Goose, Dot and the Fox

We got the cutest baby chickens and ducks in March hoping we could again have fresh eggs. Izzy wanted a goose, but I think geese can be mean so I talked her into a duck. After doing some cursory research, I decided to let them have two ducks, so they wouldn't bond to my kids but each other. I could just see the nightmare THAT would create with separation anxiety every time my daughter left the house. We started with 10 chickens. I think they are Light Brahma, Giant Jerseys, New Hampshire Reds, Rhode Island Reds, and Amber Whites. I really wanted some Barred Rock but we were out of town when those became available. The ducks the kids picked out were a Cayuga and a Blue Swedish, I think.We kept them warm and dry in the living room long enough for them to get bigger and feathered and could regulate their own temperatures. We turned my old parrot cage into a makeshift nursery which worked pretty good and was fairly easy to clean. Unfortunately, there's absolutely nothing you can do about that smell. At first we had the ducks and chickens together until the chickens started picking (pecking?) on the ducks. Eventually we had to separate them until they got older. The kids figured out the ducks LOVED to swim in the sink from just a few days old. As they got bigger, they "graduated" to the bath tub.  I kept having those "this is your life" moments sitting and watching ducks swim in my tub and chickens waddle through the house. The things we do for our kids! It is truly unreal! What colorful stories they will have to tell their kids, though!

At the moment, I'm sitting in my lounge chair watching the horses and chickens free range. The chickens periodically come up and peck at my legs and shoes. I must look and smell tasty! This morning I let everybody out of their pasture and coop. When I went back inside I heard a horrible commotion out back and the ducks were squawking and squawking! I could tell something had gotten one because it was moving pretty fast around to the side of our house and up the hill. I ran out back but only saw the Cayuga, "Goose". I ran to the front of the house but couldn't see or hear anything. I saw the horses standing to attention watching something up the hill. I started to walk down the stairs and then had one of those flash thoughts, "I wonder if it was the fox or mountain lion"? I could see the fox at the top of the hill staring at me with Ike's duck, "Dot", hanging from his mouth. There was nothing I could do. It happened so fast! I woke Ike up to tell him the sad news. I needed his help to get the chickens back in their coop so we didn't have even more casualties to account for. Goose was in the pen carrying on and calling for Dot. I woke up Izzy so she could console Goose. When she picked her up she was still shaking. I feel so sorry for her! They've never been separated by more than just a few feet and she has been sad all day looking for her buddy. I think I'm going to have to find her a new companion. There's a thought. A pet for our duck!

Just now I came out and scared the fox off. He got an easy breakfast and figured he knew just where dinner was! Not tonight, Mr. Sly. I've got my eye, AND my paintball gun, on you!

Where the antelope roam

Mountain Lions

My goodness, has it been a long time since I blogged! I'm not exactly sure why that is; maybe a combination of lack of creativity, too much going on, not enough going on, sometimes I get tired of hearing myself talk, summer is chaotic, and I've had a string of not so fun or interesting things happen lately. With that note, I've got a lot to write about now. Or maybe I have all along but now I actually feel like writing about it. For whatever the reason, I am inspired at midnight on a Thursday night to tell you what happened just last week.

About midnight (does anything good happen at midnight?) I heard the mountain lion right outside our window pacing up and down the road screaming its head off. I woke hubby up, too. I'm not sure why, maybe because I was so freaked out or maybe it was because I wanted to see if he thought it was a mountain lion, too. We were told when we moved in a couple years ago that if we ever heard what sounded like a woman screaming outside our house NOT to go outside and investigate because it would be a mountain lion. Evidently, that is their mating call. I am SOOO glad J.D. gave us the heads up because that was the absolute most eerie thing I've ever heard. I recorded it but haven't figured out how to upload it. It went on for about 20 minutes and echoed up and down our canyon. I opened the front door and stood with just the screen door between me and possible death and shook until I had thoroughly erased all chances of sleep that night, but I got it on audio, by George! MacGyver rolled over and went right back to sleep. Nerves of steel, I tell you, but not before telling me he was glad I woke him up because he wouldn't have believed me, otherwise. What? Thanks for the confidence, bubba! The kiddos were upset I didn't wake them but there was a good reason, which I will divulge another time. But I did promise to wake them if I ever heard it again. I'll have to warm up some milk and bake some cookies if I do, because there aint no way those puppies are ever going back to sleep after that, either! I know! Bad grammar! But this girl is NOT joking. That is the spookiest sound I have EVER heard.

It reminds me of the time we were camping in our camper up in Pike National Forest. MacGyver was at work and my mom had come up to camp with us for my birthday. We made dinner and played some cards and when it got late we snuggled down to get ready for bed. About that time Maggie started growling at the door and we heard what sounded like a mountain lion outside our camper. Boy I have never been more excited to have four solid walls in my life! Anyway, the more Maggie growled, the more freaked out the kiddos got. I think we all got the willies pretty bad. I finally decided to take Maggie and our gun outside and shoot it off. The idea was to make the kids feel better because the gun shot would scare away the mountain lion. I have to admit it actually worked. It made me feel better, too. That was just one time when I had to put my "Big Girl Panties" on, as I like to call it, and muster up the courage to do what it took to make those kiddos feel safer, if not truly safer. There were more "Big Girl Panty" moments still to come, but this was one of the more memorable ones.

Happy Anniversary To Us

Well, it was my anniversary, but unfortunately before knowing the date, I committed the kids and I to show sheep with our 4H club at the Colorado State Fair. So, 5 girls and Ian loaded up a bunch of sheep in the back of the truck, hauled them to the trailer, loaded them into the trailer and drove down to Pueblo. We then transferred them to their pens at the fair. Boy was that some fun! None of them were halter trained so we man handled them all the way into the fair. We got some weird cross-ways glances the whole way in!

Hauling Hay

Izzy hauling water

Ike & Dixie hauling water

Kelly & Izzy feeding Dudley

Waiting & waiting for the show to start

And waiting

Kelly, Ian, Shelby & Izzy taking Douglas for his winning picture

Kelly & Sundance posing for the winning photo

I finally was able to kiss and hug Mac and tell him Happy Anniversary at about 11:48 PM, with 12 minutes to spare! We learned a lot about showing sheep, finally were able to go to the state fair, and had a good time with our 4H peeps!

Animals, Animals Everywhere!

My chocolate lab, Molli, broke into their kennel/coop area and attacked our nicest chicken, Melanie. When we got to her she was still alive but her wings were broken and she couldn't stand up or move. I'm guessing her back was broken, too. The other chickens and the kids were beside themselves! I sent the kiddos inside, and grabbed my leather gloves. I had to put my big girl panties on and do the dirty deed since Mac wasn’t around to do it. The kiddos were so traumatized, as was I! I kept thinking, “These are the hands of a murderer!” We buried her under some trees and they cried and cried. It was pretty sad. They were ready to shoot Molli. Ian helped me fix their coop back up and now all is well at the Cooper Cabin again. Now we’re down to 3 chickens. They aren’t laying as many eggs as they used to. Unfortunately, Melanie was one of our best layers. I’m trying a few new things to see if we can remedy that.

We had a bear break into our pump house. That’s where we keep the horses’ feed and our garbage, too. When I went out that morning to feed the horses there were 6 bags of garbage strewn up and down our road and even up the side of the mountain! That was fun! I don’t think any of us ate much after that! I had hoped our webcams picked him up but the computer went down and didn’t pick up anything that night. So far all we’ve picked up is birds, birds, more birds, and some elk. Our neighbor picked up a mountain lion on his webcam. He walked up on his front porch! Can you believe it?


The DOW officer stopped by last week to let me know we have a mountain lion hanging out in the trees at the top of our pasture! He’s collared and they stop by all the places he hangs out if he spends more than a few hours there. Evidently, he’s been bedding down less than 100 yards from our cabin. YIKES! I’ve been walking a mile or two every morning and most evenings (when it isn’t storming). I have philosophical debates with myself every morning. It goes something like this… ”Is it better to know where your enemy is and be scared of that specific area, or not know specifically where he is but know he is probably somewhere around you?” I still don’t know the answer to that, but l’ll let you know if I come to some conclusion. Often my thoughts are influenced by tracks I see, or Maggie’s countenance, or when she alerts on something up the side of the mountain. Shudder. Regardless, I carry Mac’s awkwardly huge and heavy pistol when I’m out walking. As you can imagine, it goes a long way in making me feel safer. 

Mac and I went looking for me a new pistol once. The salesman asked what I was looking for. I told him a mountain lion gun and possibly one I could carry concealed. He said, “Ma’am, you’re talking about two different guns!” I had to laugh. He thinks I need a .40 for the mountain lion and a .9 or for concealed carry. We never did replace my old one that broke but I think I finally figured out what I want. I really don’t like how awkward I feel carrying a gun around, though. But I don’t think I’d like how awkward I’d feel if I didn’t carry it around and needed it. We both took the concealed carry class but I don’t think I’d ever conceal carry. So much responsibility! I’d just rather open carry! Mac had some guy we didn’t know coming up to the cabin to look at a ladder rack for his truck we were selling. I told him, I didn’t mind as long as he didn’t mind me having a big ‘ole .9 mm sticking out of my jeans! Regardless, when Mac is home I make him walk with me and carry his unusually bulky and heavy gun himself. Things just seem more right with the world that way!

Chickens

My girl and I found four laying hens someone was giving away last week. MacGyver helped us turn an old shipping crate into a roosting box. He put it up two feet off the ground and then made us a chicken ladder. Izzy and I went to the local feed store and picked up some laying feed and some pine shavings for the roosting box. The lady let us use her little cat sized carrier because the trunk we brought only fit two chickens. She told me she also homeschools her four boys and is involved in 4-H, as well. She invited us to come join her local homeschool group. Evidently they have a  12+ adventure club. I don’t think either of my kiddos need one more thing to do, but I might look into it. It might fit the bill for our friends’ young son. He’s not big into scouts but needs an outlet like that. Since one of my parenting philosophies is to let my kiddos dip their toes in as many ponds as possible until they find their niche, we might check it out. Who knows what we might find in that pond. Everyone needs a niche. The biggest problem for us seems to be narrowing down ALL our individual interests; and we have a bunch. So far, Ike’s niche is scouts and shooting sports. Izzy’s niche is definitely horseback riding. MacGyver’s is scouts and search and rescue. Right now my niche is supporting everyone else’s niche. What are my interests if I had all the time and money in the world? Medicine, horses, quilting, painting, scrapbooking, and since you asked me today…definitely chickens. Since we brought the chickens home I haven’t been able to keep my hands or eyes off them. Izzy seems afflicted with the same illness, as well. We are as excited as little kids on Christmas morning! I have wanted chickens for a long time. I don’t know how long we will be in this house, on this property, or in these exact circumstances, but as far as I’m concerned, it couldn’t be a better time to have chickens! The lady told us that she’s been getting about two to three eggs a day and isn’t sure why all four aren’t producing. I’ll have to give it a go and see what we can find out. One is an Anacona. She’s black and brown with a little crown on top. Her name is LuLu. I’ve laid claim to her.

The other three are Red Stars, I believe. We’ve named one Nana, another one Penny. Nana has the smallest "waddle" under her throat and Penny has a crown that looks like fingers. We’re waiting until Ike gets home from scout camp to name the last one. He won’t be home for three more days and we can NOT wait to tell him all about the new chickens. We set their nesting box up in one of the outdoor kennels so the mountain lion or other varmints don’t try and get to them. We figure we’ll let them out to do a little free ranging when we’re home and once they’ve figured out where home is. I think I’ll work on cutting some ventilation holes and attaching some hinges to the top so we can get to the eggs easier. It was sort of a rushed job. It will definitely keep them safe but I’ll make some modifications as I notice the need. Izzy and I are instantly in love with our new girls. We watched them scratch and scratch at the floor of the kennel.

No name on the left; Penny on the right

Several of them found worms and then fought over who got them. We got a few chuckles out of that! Izzy cut a bunch of grass and gave them a billion little tiny snippets. I gave them some chunks of celery and they seemed to love that. All I know that they can’t eat so far is potatoes. We’re going to have so much fun learning all about chickens. Nana wasn’t feeling so well when we got home. She was pretty lethargic and even let Izzy hold her and pet her for a long time. She eventually “laid” a broken egg and the shell was thin and rubbery looking. I’m not sure what that means or what to do about it. She drank a bunch of water and came around enough to eat some fresh grass and scratch around with the other girls. We were happy to see her acting more normal. I’m still worried about her, but have a better feeling that she’ll at least make it through the night. Izzy asked me to check on her first in the morning before she did. She has already found herself attached to Nana {with Izzy on the right} and doesn’t want to find her lifeless body in the morning. I don’t blame her. Neither do I! it was so much fun to watch them first huddle in a corner and then settle into their new home and set about doing what chickens do…scratch around for bugs and plants. What fun.

Evergreen Rodeo

Best Concussion Story EVER!

March, 2011

Our 4H club is called Rough Riders. We usually meet at Dixie's house for riding practice. Not only does she have horses, but also laying hens, 15 or so sheep, and a whole herd of dogs! One day while at Dixie's riding, one of her Shetland rams, Douglas, managed to get over into the pen with the ewes. She asked us to help her get him back into his pen. The four of us tried working together to squeeze him into a corner so we could grab him by the horns and then lift him back over the fence. At one point I managed to grab for his horns as he darted by, missed, and just got a handful of wool. Well, Mr. Douglas didn't want any part of that! In a split second he turned around, butted me square between my eyes and knocked me off my feet. The world just about went black. I lay there, face down, with my head in my hands not caring at all that I was reclining in sheep poop. I thought I was going to be sick. The world would not stop spinning. My eyes began to water, as snot and blood poured out of my nose. When the kids asked me if I was okay all I could manage to say was "Ice. I need ice". I didn't know if I was okay. I didn't know if I needed stitches. I didn't even know if I had passed out. I just know I wouldn't be able to stand up for the next 10 minutes. I could see. I could talk. But my head felt like it was splitting open. All I could think about was how badly I wanted ice. It wasn't until I finally managed to drag my dissheveled self up off that manure-covered ground that I knew I would be okay. I called my husband and asked him to meet me at the bottom of the mountain and somehow managed to drive the curvy roads with a bag of ice between my eyes and melting water running down my face. I will never forget what it felt like to be taken down by a ram. They may not be very big, 90 pounds maybe, but they pack a whallop! I had a headache for the next two weeks, but hands down one of the best concussion stories, ever!

Animal Rescue

I realize it's been over a month since I've blogged. I've had plenty to write about but I've been so busy or too exhausted. The last month or so have been a little more than a normal person could bear. We've been sick, the pipes have frozen, we lost water, the weather has been unbearably cold and last week we got three feet of snow. Last Friday the stallions, Amar and Sharif broke out of their pasture to go socialize with the mares. Unfortunately, we were visiting cousins in Steamboat Springs and didn't get home until 10:00 that night. Needless to say, it was a long night. I think we finally crawled into bed at 11:30 cold and exhausted. And then Tuesday night they did it again. Fortunately, we found them about 1:30 in the afternoon and were able to get them situated and the fence patched up by about 4:30. Unfortunately, it was 7 degrees and there was three feet of snow on the ground. The owner flew out to Cabo, Mexico yesterday morning and I had to take the kiddos into town for school. Everybody was safe and sound and feeding quietly when I left. When we got back from town to do afternoon chores at 4:30, we found Amar out of his pasture and straddling a fence trying to get to the mares. His stomach and front end were in the mares' pasture and his back two legs were barely touching the ground on the outside of the fence. The top piece of steel was bent into a "V" shape. He was quiet and a little out of it. I didn't know how long he had been there but he was covered in sweat, even though the temperature hadn't exceeded 35 degrees. I was concerned that he may have cut off the circulation in his rear legs. It didn't look good. I silently prayed that the Lord would help me, protect Amar and not to let him be lame or have to be put down. Ike was with me and we tried to drop the fence but his 1600 lbs +/- 200 lbs pressing down proved to be too much. The section of fence it was hooked onto was frozen to the ground in three feet of snow, as well. I thought that if we could get something under his back legs, he might have enough leverage to jump over the fence or get his weight off the fence so we could drop it. We grabbed a couple bales of hay and I instructed Ike to push it under his hoof when I said go. I used my shoulder to push his weight onto his left leg and lifted his right leg. We were able to get his hoof on the bale of hay but I just didn't have enough strength to lift the other one. After about twenty minutes, I knew I couldn't do it alone. I needed some manpower. I ran inside to call for help. I called MacGyver at the station to see if he could get ahold of our dispatch to get an assist up here. I called the vet and got them on their way. We fed the others to keep them busy and away from the action and tried to get him on the bale of hay again. No good. After about an hour I heard the sirens and shouts from the firefighters. After a few minutes they were gone. Again, I knew they couldn't find me and wondered what to do. I knew the vet would know where we were. I prayed they would intercept the firefighters so we could get some extra manpower and power tools. The vet got stuck on the incline and had to back her truck the rest of the way down the mountain. One of the volunteer firefighters was able to get her truck up top where I was and the vet caught a ride with her. I gave the vet a quick run-down as more firefighters started showing up. With more hands and power we were able to get him up on three bales of hay and relieve the stress on his abdomen. By this time it was 6:30, dark, and the temperature was quickly dropping. Everybody seemed to be out of ideas. While we worked that angle, I asked if they had a saw that would cut the steel pins on the fence so we could drop it. By the time they got back with the saw and had it running, Amar had tried to use the bales of hay just as I had hoped. Unfortunately, he got his right fetlock hung up on the fence and was now balancing vicariously on three legs. It made me cringe. The Animal Control Officer arrived about that time and asked if we needed help. The vet requested a transport to the local Equine ER Clinic so he could be checked out and help for observation. She had to go back down the mountain to get radio contact. It seemed to take forever, but the firefighters were finally able to get the saw running. I'm sure the weather didn't help. But as soon as they got it running strong and started to cut into the pins, Amar freaked out enough to get the rest of the way over the fence. We all cheered. The vet and I ran aound the fence to secure him and check him out. We were both pleased to see him being able to hold his weight on all four legs. The relief was short. As soon as he was free of the fence, the shock started in and he began shaking violently and swaying side to side like he was getting ready to go down. I called out to the firefighters to "block traffic" from the other horses who were curious to what was going on. She quickly sedated him to calm him down and we got him back outside the fence and over to the single light pole so we could check him out. His shaking grew worse and I feared he was decreasing rapidly. His gums were pale and he didn't look so good. I asked her if he needed some fluids for the shock (which is one of the first things they do for people who are in shock and have had some kind of trauma). She said that would be a good idea but she would have to get down to her truck to get it, which was a half a mile down and then back up. Somebody offered to give her a ride down. I think she was gone twenty or thirty minutes. The Animal Control Officer said everybody was getting stuck and were having to back down the mountain but they were blocking the main road below. She called for a horse trailer but didn't think they would be able to get it up the road. She wanted to know if we thought we could walk him down to the road. By the time the vet returned, Amar was eating some snow and nibbling at the bales of hay he had previously been resting on, and his shaking had decreased dramatically. The vet explained that, unlike our human counterparts, a catheter (IV) was a surgical procedure and would have to be sewn into his neck and would need some assistance to keep it sterile. It reminded me of old war movies I'd seen of the army medics doing field surgery to stabilize someone for transport. That was basically what she was doing. I always find it so fascinating watching them work! I held Amar's head, not because he was struggling but because he was sedated and wanted to drop his head. I had to get my shoulder under there to be able to support that kind of weight. Once we got the IV started, the ACO told us the transport was on its way and that we might want to start the trek down the mountain. He did pretty good, even though he was wobbly at first. He woke up enough halfway down that she had to give him more sedative. That made for a much more compliant boy! The road was, of course, slick so we just took it slow. Once we turned the corner and saw the flashing blue and red lights, he startled a little so we called down to have them turn off the lights. I couldn't see the trailer but assured it was coming. When we reached the bottom, there were SO and fire vehicles absolutely everywhere blocking traffic. After a few minutes two more ACOs arrived hauling the trailer. They got turned around and loaded Amar. It was about 8:30 by then. The vet showed them the way to the hospital and one of the firefighter was kind enough to give me a ride back up the hill. I asked him if he wouldn't mind helping me get Sharif into Mia and Serena's pen so he wouldn't be left alone all night. He graciously complied and was able to lead Sharif in beautifully while I distracted Mia and Serena. I took him back to his truck and Ike and I headed home. It was about 9:00 when we got home. We all ate a rice bowl and I sent the kiddos to bed. It had been a long day! I had to email Gary to let him know what had happened and so he could contact the ER Clinic. I had know idea what would happen next, but I knew he was NOT going to be happy. I called the vets to make sure they had my contact info, made a fire, took a hot shower, prayed desperately that Amar would be okay, and then crashed. I was so glad the day was over but I knew the next day had its own set of troubles!

Disclaimer: This is not my photo. This was found on google images.

Now that I got that out of the way...

Mac and I were on our way home from Christmas shopping the other night. It was about 5:30 and getting dark. As we headed up our driveway, we rounded a corner and saw two little mountain lion cubs in the middle of our driveway. I think they were about 2-3 months old and cute as a button. They even still had their spots. I wanted so bad to jump out of the truck and get a better look. As I put my hand on the door handle, Mac reminded me that mama was probably sitting on the rock outcropping just above my head watching and waiting. Was this a trap? Surely no! They were so cute and I wished that the kiddos were with us to see them. As soon as we got home, we told them all about it. They were excited until Ike remarked, "Great. Now we have to watch out for THREE mountain lions right by our house." They wanted me to show them what they looked like and I found the picture above which was the closest to size and look. I'm guessing it was the mama I saw right by our house a few months ago. You can read about that here in Exhilirating and Terrifying. I don't know how common it is to see mountain lions, much less a baby, or a set of twins. I have to tell you, though, seeing twins, the mama, the bear, the mountain goats and then the moose all add up to a very memorable year!

Still loving the adventures,

Shotgun Brooke



Exhilirating and Terrifying

We had a family stop by after church today. They are trying to decide which puppy they want. They spent an hour or two hanging out, talking, and of course snuggling with all the cute pups. When the family left, we decided to put in an hour or so clearing scrub oak from our over-grown ATV trail. That stuff grows fast, tall and thick right before your eyes. Izzy and I grabbed some loppers, Ike grabbed a hand saw and MacGyver grabbed his trusty chainsaw. I jumped on the ATV and the kids jumped into the back of the truck and we headed into the woods. We cleared about 1/2 mile in about an hour and a half. Not bad. Along the way we spotted several piles of bear scat, some elk scat and some assorted pieces of skeleton. A leg bone here, several back bones there and we even found a piece of the jaw bone with about 12 teeth in it. We think it may be a bear after looking at the teeth! And the kiddos contemplated. What kills a bear? Other bears. What else? Moutain lions. I noticed the kids stayed a little closer after that. A little less adventurous. A little less wandering. We cleared brush, rocks, and even bones out of the way and made it up to the third meadow. Then we decided we were all hot, thirsty and getting hungry. We headed back down the mountain and back out to the road. Izzy jumped on the back of the four-wheeler with me and Ike jumped into the truck with his dad. They went up the road a bit to turn around and decided to take some pictures along the way. Izzy and I didn't wait around; we just headed home. I knew there were hungry pups that needed to be fed before we headed into town for dinner. As we were heading down the hill, I got about 100 feet from the cabin and thought I saw Tank sniffing around by the camper. I slowed down trying to make sense of how Tank had gotten out. Did the kids forget to put him up? About that time I realized it wasn't Tank. This thing was twice Tank's size. It was the mountain lion. And Maggie was headed straight for it! I called Maggie back but it decided we were too close for his comfort (or maybe Mr. Elusive just didn't like being seen) and started mosying right past our cabin into the pasture right in front of our house. Now by this time, my adrenaline was in full swing. I had stopped the ATV but was just sitting there sort of shocked. Izzy was holding on for dear life and hiding her head between my shoulder blades and my strong, protector of a husband was nowhere to be found. Remember? He was taking pictures? Eventually he made it down the hill and pulled up to me sitting in the middle of the road waving my arms like a madman. He had no idea what in the world I was doing, much less saying. I was trying to show him the mountain lion hanging out in the pasture, just standing there. As if. He hops out of the truck, looks and realizes it is still there. He reaches back into his truck to get his gun, right? Nope. The camera. What? Are you going to throw it at him? Who reaches for a camera? And then he takes off after it trying to get a shot, ooh, wrong choice of words...a picture. OH MY GOODNESS! And guess who follows? Maggie, me and both kids. Yes. Insane we are. Insane. All of us. I whispered to the kiddos to grab some rocks and instructed them if we saw him again to stand your ground, yell and scream and throw rocks at him. I think I saw Izzy's lip quiver. Wow! Supermom, I am. It eventually disappeared behind the barn and into the woods, but not before shaking up our nervous systems! Wow! Equal parts terrifying and exhilirating! We called the DOW guys that have been out here researching, tracking, studying their behavior. I couldn't tell if he was "their guy" or even if he had a radio collar on. My senses were on overdrive and I was definitely not taking notes for questioning later. He suggested we might have a fresh kill site, or that he was stalking for the next kill site. He said they will hang around for a day or so if they get a deer or up to four days if they get an elk or llama. Woah. It took us several hours to talk out the "I can't believe it...Ooh, that was scary...Do you think he'll be back...We saw the mountain lion...Do you think we should move the cat food...maybe we shouldn't leave cat food out for the little or big cats" and finally realized that was pretty scary. In broad daylight! And moved onto...I think he is stalking our dogs. They were all out just an hour and a half prior, running around, playing, doing pretty much what dogs do. And I'm sure he was just licking his chops watching and waiting for us to turn our backs. Shiver. Plus, when the puppies get going, they sound just like an injured animal with their high-pitched squeals. We set up outdoor kennels with lids just because of this very reason. It makes me feel justified. It's not out of the realm of possibilities. In fact, I think the stakes just got a little higher. I'll be double checking the gates as we close them up. I'll be more careful before I open the door and walk outside. Or let the dogs out. Or worse, send my kiddos outside on an errand or chore. Shivers. A friend of ours saw one sitting on his barn where he was heading to feed his horses. Another came home to find one asleep in his driveway sunning himself. The ranch behind ours raises cashmere goats. She's seen a mountain lion haul one of her goats over a ten foot fence. No kidding. And after tonight, I realize they are much bigger in person than I ever realized. Our new motto...Noone left behind. Catchy, huh? We stole it. It just isn't worth the risk to leave anyone out there alone or let the kids go and do whatever it is kids go and do in the woods...Freaks me out. And cool, all at the same time.

I want to see if any of the pictures turned out. Unfortunately, we left the camera in the truck and I am NOT about to run outside to get it. Not tonight.

Fall in the Rockies

Random thoughts about fall in the Rockies...

1. Fall has definitely arrived in the Rocky Mountains. It's was 34 degrees outside this morning. It was pretty cold in the cabin, too. I had to get up and start a fire this morning; the first for the season. The bridge over the creek was frozen. I just about lost my footing when I went out to feed the horses. Luckily, for me anyway, the creek dried up a month ago. Even so, I'm thinking handrail?

2. The cold is bringing lots of changes. The leaves are turning yellow, red and different shades of brown. I had a little 'walkabout' to take some pictures. I LOVE fall!

3. The elk have also moved up higher in the mountains. The last one I saw on the property had antlers with an 8' spread. Yup. Big guys. Bigger than my Jeep. I've been hearing them rutting (sparring) and bugling. I love to hear them bugling but it takes a little getting used to. It is almost eerie and it echoes in the canyons. The other day I heard it and was wondering if there was a donkey in the woods.

4. We spent several days this week hauling wood. One of my friends called and asked what I was doing that day. I told her we were pulling trees. She wanted to know how you pull trees...MacGyver cut down a bunch of standing dead aspens and then again into 10' sections. I would take the ATV into the woods, attach 6 or so with a chain, and pull them out to the road near one of the piles. The kids would unhook them, push them closer to the pile of wood and the whole process would repeat until we got them all out. The next day we went back, loaded up the truck and hauled them to the woodpile and dropped them. The last step is to buck them to 18" and the larger pieces of pine have to be split. Most of the aspens are no bigger than about 8" in diameter so we don't have to split them. We guesstimate the grove we were working in has another 50 trees or so that need to come down. We need about 3 chords of wood to get safely through the winter so that should do it. I think we have about 2 chords but we don't have it all cut and split so it's hard to tell. We've got our work CUT out for us! (Sorry, couldn't help myself).

Wood waiting to be bucked

Wood waiting to be split

In the woodbox waiting to be burned

5. We have a trash situation. We used to empty our trash can once a day or once every day and a half. That adds up quick. We also don't get curbside trash service so once a month we would haul it in the back of the truck to the local dump. But with the bears, squirrels and raccoons getting into it, it often means we are having to go more often or pick up a big mess. We decided a few weeks ago to get a trash compactor to see if it would help the 'situation'. Since getting it, we have only taken the trash out THREE times. We can't believe it! I think every house should have one. It would save everyone money, time and energy and think about the landfill space we could save. We even used it once to crush our cans. It is totally worth it. Plus, there has been no more squirrel, raccoon or bear sightings. And I don't have to pay out chore money quite so often! HAHA! One word: Awesome!

One week's worth of trash in a nice, compact 8"x16"x16" bag.

6. Ike and MacGyver are going camping with the Boy Scouts this weekend. This is Ike's first scout camping trip. He's trying to move up in his rank and he'll be able to knock out most of the camping requirements this weekend. He's using my old internal frame backpack. He's excited beyond belief! He's packed, meals are bought and packed and ready to go. Now all I've got to do is make some Rice Krispy Treats for a bunch of hungry boys. I think I'm going to make him add some long underwear, in light of the recent nighttime plunge in temperature, as well as a sleeping bag liner.

7. We met one of our neighbors yesterday. He lives at the end of our road (on the paved side). We were getting a new propane tank because we are switching companies and getting the propane topped off for the winter. Evidently, Mr. Propane guy couldn't find us and stopped to ask Mr. Neighbor where our house is. It isn't a surprise, really, when even the fire department can't seem to locate us. So, Mr. Neighbor jumped on his ATV and came up to our cabin to inquire if it was the correct address. I was just getting back from town and pulled up to a traffic jam (haha) on our road with the confused Propane Guy, Mr. Neighbor Guy, and MacGyver on his ATV. The propane guys aren't able to get back here between October and May so we have to make sure our tank is full before the snow starts to fly. Anyway, Mr. Neighbor knows all the ATV trails around these parts and offered to show them to us. I see plans in the near future! The kids were hoping he'd drop a tire like this guy.

8. The puppies all have their eyes open and have doubled in size. I think it's just about time to start feeding them solids. I'm not sure Molli is able to keep up...plus they are getting teeth. She has it written all over her face: "I'm DONE"! I'm going to run to Wally World and pick up a couple of chip and dip serving trays. You know the kind with the bowl in the center? They are pretty cheap and is a great way to feed the puppies and keep them from walking all thru their food. We still have to wipe them down or give them a full bath once in a while, but it reduces the frequency.

9. We have a new 9 week old puppy. I know. We are insane. At the moment, we have 3 dogs and 9 puppies. We are training him as a Medical Alert Dog. He chewed thru our high-speed internet yesterday. Luckily, MacGyver had enough cable to replace it. We also hung it higher so he couldn't get to it again. I scolded Tank for not being a better babysitter. He gave me the familiar look, too... "I'm DONE"!

10. Maggie caught a pheasant the other day. She caught us a little off guard, too. We didn't know she was a bird dog. When we yelled at her, she let it go and it flew off. We saw a pair of pheasants a few days later and wondered if that was one of them. One of them was looking a little dazed and confused. I'm guessing the sight of us gave him a little Post Traumatic Stress.

Ahh, Fall in the Rockies!

Puppies, Puppies, Everywhere!

Ms. Molli had her puppies September 2nd. We ended up with 8 adorable pups all with names taken from the Rocky Mountains. They are five days old today. They have had a traumatc day going to the vet to have their dewclaws removed and pictures taken. Wanna meet them?

                                       Here is our first and biggest boy.

                                     The first and darkest yellow female.

                                             

Our first (of 3) chocolate females, Morgan.

Our chocolate male, Gunny.

And Teton, our only black male.

And here is our smallest and lightest female.

And Sierra, our second chocolate female.

And last but not least, Bailey, the third chocolate female.

Lovely, lovely pictures

So, our 14th anniversary is tomorrow. Wow! It's hard to believe we've been married that long, or that we've known each other for 16 years. We saved our pennies all year and decided to buy a new digital SLR for our anniversary. We've had a digital Olympus for years and have loved it. So we decided to stay with what we knew and got an Olympus SLR. Can I just tell you how much we have LOVED this new camera? It is love at first sight! The pictures it takes on the most basic, automatic settings are incredible and as I learn more how to manually use it, it is becoming a new hobby and could easily absorb all my extra time if I'm not careful. Unfortunately, this week promises to be one of the busiest all year and it is only Monday. The kids started homeschooling today with a whole new curriculum so they are using today to orient themselves. We've got Boy Scouts tonight, our anniversary is tomorrow followed by Awana Tuesday night, Thursday at the public school, we have a deck to finish building and our litter of puppies are due sometime Wednesday or Thursday. Wow! With all that in mind, we've taken a few days to rest up and get ready. There was a local street bike race yesterday with a 33 mile, 66 mile and 100 mile option with a 13,000 ft elevation climb and over 1000 bikers that were "touring" the mountain roads and came right by our house. In attempts to avoid the traffic, we planned to go to early church and spend the rest of the day at Pirate's Cove Aquatic Center. I spent no less than 4 hours on a raft going around and around on a tube in the lazy river. Goal: Relaxing! I didn't take the camera because, well, I didn't want it ruined and I didn't want to leave it in the broiling car. But, I did take some pictures around the ranch earlier that I wanted to share. I played with the lighting and some of the basic settings to see what I came up with. Still learning lots!

This is the 3 month old filly, Skittles.

And little sister doing what little sisters do best...

And all is well that ends well (especially when noone is angry or hurt).