NB Gift

Carly and Colter brought our Christmas gift last night.  Carly found a company that 

etched our ranch brand into a pitcher and four wine glasses.  Note the etched 

barbed wire along the top.  They are beautiful!

Country French Dinner

Our celebration dinner with Colter and many of his extended family was fun.  The kids were mesmerized by Madeline Lost in Paris for over an hour.  The adults played a game where we each answered four questions, put the answers in a box, drew them one by one, and guessed who the person was.  A couple of the questions got interesting answers.  "If you received a gift of $10,000, how would you spend it?  If you could start all over, what would you be when you grow up?" with answers ranging from "two good bulls to a country singer."    

Raking the Driveway

Given our location on the ranch with a 2.5 mile dirt driveway, it is important to me to have the space around our home be a bit more manicured.  About once a month I rake the planted areas and the driveway.  I like to think of raking in circles as a Zen moment... my meditation.

Prepping for a Party

We are expecting 16 for dinner on Friday.  I'm preparing a country French meal of beef bourguignon, smashed potatoes, salad with pink grapefruit and walnuts, cheese course, and apple tarte tatin for dessert.  We will have six children with us, ranging in age from 2 to 16.  I picked up three French children's movies.  The reason for the dinner party is to celebrate the sale of our 2011 calves.  Colter and Carly are coming with their family, along with his parents, grandfather and new bride, and his uncle and aunt with their three boys.  I'm also planning a game for the adults.  Busy day tomorrow!

Red Door Spa

Audrey and Dan gave me a gift certificate for the Red Door Spa, after spending time with them 

when Lauren was born.  I was treated to a pedicure in January, and will have a pedicure 

and manicure today.  Thank you all over again, Audrey and Dan.  I love the pampering!

Austin Results

We helped Whitney organize their new home in Austin.  Papa built a platform for her washer/dryer.  

I organized her pantry, painted a table and chairs for Toby and Greta, worked in the yard, hung artwork, shopped with Whitney for a dining table, stripped the deck and put on a new coat of finish, and organized her bookcases.  Papa built a new table for her deck.  We left Whitney's home still in flux but certain that their quality of life will be improved as a result of the weekend's work!

Austin Trip

Papa and I flew to Austin on Wednesday, to visit Whitney and her family, and to help with several projects at their new home.  Papa has been busy building things like shelving, a platform for washer/dryer, and putting together beds.  Whitney and I have shopped for several things for the house and hung pictures.  I've reorganized their bookcases and worked in the yard.  Toby likes helping in the yard, so he and I have had a good time in the afternoons, pulling weeds and planting new vegetables.  Greta is the happiest baby I've ever been around.  She rarely cries.  She is crawling everywhere and pulls herself up easily.  We're having fun!

Schwinn Bike

After hearing Dr. Besserer on ABC News talk about the value of standing over sitting, I bought a Schwinn stationary bike.  I try to ride an hour a day, when otherwise I would be sitting on the sofa watching tv.  

I'm trying to stay fit!

IKEA

I love IKEA!  Papa and I were in Phoenix today and stopped at IKEA for a couple of hours shopping.  There is so much to look at, terrific prices, and good ideas.  We bought a sheepskin for $29.99.  I'm not sure what to do with it just yet, but it is really soft.  We looked through all the cow hides too.  At $199.99 per hide, we will need a purpose before buying one. 

Metal Arts Village

Yesterday afternoon, Papa and I stopped by the Metal Arts Village in Tucson, a neighborhood of metal arts studios, configured like a village, around a central sculpture garden.  Housing artists in all areas of metal design, construction, fabrication, finishing and installation, the Metal Arts Village is a cooperative working and teaching arrangement between artists with different talents to design and create unique pieces of metal art.  The owner/founder/designer of the Metal Arts Village concept happened to be there and we chatted with him for some time.  He is an attorney who had this idea and acted on it.  He retired last year and works in metals.  He is living a dream and having a great time!