Category Archives: Ranch Life

Ranch Life

10 Things To Do When Your Plane Leaves Without You

2 Comments

This list was made after 4 days at an Ag Conference, away from our kids, our ranch and our lives.  All we wanted to do was be home.   After a long drawn out flight from Nashville, TN to Minneapolis, MT during Nashville’s  “worst” storm (mind you to us from the Montana region thought it was awfully silly to shut down a whole city because of some ice and slush), we ended up with over 12 hours of downtime in the airport.  But instead of dwelling on it, we did this! 

  1. IMG_0635Ask Questions: Who do I talk to about getting another flight? How long do we have?  Anything sooner?  What should we do?
  2. Get a Bite to eat: 12 hours of fun in the airport, find an eatery, eat SLOW.
  3. Grab a beverage:  heck grab two or three, what’s your favorite? Beer, Wine, Lemonade?
  4. Shop: Ah yes, walk that airport mall no matter how big or small, its all you have to do for TWELVE HOURS!                                                    IMG_0636
  5. Nap: Yes Yes Yes, most airports have a more comfortable place than the concourse seating, this goes back to #1: ASK QUESTIONS!IMG_0634
  6. Work:  I can’t think of an airport I have been in during the last 5 years that doesn’t have good wi-fi access.  Use this “useless” period of time to get caught up on work (unless you have kids with you….don’t try this).
  7. Kids: GOOD LUCK, if you are traveling with kids and your plane leaves without, pray, just pray you will be able to have enough patience to keep everyone alive until you get home.
  8. Read: Find a book, sit down and get let your mind get lost for a while!
  9. Network: You never, ever know who you will meet in an airport; an old friend, make a new friend, a business partner, it is much easier to pass the time visiting with another person and learning something new!
  10. Eat: some will say again??  Yes, just find a snack (or a meal depending on how long your layover is) and eat slow!

Before you know it, your 12 hours of misery has passed, and you will be boarding your new flight with hopefully no issues!

Ranch Life

Looking Back – 1 Year ago

1 Comment

It was a day much like today, we didn’t know how much our world could change within minutes but it did.  One year ago today marks the anniversary of the fire that destroyed our home.

DSC07932
Night of the Fire. I remember William yelling back to the bedroom, get Cody and Get Out! I grabbed my phone (nightstand), boots (closest shoes to the door), and ran to get Cody and his one little blankie and met William and Nora outside. Scariest Night of my Life.

 

Well lets not focus too much on the past, I think it is important to always remember the past but not to dwell on it.  A couple months after the fire we had really begun the research process of house building (again…ugh), someone asked me, “When do you expect to be in the new house?”  Mind you, we hadn’t even decided on plans yet.  I replied, “September, the end of September.”  I was just positive that we could get it done (also I was positive that The Rancher and I both had superhuman powers to accomplish all that had to be done between my job, the ranch, the house, kids and everything else).  Well, needless to say, The Rancher caught wind of my new timeline for him and informed me there was, “No way in h*ll that we would be able to get that done.”

POP! phewwwwwwww! – – – that is my ballon (the only sense of sanity I had) being popped right then and there.

DSC07936
Valentine’s Day 2014 – In Bismarck after the fire. Grandma Gerry got the kids Balloons

 

So new goals were set, and I said to The Rancher – NO MATTER WHAT, WE WILL BE LIVING IN THE NEW HOUSE WITHIN A YEAR.   AH HA!  There was an attainable goal, and we did it!

PicMonkey Collage
And it is everything we could have hoped for! A lot of hard work, but it is ours – build by us, designed by us, live in by us!

 

Now I keep promising you all a video tour, and I keep trying I really do.  But let me be completely honest.  There is no way with my two toddlers, husband and the mud we are dealing with that I can even attempt to make the whole house clean at one time.  (Unless someone wants to volunteer to babysit the kids at their house :P).  So, I will be working on getting pictures (and good ones at that), for all of our supporters, family, friends to see the house.  We are expecting lots of visitors this summer so be sure to put us on our vacation plans!