Cowboys..Horses…Aussie Dogs…Late Fall

09 Oct 2011 2 Comments

by Hot Rod Cowgirl in Clouds, Horses, Juniper T Ranch, Photography, Ranch Life, Storms Tags: ,

Cowboys…horses and Aussie dogs…always make  for a good story and good photos!

October snuck in gently with warm temps the first week but now is letting us know that our late fall-summer is officially over. I had to finally change out my capris and t-shirts for jeans and sweaters.

I never get tired of taking pictures of clouds and funky colors…out here where I live…this is what we see on a daily basis…I keep my camera handy for shots like this!

We are to get rain this week finally…the farmers need it for fall seeding for next year’s crops.

Can you see the deer…they are my early morning and evening visitors.

I love how the light filters through the clouds this time of year with soft beautiful colors that bathe the land in golden hues.

This is little “Buck”…he is our newest family member joining us here on the Juniper T.

Buck is special to us as he belongs to our Cowboy Son. We first knew Buck when he was two years old…he lived out here for a while on the ranch while Curt broke him to ride.

The round corral was built that year with Buck in mind.

When our Cowboy Son and his wife called us to see if we would like to own Buck, we immediately said yes! They live in Seattle now where the weather is gray, rainy and muddy…they felt that Buck needed to come home where he would be out of the wet weather for his feet. A decision that was not easy.

Buck is the classic old-fashioned quarter horse build which I personally love:)

Curt trained Buck and he trained him the right way!

This is a horse that listens and trusts…it was not easy for Curt to leave Buck as they are very connected in heart and spirit.

The relationship you have with your horse is profound and truly from God above. Horses are incredible…beautiful…spiritual beings and they love us…they feel and think.

You have not been loved until you are loved by your horse…it is a very special bond.

Cooper…you are such a good boy… I love you too:)

Curt is getting ready to ride bareback…making the halter lead rope into a rein…and talking to Wild Bill.

Wild Bill is making some profound point…I wonder what he is saying…hmmm?

As you can see…Curt truly takes Wild Bill seriously:)

Camille and her herd of Aussies! We all love our Australian Shepherds!

Cowboys and horses…and the women who love them.

Riding Buck…with Cooper following.

Camille keeping her eyes on the gang…”You guys sit and stay and be good.”

This picture brings back old memories…Curt on Buck with Coop following.

Summer night 2004…Curt on Hobby with Buck following.

Coming down the rail…2011…I think I have seen this before?

Yep pretty close…Buck is following down the rail as a colt in 2004.

Buck and Curt 2011

Buck and Curt 2004…this was Buck’s first ride and Curt rode him out into our fields with a halter…no bridle…and all went well.

Wild Bill and I plan to go on some mountain trail rides and plan to ride all over out here…it is incredible out here in the summer as when you ride on top of the hills you can see three distinct mountains…with incredible views for miles.

We will watch the sun go down and the moon come up…taking time out to enjoy life when we can…away from the stressors of life…it is true that there is something about a horse that is good for the insides of a man or woman.

We will ride both Buck and Melody this next year…they will carry us on down the dusty trail:)

Annie will be broke to ride this next year too…and that will mean lots of time on her too. I am looking forward to it as I have ridden alone most of my life…except when my Dad or Wild Bill rode with me on the Juniper T.

Thank you Curt and Camille…we love you both very much…and Buck will always be here for you to come home to and ride…anytime.

Curt On Hobby…”Bo The Incredible Aussie”…And “Little Buck”…Summers Night 2004.

My guy with Bo on the left who is Dash’s Father…Dash is on the right…Bo was significant in our getting Aussies…when Curt introduced us to Bo we fell in love with him right away…he was protective and could be scary mean if the wrong person came around….and he was always here with us…did not wonder off…very smart dog.

Curt with our Kiah and his Tuff…they are brother and sister…not from Bo but from a different lineage…very smart dogs too.

Another shot of Camille with the gang:) ” Sit still so I can brush you!”

Typical summer nights on the Juniper T.

Buck is awesome and beautiful….so are the hearts behind him.

Look for joy this week and good stuff…simple stuff…family times…making memories…your life has a beat…listen for it and find your rhythm…it’s there…so often we do not get quiet enough to hear it with the fast pace of our lives…but it is there…and the peace that comes with it is incredible.

Gentle Days Filled With Golden Beauty

28 Sep 2011 Leave a comment

by Hot Rod Cowgirl in Clouds, Heritage, Horses, Photography, Ranch Life Tags: ,

Gentle days…filled with the golden beauty of Fall have arrived quietly and softly…light and vivid colors. Summer came and went quickly this year…a late hot summer almost fooled us into thinking summer was young yet…that time would prevail and stall the summer we had all waited for.

My parents chose to marry September 23, 1939…when the colors of fall were warm, vibrant and full of rich reds, golds, maroons, yellows and rust…they were in love and so alive with life. They honeymooned in Banff, Alberta staying on Lake Louise…visiting Jasper National Park and the surrounding area…can you imagine driving from here on gravel roads to Banff…seeing 1939 America and Canada…how different it all looked before tourism took over. Mom always said it was stunning…”The Rockies were stunning as was our drive up and back.”

Mom and Dad at the University Of Oregon Spring of 1939…they made a perfect couple! I think of them often and I celebrate the life they have given me with a humble heart filled with thankfulness. They taught me life lessons that I now apply and rely on in my own life…God Bless you Mom and Dad…WB and I love you both:)

Each night and day out here in Juniper Canyon I do not take for granted…even though I have lived here forever…the pictures I see and the life I experience…the memoreis…I want to bring to you as I know that I am blessed with how I live and what I have lived…and you will be also.

Tucker says well now be careful up on that table…”Don’t worry Tuck I am being ever careful gf..and I love you too.” I got Tucker after loosing my Blue Heeler “Maggie May” the summer of 2004. I was lost without Maggie…she went everywhere with us…traveled with us when we went camping and on road trips to see friends in Montana or Wyoming…everywhere we went she went with us.

We had located two Australian Shepherd rescue dogs that needed a good home, Tucker was one of them and a year old when we brought her home in October 2004. Interestingly enough see that red blotch on her side…Maggie had the same reddish blotch on the same side….even the same shape….and see how her right ear stands up and the left ear doesn’t quite make it…Maggie had the very same ears…in some ways I do think that Maggie May told God that I needed Tucker as she would heal my heart and remind me of Maggie as I do believe there is a large part of Maggie in Tucker. Truly funny how things work out for us in this big world that often is not that big at times.

Looking across the road last night you can see that our neighbor has started preparing the ground for his 2012 crop…all of us out here in the heartland are hoping for a good rain to water the ground for the fall seed…rain is good and if we get it seeded right it is perfect!

Our son and his family came out this last weekend for a family B-Q…Jigs is his Blue Heeler on the back of the four wheeler…and Jigs goes everywhere with him. Our ranch raised son is tall…6’5″…yep kind of a big cowboy kid of ours…he is the youngest…and we are rather proud of him…my down home ranch cooking was good judging by his size…meat and potatoes…with more meat and potatoes

“Hang on Jiggers…Cow dog rough and tough style!”

Constantly changing light and colors…keeps me busy shooting pictures every day and night.

“Wild Bill is thinking…oh heaven help me…when he does this…this happens.”

“Hello…Hot Rodder! ” This is Wild Bill’s touch!

And then he does this…”Jagged…with nitrous…WHAT…between the seats…NO WAY Wild Bill! Uh-uh…nope…where is that handle you promised to build me…you know the OSH…known as the Oh Sh*t Handle around here for me whenever I ride down the road with him!

Can you say “Zoom Zoom…Go Fast.”

Grandsons Cody and Robby…I love seeing their red and blond heads…”Wild Grandpa Bill” is training the next generation…hang on it will be a ride for sure with these two!

“Grandpa has them hooked already”….look at the seriousness here…I better put on my seat belt.

Magic time…Magic Skies.

Okay now for a few pictures of horse stuff…of course.

My tack room full of training snaffles and short shanked bits…I believe in preserving a horses mouth…no pulling or yanking or ruining mouths.

I am lucky to have a safe round corral with nice sand behind the barn…I will have to write a post on this round corral as my hubby built it for me with “Cowboy Son Curt”…I thought it would be rather easy to build…no it was  NOT…it took “Cowboy Blood, Sweat and Tears!” It works perfectly and I appreciate it a lot!

“Cowboy Son Curt” on Hobby with Buck following on a summer night in the arena.

Half of my hay is in the barn…yee-haw!

Fanny Annie says “Yeah…Hay Hay Hay Haw.”

A perfect fall day fading into a peaceful night in Juniper Canyon.

Another view of my bits…with just a tweak of color. I am learning about all the fun things you can do with photoshop…and my iMac.

Wherever you are….enjoy the gift of fall…life like the seasons is ever changing…each day in your life there are miracles around you in the people you love and the animals you adore…when the sun comes up….look at the beauty around you, breathe deep and feel the heartbeat of life with your heart…let the gentle days of  fall filled with gentle beauty find you.

Till next time….I will post the last Pendleton Round Up post for the year soon.

Fall Days On The Juniper T…Getting Hay In The Barn

22 Sep 2011 3 Comments

by Hot Rod Cowgirl in Clouds, Horses, Juniper T Ranch, Photography, Ranch Life Tags:

Fall days on the Juniper T finds us hauling horse hay home for the coming winter months.

I always feel better once we have the hay bought and loaded into the barn.

The colors of Fall are more intense…softer light…with amber hues. I have loved my flowers this year…with the cooler weather they bloomed incredibly…they will continue until the first freeze.

This planter of mine is interesting…do you know what it is? It is the iron wheel off an old combine used to farm the land here…my Grandpa would have used it way back when…sometime in the 40’s my Dad had the idea of making it into the barn water trough in the large corral beside the barn…it was perfect for watering our horses.

When I was little my Uncle caught me drinking in it with my horse Prince…of course he gave me a swat and said “You do not need to drink out of that Marcia Jean”. The water trough continued on at the barn through raising our three kids…we even had goldfish in it for a while…and in 2004 Wild Bill remodeled down at the barn…installed a new trough and I said ok I want that…lots of history in that old wheel.

“Hay…did I hear someone mention hay?”

“What? Who said hay…new hay….fresh hay…my prayers have been answered!”

Melody loves her hay…and I love her and Annie:)

Pat and Jack are excited as they will get a whole new house for this winter.

Kiah is the cutest girl we have had….”What is hay?”

“Horse food?…No bones or chewy stuff then huh? Can I go with you to get it?”

“Oh geezo…she is rather simple-minded huh…why did you bring her home anyway?”

“Oh for the love of Pete…I am 16 years old and I still wonder why any of those dogs are outside my window…they are very much complete ding dongs…even I know what hay is…mice hide in it and I can burrow in it and use it for my bed if need be…although I sleep here in the house on Mom’s bed…”

“Seriously…what is hay? I am only a year old…and I don’t know…but I am cute.”

“Ok so let’s go get the dang hay so Kiah will know what hay is already…”

Annie is ready to go…such a pretty girl!

I am pulling into the hay-field with my Burb…

Wild Bill’s trailer is almost loaded…he loves it when the hay farmer has a tractor to load the hay on the trailer!

“I expected him to break into song and dance”…”It’s a beautiful morning…ooooaaahhhh.” It is embarrassing but he has been known to do that at certain times.

One trailer loaded and ready to go…WB tying it down.

And then he did this…you want to know what they are talking about…cars…old cars…how you could fix one up…hot rod or antique…hmmmm.

So I took pictures while they discussed life and cars.

I found someone to talk to…look deep into my eyes…and say “Mooooo.”

A fun shot…we actually live just over the hill…but we have to drive about 2 hours to get there as the gravel road over the hill is not good right now.

Ok my turn…”Saddie Suburban”…yes we name our rigs…on another post I will tell you more!

We are loaded and headed for home!

Fanny Annie is waiting…hay hay hay!

So is Melody…did you say hay hay hay?

“I just want to be loved”….Dasher is very cute too…waiting on Wild Bill to get home.

“Zoom Zoom…1928 Dodge Coupe with a V-12 Jag Motor”…”Wild Bill is still building “Jagged” and we do intend to take it to the Grand National Roadster Show”…I know kind of odd for me to put this in but remember I am a “Hot Rod Cowgirl”…be sure to check out our web page too if you like cars and artistic ability…www.holtonsecretlab.com

“We build cars…restore cars….frame off restorations…whatever our customer wants from classics to muscle cars to hot rods to antiques. Go to our website and there is a link for YouTube…we have several videos up of the restorations we have done.”

“Yeah well I was here first….well they love me as I am cute….whatever I am older and wiser….well I am cute and playful…well…shut up…no you shut up…no you.”

And with that said…all was quiet in Juniper Canyon on the Juniper T…everyone was happy…Hot Rod Cowgirl got her hay…Wild Bill got to dance a bit and was happy to get the hay too…all the animals were happy too…”Night Wild Bill…Night MJ” and all was quiet on the Juniper T Ranch.

We Remember 9-11-01…God Bless America

12 Sep 2011 3 Comments

by Hot Rod Cowgirl in Clouds, Photography, Storms

We remember 9-11-01..God Bless America. Today we remember September 11, 2001.

We left here August 31 2001, for Labor Day weekend for a fun vacation with WB’s folks…we had our camper and they had their motorhome.

We went up into the Idaho Mountains out of Boise….McCall Lake and Cascade Lake. On the early morning of September 2nd WB’s Dad suffered a blockage to his heart and was air lifted from a small hospital in Cascade to Boise Idaho. WB and I drove the camper and motorhome down the mountain as his mother had gone with his Dad…when we got there they had done a stint and all seemed routine and fine…Dad looked good and they said in the morning we would be able to take him home to recover…so we went to bed exhausted…at 2:00 the next morning on the 3rd we were woke up by a nurse that escorted us to the hospital…we had parked in their camper parking…Dad was not responding…he did not come around and sadly we left the hospital without him that surreal and incredibly sad morning.

I followed WB and Mom in the motorhome to their home in Vale. I had lost both my parents within a year of each other and I knew….the sadness and incredible loss of our parents. The funeral was September 6th and we came home late on the 8th…we had barely turned our sight to business at hand which was the shop…and me. I  had an abnormal mammogram that spring in March…biopsy came back ok but put me in a high risk area….they wanted a second look at six months…my appt. was the 11th.

I had just come downstairs and Wild Bill had the TV on…..both World Trade Towers were hit and on fire.

Then they broke in to tell us the Pentagon had been hit…..then back to NY and one tower fell…and in another surreal moment the second tower fell…my appt. was at 11:30 that day….WB looked at me and I at him….I said well maybe you had better go with me as we do not know if we are at war…he said yes we need to stay together and we did that day…and the next day and the next…we knew life had changed for us…in four years we had lost three parents…and the Twin Towers and the Pentagon…and Civilian Airplanes had been attacked on US soil.

Life had changed…

Yes America had dark days that week BUT we rose up and fought…God was with us…we stood STRONG AS A UNITED NATION.

“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

Hope and the promise of God…we go on as nation…united we stand!

We have not forgotten…our prayers are with those who lost loved ones…and for America..and for those that fight for us over seas…we are with you!

Seasons A Changing In Juniper Canyon As Summer Slowly Slips Into Fall

04 Sep 2011 2 Comments

by Hot Rod Cowgirl in Clouds, Harvest, Heritage, Holton Secret Lab, Juniper T Ranch, Photography, Ranch Life Tags: , , ,

Seasons a changing in Juniper Canyon as summer slowly slips into fall…where did summer go? Fall is whispering to us softly now as summer is slowly fading to a quieter time in Juniper Canyon…the business of harvest and life blends late August into September…school is back in session once again and Round Up is in the air as we begin to get ready for the annual rodeo…evenings have a chill now so we slip our jackets on to sit on the patio to grasp the last light of summer.

Time has sped forward and taken us from bright summer days and warm nights to my favorite colors of the earth…the colors of autumn…burnt rusty oranges, reds that are deep in color with a warm glow and yellows that are golden in the golden light…God’s incredible glory in the landscape…and yet as I try to hang on to summer I can feel the breath of fall, softly on my cheeks and I know that summer is tucked away until next year.

Harvest was late but it was a record harvest…the fields have turned from golden-yellow stalks with full heads to stubble that has turned into a deep golden auburn color…harvest is behind us now but we will always remember the harvest of 2011.

Before long the farmers will be seeding next years crops…as soon as we get some rain. Usually during Round Up week we get rain…and this country girl loves it as it smells heavenly on the parched dry earth.

Trucks have stopped rolling by our house and our days and nights are slowly returning to our usual quiet.

We get so little traffic out here that we can tell without looking whose pick up it is by the sound of the exhaust…we country people have big ears for listening!

Lazy dog days of summer are coming to an end…they love us sitting out in the summer months on the patio with them…throwing a frisbee for them to chase…or getting a good bone to chew on…which they are doing in this photo.

I feel a bit of melancholy when harvest is over as the land is dry and bare…sort of feels like the morning after Christmas…one minute you are celebrating in the moment…running from store to store to find gifts…cooking special family recipes and continuing on the traditions that were handed down to you…lots of parties and visits from family and friends…yet the morning after Christmas comes and you feel the let down…harvest can be like that as all through the crop year you have your eye on the crop looking forward to harvest.

From the beauty of the green fields in the spring after winter to the first of June.

When you begin to smell the wheat as the stalks are drying out and the head is filling with grain as it slowly turns from green to a golden yellow…you wait and watch and worry and wonder when you can get going with harvest…anticipation runs high as the farmers ready their equipment.

Finally it is a go and you as a family pull together and get the job done…long days…short nights but you are all in this together…in my family we had uncles and cousins doing the harvest together…for me it was great as I was an only child and I got to come down from the cattle ranch when I was old enough to drive wheat truck to be part of our family harvest…fun times and memories that I still hold close in my heart.

Finally the last day of harvest comes…and boom it is over…now we worry and wait for the rain to come so that next years crop can be seeded…and the cycle goes on. You can see our home down there in the picture…see the straight stretch of road…WB does burn outs there…he pretends he is on Pinks All Out!

With fall now upon us…soon winter will be too. I am already getting Christmas catalogs…I am not ready for snow or cold temps! One morning this last week I had the heat on for a few minutes to take the chill off the house!

Time seems to be going faster…the months blend together and the seasons rush by…I can not believe that 2011 is almost over…I miss the days of old when time was country slow.

Life seemed to stand still during the years of growing up on the ranch for me…summer lasted a long long time then.

Heading home for the summer to the Juniper T ranch…it was our home in the Blue Mountains…lots of green grass, cooler temps and fresh water.

Time was one lonnnggg day at a time…it was horses and cows…life was fine in my world. Oh sure in the evenings I would be bored sometimes, I would eat dinner and then go out and either hunt for rocks in the creek or fish in the creek or ride my horse bareback up the meadow…I would come back at dusk…my folks would be getting ready for bed…if I caught any fish I would clean them…with Mom’s help…by then Dad had “Ira Blue” on the AM radio and the talk show would be fading in and out…simple times…good times…time to go to bed…turn out the lanterns…poof the lantern said when I turned it off.

This was the bunk house for the cowboys…the front half was Mom’s kitchen…no power…wood cook stove…no running water…yes it was work…but that was what we all knew…it was life to the rancher and his wife…Mom was a cowboy’s wife…and the cowboy’s kid had to bucket the water for her so she could heat it on the wood stove to wash the dishes…it was simple yet peaceful…it was good… I miss it…I miss the beauty of life then….the simple of life then…the good of life then.

I grew up this way and could easily go back to it….Mom was a city girl…her Dad started one of the first Ford Garages in the Northwest…but before that he worked for Pete French on his vast ranch…I have Grandpa’s wool gloves and pipe…he went on to become a state rep for Oregon when Mom was growing up. She told me that when she married my Dad in 1939 she did not know how to boil a pot of water let alone cook…she learned though and was known for her cooking in later years on the ranch.

Mom loved my Dad and she was with him on all his adventures…their marriage was old-fashioned as it was forever…thick and thin…they taught me a lot about marriage and relationship.

We have an old-fashioned marriage too…thick and thin…no matter what…I am with “Wild Bill”  forever and he is with me…I am very blessed…and I love his adventures as they become our adventures.

Such as Photo Shoots with Holton Secret Lab and

Pendleton Woolen Mills…a wonderful rainy and cold June day on location.

Ok “Wild Bill”..where are we going now?

The show must go on no matter the rain and cold.

This is my hubby…the man I fell in love with…the guy…my WB…and I love him and his tenacity.

Here we go…Pendleton Woolen Mills 100th Anniversary Year Catalog Shoot…and they are using our cars!

I wonder what they are saying? Probably something like man is it flipping cold…yeah this is a total crappy day for a photo shoot…I like your cars WB…yeah thanks…how much are you gonna pay us?

The catalog shoot is over and we can finally dry off!

We are  loading up and headed home.

Ahhhhh…we are home….the sun is shining…warmth at last.

Our adventures will continue with this blog…we have Wyoming yet…in this photo the Wyoming wind was blowing so I was hanging onto my t-shirt…next to this monster machine…out in the high desert close to the Oregon Trail crossing.

This was my daily view…the Wind Rivers…and cows…LOVED IT…it was hard to move back to Oregon…the mountains we have here are mole hills compared to my view in Wyoming.

Green River Lake and Square Top Mountain…this is where the Green River begins…I rode above Square Top mountain many times on Pinon Ridge gathering our cows above 10,000 elevation behind Yellowstone…

Wyoming was HUGE country…the first time I rode up Pinion Ridge and looked back it took my breath away…you felt very small as the country was so vast…I grew up in the Blue Mountains but the Rockies were different…I can’t explain it…Wyoming was an ah-ha moment when you just shut your mouth and took it all in…it was a force to be reckoned with…I miss it and part of my heart is still there.

The rest of my heart is here….my home with Wild Bill…and we have beautiful skies and landscapes too.

Seasons a changing here in Juniper Canyon….

Seasons are a changing…constant color and light. Stay tuned….more on the Juniper T and more on HSL…lots of life to share with you…bookmark us and check back several times a week….

Happy Tuesday…Memories and More!

16 Aug 2011 2 Comments

by Hot Rod Cowgirl in Clouds, Horses, Photography Tags:

Happy Tuesday with memories and more…You can click on the pictures that I upload to the blog and they will enlarge with one click…then if you click them again they will blow up double. There are a few that do not blow up but most of them do.

This is a picture of Annie’s eye…I love how the picture shows her spirit…and heart.

She has changed a bit huh?

She has become a beauty and a classic quarter horse…and I love her blood-red bay color!  Time for a cowgirl lesson. Annie is built like the horses we used to have in the 50’s and 60’s…which I grew up with and I LOVE…I love the big hip and deep girth and good shoulder as that is a built horse that will ride nice. Annie has a nice trot and lope as she is balanced…I have three old-fashioned quarter horses and you know what…I love their big hind ends as they carry themselves well.

Lottie was my main horse for almost 20 years…she was put together with balance and she carried herself right. She knew how to cut a cow if needed…she knew how to chase after cows in the mountains…over logs…through streams…up and down mountains…she covered many miles with me.

When we moved to Central Oregon to run our first ranch in 1991…we lived in this 100-year-old house at Post, OR…Lottie and I had another adjustment to handle…rattle snakes…we had low land rattlers and timber rattlers…no matter where she and I went to move cows we had to watch for them.

Yes I am the red-head on the sorrel horse with the long ponytail.

“Wild Bill where are we?”

Then we went to Wyoming…we lived in the log house on the left…incredible views huh? That is the reason I said OK to WB when he said we are moving to Wyoming!

We lived at 7500′ elevation…Lottie had to deal with buffalo…moose…antelope…elk…-60 degree wind chills…and she did it with the class of an American Quarter Horse.

I loved Wyoming…it was incredible to experience the scenery and the weather…yes we had wind…everyday at noon on…it blew…and there is still a part of my heart there.

Ok now that we have had our horse lesson for this post…lets get on to some late August pictures…

We are enjoying our summer nights as much as we can…already it is feeling like fall…I have to put my jacket on as the sun sets…oh my gosh did we have a summer this year?

We have not hit 100 degrees yet…that is abnormal…we usually have a few weeks of HOT 100 degree temperatures and some very warm nights…that usually results in moans and groans around here.

Our dogs like us hanging out on the patio…good rubs and lots of treats…and of course some good games of fetch. Go Texas A and M!!!

And did I say lots of good loving…our youngest and she is a joy to have!

As I was shooting pictures last night Annie kept nickering for a scratch…I rubbed her neck and found all her itchy places…she wanted attention like the dogs were getting:)

And then there was Minnie who also wanted some attention too….she is a sweet girl and truly is the heart of our house. She is now 16 years old and in great health…she plays with her toys tossing them up in the air so she can jump and roll around with them…she is fun to watch and I do think she understands what we say. She fetches her toys bringing them back to me to throw again!

However Minnie is not too sure on our grandson Tucker….Watch the sequence below of Minnie and Tucker.

Minnie spots Tucker….hmmmm…what is he doing?

Uh oh…he sees me and is coming after me…oh cr**…run for her life…Minnie is gone…she does not want anything to do with that noisy funny looking small person!

Tucker is learning to walk and sort of does this part crawl…walk thing on his feet and hands… I call it the “Tuck-A-Tude”.

Yes we have two Tuckers…Tucker our Australian Shepherd and Tucker our grandson..I need to get a picture of the two together as they both have red hair!

Tucker with his Grandpa and Dad…Grandpa is 6′ tall and not a midget…son Greg is 6’5″ tall.  Notice who is not sucking their thumb!

Once again the colors last night were incredible…

Words escape me at times…there is beauty all around us…we often forget to look up or out and take in the view.

Stop and smell the roses…I know corny but so true.

Life is constantly changing…take time out to enjoy it…breathe deeply of this life we have…and even though we run as fast as we can…I challenge you to find beauty every day this new week.

Another beautiful end to another peaceful night in Juniper Canyon.

Night Annie….sleep well.

I am still waiting on a “Harvest Moon”…golden yellow…orange with a bit of red.

Harvest…Hot Rods…Horses…One Hot Time In Juniper Canyon

12 Aug 2011 Leave a comment

by Hot Rod Cowgirl in Clouds, Harvest, Photography, Ranch History, Ranch Life, Storms Tags: ,

Harvest…Hot Rods…Horses…one hot time in Juniper Canyon…I am writing to you from a very warm and dry Juniper Canyon tonight.

Long days…hard work…dust and heat mean harvest is finally here!

Harvest memories flood my mind with family times…driving wheat truck with my cousins and my uncles running the combines…harvest lunches cooked by my aunts or my Mom…harvest was the best time of the year!

This makes me itch seeing the wheat chaff..we used to douse ourselves with baby powder so that the chaff would not stick to our sweaty skin. Wheat chaff was not fun but barley chaff was the worst.

When we would harvest a field of barley one of us cousins got to follow one of our uncles when they opened up the field…right behind the combine spitting out the chaff  into your truck…even if it was 105 degrees I would keep my windows rolled up tight…we did not have air-conditioned trucks then.

With harvest going full swing…semi trucks haul wheat out of our canyon night and day…when I was little the trucks coming up the canyon at night would scare me as I would see the lights coming on my bedroom walls…the road in front of the house had a large bump on it…so the trucks would hit the bump with a ka-bang rattle and pop!

The semi trucks either load the wheat out of  the elevator about a mile from our house or they load right out of the farmer’s field from the bank out wagon.

The wheat from the elevators is trucked down to the Columbia River which is not far from here….about 38 miles.

The wheat is then loaded on to a barge headed down the Columbia River to Portland Oregon…which is about a 200 mile trip…in this picture there are two barges loaded with wheat.

Harvest is a happy time of year for farm families…working together to bring in the crop…hoping for a good yield and good price. Harvest also means the season is changing.

We go from this view right before harvest gets under way as the wheat has turned golden and the heads are full of grain.

This is an early summer view and the fields look pretty as everything that you can see out here is green…the wheat begins to turn gradually over several weeks time until it ripens to the golden-yellow color.

Here is a view of the field bare…it’s bounty has been harvested and sold…we go from beautiful green fields to golden wheat fields to bare dry and dead fields…so the cycle of life begins again for next year. Our house is down below in the trees that you see. Wild Bill’s burn out strip of highway is visible too.

With true summer colors all around me I get to take great pictures…golden days and incredible evening skies.

August colors and light… templates paint the evening sky with golden crimson purple colors…every color you can imagine.

With ever-changing light…colors and views…we spend our summer nights on the patio enjoying the smells of the wheat ripening…the night sounds of crickets…every once in a while the cool breeze that comes up the canyon from the creek…warm nights that are filled with amazing skies and views!

Home truly is where the heart is and we love our history here…our home…ranch and shop…our life.

We live in God’s country…His beauty surrounds us!

Where anything is possible.

Such as a street rod shop on a cowboy ranch in a wheat field of dreams…

Not just any street rod shop…but Holton Secret Lab…your dreams do come true here!

We are here to build your dream…we understand dreams…we have the qualifications and history to support what we do and our talent that we sell.

Visit our web page and see for yourself…call us…come tour our shop and facility  www.holtonsecretlab.com

On a side note…at Holton Secret Lab we require our employees to know how to ride a horse…in case we need flesh and blood horse power…yep Cowboy Flame is on a mission!!!

Son Greg works for Holton Secret Lab too…I know I have a picture of him on a horse…hang on I will find it!!! He volunteers at the Pendleton Round Up…he used to rodeo himself…my baby boy all 6’5″ of him! Go Ducks!

This is our other cowboy son Curt…he knows how to ride and throws the “Big Loop”…he works for Microsoft…very smart cowboy he is:)

Circa 1930

No Wild Bill This Is Not When I Drove Truck!!! WB tries hard to make me be his age…sorry WB you are older…neener neener!

See This Look….He Is Being A Smarty Pants!

Wild Bill…I have the last word…you know…what I said about our employees…yah you have to ride them ponies with real horsepower too!

Wild Bill is getting his own horse in a month!!! Yee-Haw!!! Ride Em Cowboy!!!

Hey Leonard…I have not forgotten you….stay tuned!

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