Herman the Bull

If we want to calve before next summer, we better get a bull in with the girls. The original plan was to AI the yearling heifers. But with a couple of pairs now part of the bunch, we decided to go with a bull. Fortunately, Bobby and Jordan Herman were able to fix us up. 

This guy is pretty young, but comes from some solid stock. With our small cows, he'll be a good size. Hopefully he'll throw small calves for our first calve heifers. 

So we ran him in and tagged him.

As well as branded him.

Welcome to the herd.

Then we saddled up the ole cow horse.

And rounded up the girls to introduce Herman.

He was pretty excited to met all these young laddies.

The grass in the field has really taken off, thanks be to God. Dad swathed and baled it a week or two ago. Really cleaned it up. 

So we got behind the bunch and kicked them out.

Happy campers.

Good stuff. This is a bit of a milestone.With the corrals done and the pasture planted, there's not much to do except sit back and watch the cattle graze. Bovine have a 283 day gustation period. By turning Herman out today, we should start calving about March 20th next year. Let the good times roll!

Salt and Light

Let it all point to the Father.

           https://youtu.be/A8rYpQpIhsU         

Mother of Success

Mary helps us accomplish our missions.

             https://youtu.be/_eb2NOTVGvE           

Pentecost

Is about growing in relationship with the Holy Spirit.

           https://youtu.be/cnKi3aELGXY         

Deadwood

We just finished up our annual priest retreat in Rapid City, South Dakota. So on the way back, I picked up a wedding in Deadwood.

St. Ambrose parish has been around since 1877. 

Because this is a mission parish served out of Lead, just down the road, I was able to stay in the old rectory. Good stuff. 

Deadwood is definitely historic, among other things. 

So I took time to stroll down town. 

Saloon No. 10 is where Wild Bill Hickok was gunned down by Jack McCall in 1876. Shot in the back while playing poker. His last hand of two 8's and two Aces is now known as the deadman's hand.

Saturday, Pentecost Vigil was the big wedding day. 

Trey Wright is my buddy from back home, who married Shania Miller from Moorcroft. Go get 'em kids!

Fun stuff. We had a good retreat week and a wedding to top it off was a nice touch. Time away always pays off. I look forward to hitting the ground running now that I'm back home. Let's ranch! 

Wait Well

By moving forward.

           https://youtu.be/LH3ne0BjhYY         

Party Patties

Our beautiful church at St. John the Baptist in Buffalo celebrates its 75th anniversary this year. Though the Catholic Church has been present in the Johnson County area for 145 years, we still think this milestone is worthy of a celebration. So on June 24th, the feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, we are going to throw a parish party. 

To do so, we decided to slaughter the fatten cow. Jim Borgialli graciously donated this open cow to our cause. Because this is a solely charitble cause with no money exchanged at all, I volunteered to turn her into hamburger patties. 

So on a Thursday afternoon, we sent her from hoof to rail. Thank you for your service and sacrifice, sister. 

Then on Friday, Darin came over and taught me some hamburgering tricks. 

By noon, we had her all boned out. So we decided to grill up some tenderloins for the boys. 

Then back to grinding. We put a second fine grind on the burger before we started pounding out patties. 1/3rd pounders. 

575 burgers total. 

Good stuff. It's fun to cut a little beef again, especially when it's for a good cause. I'm not sure how many people are going to show up for our anniversary party. But for those that come, we'll have a hamburger ready for them to enjoy. 75 years is something to celebrate. And not only is St. John the Baptist still around, she is going strong! Special thanks to Jim and Darin their effort and contributions. This party is off to a good start. Let's ranch.

Holy Waiting

Waiting with hope.

           https://youtu.be/6wIch9DYwD8         

Ranching Freely

Memorial Day is a day to remember and give thanks to all who have sacrificed themselves for our freedom. No better way of doing that than by taking advantage of that freedom and branding some calves. Jason and Boni Kuhbacher once again hosted our Memorial Day branding. God bless America! 

Buffalo Brothers  

Devlin, FB, John, and Mason.

Four of us came up the night before, including Jared from Gillette. Once arrived, we picketed the horses and set up camp. 

After we got the fire going and let it simmer down, Jared cooked us up some steaks. Good stuff. 

After a couple of hours of shut eye, we were up with the sun. 

First things first. Celebrate Mass. 

Then we rendezvoused at the branding pen to get our roundup orders. 

Cows and calves were scattered all over. 

Jared and Chief really got riding figured out. 

We held our bunch up until the rest were gathered. 

Then made the mad dash to the corrals. 

Got 'em. 

After separating the cows, we stoped for an early morning break. Diane made monster cookies. A touch of salt on the top really brought the flavors alive. 

Then we got to work. 

Plenty of green wrestlers this year. By the time it was said and done though, it was old hat to all. 

Just ranchin.

Just ropin. 

After the first bunch, we packed up and headed to the next pasture. 

By this time the sun came out and cleared the clouds. Still a nice cool day for working cattle. 

Devlin and Chief pared up and did some slick horn roping. Looking good.

After 300 head, it was time to dine. 

Freedom doesn't come free. However, if you don't use it, you'll loose it. If we don't get out and enjoy life, we can loose an appreciation of what so many have fought for. I love having the freedom to run cows, something a lot of places don't have. It is a nice idea, but a better reality. Nothing better than sharing that gift with others. Jason and Boni are great about letting us city folks come out and enjoy their ranch. Thanks be to God for all who have, and who continue to sacrifice themselves to ensure our freedom. The ranching world is appreciative.

Open Heart Faith

Jesus is present always, if we keep an open heart in faith.

           https://youtu.be/0RiSjm8hyGI         

Buford

After playing in our Sandbox Riding Arena back home, I realized we needed something to rope. Remembering a roping dummy that a buddy had, I went searching online. I found what he had, which was way more than I could justify spending. So I called another buddy to do a regional search on Facebook marketplace. Lo and behold, Buford popped up.

We did a couple modifications to make it more personally tailored. In the end, Buford is all I could ever ask for in a roping dummy. 

Martin in Gillette brings the plastic parts over from Mexico and then builds the metal frame and attaches the back legs. Much cheaper than the name brands. Keep up the good work, pal. 

First stop was Paul's place where Doug gave us a free lesson in heading and heeling. 

The coolest feature about this style of dummy is that the horns fold up when you dally, allowing your rope to pop right off. No getting off your horse or walking up to remove your rope. Beautiful. 

Back legs do something similar. When the slack is pulled, they come together and pull back. This is usually enough to let your rope slip by. But if not, just let off the slack and the legs will widen back out, allowing your rope to loosen up and slide down. 

After we branded Buford and made him part of the herd, I introduced him to the horses. They were a bit unsure to say the least. 

So I hitched him to Dad and we trailed behind. Once the horses could see that it wasn't a grizzly bear that wanted to kill them, they calmed down and we could rope. 

Money.

Fun stuff. I don't ever plan to get any steers or really ever team rope. But to have a dummy on hand to rope around with, is right up my alley. Buford serves that purpose. Whether standing still or being drug by a four wheeler or horse, this roping dummy will provide horse and rider with all the practice necessary to keep their cowboy skills sharp. The heading part is easy. Heeling is a different story. Just gives us a reason to saddle up and rope. Practice makes perfect, or at least passable. Buford the Roping Dummy is a great gift to the ranch. Special thanks to Martin and all who keep the cowboy spirit alive. Ranch on.