Love Love LOVE this jacket from nrsworld.com.
AND YOU'VE GOT ONE HOT NIGHT OUT!
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Spring Cowgirl Fashion!
AND YOU'VE GOT ONE HOT NIGHT OUT!
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Rain Rain Go Away!
If you're anywhere near Southern Minnesota I'm assured you're seeing the same scene outside...Rain. It's not stopping anytime soon either people! Joe and I did get out on a nice day last week (Thank God!) and were able to enjoy it. We played around with chores, ran back into the woods with the dogs, and just hung out. Hope you all had a great Easter weekend!
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Saturday, April 9, 2011
With good news there sometimes comes bad news sneaking around the corner...
Living on a farm teaches us "farm wives" how to be strong in the times that are tough. It may be putting on a happy face when it seems impossible, it may be doing something you don't really want to do, or it could be having the heart to say goodbye. Being strong I would say has been one of my big attributes in life, but I always have a hard time staying strong in the time of losing a loved one.
I believe most farms have a farm dog. These dogs are everything to our farm. They're loyal, hard workers, always there for us, and seem to never complain. I had a great chance in life to own a once-in-a-lifetime amazing dog.
Sawyer came to me my Senior year of High School. I had just recently put down a farm dog (Wyatt) who was run over by a car, one of the many hazards of a farm dog. Sawyer was WAY too expensive, he was from a breeder in Georgia, and was a Doberman (big, bad, evil, attack dog! NOT!) My boyfriend at the time helped me save money for him (and his plane ticket up here!). He came to me via Northwestern Airlines in a kennel. This dog was a gentle giant from the start. He was sweet as can be. He was velcro. Everywhere I went he tagged along, roadtrips, horseback riding trips, camping, errands, friends houses, everywhere. Sawyer also went through a lot with me, the loss of my boyfriend at the time, high school graduation, college graduation, the slew of boyfriends, car accidents, mulitple rental houses, getting marred, and finding out I was pregnant. He was always my stable friend, my companion, my shadow. Sawyer changed many people's ideas on Dobermans. He was so gentle with kids, he never growled, he was a great listener. Sawyer was kind of accident prone. He was once T-boned by a Basset Hound at the dog park and hurt his shoulder. He once swalled a whole bottle of cold medicine pills and had to have his stomach pumped. He once ran through a sliding glass door. Accident prone! He had a condition called Wobblers. It's a horrible thing that end up taking the mobility of your dog away. We found out Sawyer had this about a year and a half ago. He was staying at my Parents place to "rehab" from the cold Minnesota weather and ended up twisting his stomach and passing away last night. It was a horrible thing to go through. I would consider him a child of mine. I know he's in a better place with all of his former doggie-friends who've passed, but the hurt is still so there. He was a great dog and I had the chance of a lifetime to own such a loving dog.
I believe most farms have a farm dog. These dogs are everything to our farm. They're loyal, hard workers, always there for us, and seem to never complain. I had a great chance in life to own a once-in-a-lifetime amazing dog.
Sawyer came to me my Senior year of High School. I had just recently put down a farm dog (Wyatt) who was run over by a car, one of the many hazards of a farm dog. Sawyer was WAY too expensive, he was from a breeder in Georgia, and was a Doberman (big, bad, evil, attack dog! NOT!) My boyfriend at the time helped me save money for him (and his plane ticket up here!). He came to me via Northwestern Airlines in a kennel. This dog was a gentle giant from the start. He was sweet as can be. He was velcro. Everywhere I went he tagged along, roadtrips, horseback riding trips, camping, errands, friends houses, everywhere. Sawyer also went through a lot with me, the loss of my boyfriend at the time, high school graduation, college graduation, the slew of boyfriends, car accidents, mulitple rental houses, getting marred, and finding out I was pregnant. He was always my stable friend, my companion, my shadow. Sawyer changed many people's ideas on Dobermans. He was so gentle with kids, he never growled, he was a great listener. Sawyer was kind of accident prone. He was once T-boned by a Basset Hound at the dog park and hurt his shoulder. He once swalled a whole bottle of cold medicine pills and had to have his stomach pumped. He once ran through a sliding glass door. Accident prone! He had a condition called Wobblers. It's a horrible thing that end up taking the mobility of your dog away. We found out Sawyer had this about a year and a half ago. He was staying at my Parents place to "rehab" from the cold Minnesota weather and ended up twisting his stomach and passing away last night. It was a horrible thing to go through. I would consider him a child of mine. I know he's in a better place with all of his former doggie-friends who've passed, but the hurt is still so there. He was a great dog and I had the chance of a lifetime to own such a loving dog.
You'll be missed Butt Butt! xoxox
Saturday, March 26, 2011
It's a muddy world out there!
As spring is right around the corner (or I suppose here) southern minnesota is a great place to find mud from March until June. There's no better way to show your muddy appreciation by wearing cute muck boots right? Practical yet Nice Looking. Works for me.
"Where have you been Angela?"
I took a few weeks off of writing typing out my blogs. Here is my big 'ol reason why...
I'M PREGNANT WITH TWINS!!!!!!
Joe and I are very excited, maybe too excited. This will be a big change, but a very welcomed one at the farm. All of a sudden we go from 2 to 4! I would LOVE LOVE LOVE any suggestions, new Mom tips, anything.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
My new "LOVES" in life...
Miranda's White Dress in "Cowboys & Indians"
From the "Cowboy & Indian" Mag
Custom-made and only $38.00!!!
Farmers' Health Insurance: A Costly Row To Hoe
Many U.S. farmers are struggling to meet their health care costs. A recent survey by the nonprofit Access Project says they pay twice as much as nonfarmers do for insurance and out-of-pocket expenses. As small-business owners, they have few options and often buy insurance as individuals.
Paula Floriano, a 43-year-old dairy farmer, lives in the California Central Valley town of Atwater. She and her husband, Paul, have two teenage kids. The couple and son Nicholas work the farm seven days a week, starting at the crack of dawn to tend their 125 cows.
Today, she is raking hay near the calves' pen. Her blond hair is firmly clipped up and a cigarette dangles from her mouth.
"Usually, I'm the cleanup crew, and then when the milker's off, I feed the heifers, the dry cows, then all the smaller ones," Floriano says. "Then I give milk to the young ones."
Farming is a high-risk occupation, with heavy machinery, large animals and the possibility of exposure to pesticides and other toxic substances. That can result in farmers having to pay more for health coverage.
Right now, Floriano pays about $1,000 a month for her family's health insurance — excluding dental or vision coverage. Her coverage pays for only a few doctor visits a year, she says. There's also a $10,000 deductible for medical care before insurance kicks in. With all these costs, Floriano says sometimes other bills have to wait.
Discouraging Costs
Insurance costs eat into the family's limited income, she says.
Less than two years ago, Floriano's husband got stung by bees and had an allergic reaction. "So we went over here to the clinic, and that bill was $1,900 after the insurance picked up," she says. "So, you know, we try not to go unless ... we really have to."
Like the Florianos, many other small-business owners buy their insurance as individuals. Still, they represent only 5 percent of those who are insured.
That's one reason why individual coverage is so expensive, says Scott Leavitt, president of the National Association of Health Underwriters. A small pool of people makes it harder for the insurer to spread out risk. The other reason is that "when you do buy an individual policy, there's nobody else paying any other share of the premium. You do pay the entire cost," he says, noting that an employer typically will pay 50 percent of a worker's insurance premiums.
Regardless of why health insurance is so expensive, Karen Pollitz, a professor at Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute, says the bottom line is that the individual market is a mess.
"Nobody would design a system for financing health care like the individual market that we have today," Pollitz says. "It's volatile, it's unstable, it's expensive, it's dangerous and people can really get hurt."
Besides the health risks of delaying or not seeking medical care, there is potential for financial ruin. In the Access Project's survey, one-fourth of farmers said they used other financial resources to cover health care costs. More than half reported using family savings; a quarter took on credit card debt; and others borrowed against their farm or asked family and friends for help.
The Perils Of Pre-Existing Conditions
Pollitz says one area in particular worries her: Small-business owners, including so many farmers who buy their insurance as individuals, are at risk of paying higher prices when they have pre-existing conditions such as cancer or diabetes. Massachusetts, New York and a few other states guarantee that everyone can get health insurance and pay similar prices for it, she says. But most states don't have such provisions.
"So your protections in this market are much less, compared to group plans where federal law says it's just not allowed to discriminate against people based on your health status," Pollitz says. "In this market, you always get discriminated against based on your health status."
Rich Matteis is an official with the California Farm Bureau Federation, an advocacy group. He finds the discrimination "disconcerting, that's for sure."
He would like to see his roughly 90,000 members pay less for health care. However, he is not in favor of major insurance industry regulation. Instead, he says farmers should have the choice of more health plans with higher deductibles and lower premiums.
But, back at the dairy farm, Paula Floriano says it's going to take more than that. She says lawmakers need to change the health care system that she believes punishes small-business owners.
Floriano wants elected officials to "tell the insurance companies that these small businesses need their insurance, and you will work with them and regulate it," Floriano says, "not that they can charge outrageous prices and, you know, really stick it to ya."
For now, Floriano will have to wait. There's no significant movement at the federal or state level to restructure the individual market. All eyes are on the new administration to see what will come of its plans for health care.
Paula Floriano, a 43-year-old dairy farmer, lives in the California Central Valley town of Atwater. She and her husband, Paul, have two teenage kids. The couple and son Nicholas work the farm seven days a week, starting at the crack of dawn to tend their 125 cows.
Today, she is raking hay near the calves' pen. Her blond hair is firmly clipped up and a cigarette dangles from her mouth.
"Usually, I'm the cleanup crew, and then when the milker's off, I feed the heifers, the dry cows, then all the smaller ones," Floriano says. "Then I give milk to the young ones."
Farming is a high-risk occupation, with heavy machinery, large animals and the possibility of exposure to pesticides and other toxic substances. That can result in farmers having to pay more for health coverage.
Right now, Floriano pays about $1,000 a month for her family's health insurance — excluding dental or vision coverage. Her coverage pays for only a few doctor visits a year, she says. There's also a $10,000 deductible for medical care before insurance kicks in. With all these costs, Floriano says sometimes other bills have to wait.
Discouraging Costs
Insurance costs eat into the family's limited income, she says.
Less than two years ago, Floriano's husband got stung by bees and had an allergic reaction. "So we went over here to the clinic, and that bill was $1,900 after the insurance picked up," she says. "So, you know, we try not to go unless ... we really have to."
Like the Florianos, many other small-business owners buy their insurance as individuals. Still, they represent only 5 percent of those who are insured.
That's one reason why individual coverage is so expensive, says Scott Leavitt, president of the National Association of Health Underwriters. A small pool of people makes it harder for the insurer to spread out risk. The other reason is that "when you do buy an individual policy, there's nobody else paying any other share of the premium. You do pay the entire cost," he says, noting that an employer typically will pay 50 percent of a worker's insurance premiums.
Regardless of why health insurance is so expensive, Karen Pollitz, a professor at Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute, says the bottom line is that the individual market is a mess.
"Nobody would design a system for financing health care like the individual market that we have today," Pollitz says. "It's volatile, it's unstable, it's expensive, it's dangerous and people can really get hurt."
Besides the health risks of delaying or not seeking medical care, there is potential for financial ruin. In the Access Project's survey, one-fourth of farmers said they used other financial resources to cover health care costs. More than half reported using family savings; a quarter took on credit card debt; and others borrowed against their farm or asked family and friends for help.
The Perils Of Pre-Existing Conditions
Pollitz says one area in particular worries her: Small-business owners, including so many farmers who buy their insurance as individuals, are at risk of paying higher prices when they have pre-existing conditions such as cancer or diabetes. Massachusetts, New York and a few other states guarantee that everyone can get health insurance and pay similar prices for it, she says. But most states don't have such provisions.
"So your protections in this market are much less, compared to group plans where federal law says it's just not allowed to discriminate against people based on your health status," Pollitz says. "In this market, you always get discriminated against based on your health status."
Rich Matteis is an official with the California Farm Bureau Federation, an advocacy group. He finds the discrimination "disconcerting, that's for sure."
He would like to see his roughly 90,000 members pay less for health care. However, he is not in favor of major insurance industry regulation. Instead, he says farmers should have the choice of more health plans with higher deductibles and lower premiums.
But, back at the dairy farm, Paula Floriano says it's going to take more than that. She says lawmakers need to change the health care system that she believes punishes small-business owners.
Floriano wants elected officials to "tell the insurance companies that these small businesses need their insurance, and you will work with them and regulate it," Floriano says, "not that they can charge outrageous prices and, you know, really stick it to ya."
For now, Floriano will have to wait. There's no significant movement at the federal or state level to restructure the individual market. All eyes are on the new administration to see what will come of its plans for health care.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
More Snow! Figures...we're in MINNESOTA!
It's February 26th and again it's snowing. We had a nice melt down last week with highs near the 50's! Then "Old Man Winter" came and dumped a good 16 inches on us. Then, to be just a bit more rude we're getting another 3 inches today. When will it ever stop?!
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| Bonnie my Father-in-Law's Belgian Mare |
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| Molly the Mule |
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| The "Chicks" are in their ugly teenager stage! |
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| Attempting to take pictures of Chet is like trying to get a child with A.D.H.D eating sugar to stop long enough to get a decent pose! |
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
My Farm Boy
This is the man that's captured my heart. Has made me smile everday. Is the most honest caring man in the world. Is a great provider in all things. Has made me into his "Farm Wife".
Chunky Western Necklaces on the Mind!
To catch you up to speed, I am indeed married and yet having another wedding! Joe and I eloped the first time and didn't have anyone but ourselves there. This time around we're getting married in a little white church by our farm. Here's a picture of the back-side. This church hasn't been used in forever!
My bridesmaids are all going to be wearing black dresses of their choice with cowboy boots. I've decided I would make them all different colored chunky western necklaces and earrings for their gift and to wear during the ceremony. Here's some of my ideas...
My bridesmaids are all going to be wearing black dresses of their choice with cowboy boots. I've decided I would make them all different colored chunky western necklaces and earrings for their gift and to wear during the ceremony. Here's some of my ideas...
I'm wanting to do different design types and with different charms. This will be a new first! Wish me luck!
Monday, February 14, 2011
Spring Chicks!
Here's the new "crop" of chicks that Joe bought off of Craigslist (a wonderful website!). We aren't sure what breed everyone is, but it'll be fun to figure that out as they grow.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
My First attempt at a PIE!
The end result turned out like a 2nd graders 4H pie (or maybe even worse) but the taste is fine and it turns out its even edible! That's a winner in my mind. The pie is a berry and apple pie. My huge issue (which Im sure most struggle with) is getting a smooth top crust with a presentable crust...suggestions? PLEASE! :-)
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Winter Pictures
"The Girls" waiting patiently for Breakfast
Breakfast!
"Sawyer" My 6 year old Doberman
Our coming 2 year old Hereford/Angus gals
"Chet" my 2 year old Black Lab. I just got him and he was a 100% inside dog, he's turned out to be an awesome farm dog helping with chores.
"Big Cheif" or BC for short. I get so attached to our steers...he'll go off to Steak Heaven soon.
February is a time for love...
A love of being a Farmer's Wife. I'm still in a dream world living this life. I wouldn't want it any other way. I love doing chores when Joe has other things to do. The cows and I have figured each other out. Miss #2 (Xena) and I have actually become buddies. She used to torture me, by either snorting and tossing her head or even running up to me. Her and I have a new found love for each other. It all started with her trusting me enough to let me scratch her ears and forehead, then she let me touch her belly and legs. Today was a WHOLE new chapter in our relationship. I jumped on her from the stock tank and she just stood there. Now, I must remind you this is a Black Angus who wanted to kill me no more then a month ago. It must me February's love in the air!
We have had a lot of nice weather, then snowy weather, and now just stuck in a windy cold -10 degree week (yuck!) The water tanks freeze almost instantly now, the snow is no fun to walk through with buckets, and the chickens would rather hang out inside then come out. Come on Spring...you're wanted!
We have had a lot of nice weather, then snowy weather, and now just stuck in a windy cold -10 degree week (yuck!) The water tanks freeze almost instantly now, the snow is no fun to walk through with buckets, and the chickens would rather hang out inside then come out. Come on Spring...you're wanted!
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Deep Clean for Christmas!
Tonight was a great laid back night for a good deep down clean. I'm hosting a few different Christmas' this year and so the cleaning began. I tore apart every nook and cranny in my kitchen. Everything seems to be organized and smells good. The living room (were most of the activity is) is spotless and on it's way to entertain. Funny how guests make us feel the need to clean!
Friday, December 3, 2010
Snow!!!
Living in Minnesota we all know snow is a big part of our lives. Today the forecast is predicting 8-10 inches for us. I for one LOVE new snow on the farm. It seems to clean up the landscape and it's of course fun to play in. Last year I took some pictures on our first major snowfall. The 1st picture is my Father-in-laws Belgian team...Bonnie and Bob. The sheep is Buddy (like Buddy the Elf) who was running and jumping in the snow. The Team came to the fence and was watching him. The 2nd picture is the start of our cow herd, we're up to many more, but these guys seemed very content with their bale. The 3rd picture is the "love of my life" Hank. Hank has been one cool steer. He's got this surfer boy attitude. The 4th picture is of our Mule Molly.
May the Snow be Abundant!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Elope with a Farm Boy
1.) Find the Farmer of your Dreams!
2.) Sweep him off his Red Wings...
3.) Whisper sweet nothings (ie- Angus, Soy Beans, Silage)
4.) Elope!
Joe and I met on a website, and not just any ol' website, but http://www.farmersonly.com/. I grew up riding horses, I love horses! I've done all kinds of showing and even dabbled in some rodeo for awhile. I was looking for a guy who could appreciate my love of these expensive hay eating machines. Joe was looking for someone who could understand the "hours" of farming and also someone who wouldn't mind jumping on the tractor with him.
We dated for 2 years and BANG!...we eloped. This did come to a shock to some friends and family (which by the way nobody new was going to happen). Joe and I took a vacation up the North Shore of Minnesota and married in Grand Marais 9.14.2010. Joe and I are very different human beings...him, being a very strong willed, smart, quiet, thinks things through type of guy...and me, being all over the place with ideas, loud, moody, and very quick to not think things through.
We live on beef/crop farm in
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