Wheat Harvest 2011

July 22- August 1

~A season we very much look forward to...

~ A season we are very much relieved when accomplished.

~Part of the crew:

Cody Jones-aka "Ponchito de St. Cloud, MN", Lukas and our cousin David. Howard, Mary Kay, Mike, Levi and myself complete the workforce for this family farm operation.

This year's cool, wet Spring found us putting up second cutting of alfalfa during the last few days of wheat harvest. It was a bit crazy!

~Zippidee~Do~Dah~

Man, oh man...how time flies!

For example, 18 years were just a blink. Why, it was "just the other day" Lukas started Kindergarten and I cried mixed tears of excitement/worry...hoping we were sending him to school with the knowledge of ABC's and tools of scissors and glue.

And...now he's graduated from High School!

And...again I cry tears of excitement/worry..hoping he's equipped with the tools of faith, character and work ethic to tackle all that life might present.

Where did the time go?

Levi and David (a cousin who is like a brother) were his escorts at graduation.

After a year of waiting......

A Cheyenne business was hired (and paid well) to install a gas log fireplace. I believe many take advantage of our proximity by providing shoddy (was tempted to use a different word here) customer service. I'm still waiting for them to come out "next week" to finish the grout job and install a mantel. However, despite my irritation, I believe I ended up with something better thanks to Lukas's Woodshop teacher, Chris Cooper!

I just love how it turned out!!! and I can do the grout work myself. Let's see..February, March, April, May, June and now July...perhaps they meant next week??

Summer's Drumbeat....

~fences fixed, calves branded, turned out on pasture..

~stubble plowed, summer fallow x 2, first cutting of hay...

~wheat's turning, Combines readied, harvest next week....

Next week!!!

Summer is flying by

~Parting Shots~

~Prairie flowers from all our wonderful rains~


~The swallows of Romsa Farms~


~"Tuffy's" woodpile kittens~

~Our newest additions--"Cowboy" and "Roscoe"~

~My garden--so far just lettuce and radishes~

~Some evenings I get to indulge in one of my favorite pastimes~

~Phenom~

~Her 14th calf~

It's extremely rare for a beef cow to remain part of a productive herd for as long as #6 has been with our family. Despite her age, she still raises a calf that will weigh close to 600 lbs at weaning. Most cows get culled from our herd if they encounter calving problems ( c-sections, hard pulls, etc) or are behavioral problems. "Six" has lived a life free of the typical bovine demises of snake bite, hardware and mastitis. As the years have past, we have learned to always stop and say "hello" because she loves to be scratched and rubbed.

Her heifer from this year. We're going to have to keep as a replacement!

No Matter How Many Times....

I've been privy to several bovine births and I am still amazed by the miracle of life.

Within minutes this calf was up and nursing--all the while its mom "coo"moos and actively licks it off--keeping an eye on me and my camera.

Harbingers of a Wyoming Spring

Living at close to 6,000 feet above sea level my fellow friends and neighbors experience the turbulent weather transitions Mother Nature has up her sleeve: 70 degrees one day, 16 degrees the next with 8 inches of snow, and one can always count on the wind. When we make it through these ups and downs it's such a treat to bask in the glory of Wyoming's beautiful summer days.

~ We are in full swing of calving ~ ~The wheat has come out of winter dormancy~ ~The plow is ready to turn under last year's stubble~

~And Hank has muddy paws!~

The Final Chapter

For the Bronc Senior wrestlers the last three weeks went by all too fast.

The above photo is Coach Romsa with his Seniors: Lukas, Max Walbridge, and Shawn Cole

Carbon County Invite:Saratoga

The view of Elk Mountian on a "typical" winter day.

Regionals:Upton

Third place-160 lbs

State Tournament

Lukas was 2-2. We were all hoping for one more match to place for fifth or sixth. It wasn't to be. Lukas wrestled his best this weekend--so very proud of him especially when I consider his come back from ACL surgery as a Freshman and his C5 nerve injury last year.

Three Week Count Down

The wrestling weeks have marched along. What seemed like "a while to go" in November is quickly approaching. This coming weekend is a two day Tournament in Saratoga; the weekend after is Regionals in Upton; and then the grand finale of the State Tournament in Casper. It's hard to believe that Lukas is facing his final high school wrestling competitions. Once again I'm feeling those parental emotions that somewhere along the way I must have blinked.

Grady Mikesell, Trenton Culp and Lukas: winners at the East High JV Tournament

~ Lukas in action~

Merry Christmas

Moon Palace

Cancun, Mexico

December 16-24, 2010

This is our third time staying here. It's a rather large yet safe place. One gets a lot of bang for the buck at this all inclusive.

The beach.

The golf course.

A Nativity in the middle of the jungle.

The Christmas tree in the Nizuc side lobby.

The moon rising on December 21. Unfortunately, I missed the lunar eclipse.



Early our last morning, this woodpecker greeted us "good morning".








There were many weddings during our stay. The brides arrived in this beautiful carriage.
.


One morning we tried our athletic abilities at playing tennis. After we fed the crocodile two of the five balls we were given, we started to get the hang of it and enjoyed some good volleys!





An evening stroll.

Beach volleyball...

and soccer were great fun. We were adopted by team Mexico. Lukas is now Ponchito and Levi is Javier.






These guys love the heat.







The gulls would arrive when ever there were french fries or a pizza.


Daniel~ my Mexican son! I became "Ma-mee" for the week.



Fun times!

The Geico Gecko.

Every morning I would go for a walk and these little coatis became my friends. They are a type of jungle raccoon--and quite animated. A group of golfers had their camera stolen off the cart by these banditos.

A hibiscus blossom.

Establishing some pecking order.

A member of the Mexican Airforce.

My family informed me that they didn't want to do anything educational. So I signed up for the tour to the Mayan ruins at Coba. Yes!! I climbed up to the top. (We have seen Chichen Itza and Tulum.) The Mayan calendar ends in 2012 and the catch phrase now is to "celebrate life".

The view of the jungle once I made it to the top...

and the view to descend. The rope IS helpful!

Coba is considered the "bus station" between the sacbae(path) of Chichen Itza and Tulum. There are two ball courts where the competitors would practice before their "big" game in the large court at Chichen Itza.

The jungle's flora and fauna fascinate me and make me appreciate how we all learn to live within the climates we were born. This is a termite nest.

The nine days went by quickly.
We met people from Venezuela, India, Canada, Holland, the UK, and Laramie, Wyoming!

Now it's back to reality.