Karina Jones is a real-life ranch wife in the Nebraska Sandhills and one of the most highly sought-after speakers in the cattle industry nationwide!
Winter evenings on the ranch are a season that I definitely look forward to. I really feel like the good Lord gives us this season to rest. Or maybe that is just a rancher saying I know how insane the month of May is, I’m good not rushing into the next season.
It may sound boring, but we are game playing fools! I don’t know how many decks of UNO cards we have went through and after wearing out 2 UNO Attack machines, we have realized they just weren’t made for heavy use in a family like ours. Our youngest daughter is currently in a puzzle stage, so that has been fun working alongside of her.
And you know what, all of our girls are book readers. Just good old fashion book readers and winter is the perfect time to nurture that passion.
We try to take these winter months to start planning 4-H projects and goals. And Lord willing, there are some years that we even get a quilt or two knocked out during this usually snow covered season. We also do our fair share of testing out recipes in search of those perfect pies and cookies to take to the fair.
Our oldest daughter spends a many of her winter evenings studying bull semen catalogs with my husband, planning the next generation of our cow herd. Literally, this is a HUGE part of their winter evenings. Our middle daughter can spend just as much time looking at seed catalogues telling me of her plans to grow tomatoes of every size and color and exotic watermelons that she is dreaming of.
I know that our family is by no means “mainstream normal.” And honestly, we are just fine with that. I have never been the type of person to look over the fence to see what my neighbors are doing and I feel the same way about parenting. Find what works for your family and do that!
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Karina ranches with her husband, Marty, and 3 daughters near Broken Bow, NE. She grew up in western NE, with roots also in southwest SD. The cattle industry and raising kids is her passion.
Watching the cattle industry go the path that it has gone, she could no longer sit quietly at home checking cows, fixing fence, and doing all the everyday tasks wondering when some else was going to make it all better. As she became more active and outspoken on industry issues, she was asked to join the R-CALF USA staff in September 2020 as the Checkoff Petition Campaign manager. That position transcended into her current role as full time Field Director for R-CALF USA.
You can hear her almost every Friday on Your Ag Network’s Hot Barn Report that is broadcast on 60 radio stations with coverage in 9 states, where she deep dives into cattle industry issues and highlights R-CALF’s work on industry reforms. Listen to Ranch Raised on a Your Ag Network hometown station or www.youragnetwork.com where she talks about her daily life on the ranch.
Cattle producers are her people. She will meet you at the county fair, at the sale barn, or anywhere the dusty trail leads.
[email protected] or visit facebook.com/ranchraisedwithkarinajones
