Rain, ice creams, family things

Tommy got a pork shoulder bone this morning.

"Did you touch my bone?"

"I buried it right there."

"Are you sure? 'Cuz I'll firetruck you up, Cuz."

What a dog. He takes his bones seriously.

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This morning I'm deep into family BBQ preparations. My niece and her family are visiting from cali. Her Mom and Dad are picking the three of them -- Joy, hubby Preston, and son Leo -- up from the Denver airport, and they'll stop for eating and visiting on their way to Cozad. I'm making from-scratch baked beans, the kind that has chunks of pork in it. It's not hard to do but takes some effort and planning. Which I think is pretty much okay, because the result is summer bbq tasty!

Yesterday I made strawberry icecream. Dead simple recipe although the churning/freezing is a little fiddly and takes time and attention to detail. Which is okay, because...

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Last evening we had a glorious line of thunderstorms move through. They brought the usual lightning, thunder, and straight-line winds, but most importantly, well over an inch of beautiful rain! In town and at the home place precip totaled 1.38 inches. Down at the south unit 2.1 inches. Big smile. We'll be taking cattle to the south unit in a week or so and they're going to have bountiful grass.

One of the downsides to thunderstorms is that high winds can "lodge" corn, even it town.

Tiny price to pay all in all.

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And then the day got away from me. Despite my intentions to get pics and video of the family BBQ, I did not.

I was in the process of checking cows when the County Sheriff's office called. A neighbor had reported that we had cows out on the Airport road. I quickly counted and checked fence. All cattle present and accounted for, fence all up and intact, no tracks in the muddy ground on the wrong side of the fence.

Then I realized that most likely the reported cows belonged to the ailing neighbor lady. I drove to the scene of the report and found and followed the tracks into the Cederburg parcel in the south unit of the ranch. Over the hill, sure enough.

I called the SO back and let them know what was going on. The story actually takes an even more grim turn. The neighbor lady's son has been trying to look after his Mom's cattle, but he's also taking care of his Dad who is dying of cancer a hundred miles away down in Colorado. Upshot is that I'm looking after the neighbor lady's cattle for now. It's no great chore, and the least I can do in the situation.

Whenever I imagine that I'm having a rough day or things aren't going just right for me, God shows me how very misguided my thinking is, and with that revelation comes the realization of just how blessed I am.

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The BBQ was a great time, and everyone had fun and enjoyed the meal. The kids got to roast marshmallows and get gloriously sticky making and eating s'mores. At the beginning, though, the little one was very quiet and clingy. I picked her up and she held on for dear life. I think she was feeling shy and overwhelmed with all the new people. And other stuff. I just held her and anchored her with the kind of love I didn't even know existed a couple of short years ago. She worked through whatever she was working through in about 30 minutes. Then she wanted down and was ready to play and have fun. I am so very blessed.

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After the s'mores something drew my eyes to the sky.

On the one hand, it's just water vapor. To my eye, though, it's a white dove. My heart filled with peaceful joy. This livin' thing is awesome. Let's do it again tomorrow!

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Be well and embrace the blessings of liberty.