Happy Halloween from the Cow

Today is Halloween, a holiday I've always really enjoyed. I think it's partly because you get to dress up and act like a totally different person. It fulfills my secret desire to be an actress for one day of the year. Of course my sweet tooth might have something to do with my enjoyment of the holiday. 

Now that I'm an adult, I don't dress up as often, and I don't even have a costume for this year. But  that's okay, because I have a son who I can dress up and he's still young enough I can eat his candy! My mom gave us this cow costume, which is totally apropos for where we live.

And here's Desert Boy even pretending he's a cow. Moooo.

The things we will do to get some candy. And my, how the candy has changed since I was a young'un. Here's an example, some gummy candy. I remember gummy bears, but here we have a whole gummy meal: ice cream cone, donut, french fries, hamburger, pizza, and hot dog. Doesn't it sound scrumptious?

Trick or treating is late this afternoon, but I figured it might be good to go outside and get some photos early in the day, while Desert Boy is in a good mood.

Here he's concentrating hard. Not on being a cow, but on putting the leaves through the little slots in the chair. 

Here's Desert Boy pretending to be a cow again. Okay, not really, the head is a little big and it makes him a little tipsy.

Here he is running away from me. Nice tail. Where is he running?

To every cow's favorite pasttime--cruising on his hot wheels. He's probably the only cow going Vroom, vroom.

And I tried my best to get him to say Mooo while in his costume. This video is the best one I came up with:

Curious Cows

Yesterday afternoon we went for a little walk behind our house. The cows were out in the pasture and, as cows often are, were eager for a little entertainment. Not the Hollywood type of entertainment, but just something to make their day a little more interesting. Like a visit from Henry and Desert Boy.

Sometimes Henry chases cows, despite my attempts to make him stop, so I wasn't too certain how he'd act when he started approaching the cows. He paused and looked like he was going to be calmer. Maybe that's because I made him run two miles, chasing the truck to the babysitters and back. Perhaps I'll start running again soon, but in the meantime, I find the current exercise program for Henry very easy for me!

Back to the scene at hand. Henry and the lead cow assess each other.

They cautiously approach.

They reassess. I can only wonder what's going through their minds right now.

Henry takes a few more steps forward. The cow stares.

Henry makes a final few steps and then retreats. He's no working cow dog, after all.

Now we have the attention of the small herd, and they start approaching us as a whole. It takes a little getting used to to stare down a few tons of beef cattle.

Especially when they have some belligerent faces.

And drool. 

And give you a mean, intimidating stare. But I know better, these cows are just looking for some fun, and it is a little hard to take a cow seriously when she has hay hanging out of her mouth.

Still, though, when they lower their heads and take a few more steps closer, I have to take a deep breath and remember that with a shout and stomp of my feet I can make them all scattter.

Desert Boy stays pretty close to Mama, but he's very interested in these beefy bovines.

Hey, Ma, this is cool. Thanks for letting me take a walk!

And then Henry reappears, and Desert Boy gets distracted, as you can see in the video below. Notice how the cows just watch the whole thing. It's a good life.

More Cows

There's just something about seeing cows grazing out on the meadows that is so bucolic. When I see them I just feel good. Maybe it's because they live such relaxed lives, centered around eating. 

Maybe part of the appeal of cows is their expressions. Yes, cows can make faces. Often they don't bother because they are so busy chewing their cud or trying to figure out why you're looking at them.

Every once in awhile you can get a really fun cow look. I think I'd call this one the coy cow. She's making sure I photograph her better side. Ah, yes, cows have more personality than we give them credit for. Not to worry, I'm on the lookout for more cow looks and will be sharing them with you in the near future. 

Surprise Snowstorm

We woke up this morning to discover snow outside! The weather forecasters had warned us that we might have rainin the morning turning into afternoon snow, but right from the beginning we had two inches of snow. I got all excited, I always do when we have new snow, even if it isn't yet the middle of October.

Before we could go out, though, we had to get properly outfitted. We didn't have our snow clothes ready, but I was able to find a snow suit that sort of fit Desert Boy, along with some boots that made it difficult for him to walk, and hat and mittens. He loves to be outside no matter the weather.

We went down to the lower yard, where the normally drab stack of tires looked a little more artistic with a layer of snow covering it.

Fortunately there isn't so much snow that the giant loader has to be called into action. The snow is putting a damper on chopping corn and baling hay this morning.

The cows still are eating away, and getting fed a little extra today since they're burning off extra calories to stay warm.

This calf is just adorable, with her dirty nose, big eyes, and slightly damp hair. 

We'll be back out to play in the snow soon, after Desert Boy wakes up from a nap. All the excitement wore him out. And after I make a big pot of stew for lunch--we need that on a day like today! The forecasters warned that we might have power outages due to tree limbs breaking and falling on the power lines, so if I'm not back bright and early tomorrow morning, be assured that I'll be up just as soon as possible. Have a good weekend! 

Chopping Corn

It's that time of year to harvest the corn. We have several pivots of field corn, and it has grown nice and tall, about eight feet tall. 

Corn is one of my all-time favorite vegetables, and it takes some restraint not to reach out and pluck those ears of corn, even though they are field corn. The deer don't show so much restraint--they hide happily in the corn fields and munch away to their heart's content.

When the corn has matured to just the right point and the weather is cooperating, it's time to cut it. What is that right point? According to my dear husband, it's the half milk point. I think that's what he said. If I understood him right, it's when the kernels on the ear have dented in deeply and are hard about half-way down. They are still adding a little starch to the ears, and this is the best time to cut for silage. If you just want to cut the ears (earlage), it's best to wait a little bit longer.

The big chopper is the machine of choice (and Desert Boy's favorite piece of equipment to climb). The chopper cuts six rows of corn at a time. As it drives along, the silage truck drives at the same speed so that the corn goes into the truck.

They start on the outside of the pivot, going in a huge semi-circle. Why not a circle that goes all around the field? Ah, the pivot is in the way, so it's simpler to do two semi-circles than a circle with a major detour. It generally takes three to four days to cut and chop an entire field.

Gradually the rows of cut corn keep expanding.

A silage truck can only hold so much cut corn, so after a few minutes, another silage truck comes in to take its place. The first truck heads off.

Where does it go? Not to worry, Desert Boy, Henry, and I followed it to see.

The truck backed up to this red machine next to a long white bag. It lifted its load, and the silage started coming out.

The red machine, called a bagger, compresses the corn silage into the plastic bag. In this closed environment it ferments slightly, preserving it. Fermentation is an anaerobic process, so the plastic helps keep that oxygen out. Just think fine wine...or not. 

Here's a view from the other side. The white bags are a football field long. The corn silage needs to stay in the bag for at least 30 days before it's used as feed.

Here's the loader getting some of last year's silage. After it gets its scoop... 

...it loads the feed wagon, which then makes a trip through the feed lot and distributes the mixture of corn, alfalfa, and barley silage to the cows.

The end result is some happy cows! 

Up on a Horse

The ranch has some beautiful horses, but they're all working horses, meaning that they can be a little feisty and aren't the docile retired animals that you usually find at trail rides. Seeing how that's the only type of horse I had been around before I moved out to the desert and got married, I've had a bit of a learning curve as I try to master riding a horse.

My sister-in-law Tana makes it look easy. She's a true cowgirl, and has no problem taking little Desert Boy for a ride. They both are loving it.

Desert Boy even looks like he knows what he's doing, holding on to the reins and looking around to search for cattle. Tana started riding before she could walk, so perhaps with Desert Boy starting early he will also make it look easy.

This is my nephew Tractor Buddy. When I look at him, I figure that this is what Desert Boy probably will look like in about eight years. 

And now it's my turn. Tana let me take a ride on her horse Jewel, a gentle horse who had just finished herding cattle and was feeling a little lethargic. Perfect for me, the neophyte. I love riding horses, as long as I feel in control. I feel in control when the horse is moving slowly--anything faster than a walk gets my heart pounding!

That dusty ground looks like a soft landing in case I do take a spill. I walk Jewel around in circles, and then...

...the world starts getting topsy-turvy. Oh no!

Just kidding, I wouldn't have actually been able to take a photo while I was falling off. That would take too much coordination. Here I am, just strolling along, pretending that I am a world-class horsewoman.