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They are actually a blast!  I drove a Model 3 and it will set you back in the seat! And I sure as heck would not turn a Roadster down!  

But electric cars are most definitely NOT a thing around here.  I think there might be a super charger about 25 miles from me, but nothing closer.  I could easily install a charger in my garage or shop, if I needed to.  DH likes the Model 3 and I will not ever be surprised if one shows up in my garage some day.  Just for local tooling around.   We only have pickups at this point, and mine is an Ecoboost, so somewhat decent milage.  But all my short trips to town and back would be nice to have something electric.  Probably seasonal though. LOL 


The truck is really ugly.  It looks like a DeLorian that was built in shop class, by a freshman... lol 

I think the newer freezers might be better, but I had an entire season of frozen garden produce ruined in one. In 6 months it was all tasting terrible. I had frozen SO much sweet corn. Probably close to 300 quarts. I was so frustrated!

Bought a chest regular deep freeze (not frost free) and I can store things for a very long time! I have found beef that is 2 or 3 years old buried in there and is fresh and good! I try to rotate better than that though! LOL

I have come up with a better system for me. I bought the more rigid, but collapsible, grocery totes that can fold down. They have handles. I fill those and stack them in my deep freeze. I keep them sorted by beef, pork, chicken, veggies, treats, etc. That way I can lift out a tote or several totes to get to what I need. Things don't slide and collapse on each other. It works so well, and when I need to dig deep - no mess!

This news is not unexpected, but so sad to hear. As a parent, you would hold so much hope that the outcome would be different.

I am loving my new HexClad. I have slowly transitioned over to them. You do need a little fat in them to make them more non-stick. I keep a spray bottle that has either olive oil (light) or avocado oil in it and give it a quick spray, if I do not have any other fat in the pan. I gently pre-heat the pan a bit, add the oil and it is great. Similar to working with a good stainless steel pan.

Wow! Those heron are such large and imposing birds! I have one that I chase around in the pasture in the mornings. I check one side and the heron is usually close to the river, so squawks at me and moves up the creek. I then go out and swing back down the creek side to check there, and I swear it throws up its wings and says YOU AGAIN! and flies down towards the river. Amazing and prehistoric looking/sounding. You'd think it would be used to me by now. This has gone on for years every spring.

I was actually a little nervous with how close we were and how HUGE that gator was. Even my unflappable husband was a bit iffy! LOL That would be the Iowa in us. He can go give his favorite 2000 pound bull a nice back scratch - but that gator was a bit off putting!

We did both of these things in Mid March...and saw BIG gators. Really enjoyed the air boat tour!
We enjoyed this also, but it is a bit of a 'slow' day. Not that it is bad, but it's a more sedate adventure.
Excellent museum! And we have been to a lot of War museums. Top notch. We also went to the Confederate museum which is very close by. It was quite interesting, and my Great grandfather was a Union soldier. Kind of interesting to see 'the other side' ...

We enjoyed the trolley cars. You can buy a day pass for very little $$ and you can hop on and off. We rode one out to the cemeteries and walked around a bit.

I am always suspicious if those high frequency devices really work - but I have a friend that absolutely swears by them for his shop. I keep thinking I am going to get some for our shop, but I get too overwhelmed when is start reading the reviews (SO many good/bad) that I just stick with traps and poisons.

Me too! But after much resistance. I was like "I do NOT need another social media to keep me distracted. But then I would want to finish reading what was teased before me. I finally broke down and signed up. But I seldom read and never post.

Same for X/Twitter. I have it, never post. I use it more as a "did that happen" confirmation. For example the recent Facebook/Instagram outage. I tried to log in a couple times and then popped on Twitter to find that it was a widespread outage. That saved me from worrying about my account being compromised and trying to reset everything. So I appreciate it for that. None of my friends or family use Twitter.

I keep my account private and try to not have anything that would indicate who I am.

Ugh! I had to make myself only look at it at night. It is my TV replacement.


Me too! I have my algorithm set now to funny things, cows, farming, cooking gardening and decorating. If something comes up I do not like, a quick flick and it is gone.

I know they look at your phone number or other social media that has the same number attached and suggest friends. I do not believe others can see your email or anything recognizable unless you use a profile picture or name that is easily recognizable as you. You might be recommended to someone that knows you - but they won't "Know you" if your profile doesn't reflect anything personal about you. It will ask you often if you want to merge your friends to follow - I just say no.

But I LOVE TikTok. I have managed to limit the time I am on it. I treat it more as watching TV in the evening. I have learned SO many cool things - the most recent was covering a pie, slitting the top and rolling it back to easily cover the edges. So dang simple, but I had never though of it. I find great recipes, how-to advice. Fun decorating videos. And the humor! But again, if it something political or humor that I do not care for - a quick scroll. Do that often enough and that matching content doesn't show up for you.

You can also watch TikTok on your computer without needing an account. I don't know if any of the algorithm kicks in to feed you the types of content you want to see - but that is an option.

Here is one of my favorite TT videos on how to cover the pie edge. Yep - there are tons of ways to do this, but this one just hits for me! TikTok how to cover a pie edge easily.

I have always kinda cringed at the "SAHM" moniker. There is so much more too it! But you all know that!

My situation is different than most. Since we farm, I have transitioned into more the a farm hand/truck driver. I am seasonally. The most busy during harvest because I truck silage and all the grain. So from the end of August until November, sometimes December - I am a truck driver and head cook. Silage (which is only about a week for the big bunker) I truck all day, but also make a early morning snack of rolls, or some type of pastry and hot coffee in pitchers, to have ready when the rest of the truckers, packers, and cutter driver show up. I haul all morning, then dip home to get lunch out of the oven, and everyone stops for a quick lunch hour and then back to the field. I go back to the field above 30 minutes after everyone else, so I can quick clean up and get a supper ready in the shop when we quit. Something easy like maid rites or walking tacos that can be simmering the crock pot. And I usually a cookie or brownie to go with that. So I prep a lot of this stuff in advance and pull out of the freezer on the days I need it.

When I am trucking grain, I just make field lunches for me and DH that I pack in a cooler for the day. I have a problem with having my stuff all gone by 11 am. LOL Ah Damn it! I also keep hot coffee and some cookies or such in my truck for the cart and combine drivers.

I am also busier during calving season (starts soon!) and I help keep planting moving along by bringing out meals, helping fill planter, and parts runner. Always on a parts run!

I also do all the bookwork and cook 3 meals a day, plus a little grandbaby watching when DD is out working after daycare hours. She farms and ranches with us.

I kinda miss the more "stay at home days" -but my kids are all long grown up!

Farm Labor, around here, starts at about $20/$25 an hour.  So that is what I am saving our operation by being available when needed.  It is pretty hard to find labor, especially when you only need them for short times of the year.   And to have a full time hired hand is VERY costly.  DH is very appreciative of my contributions.  I am a full partner  on our farm operation, and have been since the kids were young.  

From what I have read, I see it at around 7000 head, leading up to 10K head after euthanasia of more animals that were affected. Although that sounds like a lot, feedyards in Western Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas and Western Colorado are anywhere from 30,000 to 100,000 head yards. And there are MANY feedyards in those states. So 7K to 10K is a loss, and it will definitely hurt the owners of those stock, but it shouldn't have any impact on prices.... shouldn't .. but that doesn't mean the packer can't spin it and bring even more money into their pocket.

About 95,000 cattle are slaughtered each day in the US (M-F) ... that is a very approximate estimate, but that gives you an idea of how big US beef production is. 

I don't think that will have an impact on beef prices. Also - there are large quantities of hay being shipped to the panhandle now. Plus it is still early in the grass season. Most beef isn't raised on grass though - it is finished in feed yards (and they have BIG ones there). Cow/calf pairs do rely on the grass pastures more.  But the calf is sold off the grass and finished in feedyard.

The beef price is more set by supply/demand, corn price and whatever the packers can swindle out of producers, and screw the consumer. We are actively shopping for calves to finish now and the calf price is SHOCKINGLY high. Some went for a very high price last week in Pierre and they were program calves. The buyer bought them and took them out of the program, which was a shocker. To pay the premium for NHTC calves, then take them out and feed them as straight commerical and not get the premium NHTC bump at harvest. We can't figure out how that will make ANY profit. It's perplexing to say the least.

How would you handle the work from home days and keeping the child at home? My daughter still has daycare (not in their home). She says there is no way that she could work and have a child at home.