Is that a tent in your living room?

Keith and I have great aspirations for being a camping family and getting out in the great outdoors.  We overcame our last obstacle last month by purchasing our tent.  Keith found a guy selling the tent we wanted on Craig's List so we got the tent, footprint, connector garage for the tent, sleeping bag, and a lamp all for the price we would have paid just for the tent.  I was so excited about it that Keith and I set it up in our apartment that night (it was raining outside so that wasn't a good option).  Though it was a challenge since the poles are about twice the length of our living room we made it work.  The monster is so tall that Keith can stand up in it (and he's 6'3").  The pictures are quite humorous as was the challenge of putting up a tent in a tiny apartment living room.  Good times had by all.

Cattle Chasers

Sometimes in life we only know the portion of a person that we directly interact with and are surprised to find out something about this persons life that we had never known.  These discoveries helps us grow deeper in friendship and appreciation of the people we interact with and understand them better.  Though it may not be a surprise to most, it may be to some of you... I'm a country girl.  Raised in Northern CA my life has been a mix of urban and rural.  I truly appreciate the variety I have had throughout life but my heart of hearts is a country girl.
Last month Keith and I took a long weekend to go home and visit family.  Part of that trip included helping my parents feed the cattle at my grandparents ranch, Gregersen Polled Herfords.  It is something I have done since I was a small kid so it was fun to share it with Keith.


The new generation of feeding cattle during the winter has ditched the large ranch truck and increased mobility by using quads and a small trailer.  Bitter cold most days, and thankfully not raining the days we helped, it was a great experience.  It gave me a great appreciation for the life my grandparents have lived since starting their ranch so long ago. 

They were waiting for us to come up over the hill. 

Keith dishing out hay (notice his pink cheeks...brrr)

We tried to get a head count and ended up somewhere between 108 and 115.

I can vouch for the cows in my life, happy cows do come from California. 

A Happy Year

In November Keith and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary in Santa Barbara.  It was a very fun weekend with hiking, walks on the beach, and plenty of great food.  I am a very blessed lady to have such a wonderful husband!  Here's some pics: