was done. During the winter, we turn the radio on in the morning to listen to the local radio station for bus cancellations. Yes, during the winter. Today is March 10. Over the radio they announce that all county buses are cancelled. It is -33* Celsius. That is -27.4* Fahrenheit. Again, it is March! I'm beginning to think Global Warming is bologna.

Jessie's friends, Grady and Raina, are over for the day. They came running upstairs wanting to go play outside. I told them to come back in 10 minutes with a worse idea. Hopefully by lunch it will be at least -20 and then they can go out. Jessie has been dying for them to come over and play on "Snow Mountain." Kelly has been adding to it and skillfully sculpting it with the front end loader.

Jessie's hockey windup party is tonight, so yesterday I went to town and bought all the fixings for ice cream sundaes. I have yet to take the ice cream out of the back of the truck. What is the point? However, we may have to warm it up to scoop it out.

Well, that is all I know for now. I should get to work and make the most of this "Snow Day." Too bad it's too cold to even snow.

You've Got To Be Kidding Me!

2009-03-03T09:44:00.004-07:00

It is March 3 and the snow is falling like you cannot believe. We have an antique horse, an injured horse and five cows along with calves stuffed in our barn. I'm so sick of packing water and straw I could scream.

It all started in the night with freezing rain. About the time the bus driver called and said she was turning around and going home, it started snowing. Jessie was outside enjoying what she thought was going to be a snow day when the neighbor called. Upon consultation, we decided it best that our kids went to school. Not for our sanity, but out of concern for their education of course. So, he came and picked up Jessie and they made their way to town.

Kelly and I bedded the barn, hauled water to the stock, and milked a cow so we could tube her calf that was born sometime last night and still hadn't sucked. Kelly is out on the tractor doing chores, and I'm supposed to be typing up a colorful biography of a cow to be sold online. In other words, I have to make her sound better than she is.

After the snow last week, Kelly had to clear the driveway with the tractor, so he piles it all up for Jessie. She calls it Snow Mountain. Snow Mountain contains tunnels, luge runs, and more recently a sled jump built by myself. I thought it would be fun to sled down snow mountain, hit the jump and skid down the icy driveway. Every kid likes to catch a little air. So, up the hill she goes and down she comes. She hits my Olympic jump and the sled comes to a complete standstill. The seven year old does a lip stand that should have required a cast or stitches. She spits out the snow and yells at me a little for my less than adequate jump building techniques. So, I promised to fix it. I built it up higher, made a gentle upward curve and a slope that physicists would be proud of. I smoothed it all down with the sole of my snow boots, and we were away. Up the hill again. With a little sled adjustment at the top, she comes careening down to hit the perfect jump. Now, I blame it on the fact that she wasn't leaning back enough to correctly perform the maneuver required to land a perfect ten. She, again, blames it on the jump. Once again, the saucer comes to a complete stop, but with the angle of the jump and the speed at which she was traveling, she caught air. As I said, the landing was not a perfect 10, but a perfect X. She landed spread eagle on the driveway. I was trying not to laugh. Kelly was calling me sadistic so he looked like the good guy, all the while stifling back hysterics. She jumps up and Kelly yells "GET HER, She did that to you." I was under attack by one mad little girl. She pounded me with a few snowballs and then was quickly over it. She resorted to having the three legged dog pull her around the driveway on her saucer. The mom was not so much fun to play with.

So, for now, I should get on with something productive in the house. Not that that sounds appealing at all, but snow days are to be taken advantage of. There is laundry to be done and beds to be made. Hope you have a good one.

February

2009-02-18T09:34:00.002-07:00

So, February is halfway over, and I've yet to post anything. I have to apologize to you faithful followers. Life here has been chaotic since Kelly's mother passed away. Thanks everyone for the cards, prayers, and kind words. We really appreciate it.

Jessie is still busy with hockey. She won another medal last weekend. She was most proud when she stopped a shot while playing goal. After she did it, she looked up in the stands and gave the thumbs up as best she could with a hockey glove on.

I got to escape the Armstrong Family Three Ring Circus last night and went roping. It was a much needed break. My horses are fat and out of shape, but they worked great. I've decided I need to learn to heel because Jessie's horse, Mighty Mouse, is a whole lot of fun to rope on. I just wish he was bigger or I was a heeler. I did get two feet roped. Now I just have to learn to dally. I even got a few turned on old Lucky. He worked great. It is nice to have him sound again and rearing to go. At 18, he has not slowed up one bit. He is still a lot of fun to rope on.

Well, I need to keep this short. I have four holsteing calves in the barn who I'm sure are waiting impatiently for their milk. There are two hungry horses that are in the barn as well because they were too sweaty to spend the night in below zero temps.

Hope all is well with everyone.

The Nice Weather Never Lasts Here!

2009-01-22T09:00:00.004-07:00

It is not fit for man or beast out there right now. The windchill is only -25, but I would swear it was -50. My face is beginning to thaw and it is painful. I went out to sort out a mess that the horses created last night by opening a gate to the yearling bull pen. Instead of fixing it last night when the weather was decent, I put it off until this morning. I should've paid closer attention to the forecast. Needless to say, it is done and I put Copper and Mighty Mouse in the barn. I figure the 38 year old horse and the one witnessing his first Canadian winter definitely deserve a place out of the wind. The others will make their way back to the bush to seek shelter.

Today is hockey day and reading log, so I plugged the truck in when I went out. I need to get to town to the grocery store, but that may have to wait. They are giving blowing snow and poor road conditions on the radio. However, I can make it to reading log and hockey with only driving on about two miles of pavement.

With not much else going on, I thought I might just post some pics I've taken the last couple of days.

A True Canadian Birthday Party

Race on the Pond

Sunning

My Sweet Little Mare

38 Years Old

Armstrong Pork

Chinooks!

2009-01-16T11:43:00.004-07:00

The worst part about winter in Alberta , or I should say one of them, is that the weather man gets you all geared up for warmer temperatures. Well, in order for those warm temperatures to happen, the wind has to blow gail force out of the west. It is beautiful outstide right now until you step out from behind the shelter of the trees and buildings. I had big plans to ride in all the deep snow. It doesn't look like that is going to happen.

Tuesday was Jessie's school ski trip to Canyon Ski Hill. It is only an hour away. It has one chair lift, a t-bar and a tow rope. It is a perfect place to take kids who are learning. Out of the 100 kids in the school, seven stayed behind. The kids all take morning lessons and then get to ski until 2:00. We had a lot of fun. Jessie is getting to be quite the little skier. I have to tell her to slow down every once in a while. She is getting enough confidence to ski straight at someone standing at the bottom and blow snow on them when she stops. It's all fun and games until she doesn't get the stop just right. She was getting on and off the chair lift by herself as well. The only time she fell is when I tried "helping" her. I did get an earful a couple of times.

Kelly is hauling hay, so I've been busy entertaining myself today. Now, I realize some of you might think this is a mean thing to a weiner dog, but he wanted to follow so I let him. He's in the house laying in a sunny spot now. Not to worry, no animals were harmed or lost in the shooting of these pictures

Well, it's back to work now. Have a good one.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-06T09:59:00.006-07:00

I hope that this is finding everyone's New Year going well so far. We all made it home safe and sound from Texas. We even had decent weather to welcome us. I'm not saying it is overly warm or anything. It just isn't blizzarding. We even took Jessie sledding on Sunday.

Christmas in Texas was lots of fun. The best was Cita's Christmas surprise. Bobby was not impressed at all, but thanks to the Harkey family, Sarah and I have a place to celebrate Christmas next year. Betsy assures us that no gifts are required. Nestor, the long eared Christmas donkey, is winning over hearts quickly. Even the braeing has made Bobby smile a time or two. We are sure that this is a Christmas gift that will keep on giving. It has given Cita a job, Jessie something to play with while in Texas, Bobby one more thing to grumble about, and Kelly and Sarah endless ass jokes. Kelly was not allowed in on the surprise. When we asked him if he could keep a secret, he said "NOPE!" Chase felt this was quite unfair that he was punished because of Kelly's loud mouth and did not get to see Nestor before Christmas morning.

Needless, to say, Sarah and I owe the Harkey's a big Thanks for helping us pull off Operation Christmas Ass. They hid the donkey in their barn for a few days and Logan, the donkey whisperer, gentled him down a bit. If anyone ever needs assistance in the donkey area, I highly recommend Harkey's Mule Barn.

Christmas Day, of course, we branded calves. Chase held off going to his family Christmas, so he could brand at ours. Poor guy has no excitement in his life. Kelly taught him to brand and was very impressed with his abilities. I am hiring Chase as my replacement. He did not get yelled at once. So not fair! If you are going to get the full Armstrong/Byars branding experience, someone needs to get yelled at.

And of course in true Byars family tradition, why not end the holiday with shooting something. We gave a donkey for a Christmas gift, we branded on Christmas day, so Bobby and I completed the holiday season by killing a pig. You might be a redneck.....!

Now, the holiday excitement is over. We are back to the grind. Jessie has hockey practices two days a week. I have hockey games at least once a week (we don't practice). Kelly is wanting to ivomec today, and I'm trying to talk myself into riding a horse or two. It is barely below freezing, but I'm still finding it tough to get out there. The novelty has worn off of snow.

Best of Wishes in the New Year!

'Twas a Week Until Winter...

2008-12-15T11:17:00.006-07:00

And school was cancelled because it was -30* this morning with windchills of -45*. However, as luck would have it, Jessie has spent the morning throwing up and only one waterer was frozen. LOVELY!! It is supposed to warm up to -11 tomorrow with windchills of -25. This means buses will run and there will be hockey practice.

Kelly spent last week in Vegas at the NFR. I stayed home to do chores and take on dance recitals and hockey tournaments. Cita came up to help out. Luckily, the weather was nice while he was gone.

Jessie has been busy wrapping up dance class and playing hockey. She had a tournament last weekend and was extremely pleased to get a medal. She even scored her first goal. It was more of a deflection and she didn't even realize it. She is really enjoying hockey and is getting to be a good skater.

Other than that, life is pretty much routine around here. Kelly is out doing chores as I type this. I went out this morning to check on my horses. They were surviving the cold, so I came back inside. Today, I get to bake cookies for school and clean house. WooHoo!

Weaning Calves!

2008-11-29T07:53:00.002-07:00

I'm back. Sorry I'm not keeping up with this very well, but the fall has been so beautiful that we rarely spend a day inside. However, that should not be an excuse as it is getting dark at 4:30 and as I'm typing this at 8:00 am, it is not quite daylight. This, I do not care for.

We spent the day weaning calves and preg testing yesterday. Now to some, this might be a low stress everyday job. When you add 75 mothers of bucking bulls into the mix, it turns into complete chaos. They are upside down, backwards, and inside out going down the alley. I had two near death experiences when posts came flying at me. Seeing that our pens have to be somewhat higher than the average cow/calf operator, these posts are about level to the neck when they get kicked out from behind a cow. Vets, along with wives, are not easily talked into showing up on this day either. We have a vet drive an hour to come. He is the only one brave enough within this distance. He showed up yesterday and strapped on a backpack, some kind of virtual glasses, and wielding a wand, he proceeded to preg check cows. Now, if that isn't the answer, I don't know what is. It sped up the process and he wasn't risking his life for near as long by doing it the old fashioned way.

Kelly was, of course, in his usual high stress, temper flaring mode. He threw one of his famous screaming cussing fits because he let a few cows through forgetting to Ivomec and let a couple more go the wrong way. I sit back on the alley walkway and laugh to myself, of course, at the vein popping out in his forehead. I truly believe that sometimes you get what your deserve and the universe will act on this in strange ways sometimes. As he is throwing one of his fits, the side bar on the squeeze comes undone and falls and hits him right square in the top of the head. I restrained myself from laughing out loud and even bit my tongue. This may surprise some of you, but that is hard for me to do. It would have been best if it had knocked him out and the vet and I could have finished in peace. No such luck. However, it did mellow him a little bit.

Last night when I came in the house covered in blood from dehorning a couple of cows, snot from being hooked at through the fence, and the excretions from the opposite end of the cow, I told Jessie to get dressed and brush her hair. When asked why, I told her because dad is taking us out to eat tonight. She broke the news to her dad the minute he stepped in the door. He dared not argue. After a quick shot of Crown with very patient vet, we headed into town.

Jessie is full swing into hockey. She is skating very well. Stopping is another thing, but that will come. She played in her first game on Saturday. They won, so she was ecstatic. Next weekend, they play in a tournament in Stettler. They are so much fun to watch. There are kids as young as four. The last game, one of the little girls got tired, so she crawled on her hands and knees back to the bench and the coaches had to lift her off the ice. Jessie played goal twice. She stands right inside the net. Even if she stops the puck, the other team is going to score.

Well, that is the excitement in our life as of today. I am headed out to catch horses for the horseshoer. I found out last week that Legend has navicular, Lucky has a sore suspensory, and last night the vet was looking at Chula and said she was trying to grow a club foot. Now would that not be just my luck. So, today I am having a horseshoer to the wagon burners come out. I think if he can fix all the problems on the chuck wagon racing circuit, he can surely deal with these problems.

Have a super day!

Trick or Treat!!

2008-11-02T08:21:00.006-07:00

Halloween is over and the sugar high keeps going and going! I'm slowly throwing away candy so as not to be noticed. However, I do eat the homemade popcorn balls. I would hate for those to go to waste.

Hannah Montana cruised the streets of Big Valley with Raina while we followed along behind. This is the first year I can remember that the Halloween costume did not have to be pulled over a snow suit. There wasn't even snow on the ground. It was beautiful. Of course, there are a few houses that we hit where Jessie gets special treats. So, there is no shortage of junk food around here.

The weather has been amazing here when the wind hasn't been blowing. I got three horses ridden yesterday and never put on a coat. Now, that is weather I can live with. Kelly is hoping it stays like this because I'm a little easier to tolerate.

I better hit the road for now. It is supposed to be warm again today, so we have a big day planned of doctoring calves, dummying bulls, and getting some horses ridden.

Winter It's a Coming!

2008-10-18T08:39:00.004-06:00

Once again, I have to apologize for my lack of blog entries lately. It seems that the pace of life never slows around here. It only gets faster. October is flying by. We have spent the last week getting cows closer to home. Kelly and I brought the Angus cows home yesterday. The Lone Ranger opted to ride his trusty steed Silver, so I picked the most broke horse we own because I knew he would be absolutely no help. Not to my surprise, I was right. As the cows were trying to elude us in a willow patch, he was riding around the outside telling me what to do. One willow branch nearly lodged in my thigh, laying flat as I could to get through the bush, I emerged successfully with the bull and cows I went into get. Solo! No help from the self proclaimed boss of the operation. As I was loping up a hill covered in dead fall and bush, I realized how nice it was to ride a quiet horse for a change. There was no spooking, no hump in the back, nothing. For a minute it was boring, then I nearly stepped on two deer. They jumped up and headed out. Nothing, not even the slightest reaction. If I had been riding anything else, I would have been a goner. Luckily for Ray Hunt, I spooked them off before he came along later. We went on to sort and load without incident. No one got hooked, chased, run over. Nothing. At the end of the day, I came to the conclusion that I love Angus cows and broke horses. It leads to less stress and definitely fewer screaming cussing fits.
No protrusions of blood vessels across the forehead, which around here is something of a blessing.

Jessie has been doing quite well with her hip hop class. They are dancing to the Lean on Me remix. She definitely has her Saucy's dancing ability. Of course, practicing with her ipod in front of a mirror has helped tremendously. Kelly just shakes his head and grumbles. He nearly had a meltdown when she asked me to take the princess picture off of her CD player so she could take it to school. He asked why she didn't want the princesses anymore, and the reply was...."Uhh Daaaaaad, I'm too old for princesses now." His blood pressure sky rocketed leading to vein protrusion in the forehead. I'm quite sure by the time she is 16 well will be visiting him in a home where he is not allowed to handle silverware without supervision.

So, this wraps up the life of the Armstrong's lately. Tune in next time for more experiences of life in the North.

I'm Still Alive!

2008-10-04T08:36:00.002-06:00

Yes, I do exist. However, with this Indian Summer we've been having, I tend to stay outside and busy. The weather has been absolutely beautiful here the last two weeks. Winter will be here soon, so we've been roping every afternoon and getting everything closer to home.

Kelly found a new truck this week. Thank Goodness! Truck shopping is painful. I get the question, "Well, what do you think about this one?" It looks like another truck to me. I don't know the difference between a Detroit, Cat or Mercedes motor. Nor do I care. Why should it make a difference to me if it is 18 speed or 13 speed. I can't drive it. Nor do I care to. We ended up getting a Freightliner just like the other one, which is good I guess. We can use parts from the wrecked truck on this one. Kelly's happy with, so I don't care. Jessie thinks it's "awesome" because she got her bunk beds back plus a refrigerator. She requested a flat screen be installed. Kelly told her that might be asking a little much. She is no longer allowed to watch the truck makeover show on CMT.

Kelly is at the Canadian Tour Finals this weekend in Calgary, Jessie is off to the grandparents, and Bossy's Blues are back on the ice for their '08/09 season. Due to the fact that our team is aging and we lost the youngest member, I foresee us attending our first team funeral this year. It could be mine seeing that we play two games today and one tomorrow. There have been 0 practices and only one girl on our team exercises more than just her drinking arm. We are bound for glory. Let me tell you.

Well, I better get on with it. I've gotta go tape my stick and sharpen my skates. Have a good one.

Jessie's Birthday!

2008-09-22T10:03:00.004-06:00

Saturday was Jessie's 7th birthday. I know it is very hard to believe. Of course, she decided on a slumber party. So, I mumbled and groaned, allowed only four invitations, and got a room at the Ramada. Yes, you heard me, the Ramada. It was the best idea I have ever had. They swam for an hour and a half, finished off a large pizza and half of the birthday cake and then swam for two more hours. I'm quite sure the waterslide has never seen that much action. The best part about the whole weekend was leaving the mess for someone else to clean up, and I came home to a clean house. I'm not even denying the fact that it might have been a little selfish. I did make the cake myself, so I feel that makes up for it.

Today was picture day at school, so this morning, of course, there was quite the drama over what to wear. As I'm sitting on the floor in Jessie's room, I hear a noise. I looked under the bed praying that a cat had snuck in at some point. My biggest fear is a mouse in the house. I would probably have to move if this happened. I creeped around the bed toward the scratching noise as bravely as possible. The sound seemed to be coming from the box of Legos. Ready to freak out at any moment, I peered into the box and just about succumbed to cardiac arrest when this was looking back at me.......

I'm not sure what the hell it is. Better yet, how did it get in my house and into a Lego box? I think it's a salamander or a gecko or something. Being the brave man of the house, Kelly got some toilet paper and picked it up and we put it in a plastic box with some grass. Now what? I do not know. I think these things are meant to live in the tropics, and right now it is far from that here. I guess he hasn't heard there is snow forecast for next weekend. Jessie said her principal has lots of stuff like this. She was going to ask him if he wanted it. I hope he does. I'm pretty sure he won't make it through the week here.

Back in The Swing of Things!

2008-09-15T06:14:00.012-06:00

Day 1 of School

Well, we made it home from Texas with no major catastrophes which is new for us. We could hardly believe it. Jessie made it to school on Wednesday at about 11. She only missed the first six days of school. She was glad to be back and shocked at the fact that 28 desks could be crammed into her classroom. There are only about 100 kids in the school and 28 are in Jessie's class.

Day 2: Jessie picks her own clothes

Since we have been home, it has been business as usual. Of course day 1 of school, the horses are loaded as soon as the bus leaves and off we go to bring yearling bulls home. Well, that went wrong in every possible way. By the time we had two horses in full lather, we had four bulls in four different pastures and were headed home, which was still seven miles away, in the rain.

We called in backup before we got home. We had two new horses tied in the barn drying off when we got here. They got saddled and away we went to get the renegades. We got two roped and drug in the trailer. One was nowhere to be found, and another just brushed up and got away. So, 50% around here isn't too bad. We did find the other bull yesterday, so now we are waiting to find someone willing to put their horse through that to help.

Saturday, we got to bring recip cows home. Jessie went along for this trip. It was only 5 miles, so she and Legend plodded along with us. I'm sure if Legend could speak he would have been complaining as much as Jessie. However, I have learned that you don't take Jessie riding without a saddlebag full of food. So, she rode along and ate strawberries and drank a juice box not caring that we were 1/2 a mile behind the cows. I think by Saturday afternoon, Kelly was figuring that I was done, so I got to go to a barrel race. Believe it or not, Kelly even went. I see him being lynched if he ever goes to another one. You shouldn't maybe laugh out loud.

Last night we dummied 23 of our own yearling bulls and 21 for another guy at our house. I got a new camera, so I sat around and took pictures.

That is all I know for now. I'm off to install a closet organizer which I have already determined, after drilling six holes in the wall of my closet, that the instructions that came with it are way off. I know it is not my precise measurements.

Conversations With Jessie.

2008-08-25T07:56:00.001-06:00

So, we've been watching the Olympics around here every night. Jessie loves the gymnastics. The other night we were watching the men's diving. Kelly and I were commenting on a low score given to one of the divers, and Jessie pipes in saying, "Maybe if he wore a boy's bathing suit instead of those panties, they would give him a higher score."

Last night, as we were watching the recap of the Olympics, they were talking about table tennis. Once again, Jessie lets us know what she's thinking. "Ping Pong as an Olympic sport! You have got to be kidding me! Ping Pong?"

You never have to wonder what is going on inside her head.

The Road Goes On Forever......

2008-08-21T09:41:00.003-06:00

As per usual around the Armstrong hacienda, something has to go wrong. Thankfully, yesterday, it didn't go as wrong as it could have. Kelly and I got up and sorted bulls so he could begin his 14 hour trip to Kamloops, B.C. Jessie and I opted out of that. He left here at 8:30. At 10 I get a phone call. I've been in a wreck, I'm okay the truck is @#$%ed. Someone crossed the center line in a minivan and hit the truck right under the door then bounced back and hit another SUV. Miraculously the driver of the van, after being flown away from the crash, only has a concussion and some broken ribs. Everyone else is fine. One bull had to come home. He is still up and around this morning. We are not sure what is wrong with him, but he definitely has a problem. Kelly borrowed a truck from a friend who came to the crash. He hooked on to his trailer and hauled the bulls to an auction mart to unload. Finally, at 4:30 yesterday afternoon, he left. He said they got there at 5:30 this morning. Needless to say, we have something to be very thankful for today. Kelly definitely had a guardian angel with him yesterday. As for the Freightliner, I believe she is going to pass on to truck heaven. She will be missed by all.

Kelly gets home Monday. We are hoping to leave Wednesday for the NBBA finals in Fort Worth. I'm working on all the paperwork to get the bulls across the border and trying to get my paperwork done for my permanent resident card that I have to carry to cross the border and not get deported. It expires in November, and I should have done this a long time ago. It isn't a quick process. I'm mailing them my itinerary for our flights in December in hopes it will give them some incentive to get it done in less than their usual time frame. Jessie cried and said she's not going when I told her we had to drive to Texas. This is going to be a pleasant trip. We have to make it straight through because there isn't too many places to unload bucking bulls between here and there. Jessie is also missing the first week of school. Not good, but such is life.

Jessie is going to Saskatchewan with her grandparents this weekend. Kelly's sister turns 40 and our niece is trick riding at a rodeo, so the whole family is gathering in Maple Creek. I get to stay home and care for an injured bull and try to get packed to head south.

Jessie's friend, Hailey had a tea party for her birthday the other day, so the girls all dressed up and put on their jewels and went for a tea party. They looked beautiful and had a great time. It was so good that they called that night to ask if they could sleep over. Jessie and her best bud Raina showed up at noon the next day looking exhausted and still wearing the party dresses.

That is all I know for now. I am off to town to get a passport photo taken and secure my spot in the Great White North. Have a good one, and hope to see some of you in the next couple of weeks.

Harvest Is Upon Us!

2008-08-13T21:51:00.006-06:00

It is 10pm, the tractor is still running and the silage wagon is pulling in and out of the yard. The neighbors are helping Kelly cut silage. Actually, they are doing all the cutting and Kelly is packing the silage pit. I even did the farmer's wife thing and fed them supper in the field tonight. It was complete with homemade sourdough bread and peach cobbler. Talk about the domestic housewife.

The fields are already turning yellow. I've heard rumors of leaves already changing colors in places. A friend of mine who lives about 15 miles away told me that on August 2nd, the hose leading to her horse troughs had ice in it that morning. This, I do not find humor in. Summer is not long enough here.

Because we were going to silage this week, we thought we'd take Jessie out and take her picture in the barley before it got cut. She was none too happy about this, but the pictures turned out great.

We were in Olds for the rodeo this past weekend. Jessie got to play with her friends Cooper and Charlee. They are the pick up man's kids. They set up barrels and roping dummies and terrorize rodeo clowns, cowboys, and innocent bystanders. Barrel racers despise them.

Well, that is all I know for now. It is bedtime on the farm!

What Year Is This?

2008-08-07T10:05:00.003-06:00

Could it be 1978 or is it 2008? You could never tell from the cap he insists on wearing that he found in Shane's basement.

A Little Summer Fun!

2008-08-01T07:52:00.006-06:00

I took a few pics yesterday of Jessie outside. She had the sprinkler under the trampoline and put dish soap all over the trampoline. Talk about fun. I'm sure we broke every rule in the owner's manual. Heck, I bet they haven't even written one about dish soap. However, she had fun.

Yesterday was Ella's birthday, so Kelly went to town and picked her up. He took her for a drive and then brought her out for supper. We had steak, pasta salad and ceasar salad, made from lettuce out of the garden. I made Saskatoon/Raspberry Cobbler using Peggy's awesome recipe. It was so good. I can't even screw it up. Oh and the Saskatoons and Raspberries came out of the backyard as well. I think Ella enjoyed herself. We didn't get her back to town until 9:00.

While she was here, Jessie had to show her how she could ride a bucking horse. Ella thought it was so funny, and the horse was beat.

We met Kelly's sister in Brooks today and dropped Jessie off. She is staying until Tuesday she says. They are finishing up the visit with a trip to the amusement park in Calgary.

Still Chasing the Dream!

2008-07-29T09:39:00.002-06:00

Hello all. Sorry it's been so long, but this hectic summer schedule is keeping us on the road. I'm pretty sure Jessie hates rodeo more than any child. She is asking for golf clubs for her birthday. Not necessarily a bad thing.

We have put on two NBBA three year old bull derbies this summer. One being at our house. Not fun. Thankfully, Sarah was here to help. We have one more to go in two weeks. These wouldn't be near as bad if I hadn't been volunteered to secretary all of them. I hate that job. Hopefully, we will be headed to Fort Worth with a trailer full of bulls for the finals and come home with an empty trailer. Sell! Sell! Sell! That's our motto.

Kelly took a trailer load into town this morning to the sale and informed me we are dummying more tonight to see what else can go. He sometimes gets in one of these moods and a lot of bulls go missing. Not necessarily a bad thing either.

The cows are all turned out and we've been putting bulls out lately. So really, there is not too much exciting happening around here. Sarah did get to witness first hand the dealings with our cows. She was standing in the middle of the road trying to help us turn them in the driveway when they crawled the fence into the neighbors barley. I'm pretty sure Kelly threw his fencing pliers across the road off his horse, yelling words not to be repeated in polite company, faster than Chase can throw a fast ball. Anyways, two hours later and one wrecked barley crop, we got them back home. The last one did have a rope around her neck. The barley was so tall that it was up to Kelly's knees and he was riding Wiley. I was riding Chula and it was up to my hips. I told Kelly there were places I had to drop my reins and part it with my hands to see. The wind was blowing and the waving barley nearly made me sea sick. Don't laugh. I had the same problem riding in the ocean in Australia. You have to look at the horizon. Anyways, Kelly called the neighbor and explained to him what had happened to his barley. It was renegade heifers not crop circles.

Well, that is about all I know for now. I'm off to look after sore horses who are ruining all my great plans of doing nothing but roping all summer.

Have a good one!

Another Day In Paradise!

2008-07-14T16:19:00.006-06:00

Well, we are now halfway through July and it has barely been summer here. Everyone is talking about silaging and harvesting. I'm so not ready for that.

We had a great visit with the Harkey family last week. We are so glad they finally made the trip up. They got to witness the Armstrong luck while they were here, as the washer flooded the basement. Poor Logan had to vacuum up water with Kelly and Betsy spent her night preparing supper for the rest of the company that was coming. Thanks again for all the help ya'll. We did take them to Calgary one day, so they didn't have to work the whole time they were here. We also took a tour of the Hudderite Colony. That was interesting. I'm over there a lot, but I have never really been into all the different areas. Kelly wants to join the colony. I'm still a little hesitant about wearing a polk a dot dress and head scarf and cooking for 125 people. Not to mention giving up my driver's licence. Women aren't allowed to have those. I think I'm safe for a while. I won't worry until Kelly starts trying to grow a beard and learns to speak German.

We also had a visitor from Australia. Nicole is a friend of Roudy and Angeline's. We had a great time with her as well. She brought pics of Roudy and Angeline and kids. They appear to be doing well. The kids are getting big. Nicole was also great help to have around. Coming to our house is definitely not a vacation.

We made it through another Calgary Stampede. The bulls bucked good, but the best part about it is that it's over. Talk about a rat race.

Jessie went to a roping and riding event at Stettler the other night. Before it even started, she fell off her horse. Talk about unhappy. We convinced her to get back on and I led her through the events. Not cool. I'm too out of shape to be doing the poles on foot. I'm not sure what events all took place to lead to the crash, but I heard several stories. She says he didn't buck but he took off with her. At first the story was she got bucked off, now she jumped off. She is definitely her father's child. She then told us how stiff and sore she was the next day. You can definitely tell she has witnessed some pile ups lately. She knows how to tell the story.

She was back on the next day and chasing steers up the return alley for us. However, she says that is it for Legend. She is waiting until Mighty Mouse gets better. We'll see about that.

That is really about all I know for now. We are back home for a few days, so it is
as they say, "Head Down, A@@ Up" until the truck heads out again.

To What Do I Owe This Pleasure?

2008-06-27T22:06:00.003-06:00

As per usual we were at it again today. Our victim this time was a yearling bull that Jessie has named Mango Tango. He just happens to have foot rot in a pasture with no pens. Our only option being to rope him, we embark on our journey. Kelly leaves first at a high lope on a young horse. It is seven miles to the pasture and he figures by the time he gets there, the buck will be out of him. Jessie and I load up our horses, the beef bull, a late calver and a salt block and head out a little bit later. Halfway we run into Kelly and a tired Hooch, so we stop and pick up the dog and leave Kelly on his merry way. After taking care of the beef cows, we head up to the next pasture full of yearling bucking bulls. Once again, I choose to ride a broke horse, so I am the resident roper. I head out through the bush going full bore, and Kelly and Jessie stay back. The chase gets quite heated and Jessie's horse is getting to be a bit much, so Kelly decides it would be best if she went back to the trailer. She, by the way, has the medicine bags tied on her saddle. Meantime, I dislodge myself from the bush and find the bull out in the open again. He heads for some scrub brush and I am in hot pursuit. I get a rope on him when he turns around to hook me. Now, I am not close to the trailer. I can't get to the cell phone in my pocket, so I'm screaming at the top of my lungs for Kelly to hurry up. He grabs the vaccine gun and LA and kicks old yeller into a lope. Within three strides Kelly is bucked off. I can see this all happening, so I hang on to the bull assuming Kelly will get up and get back on. Well, when I see Jessie climb out of the truck and standing over him, I toss the rope and head back to the truck as fast as I can. I was really genuinely worried. Really I was. I get over there and he is trying to get up and swears he just got the wind knocked out of him. After a little discussion about what to do next, I took his rope and headed out again while he put his saddle on Jessie's horse. We searched high and low through the bush for this bull. After Kelly says forget it, he walks out of the bush in front of us. Kelly hands me the medicine and takes his rope and gets him roped around the horns. I jump off and grab my rope and dally up to choke him down. We finally get him treated and on his way grasping for air himself. A job completed.

As we are riding back, I asked Kelly if Jessie was scared when she saw him on the ground. He said, "No, she just walked over and said, "Daddy, should I call 9-1-1."" Now that's our baby.

Kelly said if he had only known he was going to get bucked off this much lately, he would have kept riding bulls. At least he would be getting paid for it.

So that wraps up another day in the life of an Armstrong. I promise I do not make this stuff up. As Kelly likes to say, "We are chasing the dream and living the nightmare."

Based on daily activities around here, I wrote this:

Dear God,

I hope this letter makes it through your Pearly Gates
Cause I don't know how much more I can really take

You see that prayer you answered
'Bout how I want to live

Well, God I've changed my mind
This cowgirl life I'd give

To the lowest bidder who first walks through this door
This cowgirl life is killin' me
I hurt right to the core.

Stretch marks, calluses and wrinkles aren't all they're cracked up to be
I dare not even mention that bruise from my ankle to my knee
From where that bay mare bucked me off for the branding crew to see.

Today, I roped a yearling bull and as I got my dally
I saw my husband get piled up off a bronc you'd swear was Cool Alley.

I dropped my rope and hit a lope back to where he lay.
Our little girl was standing over him asking, "Daddy, are you okay?"

Lord, the reason I'm sending you my letter of resignation
I do believe it is this ex-cowgirl's obligation

You see God, when I rode up and saw my husband's neck not broke
All that I could worry 'bout was that yearling.
He was wearing my brand new rope.

First Day of Summer Vacation!

2008-06-26T16:34:00.006-06:00

It's finally here. Jessie made it through another successful school year. Now on to 2nd Grade. She is growing so fast. Today she helped weed the garden for 30 seconds and then helped gather the roping steers. One cut back and she headed out on her own to go get it. She stuck with that longer than the weeding. I can't imagine why. We were going to practice poles and barrels for her first playday today, so hopefully the storm will pass. She is quite worried about the goat tail tying. She wants to practice by tying Hooch at one end of the arena since she doesn't have a goat.

It is raining again as I type. We got back to the barn and unsaddled just in time. A thunderstorm blew in. We are under a severe thunderstorm warning right now. We desperately need another hail storm. Uggghh! I guess it would put my garden out of its misery. I could quit weeding it, and I wouldn't have to worry about the rototiller that I ran the tiller off of yesterday. Biff is going to be mad at me when he has to fix that, my weedeater that I somehow wrecked and Kelly's chainsaw that the chain fell off of. He must know how well things are going here because I haven't seen him in a week or so. Kelly and I had to mow the yard ourselves. Heaven Forbid. For those of you who don't know Biff, I am attaching a picture.

Friday was the field trip to Drumheller and the Royal Tyrell Museum. If you like dinosaurs, you need to visit this place. It is amazing. I, however, couldn't care less about a dinosaur. It is neat to see how they recover all the bones and fossils though.

That is about all I know for now. I suppose since it is still storming, I should get supper on it's way. Hopefully, after supper we can get back to riding. I left the horses in the barn, so they would be dry. Wishful thinking.

Let Me Bring You Up To Speed.

2008-06-19T22:32:00.003-06:00

Well, it's been a while since I have been on here. I have to apologize, but it is summer and life is hectic. We come home from one rodeo long enough to do laundry and head out again. It has rained off and on all week. If it isn't raining, I am mowing.

Last Friday was Jessie's track meet at school. Now there is some excitement. All four of the first grade girls competed against each other, and I was their fearful leader. When I finally snapped on one at the high jump for telling the other one she was always the loser, the teacher came over to see what was going on. I assured her all was well with the world it was just a little bickering amongst the girls. She looked at me understandingly and said "I like to call it the hyena gene." Regardless, we survived. Jessie brought home lots of ribbons. She tied for first in the high jump and I think she won the ball throwing contest. Her high jump technique is one that olympians should adopt. It was priceless. There were people lined up around to watch. Of course the pole was right at the top of the mat, so that made it even more funny.

We were in Marwayne on the weekend for the rodeo. Jessie took her horse and we camped out like real stock contractors would. Poor Legend was sick and tired of trotting up and down the arena with a wannabe trick rider on his back. He handled it quite well though. If I had only known that my barrel horse was the perfect kid horse, I wouldn't have spent real money on Jessie a new horse that happens to be crippled right now. What is it they say? "If it weren't for bad luck....."

I secretaried the bucking bull derby on Thursday night. I don't know why anyone in their right mind would want to do that, especially if their husband is a contractor. Most people have terms of endearment for each other like Honey, Dear, Babe. Not here. I'm sitting in the announcer stand, and hear "Wife! What the hell just happened there?" I stepped kindly out of the back of the announcer stand and we proceeded to have a bit of a domestic due to the lack of communication between the ground crew and myself. You see, they drew the second round without letting me in on it. That is usually something the secretary needs to know. He was just lucky I didn't feel like limping down the stairs and beating him with his yellow hotshot he was waving all over the place.

The rest of the week has been kind of a blur. I remember mowing a lot and framing lots of pictures. I even did some of them twice after it rained in the shop one night. I'm considering medication for the twitch I have due to the lack of anything going right.

We bucked a few bulls on Tuesday night between rain storms. Kelly has found a new, young victim who can be talked into getting on young bulls. I'm sure the novelty will wear off for him like it has the others.

Kelly went to reading log on Wednesday because I was busy trying to get some pictures done for this weekend. He said Jessie's teacher makes him look at the floor when she speaks to him. Now this is funny. He did get in trouble for wearing his cap in the classroom the first time he went. I'm surprised he even went back.

Jessie and I helped gather bulls this afternoon. Jessie headed out and was right in after them. I had to head off to get one that was trying to sneak away, and she held in there and pushed the others like she was supposed to. I had to tell her a few times to back away. If one even sneezed within ten feet of Legend, he would spin and head out. I'm pretty sure this would not go over well with his new jockey. However, he's not to blame. He has had a few close calls in his life.

Speaking of close calls. You will all be glad to know that the blood is slowly moving down my leg and settling into my ankle. The swelling isn't as bad this week. Kelly made the comment that maybe in a couple of weeks I wouldn't look like I have gangrene. Nothing but compliments around here.

Tomorrow, Jessie and I get to go to the Royal Tyrell Museum for a field trip. This is a world renowned museum. It contains a huge collection of dinosaurs. Jessie is very excited. I actually am interested to see it as well. We also get to visit Reptile World. I will get pictures posted sometime in the next six months I'm sure.

So, now that I have everyone up to speed on the trials and tribulations of being an Armstrong this week, I need to get some sleep. Oh and I am posting some pictures in a slide show because I was having trouble getting them on here. They are of Jessie's High Jump, her and Legend, and some of my latest creations.

It Is Still Raining!

2008-06-10T14:03:00.003-06:00

So, it is still raining here. Apparently summer really is only the last week and a half of July. We did get some cows moved around today before it started again. I only got chased once. When Kelly took the cows back out, I came to the house to get a hammer and staples to fix fence. While there, I got to bury the first of the kittens. I don't know what happened to it. Just another day in the glamorous life of the Armstrongs. Oh well, no time to dwell over a dead cat. I loped back to the pasture with hammer in hand and we got the fence fixed and cows settled in before it started storming. On the ride back, Kelly made the comment that today was the most pleasant experience we have had with our cows in a long time. He was right. It could be that the ones we were moving today are all bought cows, not raised.

My garden looks like death. I guess it hailed while we were gone this weekend. It kind of took its toll on my tomato plants. No matter, I'm no Mrs. Green Thumb because everything else I planted either isn't coming up or is coming up very little. Good thing we don't need it to survive. We would starve to death.

We did make it through the weekend at Marwayne with no rain. It was gorgeous. Sounds like it was the only place in Alberta that wasn't getting a torrential down pour. Jessie took her horses and rode all weekend. She went from absolutely no interest to riding three or four times a day overnight. It's amazing what a little competition can do. Poor Legend was beat. I'm not sure but I think Mighty Mouse was faking a limp when he saw what Legend was having to do. She was trying the Hippodrone Stand on him at one time. I got there just in time to hold him. Then she was miffed at me because I wouldn't let her help the pickup men chase bucking horses out of the arena before the rodeo.

We went for a ride when she got home from school yesterday. She left Kelly and me at the barn and took off. She was yelling at us to hurry up. We rode through some bulls and she said, "This is a great way to check cows." It was like she invented the telephone or something. I said "Eureka" and Kelly said "Whose kid are you?" She quickly replied, "Yours!"

I suppose I should head out. The chiropractor is coming to work on some bulls. I may get some horses snuck in there while Kelly has his back turned. Have a good one!

My Turn!

2008-06-02T06:44:00.003-06:00

So, it was finally my turn. It was inevitable. We all knew it was going to happen. Well, it finally did. I should have never made the comment that "She is finally growing up and making a nice horse." Kelly is usually the one getting bucked off around here because I choose not to get on the ones that are going to buck. However, Chula piled me up in the middle of a branding pen on Saturday. Apparently she is a way better bronc than I am a bronc rider. I did manage to get undallied and the rope away from any appendages before I hit the ground. As I was trying my best to get up with all my dignity, I looked over and she was still at it. All four feet were pointed east. I just prayed she was doing that belly roll when I fell off. Because, really, I should be able to ride her. In my defense, I was trying to bronc ride in a slick fork with stirrups I can barely reach. However, the so called "bucking rolls" were not doing a whole lot to help me stay in the saddle. I crawled back on as she was giving me a look that I promise was a smirk. After that I could not catch a thing. I went to the trailer and got Mighty Mouse. I still couldn't catch, but thank goodness we were nearly done that set. After a couple of Advil, two Buds and a some lunch I got back in there. I was not giving up, because I know I can rope and I was not settling for being the idiot taking up space in the pen. Hell, I had already got bucked off in front of all the neighbors, who by the way lined up with their cameras the second time. Finally I got one caught, and it only got better from there. I drug calves until MM could drag no more just to prove I could actually do it. I redeemed myself and took a whole lot of heckling. I do have great friends though. After it was all over, they kept telling me that Chula was getting it on pretty good. One guy even said "Robyn she was actually kicking." I think they were just trying to make me feel better. At that point, I didn't care. My knee was swelling and the aches and pains were creeping in. Today is Monday, and I still hurt. My knee is still swollen and the hot baths with Epsom Salts have not helped.

Jessie spent the weekend with her grandparents watching her cousin trick ride at a rodeo. She now wants to be a trick rider. I'm afraid with her parents ability to stay on a horse that this isn't such a good idea. Why would you want to hang upside down from a moving horse. I spent three jumps trying to avoid that.

Summer Hours: 6am - 10pm

2008-05-29T16:42:00.002-06:00

The days are getting longer and the sleep is getting less. The sun is up by 6 am and it doesn't go down until 10pm. I find myself feeling guilty if I'm not outside during these hours to, as they say, "Make hay while the sun shines." "They" did not live north of the 39th parallel or "they" would have died of sleep deprivation. Today, as I was mowing and singing along to the ipod, the neighbor walked in the yard. Turns out he ran his grain truck out of gas down the road. I found a hose and a gerry can and we headed down to siphon gas out of one tank on his truck to another. For some reason unbeknown to him, the tanks would not switch over. As hard as it is for most of you to believe, I got my very first lesson in siphoning today. I learned enough to know that a mouthful of gas will make an old man gag. While he plugged the hole on the hose, I would run around the truck and empty the can into the other tank. Everytime he stuck the hose back in the can, he poured gas all over my feet. Now, I was wearing shorts and flip flops because, as I said, I was mowing. My pasty white legs soaked up that liquid gold like a sponge. I now smell like a lawnmower mechanic and don't anyone dare smoke around me for few days.

Jessie had her second ball game last night. I have decided that maybe I am a bit too competitive to be out helping on the field. I got a dirty look from another parent when I told his child, who had a handful of dirt and no ball glove on while playing short stop, to pay attention. I was also at fault when another kid got tagged out when I told him to run to second. Well, you know what, you never learn anything by playing it safe. It was gonna take fifty batters at the pace we were going to get him home anyways. I'm sure I won't be asked back to coach.

Also, if anyone is interested, Jessie has kittens. Kelly has told me to find a home for all 13 of them now and start counseling Jessie on the departure of these kittens. I assured him that 95% of them would meet an untimely death. There are 34 tires on various moving vehicles here, and only 13 kittens. Not good odds I should say.

Well, I have finished my tea, so I should head back outside and see if the horses are any closer to the barn. I tried calling them in earlier and they looked at me from across the slough like I was an idiot.

It's Raining It's Pouring....

2008-05-21T09:07:00.003-06:00

Well, summer has been and probably gone the way it works here. The last week has been beautiful. We have got most of the cows out on grass which was no easy task. Sorting pairs is not that much fun here. It has been raining for the last two days. Even the ducks are seeking higher ground. However, the rain is much needed and no one is complaining.

Jessie had her first baseball game last week. When the jerseys were handed out, she picked 1 because she is the only girl on the team. She did very well. She got four runs and got one kid out. They lost 20-17, but they were still very excited. We took her out to eat after, and instead of picking Dairy Queen or McDonalds like most children, Jessie picked the nicest restaurant and ordered spaghetti and Creme Brulee for desert. I think she figures she is in the Majors now.

Not too much exciting has been happening around here other than baseball and work. Kelly and I worked our calves the other day. Thank goodness there aren't too many beef calves to work. Kelly flanked and tied them so we could get them cut. I vaccinated, implanted and notched ears. Kelly bled more than any of the calves after he stuck the knife into his thumb and the implant gun in his hand showing me the "right" way to implant.

Jessie and I are headed to Sheridan to meet Bobby and Cita this afternoon. Jessie is pretty excited to get her horse, but she really feels that I can make the trip myself. She doesn't want to drive that far. I'm sure it will be a pleasant drive.

I'm Back!!

2008-05-14T07:54:00.003-06:00

Sorry it's been so long. Warm weather is here and it is daylight at 6 am and doesn't get dark until 9:30 or 10 now, so I don't get much time inside.

We have been quite busy around here. With the action comes the heightened danger threat. It all started with a trip to Trail, B.C. You know when you see a sign like this, that things could get hairy.

Anyways, we made it home safe and sound from there. We have been working to get cows out to pasture and out of our hair. We thought it might be a good idea to tag calves this year since they are all coming out either red or black. Since this wasn't a good idea when I suggested it when they were too small to run, we are risking life and limb to get it done now. So, with Kelly in the back of the truck with a rope, and me driving with the ear tagger we are getting it somewhat done. It is like a scene right out of Crocodile Hunter. You may ask why we don't use a horse. Well, for one, we don't have a horse fast enough for these calves. Two, who is going to get off their horse and tag the calves with the mother trying to kill you. Three, when the first person does get off to tag, I refuse to stand my horse between the cow and him to keep him from getting it. This comes from experience. Trust me. It is way easier to pull the calf into the safety of the bed of the truck. So far we have had two cows nearly in the truck and one hooking the door.

We did get part of our arena up. We don't have the roping chute yet, and we still need a few panels for length, but it is big enough to start bucking bulls. Kelly and I tracked a few calves around in it yesterday. He is planning on busting out his new gray horse today. It bucked him off the other day. It was good watching. He was mad because the horse was supposed to be well started. He later found out that the guy had only been on it snubbed to another horse. Kelly's comment was, "Well, I guess that wasn't bad then for his first ride." He has designated today as "young horse day." This should be interesting. I've got ten that says he is sick of his young horses after he rides the first one.

Mother's Day was spent at the neighbors branding. I got flowers from Jessie. She knew her dad wouldn't help her, so she called her grandma and asked her to go shopping for her. She was so proud. We went to the branding where all the mother's got roses. Craig, the neighbor, felt bad for us all spending the day working. We all thought that was the perfect way to spend Mother's Day. Jessie was the marker girl. She marked all the calves after they were branded. She was very good help and had a lot of fun. She did get wiped out by a calf, but she got up laughing. She wants to be the marker at every branding now.

The school called Monday for me to come get Jessie because she was sick. I got there and she was laying in the Nurse's Office looking like death. On the way home she told me that she was playing ballerina on the tire swing and the spinning made her sick. If I hadn't been halfway home, I would have turned around and made her go back. Needless to say, she was fine an hour later.

Jessie has her first ball game tonight. She asked me if it was going to be in a stadium. I assured her it wasn't. Then she asked Kelly if there was going to be an announcer. She is quite sure she is playing in the Majors.

Well, I better get outside and start saddling horses. I hope everyone has a great day.

I Do Believe It's Over!!!

2008-04-28T08:49:00.006-06:00

The snow is gone and the sun is shining. I think winter is over!!! I pruned trees all day yesterday in a t-shirt and today was definitely short sleeve weather. How exciting is that? There are flurries forecast for Thursday, but no big deal. They sometimes forecast flurries in July.

Jessie did great at her ballet recital. She was quite the little star. I don't think she is sad that dance is over though. Baseball has already started. She is the only girl on the team. She doesn't seem to mind. We went to practice today, and they were so cute. Turns out that if you are a parent and you go out on the field to help then you are the coach. So, stupid me, not knowing this, ambles out to help the only dad brave enough to go out. I now have a truckload of ball equipment. I guess, not only am I the assistant coach but also the equipment manager/water girl. Apparently sitting in the dirt picking your nose and watching a ball go by is quite dehydrating.

The only incident we've had this week is Jessie paying a kid ten bucks not to tell on her. Kelly said that had to be from me because he sought out trouble, never tried to get out of it. I guess she had the ten dollars in her coat pocket that was left over from money I gave her at a bullriding to get food. She hit the kid with her locker door "accidentally" and he was going to tell on her, so she just paid him off. I found out from his mom, which is the absolute worst way to hear about these things. I informed Jessie that if I hear it from someone else first, then it is always going to be worse than if she tells me.

Other than that, life is pretty tame here.

April Showers Bring May Flowers, but.....

2008-04-23T08:25:00.000-06:00

What do you think April blizzards bring? Well, let me just tell you. Actually I won't because I might sound bitter if I do.

It started snowing here on Friday. It quit yesterday at lunch. Not nice. This wouldn't be all that bad if it was just snow. However, add to that a gale force wind, and you pretty much make my life miserable.

Of course, Kelly left here for Dawson Creek on Thursday with everyone commenting on how beautiful the weather was. I informed everyone that winter wasn't over until Kelly came home from Dawson. You see, this is usually when we are well into calving. It never fails to snow on this weekend b/c I am home alone. Friday morning the temperature dropped to -17 and the snow started. I started packing the barn. In went the 37 year old horse, a Holstein, and a cow with twins. I went to bed the cows out in the pasture and feed. When I came back to check on my barn crew, the pot bellied pigs were buried in the straw in the barn with a Holstein cow threatening to kill them. I shut the door and went to the house. So, on Friday night, Jessie and I got to take bulls to a bull riding about 15 miles from here. Of course, I didn't get left with the A string, so I was a little nervous. We made it through without incident. They only rode one, so I was proud of my flanking abilities. Nothing ran. That is a plus. Because, somehow, even though I got sent with the absolute worst bulls on the place, it would have been my fault if something didn't buck.

The weather did not improve all weekend. We got more snow out of this storm than we had all winter. It is insane. Kelly is removing most of the animals from the barn today with exception of the Holstein, who is now raising one of the twins and another beef calf. Luckily, she loves all babies. It's almost unbelievable how well she has taken them. This cow is definitely worth my trip to the Hudderite colony drinking instant coffee with ten Hudderite women dressed in black staring at me. All the while I'm trying to make conversation and decipher the broken English.

Kelly did have a near death experience in the barn. I hate that I wasn't there to see it, because it was caused by Piglet who was not wanting to give up his place in the barn to a new cow. Apparently the cow, with a brand new baby, did not like the pig, so she started hooking the pig who ran to the gate Kelly was holding. By the time it was all said and done, Kelly and the pig were both squashed between a gate and the fence with the cow trying to kill the pig. I have got to install barn cameras. Kelly kicked both pigs out of the barn. He was not impressed. I think this is one of the funniest things I've heard in a long time. He was kind of chuckling by the time he told me about it.

Jessie had her dress rehearsal last night. They are all so cute. I do have pics, but for some reason I can't add them. I will try that later. She is very excited about the recital Saturday.

That is all I know for now. The sun is finally shining today. I'm hoping the forecast of flurries for the next few days dissipates. I don't think I am mentally stable enough to take anymore snow. I know my husband isn't.

Another Boring Week on the Ranch!

2008-04-13T13:40:00.003-06:00

Well, we successfully made it through another week. A successful week here, is nobody dies, nobody gets hurt. Okay, never mind, with the exception of one bull, we had a successful week. One of the bulls pinched a nerve last weekend. We've tried every thing to get him up, but the prognosis isn't good. Of course, it is always the good ones.

After I overheard a phone conversation between Kelly and a friend a few days ago, I have decided that the Armstrongs should establish a color coded "Danger Threat System" like the one the US uses for levels of terror threat. Kelly was asking a friend to come over and help lift the injured bull up with the front end loader and rig some apparatus to keep him on his feet. Kelly was telling him the danger threat was moderate to high, and he felt like it would test the strength of his marriage. He was probably right. I feel like we should hang a sign out at the road with the color coded system. If it is green come on in. Yellow or Orange, you might see some excitement. Someone might get chased or bucked off, you could get to rope something, and chances are high of seeing a marital dispute. If the red is posted, I suggest you drive on by. Don't even slow down. Dare not wave or acknowledge you know who lives here.

At a threat level of orange, I made the mistake of going to the pens the other day while the boys were tipping bulls. Kelly told me to go open a gate and let a bull down the alley, so I did. I walked right down the alley thinking that I could walk past a bull threatening to get me. I thought he was bluffing. I was way off. He hit the fence about the time I fell over the top rail. However, being the athlete I am, I landed on my feet on the other side, only to get snot blown in my face. Kelly was doubled over howling. Because short of being killed or mauled, everything is funny here as long as it isn't happening to you. Kelly made the comment that if he got me, I just had to stay on my feet because his horns point down. If he ever got me down, then I would be in trouble. I assured him I wouldn't find myself in that position.

Jessie has been busy getting ready for her ballet recital. She has been practicing hard, and got to try on her costume the other day. It is very cute. Her recital is on the 26Th. Kelly is going to be gone to a bull riding, so he is quite disappointed. The grandparents are also going to the bull riding. I'm going to have to play the part of makeup artist, stylist, videographer, photographer, and whatever other chores that come with being a "dance mom." Can't you just see that? I'm really worried about putting makeup on her and fixing her hair. We need "Saucy" to live a little closer. I can't even do those things for myself.

She also starts baseball this week. She is pretty apprehensive about it. She thinks that the games she plays in are going to be like the ones Chase pitches in. I have assured her there won't be any screaming crowds, much less more than 10 people between the ages of 8 and 80, or TV cameras.

That is all I know for now. Sorry there are no pics this week. I'm not sure what I was doing without the camera. Good thing I didn't have it with me. It might have gotten broken.

April Fools!

2008-04-01T08:48:00.006-06:00

Well, Jessie and I are back on Alberta soil after a great trip to Texas. We did come home to a little bit of snow on the ground and cooler temps than down south. However, the days are noticeably longer than when we left. This is a good thing for me, and not so good for Jessie. She does not like going to bed when it is still daylight.

We had a good Easter in Texas. Jessie got to hunt eggs twice and actually hugged the Easter bunny at church. I guess an Easter Bunny in church can't be that scary. She is generally terrified of oversized animals and rodeo clowns.

I was excited to help brand. We all know that dragging calves is my favorite thing in the world to do. Jessie let me ride her new horse and he was great.

Jessie got a Nintendo Wii while we were down south. Kelly couldn't wait to get playing of course, so we had a tournament last night. He wouldn't let me quit until he won something. He finally beat me at boxing. He and Jessie had a bowling tournament, and as I was giving her a speech about being a good sport, he yells, "Ha, take that. Now whatcha gonna do? Do you feel this game slipping from your hands?" He may get grounded from it before she does. However, I have twenty on him injuring himself within the week.

Now that we are home, of course, the calving has begun. We had our first beef calf last night. Kelly carried him in this morning as I was pouring my first cup of coffee. He is now warming up in my kitchen. I think I may have saved his ears by putting hot water bottle on them, but I'm afraid his tail isn't going to make it. It was pretty cold when he came in. Jessie told Hooch to look after him while she was gone, and he has taken her orders to heart. He growls at the cat anytime he gets close to the calf. Hopefully, he will be up and going before too long. I would like him out of the house. Things aren't looking promising though.

Tonight is Cowboy Church in Stettler. We are playing for it, so I have to run into the Leather Shop and have a quick practice session at lunch. I have been gone and our fearless leader can't make it tonight, so Lori has been panicked. She did some recruiting, so I think we will be okay. We played before for it and didn't they asked us back, so I'm thinking it's one of those jobs that you can't get fired from.

Hope all is well with everyone, and have a great April Fool's Day. Don't let anyone pull one over on you.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

2008-03-17T09:26:00.004-06:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone. Sorry it has been so long. I have been busy. Kelly was gone for the weekend and Jessie and I were left to calve out heifers. We have three so far and only one more to go. The rest of the cows won't start calving until the middle to end of April. Hopefully, the Spring snowstorms will be over by then.

The weather was beautiful and reaching into the 50's. However, the snow rolled in on Saturday night and we got 4 inches and the temp dropped to about 7F for a high. I spent a lot of time coaxing cows and babies into the barn.

Kelly drove into the yard yesterday, and I washed my hands of the whole lot for the day. Jessie and I took the day off. Of course, Jessie's job was to wander into the pen and pet the new babies every once in a while. She has named two of them Easter and Lily. She is still deciding on the third name. These are pretty sweet and innocent names for what they are going to grow up to be. At three days old, Lily scissor kicked me in the knee cap and then turned around and started hooking me. She was bellaring quite loudly as she did this. I had a dog trainer call the other day to let us know she had a dog a month away from being ready and she is related to our old dog that we had to put down last winter. After a week alone with cows chasing me up the fence, I called her back and told her I would take it. Kelly has yet to recover from the shock of a new dog and the cost, but I'm quite positive he will get over it. It is a dog or a hired hand.

We had our last hockey game on Saturday. After wrestling with calves all day, I was exhausted and very sore after it. We did end the season with a two game winning streak and a borrowed goalie. Flat Stanley got to go on one last Canadian adventure before he gets mailed back to Texas.

We went into town for Cowboy Church yesterday. Linda, Lori, and I were the entertainment. As always, Linda gave a great sermon and we survived the musical part of it. Somehow someone decided we needed amps and microphones. We don't. None of us are smart enough to work any of that. We put in a good effort though and decided we need a sound man. We have another Cowboy Church to play at on April 1. However, I am leaving for Texas tomorrow and not coming back until the 31st. They assure me that it will all be okay. I don't need to practice. Yeah right!!

Well, I better head to town. I have a lot to do before we fly out tomorrow. Have a great day!!

Hello!

2008-03-08T07:36:00.002-07:00

Well, we have had a busy week around here. We rented the arena in town on Monday and Tuesday to dummy buck some bulls. Wednesday, I went into town to Jessie's class for reading log. They read different levels of books and before they move on to the next book, they have to read it to an adult. It is always an interesting day. Last week there was a sub. I'm quite sure that lady has since retired. Jessie is in a 1st and 2nd grade split class, so it does get interesting. One little girl was tattling on another for saying the "F" word. There were lots of tears and yelling between the accused and the accuser and silence amongst the spectators. It was great. However, it is killing me to know what the "F" word is in first grade. I am quite sure that the accused has no idea what the real "F" word is. My child maybe, but not this one. I am scared to ask Jessie for fear of what she might say. With Jessie's lifestyle, she has the knowledge of a cowboy, stock contractor, and a trucker. It is quite scary.

Kelly was supposed to fly to Dallas yesterday for a bull futurity, but his flight out of Calgary was cancelled due to weather conditions in Dallas. Now, we find this hilarious. Sarah had called and said they cancelled her school on Friday. Jessie has to go to school until the temperature hits -30C. This cannot include the windchill. I believe she has missed two or three days this winter.
Anyways, Kelly returned home yesterday morning after a brief trip to Calgary.

While Kelly was away, Jessie helped clean the house. She also came out to help me put our recip heifers in the barn for the night. I told her not to stand in the middle of the pen and to keep her head up. She quickly let me know, "Mom, they are heifers not bulls. They aren't gonna get you." Not five minutes later and a few laps around the pen, I got snot blown at me. By the time I got them in the barn and sorted, I was crawling along the tops of gates to get them chained.

Today, we are headed into town for a barrel race and team roping jackpot I was volunteered to help with. I get to bartend from 5 this afternoon to 2 in the morning. It is a benefit dinner as well. It should be lots of fun. I don't know if I can stay up until 2 am though.

So, such is life around here. It is warm. Yesterday, I believe it was 39F. The sun finally has some heat to it. This weekend is supposed to be +10 and 12 C. We love the days on the positive side of the scale. There will be no snow left in a few days. I'm sure that March or April snow storm will rear it's ugly head at some point. With any luck, it will happen before we start calving.

Hope all is well in your world.

Back in Alberta

2008-03-01T09:06:00.000-07:00

We are home from beautiful British Columbia. The skiing was spectacular as was the rest of the trip. The weather was so nice. It was above freezing the whole time we were there. We came home with no major injuries. Kelly had one swollen knee because you just can't pass up a good jump. It was entertaining to watch the landings. Most of the injuries came from our hockey games in the garage with the miniature hockey nets and sticks. There were lots of bruises and blood was drawn once. You can't take three rodeo families and put them in a single car garage with hockey sticks and not think there won't be some competitiveness. We were more sore from hockey than skiing and no one really holds back there either. Even Flat Stanley came away from the ski trip with no major wrinkles and lots of pics. Sarah sent us a Flat Stanley that one of her ex students is doing, so we took him along. We had lots of fun with Stanley.

Jessie had a great time with her grandparents. I believe she kept them in line and gave them their orders. They stayed here with her so she could get on the bus and Kelly's dad could do chores for us. We are very lucky.

As for now, it is back to the real world. Kelly is headed to Lethbridge for a bullriding tonight and Jessie and I are maybe going to Red Deer to a movie. Hope all is well with everyone and thanks for all the comments. I love reading them.

It's Been a While, I know!

2008-02-26T09:00:00.000-07:00

Sorry, it's been a while, but life is busy. Our barn is finally done. We are very excited to have it restored to it's original color. This has been quite and undertaking. We have been busy cleaning out the inside so we can calve out recip heifers if the need be. Hopefully, they can handle it on their own or wait until we get home. When we bought the place, this barn was white and brown and was stacked to the roof with junk. We took loads and loads of trash to the dump and cleaned years of pigeon mess out of the loft. It was an old milking barn, so we cut out all the old stansions with a cutting torch and built stalls. So, this is why it is so exciting to finally have it finished.

Kelly and I are headed to Kimberley, British Columbia this afternoon. We are going skiing for a few days with friends. The high is supposed to be 6C and a chance of rain. Hopefully, that will hold off and we get to ski in the warm weather with no rain.

Kelly's mom and dad are coming to stay at the house with Jessie. She is quite excited. Grandma already has her orders and I'm sure she will get lots more.

That is all I know for now. I need to get packing. We are leaving in an hour and I'm still doing laundry.

Off to a Good Start!

2008-02-17T15:11:00.000-07:00

Sunday has been a great way to start our week. The weather has been beautiful today. We just came in for hot chocolate. Jessie has been sledding today, Kelly has been choring, and I cleaned out the barn. Kelly called in the horses and Lucky and I pulled Jessie around on her sled until he was exhausted and my arms could pull no more. He was a little fresh to say the least. There is getting to be very little snow, so there were a few bumps in the ride. Jessie kept yelling faster, and I swore to her that she did not want me to let Lucky go any faster or she would need a helmet. She told me to "at least let him lope or run or something." She was pretty brave even after she bit it a couple of times.

That is all the excitement around here for now. We are off to town for supper. The cook is on strike and it's a holiday anyways. Family Day is tomorrow, so no school. Do not ask me what Family Day is. I think it is another excuse for Canadians to have a long weekend that they are so fond of.

Monday!

2008-02-11T18:54:00.000-07:00

Today was definitely a Monday.

I got a call from school today that maybe I needed to come see if Jessie was okay. "Not an emergency, but" I maybe needed to come see if her teeth were all still in her head. Seems she had an accident in the gym during the Valentine dance at lunch recess. I took her to town with her screaming the 20 minutes to town that she didn't want stitches or to go to the dentist and I couldn't make her. Two hours later we emerged from the emergency room with only one stitch in the lip, a big nose, and all teeth. Even I held up and didn't get too weak in the knees at the sight of the blood and needles. I have to admit I did look away when they sewed it up. Kelly thought I was insane to take her in over a busted lip until he saw how big it is. She said that if felt like she had teddy bear lips and she missed her small lips.

All in all, the lesson I learned today is that no matter how bad it is, a strawberry sundae and a High School Musical Barbie Doll will make it all better.

Winter is Back with a Vengeance

2008-02-08T11:08:00.000-07:00

Well, this morning we woke up to howling winds and a -30 windchill. Not long after Jessie got on the bus did the snow start falling. I was talking to Jessie's volleyball coach on the phone when it started and she said her kids were on their way back home. The bus got halfway to town and decided to turn around. Apparently, Jessie's bus made it before the storm hit. I may have to go to town and get her this afternoon.

Needless to say, chores were done in a hurry this morning. We still have no barn doors due to renovations, so I squeezed Copper through a small door into the lean to of the barn so he would be out of the wind. At 37, winter isn't the best time of the year for him. I'm sure he is disgusted with sharing space with two pot bellied pigs and a plethera of cats. I had to carry water to the barn b/c the faucet there is frozen. Kelly was doing chores with the tractor, so I went to help open gates. The wind and snow were blowing so hard we couldn't see the road for a stretch. It is not fit for man or beast out there, so Kelly is downstairs watching The Flintstones and I am spending the day catching up on laundry.

Anyways, that is all that is exciting and worth talking about in the Arctic North today. I hope everyone is doing well.

This pretty well sums up how I feel today.

The Cremation of Sam McGee

There are strange things done in the midnight sun

By the men who moil for gold;

The Arctic trails have their secret tales

That would make your blood run cold;

The Northern Lights have seen queer sights,

But the queerest they ever did see

Was that night on the marge of Lake Lebarge

I cremated Sam McGee.

Now Sam McGee was from Tennessee, where the cotton blooms and blows.

Why he left his home in the South to roam 'round the Pole, God only knows.

He was always cold, but the land of gold seemed to hold him like a spell;

Though he'd often say in his homely way that "he'd sooner live in hell."
On a Christmas Day we were mushing our way over the Dawson trail.

Talk of your cold! through the parka's fold it stabbed like a driven nail.

If our eyes we'd close, then the lashes froze till sometimes we couldn't see;

It wasn't much fun, but the only one to whimper was Sam McGee.
And that very night, as we lay packed tight in our robes beneath the snow,

And the dogs were fed, and the stars o'erhead were dancing heel and toe,

He turned to me, and "Cap," says he, "I'll cash in this trip, I guess;

And if I do, I'm asking that you won't refuse my last request."

Well, he seemed so low that I couldn't say no; then he says with a sort of moan:

"It's the cursèd cold, and it's got right hold, till I'm chilled clean through to the bone.

Yet 'tain't being dead — it's my awful dread of the icy grave that pains;

So I want you to swear that, foul or fair, you'll cremate my last remains."
A pal's last need is a thing to heed, so I swore I would not fail;

And we started on at the streak of dawn; but God! he looked ghastly pale.

He crouched on the sleigh, and he raved all day of his home in Tennessee;

And before nightfall a corpse was all that was left of Sam McGee.
There wasn't a breath in that land of death, and I hurried, horror-driven,

With a corpse half hid that I couldn't get rid, because of a promise given;

It was lashed to the sleigh, and it seemed to say:

"You may tax your brawn and brains, But you promised true, and it's up to you, to cremate those last remains."

Now a promise made is a debt unpaid, and the trail has its own stern code.

In the days to come, though my lips were dumb, in my heart how I cursed that load.

In the long, long night, by the lone firelight, while the huskies, round in a ring,

Howled out their woes to the homeless snows — Oh God! how I loathed the thing.

And every day that quiet clay seemed to heavy and heavier grow;

And on I went, though the dogs were spent and the grub was getting low;

The trail was bad, and I felt half mad, but I swore I would not give in;

And I'd often sing to the hateful thing, and it hearkened with a grin.

Till I came to the marge of Lake Lebarge, and a derelict there lay;

It was jammed in the ice, but I saw in a trice it was called the "Alice May."

And I looked at it, and I thought a bit, and I looked at my frozen chum;

Then "Here," said I, with a sudden cry, "is my cre-ma-tor-eum."

Some planks I tore from the cabin floor, and I lit the boiler fire;
Some coal I found that was lying around, and I heaped the fuel higher;

The flames just soared, and the furnace roared — such a blaze you seldom see;

And I burrowed a hole in the glowing coal, and I stuffed in Sam McGee.

Then I made a hike, for I didn't like to hear him sizzle so;

And the heavens scowled, and the huskies howled, and the wind began to blow.

It was icy cold, but the hot sweat rolled down my cheeks, and I don't know why;

And the greasy smoke in an inky cloak went streaking down the sky.

I do not know how long in the snow I wrestled with grisly fear;

But the stars came out and they danced about ere again I ventured near;

I was sick with dread, but I bravely said: "I'll just take a peep inside.

I guess he's cooked, and it's time I looked"; ... then the door I opened wide.
And there sat Sam, looking cool and calm, in the heart of the furnace roar;

And he wore a smile you could see a mile, and said: "Please close that door.

It's fine in here, but I greatly fear, you'll let in the cold and storm —

Since I left Plumtree, down in Tennessee, it's the first time I've been warm."

There are strange things done in the midnight sun By the men who moil for gold;

The Arctic trails have their secret tales That would make your blood run cold;

The Northern Lights have seen queer sights,

But the queerest they ever did see Was that night on the marge of Lake Lebarge I cremated Sam McGee.

Hello Everyone!

2008-02-07T15:58:00.000-07:00

Seeing that life has taken us to the far ends of the arctic, I thought that maybe starting a blog would help us to keep in touch with the many people that we don't get to visit with often. We all know how organized I am, or maybe not. However, I will try my best to keep this up to date so you will know about the daily happenings in our lives. I'm sure I can keep it up until summer comes, if it does. No promises after that.