Tag: family

MARCH QUARTERLY ROUNDUP

On By Marci WhitehurstIn My BlogLeave a comment

WINTER BLUES–NOT!

Usually, winter is a tough time for me–short daylight hours, cold days and colder nights, but this winter hasn’t been, well, winter. Our southern family members in Tennessee received more snow this winter than Montana did, and they may have had colder temps for much of the winter, too! Highly unprecedented. We need moisture in Montana–and across the entire West and into the Midwest. However, the warmer temps and lack of constant snow has been nice.

The wind however…up to 90 miles per hour on some days! It blew a building down on the ranch, but it did need to come down.

Here we are, fixing to head into spring, and it’s felt like spring already. I don’t remember this ever happening before. Maybe spring will bring snow? Time will tell! Rain would be okay, too. Anything to keep the entire west from being consumed by fire.

WINTER PASTURE

The warm temps mean that are ground hasn’t frozen, which is another anomaly we’ve never experienced. Our winter pasture needs to be frozen in order to use it because its a little swampy-like otherwise. My cowboy has been working to keep the cows moving on fresh land, but without the ability to adequately use that pasture, it has made for some complications. Considering the impending drought, my cowboy has spent time on grazing plans and possibilities, planning for the ranch cattle’s best upcoming forage with the reduced pasture possibilities. It’s quite likely we won’t be able to graze several pastures this spring or summer due to lack of moisture. Dryland, native grasses need care anyway, but the lack of precipitation will definitely impact cattle rotations.

EMPTY NESTING

We’ve always enjoyed dates however we could get them. When the kids were little, we made trips to the dump because that was the only place they didn’t want to go! Ha! Local trash pickup isn’t an option on most ranches, so we made regular trips to the dump to dispose of trash.

Cattle supplementation is arguably a wonderful date. I especially enjoyed a recent trip to put salt and mineral out because it was near the swan ponds. Trumpeter Swans floating and flying nearby makes for an graceful excursion! Even the cows were at peace…

FROM THE HORSE’S MOUTH

While the horses are definitely more up Billy’s alley, I do enjoy them. With the strange weather, they’ve been in the corral more, so I bought them a ball so they could horse around. Here’s a picture of Bannack checking it out. They’ve been carrying grain pans around and playing with them, so I figured a ball would be perfect. They did not agree. They checked it out and then promptly left the scene. How rude!

LOOKING AHEAD

Our calving is set to start in May, so we’ll likely be getting some babies by the end of April. It won’t be long now! Soon the irrigation will begin and the summer fun will start. It’s busier in the summer, but I enjoy the weather and the activity!

What are you looking forward to? What has happened in your corral these past couple of months? I’d love to hear from you!

Until then, bless you!

Quarterly Corral–Cow Collars, Drought, and Change, Oh My!

On By Marci WhitehurstIn My BlogLeave a comment

Hello my friends!

Time goes faster the older you get. My mom used to say this and I remember thinking that was the strangest comment, but now I understand it with full clarity. Life gets fuller the older you get and that’s a good thing, but boy does the time fly!

WHAT IS THE QUARTERLY CORRAL?

I’m going to aim this year for quarterly updates, thus the name Quarterly Corral. In between, I’ll be writing in the faith sphere on Substack, so feel free to find me there. I’d love to connect with you. I also have a website for my kidlit work that you’re welcome to check out if that appeals to you.

As for the ranch, life has been interesting the past few months!

COLLARS

We implemented virtual fencing this fall with our cattle herds. A group of Montana State students came out to work with us and learn as well. We love working with students.

We chose to use Halter for our collars, and they’ve been great. There are three towers on the ranch to work between collars and cell phones. We can now create virtual fencing with an app on a phone. It didn’t take the cows long to respect the collars. The collars buzz or pulse when cows get close to a boundary, and they don’t cross that boundary. It takes about 12 minutes to implement new pasture fences.

This doesn’t mean that the phone does everything. The cattle need to be checked. They still are guided when moving big distances. Boundary lines can be adjusted and they’ll often gravitate to new pastures if it’s close by, but cattle moves still happen. However, the collars can be used during moves–you can set them so the cattle move down an invisible lane.

The cows don’t seem to mind their new necklaces. Many tossed their heads for about 10 seconds after coming out of the chute with their new collar, but that was it. We did put collars on the heifers, which we check regularly as they continue to grow. We don’t want them to get tight. A few have lost their collars, but not many.

It’s been a learning curve with software–mostly for my hubby since it’s on his phone–but it’s been an interesting process to see the cattle adapt. It’s also been great to graze pastures along the river bottom where fencing is difficult, but grass is plentiful. The river usually gorges each winter and takes out fences, but this winter has been too warm.

DROUGHT

As for us personally, the drought has impacted our leased land. Irrigation options were decreased. Here it is the beginning of February and we don’t have snow. With only one dusting all winter so far, we are praying for precipitation. Even now, the drought impacted us and we sold our personal herd. It’s a good time to sell, prices are up, but it’s weird to have them gone. The ranch where we live and work is also downsizing this month to accommodate for drought. Here we are feeding our girls one last time before they got on the truck…

CHANGE

This past Christmas season we spent some time with each of our kids, which is always great. We love spending time with them. Our oldest is in her 3rd year of vet school at Kansas State, our middle one is in the process of moving to Texas, and our youngest one proposed to his girlfriend, so we’ll be gaining a daughter-in-love in August! Phew! I’m so thankful that the Lord is working in their lives and leading them to places and situations that He has for them.

QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?

Feel free to drop me a line if you ever have questions or comments. I love connecting with you!

Share Your Story!

On By Marci WhitehurstIn My BlogLeave a comment

You never know what someone else may see in your life.

Replacement heifers are curious, just like students!

Well, it’s been more than a hot minute since I’ve posted. It isn’t because I lacked the words or the desire, but I lacked the heart. Why are my words needed? What can I say that hasn’t already been said? In a world with so much to read, what can I offer that is different from everyone else? Plus, life is full, isn’t it? Everyone’s life is busy.

The rancher’s life is busy, even when it’s not. What do I mean by that? We are on call, all the time. If a car drives through our fence, we need to go put the fence back up. (Yes, the driver was okay.) If a fishermen leaves a gate open, we go put the cows back. If…you get the idea. Many of you are living it, too.

There’s never a shortage of things to do in agriculture. This isn’t said as a complaint, just a statement. It means that it’s easy to let things like blogging go because you’re living life.

But something profound happened yesterday that has me seeing life a bit differently. I went to a meeting on a college campus where my husband was speaking to a group of ranching students. I went because I knew a couple kids and my husband was speaking–I did not intend to come back changed.

Yet these kids asked engaging questions. I got to speak to some of them. And you know what? So many of them are in our boots: starting out as first generation ranchers.

In other professions, if you’re the first in your family to become a doctor or a lawyer, you’re efforts are celebrated. In agriculture, people are more likely to ask, “Why would you want to do that?” Yet, I’ll tell you what: the room was packed with smart, tenacious, hard-working students ready to start down the trail. Even though none of them were my actual kids, I felt the pride of a mother. My momma’s heart celebrates them and their desires.

Over 25 years ago, we started out as first generation ranchers. We expected to be land owners with a huge ranch by now. Ha! While that hasn’t happened yet, our path and our story applied to so many of them. We shared a lot of what to do and what not to do. Here are some highlights:

  • Be professional. Show up clean and speak clearly. Just because it’s agriculture doesn’t mean you show up with manure on your boots.
  • Value all people–even if you don’t agree with them. Their viewpoints expand your perceptions.
  • Take every opportunity you can. Volunteer to help at events. Join groups. Rub elbows with guest speakers and ask a lot of questions.
  • Do small tasks with excellence. If your mucking out a barn, do it well.
  • Follow passion, but add education. Work for others and learn.
  • Take care of your possessions. You may have the oldest truck in the world, but you can keep it clean.
  • Be proud to be first generation.

The reality is, agriculture takes grit and brains. You won’t make it long in agriculture if you can’t make sure your output is greater than your input. This requires annual planning and spreadsheets galore, while having boots on the ground. It means weathering storms and unpredictable events.

Sometimes, that’s easier said than done, but building a community helps. We need each other. Seeing these kids’ hearts and hopes and a room full of kids wanting to get into the industry shifted my perspective. Maybe my life story is messy, but it just may help someone else.

I don’t know where your life has brought you, but I encourage you to share your story. You may not think it’s much, but there’s a generation that needs to hear it.

Calving Season

On By Marci WhitehurstIn My Blog2 Comments

I’ve been contemplating, ruminating, & pondering life this week. Do you ever have phases like that? Seasons where life feels deep? Not because it’s bad—it’s not. I’m truly grateful for each day that God gives me breath in my lungs. 

It’s more like: there’s a yearning for more. A longing for growth. An awareness of a “not yet, but someday moment.” As a deep thinker and feeler, sometimes I miss what’s right in front of me because I’m stuck inside my head. 

So this week, I’ve tried to pay attention to small wonders. They are frequent & everywhere—mighty miracles masked in ordinary rhythms. Sunsets. Raindrops slashing against concrete. The taste of fresh berries. The slurp of a baby calf. 

Right now is calving season. The newborns are frolicking through fields & playing hide-and-seek.

As most of you know, it’s possible when twins are born for the mom not to claim both. We had that happen recently. Mom only claimed one—leaving us with a bottle calf. 

The last couple days, I’ve had the chance to bottle feed. The calf is so excited to see you, they dance to the bottle & head butt you when it’s empty. 

The miracle of life is so grand & yet so simple. Eat, play, love. Watching a baby animal reminds me of the importance of the ordinary. The mighty miracles masked in the ordinary: Food. Shelter. Snuggles. 

When life feels weighty, maybe it’s a reminder to stand in awe of the basics. The kid stuff. The simplicity. We are so fortunate to have each day that we are given—and all the miracles saturating every moment. 

What mighty miracles do you notice in your every day life?