Evening

Good night from the ranch; clear skies, cool, full moon.

LaTR

All that work, on cue, here they come. Great.

Life at the ranch

Happy (?) Campers at the ranch. Mowed, harrowed, seeded, covered some pasture today, before the storms. She is learning Not to ride drag..

Ranch

Another great day on the ranch...Noelle is doing great! Little old Justice trotted and loped and she did very well. Fun!
The fourth is rapidly approaching.

Cool Things - Montgomery Ward Bicycle - Kansas Historical Society

https://www.kshs.org/kansapedia/cool-things-montgomery-ward-bicycle/10175

This is kind of neat...Check this out! (Maybe you've seen this already)....

It's Hot out here in the west these days, ..
mountains here I come, me and Noelle. Ooh Boy
Love to all, Dad/UR

Update Reunion

Hello Family,

 Home safe now after a great 5-6 days in Kansas; what a fun time.

Take aways:

  Kansas was beautiful, green pastures, golden wheat coming up. The creeks were full and running after all the rains. And, yes, the pastures were muddy; ask U K how muddy..

 Jim and I went to the Strong City Rodeo Saturday night. That also was really fun. It's a small one, even a little smaller than Springerville, but they tried so hard!! The funniest thing was three calves with ribbons tied on their tails, each with a different amount of money, and about 100 kids no older than 12 out in the arena trying to catch one and the ribbon. What chaos.

 The get together was smaller than usual; Bob/Jane in Ireland, other cousins all there. The younger generation not represented this year except Heidi and Rodney's boys.

  I have brought home some fresh gooseberries Augusta and Alice and Anna picked, stemmed. I also have A Ruth's famous recipe for gooseberry pie and will make it for the 4th. Something one has to get used to....

  Jim almost killed me on a 12 mile bike ride again this visit, through the Flint Hills on  outskirts of Emporia.

 The last evening was fun. Jim/Joyce had a meeting in Lawrence and I took A Augusta out to dinner in Cottonwood Falls, about 12 mi west, in a historic old hotel. It's really a cool old place. Then we toured "old" Emporia, which is most of the town really..., and that was fun too, hearing her rememberances of times gone bye. Here's the photo of that dear lady.

 The last day, Wed, I got up and drove to Wichita early enough to see some things there, and met Judy and Dave and then Shane Bitner (Anna's son) for some snacks and a beer before my flight.

 Somewhere in there I got bit by a couple of bugs..left a couple of big welts! Good grief.

 Home now, now on to the 4th, then to W.P., then the Yellowstone and the Dude Ranch, then it flows into the Danube a few weeks later.

 Love to all,

Dad/UR

 

Reunion

Ah, another annual reunion come and gone. Lots of fun, poignant memories of those beloved people and who are now lost to us, and others could not come. We met Charrise's new little daughter, 1 month old.
New funny memories surfaced:
Like U Ken visiting farm with new fishing rod in tow, leaving gate open so cows could get out, remembering that fact, then taking the rental car deep into the mud. In trying to get out, a minor fall, so he emerges covered in mud, ashes, and cow manure. He then had to get the crustiest old rancher in the county to pull him out.
Then there's Wayne, who just shot a bunch of shotgun pellets through the fuel tank of his lawn mower...by accident. Anna found out the hard way trying to mow the lawn and thought the ice pick murderer had come back punching holes for some reason.
Anyway, a smallish turn out this year, but really good to see everyone who showed, and hear all the latest of the families comings and goings. U Bill and A Augusta did very well, God bless them. Four generations present, Love to all,
UR, Dad

Flint Hills

Aren't they beautiful in the Spring?