Branding...among other things

This week's blog could go on forever, but I'll try to keep it reasonable!

Monday we had 2 extra girls here for the day, and Eden thought the playmates were great for a while, then was content to sit in her sandbox by herself for a spell. It went that way all day. Unfortunately, the pool in Bridgeport doesn't open until 1:00p (nap time) and the library is closed on Monday, so we had to settle for a spin in the sprinklers instead of an outing.

Al had meetings Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday evening. On Thursday, Eden went to a ball game with the Douthits and he and I went to a play in Scottsbluff called "Married Alive". As the title implies, the production dealt with married couples. Two couples, one newly wed, and one a little more seasoned. It was hilarious! Al & I were roaring with laughter. By far, the best play we've seen in Nebraska so far. I haven’t heard him laugh like that in a long time. It was good.

We also had fun in the sun before the storms came. Here, Eden is playing in the hose. Her little green duck doesn't stay full for very long, so she likes to steal my hose from the flower beds. She was definately in her glory for a while.









Friday, we took another trip to Scottsbluff, as our
camper was fixed (3 cheers for Butch!!) and needed to be picked up. Al got to drive an El Camino out of the barn for the owner. That was almost as funny as the play the night before.

Also on Friday, we went to Sonny's bike shop and got tip top service trying out new bikes. I have been putting off buying a new one, as my old was is 'just fine'. However, two weeks before we're set to go on a biking trip in Colorado, my brakes gave out completely. Since they've aleady been fixed twice, and I had a check in the mail from a 5 year CD, we decided to get a nice, reliable bike. So, Sonny got me fixed up with a "Giant" that is incredibly comfortable and definately a step up from my high school Huffy! In the one day that I’ve been able to ride it (unusually stormy here over the weekend), I have acquired two large, dark bruises, one on each inner thigh, from the metal water bottle holder Al had him put on. Hopefully, I’ll figure out how to dismount the bike w/o smashing into it before we go on vacation. They look brutal!

On Saturday, we got up and headed 25 miles into nowhere’s-ville for a branding session. It was 95 degrees with no shade but sand burrs and tumbleweed aplenty. Eden sat on my leg, holding on to the fence watching for hours. Samson barked at the cows, and Eden said, “Moo” over and over and over and…

The preacher jumped right in with his steel-toed boots and went to work. For a man who wouldn't stay in the room when his wife got an IV during labor, they let him have the two vaccination needle guns. Every time a calf was roped and pulled over to him, Al gave it two shots, while the rest of the ranchers held it down, snipped him, shaved him, sprayed him with alcohol, squired stuff in it’s nose, marked it with chalk, and freeze dried a brand on him. They had two teams of people, with two rope men on alternating horses working, so it went quicky. As quick as you can do 200 head in the blazing sun, anyway.

I’m glad we went, it was certainly a learning experience, but if I’m going to be out in that kind of heat again all day, I’d rather it be at an auction.

Roping a calf and dragging it to it's destination.

Al with the vaccinations

All in all, it was a fruitful week, and full of entertainment. Thanks to the Douthits' for babysitting, and the Cordes' for letting us 'help' in branding. Enjoy your week!

Little Joshua contines to grow!