Ranch Raised

Maybe it is because of our remote, ranch living, maybe it’s a personality flaw, or maybe it’s because for much of our parenting years, the cattle market has busted our bank accounts and there just wasn’t much left to be spent on luxury items. But I have never been drawn to the commercialized, over buying, over the top gift giving scenario that has become the mainstream way of celebrating Christmas.

School is finally out for Christmas vacation which means our child labor has returned home! Farmers and ranchers are making labor lists in their heads of what they can get done while the kids are home.

Right now all I can think about is Ozzy Osbourne’s song Crazy Train because we are all aboard, full steam ahead on the goat kidding crazy train! We were in the barn until after 11 pm last night. My husband made the rounds at 4 am. My two younger girls ran down to the barn for a quick check at 6:30 am before the bus came and all was quiet, but when my husband went out to start his tractor a short time later he heard little baby goat cries in a pen south of our house, where I didn’t think we had any heavy does.

And just like the song says, “it’s the hap-happiest season of all.” It is officially kidding season at our house, I mean barn. I was going to announce my maternity leave today, but I didn’t want to confuse listeners with what kind of kids I was welcoming.

Candy, fudge or cut out sugar cookies? Peanut clusters, no bake cookies or buckeyes? Chocolate crinkles or thumbprint cookies? Monster cookies or the good ole fashioned chocolate chip seem to always be crowd favorites! But, yesterday I broke a recipe I had not used in awhile and I don’t know why. I guess with my girls baking so much now, they tend to steer towards chocolate. So, I rarely have to bake cookies.

Did you actually think I would skate through this holiday season with out talking about Christmas cookies?!?! Is there anything more flattering than receiving something homemade by someone. I mean truly, in my world it is the ultimate gift to give and receive. My love language is totally “acts of service.”

The days are ticking and flying by. The holiday hustle and bustle has dust flying and wrapping paper rolling, or anyway that is what they tell me. I tend to keep it pretty simple. I look around at what is available to me in my rural area and make my gift giving lists based on what I can get locally.

I am in the middle of doing a little inventory around my mud room. You see, I have a STRONG philosophy about only buying Christmas gifts that are useful. Is that called being a “utilitarian”?

I was once again doing some traveling yesterday and my destination was another cattle market auction barn. Like, where else would I go? Once again, this sale barn is no doubt the economic driver of that area. I’m sure that on sale day the population of this community swells and there is more gas and diesel pumped and more groceries sold than any other day of the week.