On to 2022

The wind chill tomorrow is supposed to push temperatures to a minus 21. Mark said I would need to put on every piece of winter clothing I had. He doesn’t know I’ve already been doing that. There’s only so much you can put on and still move.

The cattle are on full feed now from the haystack. I enjoy feeding my one load of hay each day with Mark driving. We go to the young cows who are expecting their first or second calf. They gather to greet us every morning. I’ve been doing this for a lot of years and we’ve found ways to make it doable for a gal my age. The best thing was trading a COLD feed truck with no heater and the road visible through the floor boards, for a heated pickup pulling a flat bed trailer. I get the best bales, not those that have been on top of the stack and have frozen strings (thank you Jesse and Milee for taking the frozen bales to the main cow herd). Mark has learned his lesson and loads the bales with room around them so I can get my body behind the slices and save my back. He opens and shuts all the gates. And best of all, when it’s really cold (like tomorrow) he’ll put his gloves on the heater and swap mine out midway through the load. Ahhhhhh. I call it social justice for ranchers.

We had a nice holiday mostly sitting around being entertained by the babies. Since the parties ended, we’ve been looking at finances at night and in the morning before the sun comes up. High hay costs make us sharpen our pencil and then sharpen it again. I told Mark if we hadn’t watched our balance sheet over the years, I’d have never made it on the ranch. A business like this is short on cash, so keeping track of a growing cow herd, and counting calves in the feedlot and hay in the stackyard as assets, make me know we continue to be solvent. We have money borrowed at the bank to finance these future sales and that’s just how it works. Get used to it.

It keeps snowing, every day since the 23^rd of December. We need it so I’m not complaining. Besides, we have tractors that can blow and pile snow. We have beef in the freezer and wood for the stove. We’ll be fine. Many folks are not fairing so well, so we feel blessed. 

We regret the current headlines claiming that beef leads the way in an escalating grocery bill. We want our product to be affordable to everyone. Beef is nutrient dense and still a good value for the dollar if you compare it to many processed foods like breakfast cereal. Even vegetables can’t compare with the complete nutritional profile of beef. Look for economical roasts to put with root vegetables in the crock pot, and ground beef to add to soups and other winter-ready meals. And please remember we ranchers aren’t getting rich, just paying the bills with enough left over to cover living expenses. We’ll do our part to keep costs down if you all keep eating beef!  

 

little Freya with Grandpa
feeding the herd

A Winter Walk

We moved the cows to a new pasture on a calm, overcast morning. Mark was gone, so I took his dog Rollah along with me and my dog Dot. Rollah is an old family name pronounced rolley. Rollah was Grandma Bonnie’s bachelor uncle. Doesn't every family have a bachelor uncle? Rollah, the dog, works further out than my dog so I had to keep a close eye on him.

We worked the lead and I could only keep up walking because the dogs kept the cows in check when they started to jog. Jogging leads to trouble, a nice crisp walk is perfect. I only had to holler at Rollah once when he went too far around the lead and bent the cattle off course. Jesse, who was riding on the other side of the herd, got them back on track. 

The cattle dumped into the Frank Pratt Place and immediately dropped their heads to graze. There's enough grass to last until after Christmas, which is nice.

We added the Frank Pratt place to the Pratt Ranch holdings when the kids were little. I remember Anna getting into the prickly pear cactus that first spring when we were starting the irrigation water. It was getting dark and her little fuzzy blue gloves were full of spines. That's a long time ago now. Anna is married now and lives two hours away. She helps us on big cattle moves. She rides beautifully, fluidly, and seems to be everywhere you need her to be on those difficult days.

We’ve been at this a long time. Now my hair is gray and Mark’s scalp is growing through his red hair. It’s been a good life. Christmas and the end of another year makes one think back and remember just how good.

The kids and grandkids will be here for Christmas. It's our first holiday with the two new grandbabies. They make me and Mark act like fools - so fun. They're young enough they don't need presents, just ribbons and boxes please. There's plenty of time to make them little consumers next year.  

Wherever you are tonight, whatever challenges you’re facing, we wish you courage and calm. May your herd stay healthy, your haystack last ‘til spring, and may you keep your family and friends close. Merry Christmas!