How to Go(at) for a Walk

It's simple.

Snack. The dog can wait.

Dawdle. The people can wait.

Hurry, hurry! Run and catch up!

Grab another bite. This grass tastes different than it did back there.

Tarry. Pose for pictures.

Run, play, hurry! Don't be late!

 Repeat process until you reach your destination. 

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"For the vision is yet for the appointed time;

It hastens toward the goal and it will not fail.

Though it tarries, wait for it;

For it will certainly come, it will not delay." ~Habakkuk 2:3 NASB

Wildflowers and Yo-Yo Weather

On a recent wildflower hunt, we tramped the hills for miles before finding a few blooms peeking warily out of the ground. I can understand their trepidation. We had gales and rainbows last week, 78 degrees F on Monday, snow on Tuesday, hard frost Wednesday morning. Has April ever been so temperamental?

I didn't see this tiny Indian paintbrush until I almost stepped on it. I can hardly wait until the real paintbrush party begins!

While her people looked for flora, Ellie searched for fauna (rabbits and pronghorn antelope). She had less success than we did.

We found a passel of brave phlox atop a windblown hill, hugging the earth for warmth. Perhaps their bluish tint was from the cold.

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"Comebacks are God's specialty. He loves turning around impossible circumstances." ~Tony Evans

Sightseeing

This was the delightful view from our back window Thursday evening.

Looking out the same window the next morning was this beautiful sundog.

Before dawn on Friday, between said rainbow events, Princess delivered her 11th calf. I thought about naming her Rainbow or Billie (short for Bilihkúppe, which is Crow Indian word for rainbow). But Princess can't stop licking her velvety black coat, so I dubbed her Velvet.

This afternoon we found Velvet wearing a new punk hairstyle. Her mama may have a few gray hairs, but she does keep up with the times. 

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"For we live by faith, not by sight." ~2 Corinthians 5:7 NIV

Meanwhile in Wyoming

Why don't cows, if they can help it, ever poop in the same place twice? This is the kind of inane question which springs to mind when one spends much of her spring either forking cow pies out of calving pens or harrowing pastures and hayfields. I use the term "spring" loosely; a couple of mornings ago, it was only 7° F, and snow is in the forecast. Again.

If you've always wanted to learn something about harrowing pastures, you're in luck. Here, I'm traversing a cowpie-packed field which we fed hay on last winter. Frozen manure, you'll notice when looking out the front window of the tractor, doesn't decompose. When the snow melts in almost-spring, our place is littered with the stuff.

I took this shot looking out the rear window. I'm dragging a 12' pasture harrow behind our 2640 John Deere. Not a clean window. Hopefully you can tell that the manure has been broken up and essentially smeared over the field, turning ugly brown mounds into environmentally-friendly fertilizer. Add some precipitation (hopefully rain, not snow) and voilá, we've got a happy hayfield which will green up fast if it ever gets warm. 

They say that the cherry blossoms are beautiful in Washington this week. At least it's spring somewhere.

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"You can't see Canada across Lake Erie, but you know it's there. It's the same with spring. You have to have faith, especially in Cleveland." ~Paul Fleischman 

(I've never been to Cleveland. It must be a lot like Wyoming.)

Instead of Bunnies

Easter greetings from our little corner of the planet--and from Cinnamon's calf, Ginger!

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"Easter is why we don't give up." ~David Jeremiah