Saturday, August 15, 2015

A short, sweet, and to the point blog about beef.

Earlier I was perusing "the instagram" and I broke my only rule for the app; "do not take anything that anyone says personally." Nothing like a hater post from a "vegan" to get my blood pressure up on a Saturday morning! That being said, let it be known that I am EXTREMELY proud of my roots, of our family, of our farm, and what we do for the economy, and the beef we provide for those who choose to buy it.
I understand it is your choice not to eat meat. I don't understand why you think it's some great tragedy to eat beef or anything else for that matter. If we don't use them as nourishment, then what purpose do they serve? They cannot survive on their own, especially not with your cities and your pollution.
No, so you eat your grass clippings and supplement them with "organic" protein powders and I'll eat my grass fed beef, and the world will keep turning just like it always has. But please don't lay judgment or call farmers "inhumane".  The real inhumanity would be letting the species die out because we have no use for them. You say, #HugACow, well I say, #IDareYou.
<mic drop>

Tuesday, August 4, 2015

...it won't let me add pictures.

So, it’s true… I’m a terrible blogger.  It may not come as any surprise that I’m awful at keeping a diary, too.  But every now and then, I still try!  Oh well, I’m not giving up just because it takes me two weeks (three, maybe?) to get back around to it!  It doesn’t speak to the passion I have for sharing my life experiences, I promise!  I’m just busy.  Between work, John, Ike, and our home, I stay in 5th gear!  …but that’s not a complaint!  Definitely not!  I wouldn’t change a thing!!!  Sure, I could take more time to do things like write a blog or take a bath, but I would have to give up some super precious moment with my wonderful little family OR give up some sleep.  Frankly, neither is an option.  So, we’ll just have to deal with my sporadic posts and be happy knowing that when I’ve posted something new I am officially caught up on house work and sleep.  (Yeah, right.)

So anywho, here’s what we’ve been up to… John’s sister and her family came for a night a couple of weekends ago and we had an absolute blast with them!  It’s so nice being around someone who has kids close to the same age as Ike!  There’s just that understanding that we’re both tired and borderline cranky and in love beyond words!  It’s just a good feeling!  Plus, there’s no judgment being passed about the house not being in perfect order or dirty dishes in the sink; just siblings with their spouses and their children all together and being a family.  So yeah, it was a good weekend.  We grilled and took the kids to the creek!  It’s been blistering hot, so the cool water was perfect! 

John’s friend from Colorado and his <entire> family came down for an Ozarks vacation the week after that so we had them up for some hot dogs and fishing at “the lake”.  We hardly ever have company, so having two different sets of people over in 4 days felt like a whirlwind!  It’s always nice to see people that you don’t get to see often enough, but it’s always nice when the house can settle back down and everybody can get back on their routine, too!  Maybe one of these days we’ll be able to do that!  Our routine has been shot and I’m afraid it’s not looking to get any better anytime soon!  Again, not a complaint!!!

John went frog giggin’ Saturday with a neighbor… I have no issues with hunting or fishing or even gigging, but I just cannot CANNOT cannot go frog giggin’.  Yack.  But I digress…  So yeah… we’re up to three eggs a day from the girls!  Pretty exciting stuff, I know!  It’s so funny because life is always so interesting and there’s always so much going on, and then when I sit down to write a blog my mind just drains of all things fun and interesting and all I can remember is how many eggs they’re laying!  Oh, here’s one… Ikey has been sick.  Again.  I think it’s just allergies this time since he hasn’t had a fever or anything.  He’s just been extremely congested and we’re fighting it with breathing treatments and watered down formula.  Thinning his formula by just half an ounce seems to keep him from choking while he’s taking his bottles and I just can’t say enough good things about the nebulizer.  The breathing treatments make a world of difference!  Not to mention it’s a frog named Roscoe.

I’m waiting patiently on my retail sales license from the state and then I’ll get my merchant license from the county and be ready to roll with hayikeysmom!!!  I’ve made some new screens and that went REALLY well!  WAY better than the first set!  I made some shirts over the weekend for my sister, niece, and of course myself.  I’m up to four now and that’s pretty much all I wear at home.  I ventured out in a Hay Mom shirt last week and Ikey was rockin’ his Hay Dude shirt and we got some cool compliments, so I’m feelin’ good about that!  Up next is business cards and then I’ll start promoting!  Everything is still more-or-less at a standstill until I get my license and can order shirts and supplies wholesale, but I’m really ready to get started and see where it can go!

We’re packing for our TN trip, so wish us safe travels!  I’ll have a really amazing post and some awesome pictures when we get home!  Promise! 

Take care,
E

Sunday, July 19, 2015

Weekends should be 5 days...

I had a really awesome blog planned for last week, but it didn't work out! Work has been crazy so I've been spending my downtime just soaking up John and Ikey and preparing for another day. So now we'll just shoot for next month when Ike turns 9 months. Yeah, NINE. MONTHS. What the?! But let's not get ahead of ourselves!!! He's a beautiful, bubbly, bouncy 8 months and I'm going to savor it!
Anywho... We took Ike to the creek yesterday! He's definitely a water bug! He loved it!!! He swam with John for well over an hour while this Momma basked in the love of her boys and had a cold one! Is that a perfect Saturday or what?! Then we roasted hot dogs on the fire and had wafflecones full of melty chocolate and marshmallows and banana goodness! Mmmm!
Today we have more or less taken it easy. John mowed and I cleaned the chicken coops. OH!!! AND WE GOT OUR FIRST EGG!!! WOO! My girls have become ladies! Gracious! Burgers on the grill with corn and my favorite homegrown tomato, cucumber,and onion salad! Yet another fabulous day here on the ranch! ;)
I made some shirts yesterday, too! Looooove, love, LOVE this! I'm going to make some new screens tonight (I hope), and then I'll have some more options! I think my entire wardrobe will be hayikeysmom apparel, so if nobody else buys them, at least I'll have cute shirts! I should have my business license soon and then I'll be ready to roll!
Okay, well, I just wanted to check-in... I have a lot to do to get us ready for the week!
Take care!
love,
E



Thursday, July 9, 2015

Hay Y'all

Well, I ended up getting Ikey’s cold, but no fever so I guess I’ll consider myself lucky!  Just a lovely hack and the girls at work have decided my near constant nose-blowing has transformed to more of a Goose than a Moose!  Nothin’ like progress! 
Ikey got his 6 month shots yesterday (yes, he’s nearly 8 months, but he was sick and therefore late on his 4 month shots, and was sick and late AGAIN when it was time for the next round!) He weighs right at 18lbs and is basically 27” long!  (We round up; what of it?)  That’s 25th percentile on weight and 10th on height!  I think he’d make a good linebacker someday! …if, of course, he were allowed to play contact sports!  Which he is not.  Ever.  Seriously.  In fact, I’m looking into bubble suits. 
Anyway, I’m DYING to get started on some shirts, but I can’t do much until I have my business license and the ability to order wholesale (which is my new favorite word, ahthanku)!  So for now I just daydream and keep searching for blank shirts I can practice on!  I got a little wild with the ink on my first shirt, but nothing a little duct tape can’t fix!  The toughest part is going to be getting the ink mixed so that the color is what I’m wanting!  It dries A LOT darker than I imagined!  I’ll add some pictures of the shirts I’ve made so far!  I’m pretty excited!  I LOVE the fit of these, but I’ve found some I think I’ll love even more!  Nothing but the best for hayikeysmom gear!!! 
So we’re starting to plan our TN Trip… again!  The first one totally fell through, but it actually worked out that we stayed home over the 4th of July!  Ikey was sick and there was that crazy-toxic-chemical-spill burning back home, and then I ended up sick, so being at home was really nice.  A couple of our neighbors came over and we did some fireworks for Ike and roasted hot dogs!  He was less than impressed with our $8 worth of “fountains”, but we didn’t want anything that was going to make noise and scare him!  (Think: bubble suit).  In hindsight, a little pop might not have been so bad!  It was a lot of fun, nonetheless!  Plus, I got to show off my Hay Mom shirt and my very honest neighbor told me she thought people would actually buy them!  SCORE!
Other than some pretty gnarly storms yesterday, it’s been a normal week.  Work, Ikey, farm, Ikey, eat, sleep, and, oh yeah, Ikey.  I hit the rowing machine on Monday, but have been taking it easy since I have this amazing first-of-July head cold.  Also, I’ve mastered the art of screwing up my form to the point of the whole workout being arms with a little legs and zero core.  Awesome.  If you’d like tips on how to accomplish this feat, just let me know.  I may do a tutorial. 
…on that note, hope you’re having a good day!  TAKE IT EASY!!!
Luv,
E







Friday, July 3, 2015

IT'S HERE!!! **updated w/ photos!**

...and it's time to tell you what "it" is!!! Okay, but first, an Ikey update: he's all better! Yayyy! Everybody do a happy dance!
 **ahem** Okay, drum roll, please! So my big idea is to open an etsy shop and sell t-shirts that not only fit like your favorite shirt ever, but are super cute and mean a whole lot to me! Etsy.com/shop/hayikeysmom is coming soon!!!
I did a dry run today and made a few shirts, and I'm loving it! I have my work cut out for me, but it's a lot of fun! I'll post some pics tomorrow, but I couldn't wait to tell you guys about this new adventure! The passion behind hayikeysmom is inspired by the way of life we have here at Ike Land & Cattle, and sharing it with you! I aim to start simple with a few basic designs and let it grow!
Okay, gotta go get these steaks marinated and get ready to grill! Hope y'all get to see some fireworks! Be safe, and Happy Independence Day!!!
-E

Tuesday, June 30, 2015

sick days with a sick baby...

So it's been nearly a week since my last post, and I am one light bulb closer to the big idea I eluded to in my last blog, which also happens to have been my first blog! Seriously, one light bulb. But that's okay, because everything is due to be delivered by Friday! Keep your fingers crossed!!!
Ikey got sick over the weekend and his fever broke early yesterday morning so I thought I would try to go to work. He lasted 2.5 hours before the daycare called and told me to come get him! I feel like I need to mention that normally I would've kept him home with me after a fever, but with the new attendance policy they're enforcing at work, I needed to at least try to be there. Well that didn't work and we're at home again today, but that's fine with me because it's right where my baby needs to be. He's doing tons better today, but has a mean cough and a pitiful little raspy voice. We watched Madagascar and now he's taking a good nap!
We had a pretty busy weekend... Saturday we got up early and worked the cattle at "Pete's". (We have three farms and they have unintentionally earned nicknames, but it's really the only way to keep up with who is where! There's "Pete's", "Across the Road", and "The House"!) We've had a pretty strong run of Pink Eye at Pete's, so we got them up and hopefully we got on top of it. There were a couple with watery eyes Across the Road, but we got that plenty early enough. John sprayed for a while that afternoon and ended up with a flat on the big tractor. It has duals, and of course, the flat was on the inside tire! So Sunday we took the tires off and loaded the busted one and the spare to take to town. Then I cleaned the garage, because it seems the chickens have decided it makes a good hang out and John moved the rest of the hay to the barn. After I cleaned the coop, and freshened up the nesting boxes (the girls should start laying any day now!), me and Ike broke in the new hammock! Pretty basic weekend until Sunday night when Ikey's slight cough turned into a full-blown cold with a fever and mad congestion. I hate it when he feels bad... Breaks my heart to see him like that. But it's good for his immune system. (Read that with air quotes and a dramatic eye roll.)
ALSO, the rowing machine came... I am <apparently> insanely out of shape, but I'm sort of obsessed with it right now!

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

*tap, tap* ...is this thing on?



...so, this is blogging? Well, today, I'm creating an idea that I can be truly passionate about. Honestly, there are boat loads of things I'm passionate about, but today I'm creating an opportunity! There will be more to come on that... Much more! Like, you'll be annoyed about it, but hey it's MY blog. I'm also planning the next Ike Adventure back to my hometown! Nothing like a 9 hour drive with a 7 month old! ...and a grouchy husband! He won't be alone in that mood, though since we're leaving after work on a Thursday! Yeesh. Always worth it, though! And this time even more so, because we aren't telling my mom! Surprise!!! Bahahaha, this should be good! I'll let ya know... Okay, but back to this blog! So I'm going to be sharing my day-to-day with you and just putting down my thoughts! It should be a good time! There's always something hilarious going on in my world (what can i say? I prefer to laugh than cry, and have some pretty crazy <bad> luck.) so I hope this is at least somewhat entertaining! I'm a little sarcastic, a lot random, and pretty laid back! Come on down and join me, my hardworking husband, and our super good-looking son on this little ride we call life! And welcome to Ike Land & Cattle!!!