Overlook
http://blog.rimrockenglishshepherds.com
Carol's Bio
Wyoming ranch woman, mother, breeder of English Shepherds, outdoor girl! Interests include: dogs, kids, photography, archaeology, crafts, reading, and a zillion other things! Proud to be on a Wyoming Centennial Ranch... 100 years in the same family! Check out my main website at www.rimrockenglishshepherds.com.Syndicate
Overlook
Remember the Mills Place?
Thanksgiving 2008, this is what the kitchen looked like. Avocado green metal cabinets. A dishwasher you couldn't open all the way because it banged into the stove. Laminate stuff on the walls. Not airy. Not full of light. We meant to change that!
Destruction was relatively easy. They put 1/2 inch of plaster ON TOP of the sheetrock. Don't ask me why. But it was a messy job.
Then one night... it was OPEN!
Then came clean new sheetrock and hickory cabinets. And bar logs. Which have their own stories starting here.
But then the boys got an idea this past Thanksgiving... They thought that the post on the end of the bar would look strange all alone. It needed a friend. And something to hold them together. So. Voila!
The bar logs were installed. The widened doorway received this new look. Look closely at the cross piece. A little woodburning on my part produced The Watcher and Red Butte.
Here's a closeup of The Watcher.
Here's the Red Butte.
The "before" picture of the dining room side of the bar...
The "after" picture.
And to the right... the dining side crosspiece has its own design...
The closeup. A cowboy and his dog following a lost pair home...
Believe me, these photos don't do it justice! It is beyond cool. A little trim with used ropes, and it'll be finished. You haven't even SEEN the bar logs either! But that's another story! I think we achieved our goal. The kitchen is light and airy and full of cabinets. I LOVE IT!
First Walk
I took my first walk with my dogs this afternoon...
LONG overdue...
My first of 2010...
My first since Christmas...
My first for waaaaaaa-aaaaay too long!
Can you see Elsa's impatience and Boomer's passive indulgence?
But more, can you see Dally's LOVE?
(Lucas is already in the trees ahead)
How about now???
Oh, and, yes, Elsa does love me too!
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Soon I'll be getting everyone up to speed on the puppies' new lives...
and see what's happening around the Mills place...
and it'll be calving season before we know it...
Plus I'll show off my new camera!
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Life goes on...
Thanks again for all of your condolences, it has meant so much to me.
We created a power point presentation for the funeral accompanied by one of Mom's favorite songs... if you're interested, it is this one, sung by Alan Jackson... My grandparents sang in a gospel quartet long ago in Oklahoma, on occasion, my mom sang too... Old time four part harmony gospel was her first love... and I played a lot for her in those last days. It brought her comfort, I hope it brings you my heartfelt thanks.
Journey
I've returned.
This journey was a difficult one, and I thank all of you who wrote, sent best wishes, and prayed for my mother and I. I found it inspiring and amazing that this little blog, set in the middle of nowhere, could receive the generous amount of good hearted wishes it did.
When I visited in early November, Mom complained of a slightly sore rib, and wondered how she'd pulled a muscle, as she hadn't done any garden work lately! After Thanksgiving, she was diagnosed with cancer throughout her body. By Christmas, there was only slim hope left, but she tried one shot at chemotherapy. January was the hardest, watching her lose weight and energy. Her younger sister and baby brother showed up Saturday, the 23rd, and she whispered her goodbyes to them. She lingered until early Friday morning, when I awoke at 1:45 am, and couldn't hear her breathing. She died January 29th.
Her funeral was February 3rd, and she would have liked it. She had planned most of it years ago, written her obituary, and set up legal details to help us kids as Daddy had set up details for her so many years ago. She was an efficient, hard-working, virtuous woman.
This photo will become a treasure for me... the last three generation photo we took last April.
So I am absent my friend... my instructor... my mentor... my inspiration.
If we all could meet Death with the Grace and Faith she did, we'd live in a better world.
Dorotha Geraldine (Jerri) Underwood Burton
July 9, 1931 - January 29, 2010
Thanks, Mom, for Everything.
Fly Away.
Blessings to You
I hope the next few days are filled with family and friends...
joy and patience...
long hugs and sweet kisses...
the touch of a gentle hand...
laughter...
love...
I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas.
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For you, my friends, I have to let you know...
this may be my last blog for a bit.
My mother, my friend, has just been diagnosed with a serious illness and I need to be by her side. Internet access will be the last of my worries... if I can, I'll write... otherwise, please know that at some point I will return... to the ranch that lets me breathe, the wide open spaces that nurture my soul, the wind and the snow that shift daily this time of year, the dogs and people that cheer me through life's hardest times...
I'll think of you... I hope you won't forget about me.
Go hug your mother.
So Long, Sadie!
Well, although little bitty Sadie will continue to grace my house for the next few days...
She's no longer my pup.
Sadie gets to go to live with Matt Davis in Kaycee, Wyoming. I know, without a doubt, I'll see Sadie frequently as she grows and ages. That will be a joy, seeing one of my pups actually develop beyond puppyhood, IN PERSON.
Perhaps I should explain that next July, Matt is also becoming a permanent part of MY family.
My daughter, Victoria, will change her last name to Davis, and Sadie will officially have two "parents".
Sadie joins the not-so-small-miniature Aussie, Jazz, to compete for attention from the happy couple. On occasion, she'll probably get to move a cow or two with either a sister, father, or mother to help her learn the ropes. She'll get to be spoiled, and made over... and soon win over the town of Kaycee even further, since brothers Joe Henry/Buckshot and Raider from my last litter also live there!
So long, Sadie... see you soon!
Enjoyable to Me
Chisum's curiosity could have got him in DEEP TROUBLE and the SHOCK of his little life...
But thankfully, the electric fence isn't turned on this time of year! Believe me, I would have been yelling instead of taking his picture! A split second later, his wet nose was ON the insulator and fence wire. It just goes to show how English Shepherds need to check out their environment and know what is what... so that maintaining order can be carried out!
I spent the shortest day of the year applying polyurethane to some special sticks and painting trim at the Mills place. Pretty boring to you... enjoyable to me... I may just have to reveal some of the big surprise soon since it'll be a large post if I don't break it up...
Then There Were Six...
I had three pups leave today...
Toffee goes to Arizona with Ginny and Tom Baker. Ginny says her cows regularly put them on the fence and she wanted an aggressive female. Toffee is that! Continually in dispute with brother Pate for Alpha position, Toffee is in the lead to do it all! She has great looks and I expect her to look much like Dally when she grows. I expect her to rule the roost and be in charge!
Bogie is off to Othello, Washington to join Shane Russell, his wife Sandy, and young son.
Shane wanted help with moving cattle, but a dog that'd go along in the tractor as well. Bogie can handle that life! Not as aggressive as the other males, Bogie is polite and observant, but far from being shy! He seems to watch what you do, and take his cues from you. Like most English Shepherds, his major focus will be his master.
Sprite is headed to Boise, Idaho to live with young Marin Stanger and her family. Marin wanted a companion to go running with as well as horseback riding and possibly joining in the fun of agility. Marin has her parents and siblings to keep Sprite busy as well! The Stangers have lived the past two years here in Ten Sleep and are sad to have to leave, but promise to come back and visit... perhaps with Sprite in tow!
The six remaining pups will leave after Christmas... so you'll get a few more pup photos before they leave!
I wish the best for the pups and their new owners...
Time to Let Go
Well, I ignored any other calls for help today and literally "focused" on the pups today... 196 photos later... I'm satisfied.
We went for a short walk over to the haystack...
full of deer and rabbit droppings and other exciting new smells...
tunnels...
and fencelines.
Then later a certain fat man came to visit...
Today is the last day for all nine to be here...
and...
I *think* I'm ready...
I *think* I'm ready...
I *think* I'm ready...
to let them go.
Besides, I can't hold them all anymore!
0.1538753 Seconds
First of all, here's the photo of the young golden eagle from yesterday. My camera was left in the car and I was too lazy to walk out in the cold and retrieve it last night.
I just hope he remains intimidated by all my dogs and the puppies don't resemble fat little bunnies...
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Today was spent working on the Mills place... I tell you, when the final photo is taken... you'll be so awestruck... you'll have to pick your jaw up off the floor! This project has taken on a different tone with the latest additions and I'm very impressed.
Don't worry, when we finish... you'll know!
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I have not been able to spend much time with the pups and I will regret that I'm sure. I haven't taken any photos for days. The first ones will leave Sunday and I'm just so upset that their time has come to leave and I am SO NOT READY TO LET THEM GO! Tomorrow, I hope to call in a friend to help... and take photo upon photo upon photo before Toffee, Sprite, and possibly Bogie, leave forever.
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This afternoon, we brought our 63 replacement heifers home from the Mills place. They have run out of grass up there, so now their new home is our school section.
Vernon dropped Dally and I off in a corner and I hiked back a few hundred yards. I looked at Dally and said, "Sit." Bam. Down went her rear end. I raised my camera. Took my time while focusing, then came the whisper "Swisss!".
Off like a shot...
That heifer had 0.1538753 seconds to figure out what the devil was headed her way!
Dally can leap medium sagebrush in a single bound...
And over the hill she goes... to join up with the main bunch out of sight. The smoke is a neighbor burning a brush pile... no worries...
Dally had one last chance to push up some stragglers... and she was basically done for the day. She remained back behind like a good girl, and she and I were relegated to the Durango for the slow ride back home. I was in front with my flashers on, while the boys cowboyed on the four wheelers.
Time moved slowly... and so did they... the boys would occasionally drive off the road and spin a few cookies in the snow to break the boredom. The sun sank lower and I finally abandoned them as they turned onto our road.
Tomorrow, I SWEAR, I HAVE TO TAKE PUPPY PHOTOS! and I will, I promise.