Monday we were all lagging from the long show weekend and the excessive heat for May. Added to all of the other normal stress. Callie Welding showed up first thing to get the main line welded. It looked really good. We were thankful they could fit us in. Having a break in the mainline is a pretty big deal when it is hot out and we need to irrigate. The kids washed their heifers and turned Emma Frost out, she had her last show, which she tried to kick McCall and the judge on Sunday, so I think she was done. However, she did great for Savannah in the PeeWee class. I think she felt like the judge and McCall were asking too much of her. She also did really well for Jax, and again, Division Champion, so Jax was really happy. Toni and I went down and put a new/different circle gate up in Tank’s pen, since they are walking out the circle gate.
Tuesday dad delivered a bull to Athena. He said he it was a little tight turning around but he is an expert driver. We also had an FFA Banquet after school. Ben cooked the tri tip, Toni, Kaine and Jaxsen did horse chores, Anna and Kade stayed to help set up for the banquet. Toni got to meet Kade’s girlfriend’s parents. The kids are all growing up. Kaine, Jaxsen and Kicker stayed home and did chores, the rest of us went in. Anna is the president so resided over the meeting. Kaine (who was not present), Kade and Anna all got awards, and Anna was elected Vice President for next school year. Toni, Ben and I went home to finish up chores after and Anna and Kade stayed to clean up. Our FFA program is top notch with the number of kids that participate proof of that. We couldn’t be happier with the 3 ag teachers our kids have, they are the best. Also, Irrigation Specialist came out worked on the mainline.
On Wednesday dad’s friends came out and mom and dad took them around on a tour and to the Brunswick in Othello for lunch. Debbie texted and needed miniature horses at her house for her grandson’s birthday, so Anna and Kaine ran them over. Then Toni, Kaine and Kade went to the school for a football meeting. I went and worked on Tank’s pen again. Anna and Jaxsen did chores. Wednesday Dugx brought concrete out for the mainline, so that project just keeps moving forward. For some reason we have gotten really lucky and everyone that we have requested help from has been there for us.
On Thursday Toni met with our NRCS Rangeland specialist Angela to go over new fun projects. They really do think they are fun, like can we grow this type of grass without irrigation? Can we encourage bees? Butterflies? Birds? All kinds of projects. Then Toni and Mom got in a fight about whether I hate birds, all birds. I said I don’t hate them if they are away from me and not flying over my head. Toni thought I hated them less. Then Toni went to court in her leopard print blazer that LeAnne and I picked out in Fort Worth. It looked good. The men fished up the mainline fixes, we had a group of good teams out of and work on it. Callie’s welding, Dugx, and Irrigation Specialist. Thank you everyone for getting out so fast. Dad got mom’s strawberry apparatus up and ratchet strapped to the ground. And guess what, we worked on Tank’s pen again.
On Friday I got groceries. Mom and Toni went down to see grandma. Marlo came out to do chores with us. Kaine stayed the night with his friend Maxx, so they could go fishing the next day with another friend, Cruz. Finch Ranch from Pullman came down and picked up their Angus bull and Ben ran Lar’s bull over the hill. Friday night the water got put through the mainline- no holes! So we have water once again. Everyone is very happy. Mom made a comment about how great her sons-in-laws are and how she was thankful we didn’t marry worthless men. We are also thankful for that. Haha.
On Saturday Kade started trap shooting practice again. Kaine was with his friends (and he had asked Kade to do his chores for him). Anna worked on her steers, and Kade did when he got home, and Jaxsen helped Toni and I since he did not go down to work on his steer. I feel like he made a very bad choice. Jaxsen’s level of help and our understanding of the children helping do not mesh. There may have been some words. Pete brought our third halter breaking donkey out, so now we have Rosie to join the crew. Rosie, Tulip and Basil. Yvonne Stampfly came out and got her bull. Dad and Steve (his friend) took a heifer to E-burg to meet a guy and picked up our tie bar for the Wilson trailer. Then we moved stallions around, since Tank’s pen keeps getting out and we lost Leroy. We moved Dude to mom and dads, and Tank into Kings pen, King into Tanks pen, and Jackpot to Tonis house. We did chores, then put big bales out. Right at the end of that project the storm came through and there was thunder all around, a bit of wind, but mostly it just went around us. All in all it was a LONG day but everyone was very productive.
On Sunday McKenzie came and picked up Honey Bug, who loaded like a pro. McKenzie had a ramp, Honey bug is a yearling filly, and she walked right up the ramp, looked around the trailer and was great. McKenzie said she was great when she got home too. We are so happy McKenzie was finally able to take her home. Honey Bug is going to be a mounted shooting horse, and we cannot wait to see her perform. Then Toni and I sorted mares out of Tank’s pen that we hope are bred. With the alley off of Tank’s pen, it is actually not terrible to sort out of that pen. We kicked a couple of mares out to the pasture and put Miss Gen in with Tank. Miss Gen is older and we really need to get her bred. Lorenzo, Donna and the girls came out to look at horses. They like a couple of them. We sold Coffee online. John and Maddie also came out to see babies. The kids worked on their heifers and steers. Kade and Kaine both rode their horses and Kade, per the norm, had catching issues with his. Since the corral is now open, he moved her down there. Kaine took his horse, Pow, home and Anna took Jojo home. We moved Crystal and Blue into the heavy pen. They aren’t particularly heavy, but we are down to 4 to foal and those are 2 of them. Having them all in the same pen makes life easier. The 2 other mares, Eddie and Lendy are heavy, very heavy. Eddie is bred to Sagebug and Lendy is bred to King. We moved horses here, there, and everywhere. Debbie had called back and wanted 2 big horses for her grandson. He is in Strides (horse therapy) and is supposed to lead a big horse around, so I took Angel the TB and Benelli over for him to lead around with the minis.
It is never a matter of if, but a matter of when something will go wrong. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Manny Mulrony who was injured riding rough stock. Manny is a great kid with tons of talent. No matter what the future holds, we know he will do great things. Hoping for a full recovery for Manny.
