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My name is Linda Brown. I live on a farm on the western slope of Colorado, in the high mountain desert. I’ve lived here all my life, hailing back four generations on my father’s side. Today I blog about our farm, the everyday activities that keep the farm going. I also write about my thoughts and dreams and goals. On Friday’s I always write about TLC Cai-Cai. Our sweet kitty who helps keep the farm safe. And Boo Berry Betty, a breeder dog learning to be a Farm Dog! The lovely thing about blogging it opens the world up for all of us to reach out and meet people from many different cultures and different ways of life. You can find me every day (but Saturday) at https://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com/ Your Friend on a Western Colorado Farm, Linda Brown

On a Visit —May 11, 2014

We have been invited to go with the kids to Craig, Colorado today.

We will leave just after irrigation is done! Shannon and Jasen will take care of our late morning and early afternoon irrigation sets.  We will be back for the last irrigation of the day.  Terry has the water in the short rows by our house so it’s easy to set and change!  No running clear up to the back forty or swing around to the upper end or any of the middle fields. Easy Peasy.

The kids want to  visit the town, look at some houses they are interested in, show Terry and I the schools, in general get a feel for their soon to be new area of living.Hook

Saturday the crocodiles tried to eat Captain Hook….of course, Peter Pan and Tinkle Bell saved him, but still…crocodiles are pretty intense when they are after you!

Have a nice Mother’s Day everyone!

Linda

The Adventures of Fuzzy and Boomer on Friday—Priceless

StunningEvery night….

Every single twilight…

Twice a day….

Morning and evening…

Sometimes more…

walking-water

The always chore…

We head to the fields

Never leaving…

Always checking, moving and starting…

Picking up….

Filling…

Laying down….

Moving on…

Still-going-strongFuzzy rides…

Supervise…

Making sure it’s all done right.

OffBoomer stays…

Then gets bored…

five

Heads off for news…

Forgets to hear…

The call to come…

“We are heading home”…

When he does…

Coming!!!!The speed is great…. “

Wait for me, Mom!”….

Almost-backSHREEEEEEEEEEECH…

Boomer applies the brake!

Head-gate-cleaningWe’ve been really cold here.  Fuzzy has even had us sleeping inside.  THAT WORKS FOR ME!!!  It’s so cold Mom and Dad still wear their winter gear and so do Fuzzy and I. (To be honest with you I dread that shedding, panting hot weather, but Mom says she is ready for so warmth. 🙂 )

Sun-redLast night the sunset was stunning.  Mom was even late following Dad in because she had to hang on the ditch bank taking shots of the setting of the sun!  It was really cool.

But she CALLED me back and I came FAST, then we just sat there for-ever so long…geez.  Finally after about an eternity she took off and we zoomed home.

my-fuzMom doesn’t really go fast ‘cause Fuzzy would fall off.  Fuzzy’s balance isn’t very good anymore and he LOVES to stand up the whole way.  I’ve told him to sit down and hunker, but he just gives me a dirty look.  “I’ll stand until the day I die” he growls at me.

Shish….okay, Fuzzy.  Just say’n.

WOW-WOW

So after three eternities, when I could have been out there getting news, Mom finally drove in and brought us inside for the night.

Inside to sleep when it’s cold outside…heaven! (I like being outside when it’s warmer, but not now)

Inside to sleep with a dog treat!  PRICELESS!!!

Boomer

Good Fences and Gates

The Run *A* Round Ranch hosts a Thursday “Good Fences and Gates” , which I have found is a lot of fun.   If you would like to see The Run *A* Round Ranches cool fences swathed in Texas bluebonnets go here.  While you are visiting click on the others sites to see even more fun fences…fences from around the world.

Then take some photos of your fences and gates, and the fences and gates around your community and join the fun.

For my contribution I give you

gate-4

The Electric fence and the electric fence gate.  We have lots and lots of these all over our farm.  The twine is to warn you there is a strand of hot wire going across the road ….so STOP!

More than once I’ve seen a wagging dog tail get shocked.  It only takes once!  After that the tail is lowered way down to the ground as the dog cheerfully trots on to the next new smell or adventure.

Don’t forget….head over here to add your fences and gates to the list!

Your friend,

Linda

Want’a See? —- May 7, 2014

Want to see what Seventy burning candles look like on a cake?  🙂

(Blade said the heat was very hot on his face. 🙂 )

70-candlesThe grandchildren insisted we have seventy fully lit candles for Grandpa.  It took a lot of fast starting of candles and a VERY slow walk for Bladen to bring the cake into for Grandpa to blow all of them out.

Linky thought she better bring a spray bottle of water, because she was just SURE Grandpa couldn’t blow ALL THOSE OUT AT ONCE!!!

CandlesBut he Did!

Tally grabbed Grandpa and looked him in the eye and said, (very seriously) “I knew you could do it, Grandpa.”   The faith of a child.

Pink3We have finally gotten all the corn ground wet and are watering the alfalfa for the second time this year.  Next we will start on the pinto bean ground.

Terry should start marking it out either today or tomorrow.

After the ground is totally soaked, we wait a week for it to dry down, then Terry will got in plant.  This is called wet planting.

There are two kinds of planting…dry and wet.  In dry planting you get the ground ready and plant the seed, then you water the seed up.  We like the wet planting, since the ground is already wet the seed starts to sprout immediately. Weeds are easier to manage, because the planter ‘weeds’ as the seeds are planted.  We are in for ease. 🙂

The word from the Ditch Company is the reservoirs are completely ice free and rising quickly. (Except for Taylor Park) The water level at Blue Mesa Reservoir has risen 16 feet in the last few weeks and is expected to fill within 5 feet of the reservoir top! WHOO HOO!!

Although, we are not not drought stricken this year, we will continue, as we always have, to practice good water management.  But not having to really worry about the water is —well—nice!

Thanks for stopping by. It’s always good to have a visit with friends.

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

Heartfelt Thanks—-May 6, 2014

My heart and soul is extremely humbled and ever so grateful for all the wonderful, kind, understand and encouraging thoughts over my last post.

oh-oh-la-la

Each of you have brought tears to my eyes because of your strength, love and understanding. Each of you have given me even more hope and determination to keep the strength and love of our families as the fore-front of these new far reaching lives!

You are truly my friend as I hope I am yours!

Linda

Away—–Going Away—May 5, 2014

Terry’s celebration was really nice…all our children and their mates and our three grandchildren came and ate and played games!

We also learned that the father of our Grandchildren has been selected to be the new principal at Craig, Colorado.

Craig is three hours away from us.  Do I laugh with joy or cry with sadness?

Bladen McCormick 2-26-2012

Bladen will be in the Seventh Grade next year–a year of huge changes for him.

Going-homeNo more just running across the field (they are heading home in this photo)to see what we are doing, or to get a snack, or to catch a ride with Grandpa.

Friends-for-lifeNo more randomness.

We will work hard to keep them close….as time permits we will travel there to be with them.  We will bring them home with us, if they want to come, and their new lives will let them.

It’s all too special to let slip away.  It is also selfish of us to ask them to not go.  We are very proud of Kelly, please understand that, it is the leaving that makes Terry and I sad.

Now our hope is that they will be able to return sometime in the future. I hope this isn’t being a selfish hope! We will work hard to leave it up to what is best for all of them.

Still…I do think you understand.

You also know that time has a way of making everything right.  My Momma would always say—‘everything works out for the best–if you will let it.’

So we will let it.

When our son was born, my parents also moved up by Craig, Colorado—they moved to Hayden.  Daddy had gotten a job with Colorado Ute (now called Tri-State).  So it is, with a touch of irony, that my youngest daughter and our son-in-law, and grandchildren are moving back.  Life really does have some odd little jogs and jags in it, doesn’t it?

Rainbow-and-truck (Don’t forget you might have to remind of this—that life always works out for the best.)

Sigh,

Linda

Seventy—May 4, 2014

On Friday, May 2nd, Terry turned 70!  I hope I am as active and energetic and able to work as hard as my Dear Husband does everyday….still!

Today, I’m having our kids and their families over for a Sunday dinner celebration.  We had to wait for everyone to be off work.

Happy Birthday, Hubby!

I found this cool little saying:

“Seventy is wormwood,

Seventy is gall

But its better to be seventy,

Than not

Alive at all.”–Phyllis McGinley

Terry and I

Your farming friends!

Terry and Linda

The Adventures of Fuzzy and Boomer on Friday—Welcome Back

Welcome Back by John Sebastian –

Welcome Back

Your dreams were your ticket out.

Welcome back,

To that same old place that you laughed about.

Well the names have all changed since you hung around,

But those dreams have remained and they’re turned around.

Who’d have thought they’d lead ya (Who’d have thought they’d lead ya)

Here where we need ya (Here where we need ya)

Yeah we tease him a lot cause we’ve got him on the spot, welcome back,

Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back.

source: http://www.lyricsondemand.com/

First-3Mom was so excited!!!  Our very first little Hummingbird is home!

SleepingBoomer and I were just hanging out—resting.

We are pretty good at this resting thing—

Resting

In the house

Sleeping 1Outside—Boomer is just like Snoopy on Charlie Brown, he loves to sleep on TOP of the dog houses, sometimes he likes to HANG out!

But this time we were just resting as Mom weeded in the yard.

First-of-the-season-!

As Mom weeded and we slept our very FIRST little hummingbird arrived at the feeder!

Mom was over joyed to see the little thing!

“Welcome Back, little Friend!  Welcome Back!”  she whispered!

Sleeping 9Boomer just opened an eye and looked then went right back to resting.

Fuzzy Waiting

I sat up and looked at Mom…I’m always happy when Mom is happy!  Then I moved over to a better spot to rest.

Welcome back, little bird!

Fuzzy!

 

Good Fences and Gates — May 1, 2014

Happy First Day of May Everyone!!!!!

For my “Good Fences” post today I have the wonderful, exciting photo of this delightful, outstanding, just perfect for today’s post of a fence and a Rainbow…I just love Rainbows!

I give you our corral fence………….

Fence-and-rainbowYippee!  How lucky am I and how lucky are you!  A Good Fence and a rainbow!

Sun-purpleMy white picket fence even looks blue in the evening light.  Another cool thing!

For more wonderful fences head over here.  Please join up…its really fun to see all the cool gates and fences from all over the place…yours will be just as appreciated as everyone else.

Your farming friend,

Linda

Nature’s Bling —- April 30, 2014

The wind is still with us…a very sharp wind, blowing across the snow freshly dumped in the mountains all around us.

We are COLD.  In my yard the asparagus has froze, the lilac buds have turned brown and dried on the stem, the fruit trees crisp white blooms are now a brown yucky color.  Out on the farm everything is still okay…the alfalfa is  cold but green, growing slowly, but still alive.  We are still irrigating, nothing has been planted so we have no worries in that department.

Rain-chutRain and snow occurred off and on all day

Rain-shootThe wind pushing storm clouds from the west toward us, then onto the east

Sun-in-the-RoubioucAt different points the sun shined into the Roubidoux Canyon allowing us to see the geological formations just four miles from our farm.

Feast6

The tri-colored Red-winged Blackbirds helped us while we changed water, searching for yummy things in the soil.

Waiting-in-the-setA hawk looking for super also, watched us while we changed the water, swaying gently in the wind on his tiny branch in the tree.  The tree is still waiting for warmth so it can leaf out…waiting, just like us.

Rain-bow-and-pipeSuddenly a rainbow lite up an culvert a neighbor has ready to insert across an arroyo on his land!

BlingWe worked on the water until dark, but even the dark offered Bling in the most spectacular of ways!

The Bling of Nature…really, who could ask for more?  Not I.  I am most comfortable here, on the land…really Terry and I try hard to one with the land and all that shares it with us!

Your farming friend,

Linda