*Let It Snow Let It Snow Let It Snow... Then Melt... Then Snow... Then Melt*

This winter has been so crazy. I'm not complaining though! It's actually pretty nice. One day it will snow and either by that night or the next day it's completely gone. And that's BIG for around here! Now, a lot of people are worried about there not being enough water come summer. But, Joey thinks we'll be fine. With how stinkin' wet it was last summer, we'll be dandy. We got too much water last year actually, we had two whole fields that we couldn't even hay because they were flooded all summer long. So, for this year, I'm okay with this 50-65 degree winter weather!

We have enjoyed a couple snow days though. A couple weeks ago it was actually cold enough to freeze the river so we decided to go for a walk in hopes of finding a fox den (don't ask, we want a fox as a pet...). It was fun, the ground was frozen so it was easy to walk through the swampy area. The dogs were having a blast running across the frozen river and after Joey decided he'd show me that he wouldn't fall through (despite my very loud disagreement) and he succeeded. I ended up (quickly) scurrying across. It was pretty scary because not far away there were holes in the ice... We're idiots.

The canals were completely froze through and we went "ice skating" across it. The dogs (just Doc & Dolly, Coatsy would NOT have had fun haha) had a blast and they needed the exercise.

I am loving this winter. If every winter were like this around here I wouldn't complain... well, until we had to start buying hay because we wouldn't have enough water to grow our own haha.

I got a few pictures. Sorry, they're all with the camera on my phone...

 {Joey being all mushy in the snow)

 {All bundled up}

 {The big dogs having fun on the frozen river}

{My sweet Doc after rubbing his face in the snow. His favorite thing}

*Joey's Quarter Of A Centry Old B-day Party- My Birthday/Our Anniversary Celebration*

I know it's been almost a month but I wanted to share... We celebrated Joey's on July 31st when he turned 25! I bought the most delicious Honey Glazed Ham, made my Momma's homemade Macaroni & Cheese (which Joey loves), heated up some home canned Green Beans, and Nikki made some awesome Vinegar Cucumbers. It was all in all a successful b-day dinner!

We topped it off with a Chocolate Cake w/ Chocolate filling w/ Chocolate Frosting... so in other words a Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate Cake :)

Isn't he a handsome birthday boys?! :) Those were my b-day presents to him!

Joey & Bret Nicole

And I give you...

The Birthday Boy! (goon)

My birthday was on the 15th and for it Joey let me go shopping :) We were down visiting my family(where my parents gave me Photoshop CS5 for a b-day present!!! I'm stoked!)  so we headed to the big BIG city and went to Cabelas, AA Callisters & The Gateway Mall. I got a super cute pine tree pillow (for my future pine tree guest room haha) & sugar baked Cashews from Cabelas, a couple sweaters for this winter from PacSun & AE, a couple Wrangler baby onsies (haha... not comment) & cookie cutters in the shape of a cowboy hat and a boot at AA Callisters, and the most beautiful vase from Anthropologie.

After shopping we went to check in to our hotel room. We got to stay at the Anniversary Inn in the Swiss Family Robinson room! It was gorgeous. It had a fish tank full of exotic fish, cheesecake & sparkling apple cider, candles all around the jacuzzi tub, and the bed was up in a tree(with chocolate covered strawberries on a pillow)!

Cute story: Joey ran out to get a movie from the RedBox so while we was out I decided to go get some pops and some ice. I was getting the ice when along walks Joey around the corner with a big ol' smile on his face, he saw me and stopped like a deer in the headlights... he had a  huge bouquet of red roses that he was going to surprise me with in the bedroom. He has picked me beautiful wildflowers numerous time but he's never bought me flowers, so this was kinda special. I am glad I caught him in the act because his face before he saw me was priceless!!! Such a sweet hubby!

We dressed up nice and went to dinner at PF Changs. We were going to go somewhere super fancy but I was in the mood for Chinese and PF Changs is my all time favorite! It was, like always, DELICIOUS! 

The next morning I got to sleep in and we got to eat a delicious room service breakfast in bed. I have to say one of my favorite things about the whole stay in SLC was that I got to shower under a waterfall!!! 

These are my roses almost a week later and they still looked beautiful in my b-day vase

*Wild Weekend*

Friday:

GIRL'S NIGHT! I had been needing one of these, so Joey's awesome cousin Sammie & I decided we should head to the big town and eat at Don Pedros (uber-yummy Mexican joint) and the movies!  Our gorgeous friends Heather & Marcey came with us! We ended up seeing X-Men: First Class, I really liked it. The whole time I was turning to Heather and (about the guy who plays the young Magneto) saying; "Man, he's hot!". Hahaha it was pretty funny. It was so nice to get out with the girls and have some fun. Even though Heather & I talked about our boys the whole time :)

Saturday:

Saturday morning I headed over the mountain to the big city and met up with my bestest Cami and headed to the farmer's market... AND... I got to met her gorgeous new little girl Blaikley! So baby hungry right now ;) Joey says I probably should steer clear of them for a while hahaha. No such luck babe. At the market we met up with my brother & his beautiful little family (McCall: loved your outfit by the way, I forgot to tell you that! And Ethan really isn't helping my baby hungriness all too much with his heart-breaker smile). I am in love with farmers markets. One of my guilty pleasers in life is walking around markets from booth to booth getting ideas, trying samples, finding awesome deals, buying fresh bread & produce, gawking at cute handmade baby items, and buying planter herbs and flowers. The day was perfect too. I was a little scared because back at home it was stormy and raining but, as soon as I got through that canyon it was sunny and warm! I ended up buying some fresh Italian Basil & Cilantro to plant in pots in my kitchen, a loaf of delish wheat bread, a homemade wooden honey dipper for decor in my kitchen, a cup of fresh squeezed lemonade, and a beautiful hand crafted necklace (I am going to use it in some maternity pictures someday when I have a prego belly)!

I didn't get any picture while I was there so I will have to take a picture of my purchases and add them on here later!

I then was able to pamper myself! I went and got gel nails done because I have been sick of trying to find time to take care of my nails, they were a lost cause by this time. And I went and got a much needed deep condition and hair trim. I had about 4 inches of hair left that was not 100% natural, so I was brave and had her take almost 2 inches off! It it so nice not to have super tangly, dry, brittle hair anymore! Just 2 more inches and my hair will be 100% natural, no dye, no layers, no trash can full of fried blonde locks {shivers}. My hair dresser is awesome, she has helped me over the past 3 years to get my hair healthy again, we joking while I was there about how she's known me longer than Joey has haha. I am so proud of myself for finally taking good care of my hair. And let me tell you, it's so nice to have money that would have been spent on highlights, touch ups, dyes, super strong conditioners and "leave-in" products, and use it for so something else! (Like the occasional set of gel nails or a fancy straightener). I might not like my natural color but it is a huge load off my shoulders to not have to baby my hair and go to a hair salon twice a month! 

Joey finally was able to drag himself away from moving cows and make it over for a BBQ with Jed & Cami and Dalan & Timari. It was nice to be able to relax and talk and eat yummy food with our friends! All in all a successful day!

Sunday:

Around 7:00pm I started putting together Hobo dinners (Heather: You got me craving them after you told me you made some for you & Frank haha), half way through I got the hair-brained idea that we should go camping and cook the dinners in the fire. I asked Joey if he wanted to and he was game so we grabbed everything we needed, borrowed a tent from his brother Monty B. (we really need to save up and buy our own sometime soon, and a lantern), went to grab the dogs and we couldn't find Doc... We looked and looked and finally I found him sprawled out flat behind the house. I noticed he wasn't looking too good that morning on our way out for church but didn't think too much of it, so when I saw him laying there and couldn't see him breathing I just knew he was dead. I ran in the house and told Joey through tears that I think he might be dead. Joey went to him and was able to get Doc to raise his head, we felt all over him and I finally realized that his stomach was rock hard. So we ended up kenneling him up and left Dolly with him. We drove about 10 minutes to a spot on the other side of the hills by our house. It was perfect, the stream was right next to us and the moon was nice and bright. But, it was freezing. We had lots of fun spending time with each other though just chatting around the fire and eating our, well, pretty darn good Hobo dinners if I might say so myself. I love my boy and I love that we can be spontaneous together. And I love that we live where we can just up and drive 10 minutes and end up being in a beautiful middle-of-no-where spot and camp!

Now I am am just waiting until 12:30pm so I can take Doc to the vet and see what's wrong with him, hopefully nothing serious {fingers crossed}. He also just turned 1 on saturday so he needs his shots as well. And I'm taking Coatsy along to see if there is anything we can do about his poor ears that are ruined from freaking neglect. Some people should just steer clear of animals period, especially a sweet, tiny little thing like Coatsy! 

Wish us luck!

*Busy Beavers*

Well, hello there. I have missed writing on here. I actually have a moment to breathe and decided that I should make a trip to the ranch to use the internet on my computer, not my phone, so I could actually do things like: check my mail, reply to e-mails, do some online shopping, catch up on people's blogs and yes... add to my long forgotten blog, instead of just jumping on my phone and getting frustrated with the slow internet and touch screen and eventually giving up. This last month has been so busy for us, between branding calves, shipping pairs, moving into new pastures, taking care of the dogs, and the cats(NEW KITTENS!), trying and failing to keep my house in order, my baby sister's wedding(it was GORGEOUS), doctors appointments, grocery shopping, working between 30-40 hours a week at the station(my new home away from home), and trying to squeeze in some "us" time... Well, there's been no time for anything else! I played with the idea of not blogging anymore, because I feel bad and like I'm missing out on so many things to write about when I don't have time to go somewhere with internet and after I'm done paying bills, reading other's blogs and returning e-mails I don't feel like writing anymore. But, I decided that it is my #1 way to keep my family in touch with our comings and goings and my blog has been such a good outlet and support when this crazy kind of life gets the better of me. And, it still is my diary, a little bit of me I can pass on. So.... with that all said and done here are a few pictures of what has been going on lately:

The Graduate at his "embarrassing" dinner :) Wearing his graduation present (the hat). He's such a hunk... WOW

We had one... only one... beautiful, semi-warm day on Sunday so we decided to get the kittens out and let them play in the grass for the first time. They are about 3 weeks old now and all the eyes are open!

Don't mind how nasty/drunk I look. Or my legs... Just don't look at me all together. The kittens... The kittens are cute...

 My favorite... He was the fighter who almost didn't make it

Then we decided to take a trip to the lake and play on the beach for a few hours. It was the perfect idea! It was absolutely breathtaking (Cheesy wording? So what, that's the best way to describe it!) The dogs had a blast... well, Coatsy did for .5 seconds and then froze his little tush off :) I love how the snow is still on the mountains but the weather was just right.

 There wasn't another person around. We had the beach all to ourselves

 I had to put this picture on here... I am just in love with his tiny, shrimpy legs! Too cute

 Okay... AND this one. Look at those ears! 

 And of course Doc, our handsome Hagen look-a-like. He was so concerned because Joey was wading in the deep water without him

 Dolly, the pregnant(Yes... pregnant. No comment), prissy girl who could care less what "Dad" was up to. Love this picture of her with her tongue out

 3 of my loves. Joey getting some much needed sun :) I have no room to talk though I guess haha

 Me at my "other" home, the station. I wanted to show off how long my hair is getting!

*Pillow Talk*

Over text messages:

Joey: "I've been demoted..."

Me: "What? How?"

Joey: "Farming :("

Me: "HA HA"

Joey: "Yup..."

Me: "Well, it has to be done"

Joey: "Oh you shut your face! Ok, you're right"

Haying season has come early around the Wine Cup. The pest control guy killed a large portion of our Alfalfa field last year so today Joey had to go get it ready to be reseeded. It's a good thing he's not a full time farmer, he'd be miserable. I love farming, but him... not so much haha.

*Pillow Talk*

After watching "The Next Three Days" and on our way to bed...

Joey: {fists balled like a boxer} "I'd bust you outta jail babe!"

Thank you Hunny, it's nice to know you'd do that for me if I ever am thrown in jail for a crime I didn't commit. You're the best :)

*Day 8 Of Me*

Day 8: A place you've traveled to:

I have traveled to many places. All over Europe, there actually are quite few places I haven't been to in Europe. The problem is, I was pretty young and hardly remember any of it {annoyed shrug}. The memories I do have are nice though and they were all things I would probably remember most if I went back today. Such as (If I were more committed to this blog then I would dig out pictures we actually took, scan them and post them on here. But, I'm not, so I just got some cool pictures from online):


At the Leaning Tower of Pisa, I remember sitting in a little cafe across the way from the tower, you could see it from the window, and I was drinking a Pina Colada flavored smoothie.

mirror-uk-rb1.gallery.hd.org

In Venice, Italy, I remember going into a glass store. You could watch the guys working there "blowing" glass and forming them into shapes. My dad bought me a little glass "candy". Very similar to the ones in this picture(except mine was mostly clear with a little orange swivel design inside the middle section):

Ebay.com

Also, while in Venice, I remember feeding the masses of pigeons in St. Marks square.

www.tiberiu-crisan.ro

In Switzerland I remember driving up the Alps and getting out on the side of the road to take pictures next to the purple flowers like these Swiss Alpine Saxifrage:

www.farandawayphotographicarts.com

I can't remember if it was in Switzerland or Germany, but, I remember going into a store that looked like a house and the walls, from ceiling to floor, were jam packed with Coo Coo clocks(My parents bought one and it still goes off every hour and half hour). It kind of looked like this:

nazaronline.net

And many many other small, silly memories like that. Different Bed & Breakfasts we would stay at. Fields and fields of sheep. Little pubs we would stop and eat at. Museums and castles where I would be bored out of my mind and would have to entertain myself. My mom put together scrapbooks and my dad took billions of pictures, so every time I look at them I can remember a little better. And I wish I could go back. I have been back to England several times for family and such, but never beyond that. I would love to go with Joey to Ireland :)

Now, with all that said and done, the place I traveled to that I love is Lake Tahoe. It just so happens to be where Joey & I went for 3/4 of our honeymoon. And it is the first place he and I ever really traveled to together.

Isn't it gorgeous?!
(These pictures I actually took)

30 Day Challenge 

Day 1: Introduce, recent picture of yourself, 15 interesting facts

Day 2: Meaning behind your blog name

Day 3: Your first love

Day 4: Your parents

Day 5: A song to match your mood

Day 6: A picture of something that makes you happy

Day 7: Favorite movies

Day 8: A place you've traveled to

Day 9: A favorite picture of your best friend

Day 10: Something you miss 

Day 11: Something you're afraid of

Day 12: Your last 5 Facebook statues

Day 13: Favorite tv shows

Day 14: A picture of you last year - how have you changed?

Day 15: Scripture verse

Day 16: Current Project

Day 17: Something you're looking forward to

Day 18: Favorite place(s) to eat

Day 19: Goals

Day 20: Nicknames

Day 21: Favorite Picture of yourself ALL TIME Why?

Day 22: What's in your purse?

Day 23: A letter to someone

Day 24: Something you've learned

Day 25: Put your iPod on shuffle, first 10 songs

Day 26: Dream vacation

Day 27: Original Photo of the city you live in

Day 28: Something that stresses you out

Day 29: 3 Wishes

Day 30: a picture of yourself this day and 5 good things that happened since you started the challenge

*Day 5 Of Me: Part 2*

Day 5: A song to match your mood:

"Breathe" by Ryan Star

Today has been somewhat troubling. I arrived home yesterday to warning signs on the roads for "high water flooding", I unloaded my truck just as soon as it started raining, started cooking a yummy dinner of oriental marinaded tuna steaks and mashed potatoes. Joey got home and we had dinner by candlelight and everything was awesome. I was so glad to be home (still am)! At about 11PM the electricity went out so I grabbed a big down comforter and we all got ready to cuddle in bed. Before we did that though we looked outside and realized why the electricity went out... Super wet, heavy snow. Instantly our hearts sank, our poor cows and calves. We went to bed with fingers crossed and prayers sent that no calves were born in the night. 

Apparently, yesterday, one of our cows that hadn't yet had her calf had gotten on her back in the field full of cold, wet, melting snow. She drowned. So, first thing this morning Joey had to go to the ranch to check and see if anything was born in the nasty weather and to move all the cows into a different field, out of the growing water levels of the lower fields. I had been excited to spend the morning and afternoon with Joey, cooking a big breakfast and watch our church's General Conference together. Instead I woke up alone, next to a cat throwing up on my bed, and as I got up to get paper towels, I nearly stepped on a huge, bloody, half-eaten mouse. After cleaning up the chewed up mouse throw up and the dead animal, I made myself a morning drink(I have to drink this certain drink because, while in Idaho, I went to our family doctor because I was having problems and we found out I have a Hiatal Hernia. I won't get into that right now though) and sat down to watch the first session of conference by myself, I looked up just in time to see Coatsy, sick with the runs, squirting(sorry, graphic) diarrhea all over the living room carpet I had just cleaned a couple weeks ago. I called Joey to see when the heck he was coming home, he commenced telling me about his morning. While they were moving the cows out of the field, a calf ventured off, bee-lining to the half frozen swamp. Trying to turn around and get back to the herd, he kept breaking through the ice and was making no progress. Joey had to jump off his horse and wade through the freezing swamp to grab the calf and carry him back. He then had to strip down to nothing in order to not freeze on the way back to the house. And a calf was also just barely born in the wet, so far so good though. 

After I calmed down and realized that it isn't as bad as I made it out to be, I got to thinking about how these certain "issues" happened, almost ironically, right when I got home, right when I was having a hard time with my hernia, right when I was wanting to spend the day with Joey, right when we were about to watch our General Conference, right when we thought we were out of the clear weather-wise during calving, right when things were starting to "look up". The exact things that "push my buttons" happened, the exact things that really upset Joey happened. It's almost like someone was trying to make us unhappy, right when we were finally de-stressed and happy again. We snapped at each other, Joey said some choice words, I hung up on him, I had a cloud over my head while trying to listen to the words of the leaders from our church, on a day that was supposed to be relaxing and peaceful. After calming down and thinking over all of this I said a little prayer and went to check on my husband. We hugged and said sorry. We vowed to not let these things knock us down and that we need to lean on each other and help each other and lean on our Heavenly Father. He's always there for us, he knows what we are going through and he wants us to be happy. We are here on this earth to be tested and tried, to learn how to push through those trials and be happy, grateful, humble, prayerful and faithful. I am going to make sure to breathe, relax, love my life, realize just how blessed I am, stay close to God, and I will be okay.

"Breathe, just breathe. Take the world off your shoulders and put it on me. Breathe, just breathe. Let the life that you lead be all that you need."

p.s. Listen to this song. It's so good. He opened for Bon Jovi and I'm in love :)

30 Day Challenge 

Day 1: Introduce, recent picture of yourself, 15 interesting facts

Day 2: Meaning behind your blog name

Day 3: Your first love

Day 4: Your parents

Day 5: A song to match your mood

Day 6: A picture of something that makes you happy

Day 7: Favorite movies

Day 8: A place you've traveled to

Day 9: A favorite picture of your best friend

Day 10: Something you miss 

Day 11: Something you're afraid of

Day 12: Your last 5 Facebook statues

Day 13: Favorite tv shows

Day 14: A picture of you last year - how have you changed?

Day 15: Scripture verse

Day 16: Current Project

Day 17: Something you're looking forward to

Day 18: Favorite place(s) to eat

Day 19: Goals

Day 20: Nicknames

Day 21: Favorite Picture of yourself ALL TIME Why?

Day 22: What's in your purse?

Day 23: A letter to someone

Day 24: Something you've learned

Day 25: Put your iPod on shuffle, first 10 songs

Day 26: Dream vacation

Day 27: Original Photo of the city you live in

Day 28: Something that stresses you out

Day 29: 3 Wishes

Day 30: a picture of yourself this day and 5 good things that happened since you started the challenge