Desert Survival: How to Tell Direction with a Shadow Stick

 This winter we've been watching a lot of survival shows, mainly because Desert Boy is fascinated with them. (And in case you wanted to watch some, here they are in my order of preference: Man, Woman Wild; Out of the Wild: Venezuela; Dual Survival; Man vs. Wild; Survivorman.)

Desert Boy talks about survival all the time. So we talk about how to be safe. And although he really wants to practice his fire-making skills, we decided we'd start small. So we tried a survival skill to determine which direction is which. Now, out in the Great Basin, that's often not something that's hard to figure out, as most of the 300+ mountain ranges run north-south. But when we travel, we might need to know the direction.

The first step to finding your direction with a shadow stick is to insert a stick into the ground. Note: a straight stick is recommended, and some survival manuals recommend a 3-foot long stick. Sticks that long are dangerous around my kids, so we used one-foot long.

 After the stick is in the ground, mark the end of the shadow it casts with a stone or other object that won't be disturbed. (Note: this technique only works when it's sunny.) Then wait 10-15 minutes (or longer if you get distracted by hunting lunch, making a fire, building your shelter, etc.)

After you've waited a bit, check the shadow stick and mark the end of the shadow with another rock.


Draw a line between the two rocks. This is an east-west line; the second stone placed marks east. The line that intersects the line is true north-south (which differs a bit from magnetic north-south).

Simple! I did it again a few days later in a different location, and it still worked. I guess the earth hadn't changed its rotation.

This is a great, quick activity for kids and kids-at-heart. Stay tuned as we experiment with more survival techniques in the near future. And if you have ideas for ones we should try, please leave a comment!

Views from the Road

 As I was driving today, I noticed a distraction from the wide, open road. As I got closer, I saw that cows were on the move. A cowboy on a horse and another on a four-wheeler were behind a very long string of cows, stretching a couple of miles. The cows seemed quite content to move.

It was a beautiful day. Tomorrow the snow is supposed to come. If I have my druthers, it will snow up on the mountains (we'd sure like more!) and rain in the valleys. As we get closer to spring, that becomes a better possibility. We might be a little too far away from spring, though. Stay tuned for photos of what happens...

Desert Girl's Birthday

Desert Girl recently turned 3, which to her means that she is now a big girl. To me, that means it is time to be toilet trained! So diapers are out the window (so to speak) and Desert Girl is using the toilet like a big girl. This tactic worked with Desert Boy amazingly well, and is going well so far with Desert Girl. 

But back to the birthday. We decided to have two celebrations. One for kids in the local gym so they could run around and have fun, and a family gathering later in the day after my husband was done with work. 

I took a bunch of dress up clothes to the gym, and the kids had fun trying on different outfits.

 It was hard to get them to stand still for long!

We played some bean bag toss and the kids switched outfits and ran around (at least the younger ones. The bigger ones were doing something in the corner!)

 Then we tried the balloon race, with each kid squeezing a balloon between his or her knees.

 Desert Girl needed a little help.

 Next it was time for the piñata--one of my kids' favorites! My husband thinks it should be banned from our town, as many a kid has nearly got whacked--and a few have got whacked--by the pinata stick. Nevertheless, I don't think it's going away anytime soon.

 I brought some healthy food, which disappeared quickly, I think mainly because the kids liked eating with toothpicks.


Then came the blowing out candles part. Desert Girl seems to have a hard time aiming her breath.


Nevertheless, she eventually succeeded!

 In the evening she had some fun with one of her uncles.

 She was also ready to blow out more candles!

 She blew them out so fast I hardly had time for a photo!


It was a relaxing time with family, and Desert Boy even had us all playing an alphabet game.

 Desert Girl was delighted with a new princess skirt. Oh my, it is hard not to catch her enthusiasm!

 Brothers hanging out.

 There is such joy at a little kids' birthday party. It is so precious to witness. I try to take lots of photos, because I know that those teenage years aren't all that far away! Happy Birthday, Desert Girl!

Are You Ready for Valentine's Day?

Valentine's Day is right around the corner! This year, my husband and I are going to try something a little different. Instead of focusing just on one day, we're going to spread out the love. For the whole week before Valentine's, we're going to write a love note to each other every day. (I wanted to do it for two weeks, but I wasn't organized to start the beginning of February, so for this year, one week will be our goal.)

I like the idea of spending more time on each other. In today's world, it's so easy to get distracted by the Internet, TV, and little gadgets and forget that people are what make the world such a great place. It will be nice to put a little more emphasis on the romantic side and go back to those courting days (while still happily married!).

Another benefit I see in trying this is that Valentine's Day this year is in Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday (February 13). I usually give up sweets for Lent (it is not easy, but that's part of the point of it!), so I won't be eating any Valentine's chocolates on February 14. February 12--that's another story!

I bet some of you have some neat Valentine's traditions. I'd love to hear about them!

New Arrivals on the Ranch

 The weather is working out great this year for calving. The heifers usually begin calving the end of January and continue for a couple months. First the ones that were artificially inseminated give birth, then the ones that were inseminated the old-fashioned way with the clean-up bulls are next. Gestation is nine months, just like humans. After birth, things change quickly--in one year, calves can grow from about 45 pounds to 800 pounds.

 This mama is enjoying a little snack while her young'un rests near by. The calves are usually tagged within 12 hours of birth with the same number as their mom. That makes it easier in case the mama cow has problems figuring out how to be a mama. By definition, the heifers are first time moms, so sometimes they need a little help.

 I just love looking at calves. If you want to see some more, you can check out this post (which includes the mom eating the placenta.)

 Desert Girl also really liked seeing the babies.

 Many of the heifers are snacking on the grass left from last year. You can find out more about what the heifers eat here (and see more cute calf and Desert Boy photos).

 Not all sights out in the heifer field are quite as cute. Above, a heifer strains with her contractions. She will give birth within a few hours. Sometimes they stand and sometimes they lay down (like in the photo below). We have a cowboy out in the field every couple hours around the clock checking on the heifers for over six weeks. If he comes upon any heifers with trouble, he can help pull the calf. Fortunately, though, most calves are born without any problems. The bull sperm is chosen for a lower birth weight to make an easier first birth. And as you might have noticed, nearly all the calves are black. That's because the sperm chosen for this year was from a black angus bull. (To get a glimpse of the catalog, yep, that's right, a sperm catalog, click here.)

Many calves were happily nursing. As they gain strength, they start frolicking and playing. The moms eventually allow other cows to babysit and will leave the calves for short periods of time.

A couple days after birth, the calves and their mamas are moved out of the Circle Field (aka the birthing field) to a meadow where they can hang out in the nursery. That makes it easier to check the birthing field to see how the cows are doing.

I didn't shoot any video, but if seeing all these cows makes you long to hear some cows, you can see my YouTube video. For some reason, over half a million people have wanted to watch cows mooing. You can be one, too! :)