Calf update

We headed back down to check on the baby calf at about 4pm. She was much stronger and up on her feet. I gave her about 2 more quarts of milk replacer from the bottle.

She drank it all right down and followed me over to where we had rolled out a bale for the other cows. I had to sneak away because she had decided she would rather be with me than her momma!

On her feet.

If we are lucky, by morning she will have nursed her momma and be good to go all on her own. If not, we will supplement a little more till she gets the hang of it.
She has had her supper, now it’s time for me to have mine!
See ya!
Crystal

Bitter Cold Winter Day

Brrrr! Finished the chores near the house this morning, taking care of the horses, hounds, chickens, goats, etc. Takes a while to thaw all those water buckets and chop the ice on the ponds. Once everything here was cozy and fed, we headed down to the bottom field to check on the cows. Many are expecting calves any time and in these conditions, we have to keep a close watch on them. On the way, I took a couple of shots of the farm.

snowy day

our house and barn

When we arrived at the lower field, we immediately found one new baby calf. His momma was experienced and had licked him dry and encouraged him to nurse. In spite of the terrible cold and wind, he was doing fine.

We took a quick head count and realized we were missing one cow, a young one expecting her first calf. After driving around a bit, we found her.

darn it, across the creek

She had the calf on the far side of a small creek, where it was in danger of falling in and drowning. She had licked it off, but not completely and it was very cold and wet. It had not nursed yet and could not stand on its own. It was a little female.
We got her up and carried her across the creek and away from the water. We dried her off with some old towels, then spread some dry hay for her to lay in. I went to the house and readied a bottle of milk replacer for her.
Momma was not thrilled about me messing with her baby. I wasn’t paying close enough attention and she knocked me down once.
I was finally able to get the calf to nurse about a pint from the bottle. Hopefully that will give her enough strength to get up and nurse momma after she rests a bit.
I would have some pics of her nursing the bottle, but the camera froze up in the cold and blowing snow.
We will head back down to check on her in a few hours. Maybe I can get a couple more photos then.
Try to stay warm!
See ya,
Crystal

Snow! WooHoo!

Have I mentioned that I love snow? As soon as my chores were done this morning I headed out to have some fun with my dogs and horses.

Can’t do anything till I have said hello to Tag.

Tag @ 6 months old

Then I headed to the barn and grabbed Tam, my old faithful. She is always game for whatever crazy idea I come up with. Sooo, I cobbled together a makeshift harness with my training surcingle, an old breast collar and a couple of old ropes that had seen better days. Then I swiped Clayton’s sled and used the ropes to tie it to the harness. I used two longe lines for driving lines. Tam stood patiently as I put this awful conglomeration on her and tightened everything up. Then, I hopped on the sled and kissed at her. Down the road we went!

It worked out so well that I decided to give Mac a try. He never ceases to amaze me. He was such a pain in the you know what when we got him. He looked a little confused as I dragged that mess of a harness up over him, but stayed put. I decided to walk behind the sled at first, just to make sure I wasn’t going to have a run away.  That lasted about 10 seconds, then I jumped on.

Mac's first time pulling anything!

He picked it right up!

This is genuine, homemade fun!

He's a natural!

After a couple of hours, I took pity on Mac and decided to turn him out for a while.

Mac after his sled pulling.

He looks a little tired, doesn’t he?

What a good boy.

I gave him a hug and a pat and took him to the pasture to hang with his buddies.

Tam and Pappy

Tam was looking at me as if to say, I’m done, right? I must have worn her out too. Razzle, on the other hand, was grumpy because he had been left out of the action.

Razzle

Don’t worry my friend. You’re next!

Mexican stand off

Can’t leave little Reno out of the pictures. He and Tag were eyeballing each other pretty hard. They both decided it wasn’t worth the effort.

Tag and Ember rested in the hay while I put my fancy harness away.

I’m going to grab a bite to eat and head back out to enjoy the snow. Hope you are too!

See ya!

Crystal

Painting complete!

Well, after several hours of work, I have finally finished painting the living room and kitchen at Murphy’s Retreat. It used to be all white. I decided to add a little color. Hope you all like it!

This is what it used to look like.

Here is what it looks like now.

Fireplace at Murphy's Retreat

Entertainment Center

It’s amazing how a little color brings everything to life.

I’ll update you soon on the basement finishing project!

See ya,

Crystal

Party at Murphy’s Retreat

Saturday, December 12, 2009, we had a little get together with some friends and family at Murphy’s Retreat. The fire was roaring in the fireplace.

Entertainment was provided by my dad, Russell Halbert, my sister, Mary West and my niece, Alyssa Forbes.

Dad, Mary and Alyssa

We had lots of good food and drink. We listened to great music, visited and had a great evening!

Enjoying a glass of Peaceful KT's mulled wine

Clayton, Josh and Jim

Dad and Mary, tearing it up.

Lovin what we're doin

Peggy, Gerald, Clayton and Crystal

Alyssa

We couldn’t quite remember the words to a song, so I had to write it down on the back of a paper plate.

Writing the words to Black Jack County Chain

Alyssa just started playing the guitar in late September. She was amazing!

Alyssa solo

What a fun night!

Keith playing Alyssa's guitar

Josh, Mom, Peggy and Jon

Peggy and Jim

Josh, Mom and Peggy

Clyde, Gerald and Tracey

Jeff and Gerald

Tracey, Jeff and well, I guess half of Josh

Mom and Jon

Sing it, Dad!

Mary and Jim. Jim is supposed to be our harmonica player, but he never remembers to bring it.

Katie diggin' in

Julie and her awesome spicy spinach dip.

Kate and Dailene on the couch.

Kate

Mom, Gerald, Katie and Julie at the table

We sure had a lot of fun. Wish ya could have been there!

New Barn Update

Well, the barn may not be totally complete, but it is definitely at a usable point.

I like that dark roof.

The pipe panel stalls are just temporary. Eventually we will close in the front of the barn and have a doorway from each stall into individual loafing pens. For now, I have a dry place to groom, saddle, feed, etc.

Horses all settled in.

The horses seem to enjoy their new accommodations.

Razzle munching some hay.

I had a little trouble getting a close up of Reno. He is so friendly I had to run around his stall to stay far away enough to get a full body shot.

I’m pretty sure he thinks he is a lap dog.

Little Reno

Pappy and Tam, our resident equine senior citizens seem pretty satisfied as well.

Pappy

My old friend, Tam.

I think I’ll try to get a little work done, then go enjoy the beautiful day from horseback. You should too! Horses are shod and ready to go.

See ya,

Crystal

Barn Construction

Woo Hoo!

My barn is oficially on its way up. One more step toward being able to offer trail riding, training and boarding at Murphy’s Place. Framing is complete, trusses up and metal should start going on today.

Monday the first wall went up.

Ember is "helping". Every time someone lays a board down, she grabs it and runs.

Getting closer to complete every day!

 

Hopefully the metal will be on before the weekend is over!

One more time, WooHoo!

See ya!

Crystal

End of Fall Color?

Well, it looks like the beautiful fall colors have just about faded out completely.

However, if you look closely, there is still a glimpse of gold, orange and red here and there.

If you want one more peek at the last colors of fall, come visit and explore the woods before it’s too late.

See ya!

Crystal

Added accommodations!

We are in the process of finishing the basement at Murphy’s Retreat.  When it is completed the max capacity will be 12 people instead of 8, with another full bath as well.

I’ll post more photos as the progress continues!

Beautiful Fall Day

What a beautiful day! The fall colors are starting to really show.

This was the view from the deck of Copperstone Cottage. Our guests, Jim and Terri, left us a great little gift. It is a copper pitcher that matches the decor of the cottage perfectly. Thanks guys!

I went to the river to see how things were looking down there. The landing was carpeted in yellow-gold leaves. It was really pretty.

I love fall days like this one.

Ember has her eye on something.

Do you suppose this is what she is looking at?

Large hornets nest.

Yikes! I think I’ll be careful not to disturb that!

Well, I hope you enjoyed this lovely day as much as I did. See ya!