We Usually Measure Rain In Tenths

Around here, we usually measure rain in tenths of an inch.

 

Last weekend, we measured it in inches.

 

By Sunday morning, there was 2¾ inches in the rain gauge—and plenty of Montana mud to go with it.

 

I don't think anyone around here was complaining. We don't get many September weekends like that.

 

It started raining Friday and kept at it through the weekend, with another little shot of rain Tuesday night.

 

The grass soaked it up. So did the roads.

 

And the cattle decided there was no reason a little rain should interfere with their mineral.

 

 

See the ME2 on her ear tag?

 

Her mother is E2. This girl was born in our M year, and instead of simply making her M2, I kept a little of her mother's number with her.

 

So she became ME2.

 

Ranch records have rules.

 

But every once in a while, a cow gets an exception.

 

Those lids on our mineral feeders have a job too. They help keep the mineral protected from rain, wind, and snow—which was particularly useful after nearly three inches of rain.

 

ME2 seems to understand how the whole arrangement works.

 

Look who I found this week

 

I was also out taking our monthly body-condition pictures.

 

We score our cattle from 1 to 10—1 is very thin and 10 is obese.

 

Most of our cows are sitting right around a 6, which is where we want them this time of year.

 

While I was taking pictures, I came across someone you might remember.

 

Miss Scarlet.

 

 

Back in January, Miss Scarlet was the heifer we found with a terrible rip in her side after dogs came through the heifers and stampeded the steers.

 

We've watched that injury heal all these months.

 

And this is Miss Scarlet this week.

 

 

You can hardly tell where it was.

 

She's healed beautifully, she's in good condition, and next month she'll go through pregnancy checking with the rest of the heifers.

 

Those monthly pictures are records I keep as part of our grazing and conservation work. But sometimes they also give me a chance to look back and realize just how far one animal has come.

 

I was pretty happy to take that picture.

 

Meanwhile, beef was arriving at somebody else's house...

 

Plenty was happening away from the pasture this week, too.

 

This picture landed in my inbox after one of our beef-share families received their order.

 

 

T Bar J hat on, jar of Montana honey in hand, beef in the freezer, and 1 of the new tea towels our neighbor makes for us.

 

That made my day.

 

We spend a lot of time packing boxes here at the ranch, but the best part is remembering where those boxes are going.

 

They're not just leaving our freezer.

 

They're arriving in your kitchens and your freezers, where they'll become suppers for people we may have gotten to know through an email, a phone call or a note tucked into a box.

 

That's pretty special from our end of the UPS truck.

 

Tomorrow's job is a little different

 

Friday, we're loading the pickup with old and unused agricultural chemicals and heading to Red Lodge.

 

The State of Montana has a pesticide-waste collection program, and it's our opportunity to properly dispose of products we no longer use.

 

You can't just dump this stuff on the ground.

 

And I don't particularly want old chemicals sitting around here either.

 

We have cattle here. We have grandkids here. We have barn cats underfoot. And this is the ground we're asking to keep taking care of all of us.

 

So into the pickup they go.

 

It isn't one of the glamorous ranch jobs, but taking care of a place isn't usually about one big thing.

 

It's a whole lot of little things done year after year.

 

And sometimes it's taking care of people, too.

 

That's one reason our Montana 5 for Those Who Served means so much to us.

 

Every time a T Bar J beef share is reserved, we donate 5 pounds of our ground beef to the Montana Veterans Meat Locker in that customer's name.

 

So while you're filling your own family's freezer, you're also helping put Montana beef on the table for a veteran and their family.

 

It's one small way we can help take care of those who have taken care of us.

 

And before I go, I know quite a few of you have been asking about our granddaughter Ayla.

 

She's about four weeks past her bone marrow transplant now and doing really well.

 

She has another round of testing coming up next week, and we're awfully proud of her. She's had a lot asked of her for a 10-year-old, and she's doing a good job.

 

Thank you to everyone who has asked about her and kept our family in your thoughts. It means more than you probably realize.

 

That's about it from our corner of Montana this week.

 

Nearly three inches of rain. Muddy roads. Cattle to check. An old injury that's almost disappeared. Beef arriving in somebody's kitchen. And a pickup load of things that need to leave the ranch for good.

 

Just another week around here. Another day on the T Bar J.

 

Thanks for coming along with us.

 

Amber, Al and Fritzie

T Bar J Ranch Molt , Montana

 

P.S. If you've been thinking about putting T Bar J beef in your freezer, you can see the different beef share sizes here. Every share reserved also puts 5 pounds of our ground beef in the Montana Veterans Meat Locker in your name.