Cattle Drive

October 15th 2010

Lets start out with Jeremys famous line "I wonder whats going to happen THIS year...?" The only way to find out is to continue to read my post, but first lets go back to years past so you can fully understand the previous statement :) Way up the mtn: Julies mustang breaks the tree its tied to and bolts with the whole thing.... Last year: Sammi gets a log to the face, and a ride to insta care in cedar city for stitches. Year before: The semi truck FULL of cattle halfway tips over on the off ramp of the free way. Thanks to Dad and Jeremys PROFESSIONAL trailer backing we save all but one calf. Some year: Horse Lucky gets drug behind the horse trailer. One year before that: We loose horse Lucky for three days on the mtn. One time or Two: Sammi gets kicked in the shin/thigh goes home with some nasty looking bruises. Once or Twice: I am sure we all have been bucked off trampled or something of the sort.... Well I could continue on about stories of the past, but lets get to the one of the most recent......

We started our day out as normal up at five thirty to be ready by six, to be waiting on the sunlight. I drive dad and the crew over to the horses to get saddled as the sun is just thinking about coming up over the ridge. I drive back to the cabin with my instructions which are to get on the wheeler and hold the cows at the gate. Check. I can do that, or so I think... I get up to the gate and am "holding" the cows there and there is no one in sight for what seams like forever. Then chandler comes up on another wheeler and tells me the story, or what we know of the story by then...."Dad (Mr. Harr) got off his horse to tighten the cinch when he bolted, saddle slid under his belly and he was GONE they are all looking for the horse now. (dont forget we are on 700 acres of land here, and the horse has never been there before). So everything stops for about and hour or more while everyone is looking for this runaway horse and saddle besides me, who is still trying to "hold" fifty head of cows at the gate.... Jeremy find the horse with his amazing/crazy animal whisper ways but no saddle. We have an extra saddle so they saddle up the horse again and meanwhile Liesels horse acts up with her and goes up and over backwards! She the clever/smart girl she is bails but is up before her horse has a chance to get out from under her. So.... finally almost two hours later we are now all settled we have found the original saddle with a few minor broken straps and are ready to proceed with the cattle drive. Although, while this commotion was going on over there over where I was at, the cows were escaping my "hold." I was FREAKING out on our handy dandy walky-talkies, but NOONE seemed to hear. So they spend another 20 minutes gathering up the cows that I had lost or that had ran away from my grasps :) Moral of the story is everything worked out just fine! We lost a couple hours day light, but still managed to get the cows to the bottom and in the trailers before pitch dark. Now thats what I call cowboys!

Not much commotion when on during the day other than Duke being charged by the cows, hence why he rode the wheeler with me parts of the way. The kiddos couldnt get enough of ridding Jers horse which in return couldnt make him any happier. Colten got sick and slept most of the way off, I jumped a lot of fences (like a pro) to run down misbehavin cows. Also, the weather was PERFECT! We could not have asked for a better sunnier day. Years past I remember being a popsicle all day, wearing layer after layer. But this year, ultimate bliss....

We may have came home with some dirt on our faces, a little mud on our boots, or a tear in our jeans but the best part of it all was the memories we will smile about for years to come :)

Captain Sir!

I cant believe I never posted anything about my papa in the last month. September my daddio Sam took the Captain test here for St George Fire Captain. He has spent numerous hours studying and working towards this goal. He had Jeremy and Leslie help him write a resume and practice his interview questions. (Jeremy and Leslie just went through this whole interview process with Jer for the Life Flight that is coming to STG) I remember him coming home all annoyed after the test because he felt he did poorly. Apparently on the written exam there was a lot of grammar questions he didn't really prepare for and they had to write aletter response to a mock complaining citizen which he did not have enough time to finish completely. So, needless to say he was a little bugged that he spent all the time prepping to feel he fell short. A few weeks later however Jan and Sam went to go pick up his "declining" letter for captain as dad said. He left Jan in the truck while he was just running in to pick it up, he wanted to pout in private :) Little did papa know while he was in there Chief Stoker saw mom and hinted to her that Dad GOT CAPTAIN!!!! So Jan goes inside and makes him open it. I remember getting the call at IFA from Dad saying I got it, I am Captain! I could hear the smile in his voice! Even to top it all off that he made it he was the highest scorer on the written section! Way to go PAPA!!

I wanted to get something for him to say congrats, and of course the thing that came to mind was a pumpkin pie. Little did I know that they are hard to come by middle of september. I ran into wal-mart and they had NONE. So I drive back into town to albertsons, to find one that is like 5 inches big and disgusting looking. Soooo, I then drive to harmons and they have ONE left, but kicker is its like an 8 inch and it was priced liked a block of gold. But of course my daddy is worth it! Later I then learned that Costco is the place to go. For 6 bucks the have like a 10 inch pie and they always look perfect. So, you learned two things outta this post Costco is where you buy pies, and my awesome dad is CAPTAIN!!!!!

Shingles!!!

Overview

Shingles (herpes zoster) is a painful, blistering skin rash due to the varicella-zoster virus, the virus that causes chickenpox.

Symptoms

The first symptom is usually one-sided pain, tingling, or burning. The pain and burning may be severe and is usually present before any rash appears.

Red patches on the skin, followed by small blisters, form in most people.

• The blisters break, forming small ulcers that begin to dry and form crusts. The crusts fall off in 2 to 3 weeks. Scarring is rare.
• The rash usually involves a narrow area from the spine around to the front of the belly area or chest.

Causes

After you get chickenpox, the virus remains inactive (becomes dormant) in certain nerves in the body. Shingles occurs after the virus becomes active again in these nerves years later.

The reason the virus suddenly become active again is not clear. Often only one attack occurs.

Shingles may develop in any age group, but you are more likely to develop the condition if:

• You are older than 60
• You had chickenpox before age 1
• Your immune system is weakened by medications or disease

If an adult or child has direct contact with the shingles rash on someone and has not had chickenpox as a child or a chickenpox vaccine, they can develop chickenpox, rather than shingles.

Yikes!!!! Its not just an assumption now, its a fact that I am indeed an old lady. First we just thought sitting at home alone, watching sappy love movies was proof enough. Little did we know more proof was on its way. Last week I started having pains in my right chest/shoulder area. Thinking that I must have had pulled a muscle or something didnt think much of it until, it started aching in my back/shoulder area as well. A few days later I was mentioning it to my sister in law and she caught that it sounded a lot like what her sister recently had, shingles. Indeed, the next morning I broke out with the rash. I made a doctors appointment and when the nurse asked me why they were seeing me today, I said because I believe I have shingles. He looked at me like I was the dumbest person alive. He asked me why I believe that and I said because I have been having the pain and this morning I broke out with this, as I showed him my underarm. He looked at me again, saying yeah looks like you do. The doctor also agreed and gave me some super good pain meds and a antiviral. Every day it seams to get a bit worse, more rashes and bigger blisters. I hate waring my bra or a shirt that touches my underarm. I was told I would be lucky if this would all be over in a weeks time... so I am sayin my prayers it will be over super fast. The photos on google are so disgusting so I did not post one, mine is not THAT bad at least yet. Well next on my old lady check list is to get some cats!

Two Post in one day?!?

IN THE MOMENT:

I cant decided to be annoyed right now or happy. Really?! I know, I have been asking myself that same question like a million times in the past FOREVER (or so it seams). Another question I am asking myself is.. is it real this time? But then I just shake my head and think "what the hell am I thinking?" You should all know the song by Brad Paisley "waiting on a woman"... well reverse it, and bingo, you guess it STORY OF MY LIFE. I made in a list (in my head) of all the men I have waited on, one time or another in my life. Trust me I have had more than my share (or so I think). Apparently you can guess I am thinking that waiting on men has defiantly NOT been worth it (so far anyways, I do have some kind of hope). I am putting it all on black, that one day it will ALL be worth it. All of this 'misery' (one day I will laugh I am sure, but today is not that day) I have been going through will be worth it. Worth it when I finally (I know my mere 22 years) FINALLY have 'that' someone. That someone that you can tease knowing your going to get teased right back. That someone you can flirt or argue with. That someone you can laugh with, or sit in complete silence with. That someone that will lift you up when down, comfort you when you feel alone. That someone that lets you cry on their shoulder with out getting mad you leave a wet spot from tears. That someone who completely understands you with out saying a single word. That someone who looks forward to the end of a work day so that they can see YOU. That someone you can complain about when everything is not going 'just right'. That someone that you can argue with about all those simple 'nothing' about life. That someone you can cuddle with any time you want. That someone that will tickle you till you cry or pee your pants :). That someone you can surprise with tickets to that special advent you can share together. That someone who will just drive across town to see your pretty face. That someone who knows what your about to say before you even speak it. That someone who looks at you and says "I will love you forever and always". That someone that looks past your faults and still chooses you to spend eternity with. That someone who can handle family dinners, parties and holidays, and makes you feel just as apart of his family. That someone who most importantly you chose to go to the celestial kingdom with and have your happily ever after.

Its pretty obvious how I am feeling "in this moment". But just so all you bloggers out there know, I am finally finding some comfort in this "tragedy" by turning to the Lord. Who actually knew if you pray you get some kind of answer. Not the preferred answer I really wanted, but an answer nonetheless. A real answer that has and will help me get over this "hump" in my life. I told my sister in law the other day (in a frustration with boys) that "its not like I feel old and need to be married, in fact it only bothers me because everything, I mean EVERYTHING we do is in couples or pairs. Hell, I cant even go to lagoon with out needing someone with me to ride the rides." As I tried to hold back my tears of overwhelming despair I actually thought about it (miracle, I know). I thought about taking just anyone to lagoon with me, but then it wouldnt necessary be better than going alone you see, because you have to have that "right" somebody with you to make the rides fun. (relating to life:) Being with someone just to have someone is not better than the (LONG, DREADFUL) wait for the "right" someone. (point:) Even though I feel desperate at the "moment", I have to wait for these men (waiting on a man) to figure their shiz out. I have to wait because I know that the joy of having that RIGHT somebody will utterly be worth it all. I can honestly say I know the "wait" will be worth it (I hope haha) because I have FAITH. And that is all you need.

wishin..and hopin..and thinking..and prayin

I am wishing for:

A happy ending to my book

good dreams that make me never wanna wake up

warm weather to stick around a bit longer (I am still tryin to get a tan!)

summer rain showers to play in fully clothed

laundry to miraculously be cleaned and back in my closet

Boys to stop playin games with my head

someone else to wash my dog so he doesn't smell bad anymore!

my hair to grow back long over night!

I am hoping for:

good food in the pantry

a few certain "someones" to call me

a wonderful productive day/night of crafts

this smile on my face to never leave

courage to face all that is and will be thrown my way

FAITH

some miraculous miracle in my life

a plan

I am thinking:

I could sure loose a few pounds..

man, that boy is hott!

I need more hours in the day

that my "to do" list never seams to get any shorter even though I check things off constantly!

I need to get my act together

Christmas!!!!

Thanksgiving!!!!

I could sure loose a few more pounds ha

I am ready for that "change" in my life

I should really document my life more diligently

I need to be a better friend to others

I could do more service

and Praying for:

Safety for all of our loved ones

Blessings to make me understand how truly blessed I already am

Strength, courage and determination to do the things I know I need to do

help to stand strong in times of trial

the ability to be the bigger person at times

Faith in myself and others

A better outlook on all things

And I am praying for YOU! Yes you, even if we have been friends for only a little while, or only close while we were in school, or if your in my family by choice or birth. You, even if I dont "know" you, I am praying for you. For your health, safety and families, for your kindness you do to me and/or others. I cannot believe the impact we have on each others lives for the good or bad. Whether you have impacted me directly or indirectly it has indeed made and impact. Keep faith in all things and remember there is no deed too big or too small. Just turn that frown upside down and turn it into a SMILE!

Photos of Scotland

I am not going to even write anything about these photos, and surprisingly enough thats not even all the good ones! Pictures are worth 1,000 words.

Saturday

So here we are on our “final” day. We woke up and had breakfast at 8:00, were driving out of our parking lot at 8:30 turning back and waving at our hostess and her dog. We have about 6 more hours of driving to Glasgow to catch our flight to London, were we will spend the night and fly back to the states in the morning. We made a few stops at some more craft shows, none as good as the one we hit the other day, but still interesting. We made it to Fort Williams, this is a bigger city, with SHOPPING! I was worried the whole trip that I would not find any souvenirs or a bag to bring them all home in. But thankfully for Fort Williams. We spent a few hours here walking down the rows of shops, lots of shops! I think we have done well on our purchases. We all sort of went our own ways, taking our own time the stores we wanted. It was so nice not felling rushed by my brothers when I wanted to shop. Who knew I would love a shopping experience this much, not I that’s for sure. Then back in the car we went, we stopped and ate lunch right out of Fort Williams at a Bar & Restaurant. I should know by now with my travels not to order lasagna but I did anyways. It was not that great, it was however better then the one I had in Rome though. Lol well, windy wet roads and a few hours later we make it to our destination. The Paisley Glasgow Airport (Paisley can you believe it, I wanted to get out and take a picture, but I didn’t). We found where to return our rental car very easily thanks to Cassidy’s step by step directions on his I-phone. Then all three of us sitting in the parking lot, trying to get all of our newly purchased souvenirs into our bags. One good thing about these airports they have trolleys for FREE. So we snatched one up and pushed all our luggage into check in. We had to sit for a while because there was no one at the baggage counter. We could check in automatically then sat and waited to send our bags off. Once we came through to the gates, it was like a whole mall there. There was all kind of stores to wander and look, too bad I am out of money there was some cute things. I never did find my postcards that I wanted though, I saw them once in Edinburgh then never again. I am so sad, they were handsome young men wearing only kilts, some even the wind had came and blew part of the them up! They were the best, that will teach me to not buy something when I see it right! We eventually made it to our gate to wait a few hours ( who knew we had gotten here so early!). Our flight was about 1 hour to London, then catch a bus to our hotel, were we camped out for our final night abroad. (I am not as sad as I should be, I am ready to come home, but as soon as I get back to work and life, I will be ready for another adventure soon enough) I am out of money, clothes, socks, patients, and strength to carry my luggage any further! I am stick of food I don’t like, and am ready for a really good meal when I get home. Like a nice twice baked potato, a pepperoni and pineapple pizza from Pizza Factory, or even a bowl of Fruit Loops would do the trick! I am also sick of these crazy windy roads, and Cassidys driving, I don’t prefer the one lane roads, or the cold weather. However, I will miss all the Scottish accents, and eating all our meals in a bar. I will miss asking for tap water with ice and drinking loads of hot chocolate! I will miss all the green scenery and all the waterfalls flowing off the cliffs. I will also miss the plaid, its everywhere. (I think I need to find plaid paper to wrap my Christmas gifts in this year) Also, cant forget about all the fields and fields of sheep and cows, but mostly I will miss the hairy highland cows. I only got to see a few, but one day, I will take one home with me! The bus dropped us off right in front of our hotel! Makes it easier on us with all of our heavy luggage. They have free wi-fi on the main floor but you need a password to use it on your own computer for free for one hour. I asked twice how to log on but it was useless. So, I just logged onto theirs so there for no blog update until I get internet next. Wish us luck sleeping in the same room one last night, did I mention there is a huge bed in this room and is super comfy!!