Ramblings of a Ranch Wife

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Ramblings of a Ranch Wife “On the edge of the prairie, where the sun had gone down, the sky was turquoise blue, like a lake, with gold light throbbing in it.” ~Willa Cather

Today I am going to spend some time at the County Treasurers. 25 years ago I spent some time at the county courthouse. T...
10/19/2026

Today I am going to spend some time at the County Treasurers. 25 years ago I spent some time at the county courthouse. Two very different reasons.

Today I am going to finish titling a pickup. A bit of advice, when purchasing a vehicle make sure the titling department has a good reputation even if it is a well known dealership.

25 years ago I was getting married.

We were broke, young, and in love. We thought we had it all…and we did.

Mark was working in a feedlot. We had planned to get married at 3:00. The day before they told him that a pen of fats were going out and trucks would be there at 3:00 am. He had already asked for the day off. He shipped fats and came home to change clothes.

I think I spent the day with my two friends.

I remember pulling up to the courthouse. So nervous. We were lowkey eloping. Only a handful of people knew. Mark’s stepmom didn’t show up at the set hour. Mark called her and she was painting an apartment. She didn’t believe we were really getting married. She made it 30 minutes later.

One of my fondest memories is when my aunt put a pair of diamond earrings in my ears. My uncle had given them to her on their wedding day. They were my something old and something borrowed. I may not have the earrings but I have the memory. No one can take those away.

We shipped calves every year for 11 years on our anniversary. The first time we didn’t was 2012. It was a historic drought year so we weaned early. This year we sell calves on Thursday.

We have survived against all odds. Most thought it would never work. We have had hard times, good times and everything in between.

We read scripture every morning. We just finished John and are in Acts chapter 4. I like to sit back and ponder what we ...
10/18/2026

We read scripture every morning. We just finished John and are in Acts chapter 4. I like to sit back and ponder what we have read, try and apply it, and then do it all over every day.

The thing that has been most prevalent is gratitude. Maybe it is the Holy Spirit leading me to be more gratitude minded.

Bible Gateway defines gratitude, using the Hebrew word and definition:“Hebrew (Yādāh / Tōdāh): Used in the Old Testament and Psalms, meaning to confess, praise, or give thanks, often tied to public worship and acknowledging God's concrete acts of deliverance.”

This is absolutely true and is for us right now. It is not something of the past, or something someone else does. It is for you, and me right now.

Sandhills Prairie Girl posted one of her Sunday morning hymn histories. She wrote about my all time favorite hymn, “Victory in Jesus “.

This hymn, to me, is about gratitude. How blessed are we to have been loved by Him before He knew us. Side note the word ere in that song means before.

When my nephews were young and they would have hard times or be scared I would sing that song to them. It soon became our fight song. One nephew would say, “ Aunt Leslie, sing our war song. We are heading to battle. We have to know we are going to win!”
My other nephew would say, “Sing the Blood song. We are going to crush this!”

I am grateful that they showed me how to be. That they had gratitude. They knew Jesus had made it clear we were going to win.

Everyday I find something to be grateful for.

Here’s just a few:

1. Being loved before He knew me
2. Nature - God is everywhere
3. Being able to do what I love
4. My husband
5. That he is willing to teach
6. That I have been created with a purpose
7. Local Fire and Rescue Departments
8. Technology that keeps far away family close
9. My pups
10. The freedom to share Jesus

What are some things you are grateful for?

Photo credit to Mark

10/17/2026

I recently purchased a drone. It has been so fun. The other morning I couldn’t find all my milk cows. This made it a lot easier. They aren’t bothered by the drone. Matter of fact they aren’t bothered by much.

Music by:
“Rebel Rouser” by Duane Eddy

If you are ever out and about on a road trip make it a point to go to Arthur, NE. The Bunkhouse has some of the best foo...
10/16/2026

If you are ever out and about on a road trip make it a point to go to Arthur, NE. The Bunkhouse has some of the best food around. The prices are fair and the portions are more than fair.

It is clean and you will not run out of things to look at. Really neat place.

I enjoyed a Swiss Mushroom Burger and Mark enjoyed the Rocky Mountain Oyster Basket.

I don’t think I have ever picked and snapped beans this late in October before, but I am thankful. It has been such a st...
10/15/2026

I don’t think I have ever picked and snapped beans this late in October before, but I am thankful.

It has been such a strange year. My tomatoes turned into a jungle with tomatoes that wouldn’t turn red. My peppers were good and then they went crazy the past two months.

My zucchini was fair. The squash wasn’t very good. Carrots are delicious.

It feels like my garden is two months behind.

We are still eating cucumbers so I will call it a success.

Do you remember when Nebraska had cool license plates? The sunset one has always been one of my favorites. Did you have ...
10/15/2026

Do you remember when Nebraska had cool license plates? The sunset one has always been one of my favorites.

Did you have a favorite?

Let these pictures serve as a reminder to make sure you are paying attention. Let’s rewind back to last Thursday. We had...
10/14/2026

Let these pictures serve as a reminder to make sure you are paying attention.

Let’s rewind back to last Thursday.

We had to fix a windmill. The rod broke right at the coupler, and the bolt fell out. We pulled the well and saw that part of the rod was stuck in the coupler. The bolt would be an easy fix. The well rod not so much.

We had to take it to the shop and get it out and rethread it. We would have to put it in the vice in order to do the work.

This well is short. It was only about 25 feet deep. It was one well joint and a partial. That meant the basket or plunger was still on there.

I ran one of the pipe wrench’s and Mark did most of the repairs. It took a bit to get the broken piece tapped out so we could rethread it, but we finally got it fixed.

We had to take the rod out of the vice. Mark was picking up tools and I thought I would just take the rod out of the vice and put it in the pickup. Trying to be helpful.

I tried to loosen the vice and couldn’t get so I leaned forward a bit to get more leverage.

Let me tell you, that pipe shot out of there and popped me right in the mouth. It hurt, and it happened really fast.

Apparently it or I made a sound and Mark came to see what had happened. He found my hat.

I have a tendency to walk and pray when something happens. I put my hand over my mouth and prayed and paced. I managed to wave at Mark so he knew I wasn’t hurt really bad.

I thought I escaped with a fat lip, bruised gums, and some slight bruising.

I had a scheduled dental appointment on Monday. They did an examination of my front teeth. One of my lateral incisors broke on the back side.

That means a crown. I hate paying the price for it, because I think dental care is way overpriced but that is a discussion for another day. I head back in November to get fixed up.
I am thankful it was an option and could be fixed.

I am thankful that I was not significantly injured. It also means I will be paying way more attention to my surroundings. It also means Mark gets to run the vice.

Does anyone have any guesses?
10/14/2026

Does anyone have any guesses?

One of these is not the same!Gingersnap is definitely a one of a kind, and is not for everyone. She sure loves her life ...
10/13/2026

One of these is not the same!

Gingersnap is definitely a one of a kind, and is not for everyone. She sure loves her life just how she wants it. She can be quite vocal when it isn’t how she wants.

Side note: The dairy heifers and bottle calves are doing well.

It has been a fantastic fall. I am thankful for the times we have that are easier. I think we all needed a little break.
10/12/2026

It has been a fantastic fall. I am thankful for the times we have that are easier. I think we all needed a little break.

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Cherry County, NE
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