Thursday, May 14, 2009

1 for 4

I'm warning you now, it's a sad cow story, so proceed with caution.

Greg and I were on our way back from Nashville yesterday when my dad called to tell us one of the cows was in labor with a hoof sticking out. We had just picked up Nadiya (Scarlet's daughter) from her grandmother's house and she was sacked out in the backseat, so we decided to drive straight to the farm and let Scarlet pick her up there.

When we got there at 3:30, the cow was definitely in labor, but moo-ving around pretty good. (That's my lame attempt at humor so bear with me). She didn't appear to be in distress, but she also didn't look large enough, nor did her utter to be ready to give birth. We waited a bit, then Greg and Bubba (a guy that's helping us on the farm and he has the perfect name for farm-help, don't you think) decided to try to rope the cow.

This was proceeded by a practice session of lasso-ing a cooler in the backyard while Nadiya and I watched. She and I also had the chance to look at the blue-bird house that Greg had set up. Greg had insisted it was a house for blue-birds, which I totally didn't believe. I figured any ole bird would find it's way inside to make a home, but alas, my bird-brained husband was correct, there was indeed a blue-bird living inside along with her 5 eggs!!!! They're gorgeous blue eggs and both Nadiya and I were enthralled with them. She must have stared at them for 20 minutes and every time I'd ask her if she was ready to get down, she would decline. (I'll try to get a photo for you later to see, sorry about this photo-less post.)

By this time, Scarlet and Noah had arrived and we got to watch the boys try unsuccessfully to rope the cow. By 6:15, I left for church and so did Scarlet and the kids. Greg and Bubba headed into town to get some fencing for a corral from TSC.

When I arrived back from church around 8:30, it was dark and they had the cow cornered in the corral. It turns out, it's easier to catch a cow with sweet feed than with a rope. Lesson learned.

Dad was there too, and I became official flash-light holder. They roped her up and brought her down to her side so they could pull the calf. She still appeared to be in good shape at this time. Bubba grabbed the calf by both hooves (only one was sticking out so he had to explore a bit to get the other hoof) and all 3 pulled the calf out.

It was breech and teeny tiny and of course, dead. The other calf Greg had pulled weighed about 80-90lbs and this one was 30lbs at the most. So sad.

Forgetting the calf, it was time to get the momma up, because if you remember my last story, it's important to get them up or they can become paralyzed. I shone the flashlight on her face and her tongue was sticking out. Bad news.

We don't really know what did it, but we'll chalk it up to another bad farm experience. So, now we're 1 for 4. 1 mommy cow alive, 1 dead and 2 dead calves since we started this farm. Our odds have to improve. They can't get worse, I don't think.

The ups and downs of farm life are ever-present right now.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

embellishment swap + a quick gift-card holder

I was so happy to receive these goodies in the mail

from Houston (the torn flowers and pleats)


from Gioconda (the tags and purple/green flowers)

Thanks so much! This swap was so much fun and I loved what I got so much. I kind of felt guilty for only sending my buttons after seeing what fabulous homemade embellishments they came up with.

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I was invited to a shower this weekend for a friend of ours from church. She and her groom are going to be married in Paris (how cool is that?). They are a very eclectic, artsy-type couple, so I knew my card would need to be good.


Supplies: Cardstock (Hazel by Bazzill), Patterned Paper (Studio Calico & Cosmo Cricket), Buttons (vintage), Twine (Studio Calico), Punch (Apron Lace by Fiskars), Stickers (Pink PaisleeSassafras) &

To make this, I cut the cardstock to 5 1/2 x 12", then tri-folded it to fit inside an invitation card which is 4 3/8 x 5 3/4". Next, I cut a piece of the Cosmo Cricket paper to 1 x 6" and punched it with the Apron Lace border punch. After doing so, I adhered it to the edge of the top flap and trimmed the excess. Then, I cut a piece of patterned paper to go on the top flap to 5 1/2 x 3 1/2" and adhered it leaving room for the scalloped edge to show through. Then, I embellished the front with stickers. The flower is actually one sticker cut in half.

It's important to add the gift card (I adhered mine with a tiny bit of glue to the middle portion of the card on the inside) and your personal note (I wrote my note on the bottom flap in the inside), because after this, you'll be adding the buttons and sealing the card.

Finally, I chose two vintage buttons and adhered them using pop-dots. It's important to use a good adhesive such as pop-dots, because your twine will cause some strain on the closure and you don't want your buttons popping off before the bride gets to open her gift.

I cut the brown twine to about 12" and wrapped it around the top button a few times beginning with the center of the twine (no adhesive is necessary), then did a figure-8 one time around the bottom button and tied the ends into a pretty bow.

All in all, it took no time at all and the best thing about this gift card is that I was able to make 2 cards at once. If you use a 12x12" sheet of cardstock, it's perfect for 2 cards and a real time-saver the next time you give a gift.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

a happy mother's day

Meet my mom, Joy.
(please oh please tell me I'm gonna look this good at 54.)

This mother's day was special because G and I are living with my parents while we remodel the farmhouse, so I was able to surprise her with this


and this (from this store)

on the kitchen table this morning.

I wrote a very sappy, sentimental letter to her inside the card. You'd be proud of me.

And she loved it.

Saturday, May 9, 2009

two trips to tractor supply co.

Yes, I made two trips to a tractor store yesterday. If only it had been two trips to Anthropologie instead, but alas, there's not a cute-farm-girl market in the city of Bowling Green.

The first trip started with a phone call at 4:00pm.
Greg called with glee in his voice, stating that our brown cow was in labor. He could see a hoof and nose.

I rushed out of the office and headed to the farm, giving Scarlet a call so the kids could come witness the occassion. On the way there, I stopped at TSC (Tractor Supply Co.) for some rubber boots.

The last 3 weeks, we've had rain constantly, and not just a little. LOTS! Like every day. Which is not good for the farmhouse roof -- it has a tarp on it now. It's not good for barn construction. And, it's certainly not good for my William Rast jeans and Kenneth Cole sandals.

Remember my post a while back about those cute Hunter boots? Well, I just hadn't gotten around to getting them, and this was an emergency, so I had to stop at TSC for some boots. I went straight past the girly section. There were lots of hot pink and polka-dotted ones, but I was in for the cheap pair in brown or black. So, into the men's section I headed. Brown and black boots were a-plenty, but I had no idea what size to get, so I grabbed a 6 in the cheapest pair (I normally wear a 6.5-7 in women's), paid for them and went to the car to try them on. WAY too big, but a 5 would do as that's the smallest size they carried, so I did a quick exchange and headed out to the farm for the birthing experience.


By the time I got to the farm, Greg was kneeling on the ground and I could tell things weren't so good. (Now's the time to scroll down past the photo of the cow if you don't want to read a tragic story.)

G: "I had to pull the calf." (okay, 6 words I would never have expected to come from his mouth, but I was impressed.)

Me: "and...."

G: shaking head, "It didn't make it, but it's a good thing I had these sticky gloves. They're anti-grease, so I was able to get a good hold on it" (Now that's the Greg I know, always touting his Grainger supply of various gloves.)

At this point, I think my fingers were the fastest fingers in the East. I whipped out my phone and rapidly texted Scarlet, "Calf's dead. You might not want to come." I was too late, she was already there.

Knowing the sad story, the kids still wanted to see the momma-cow, so they walked out to the field and observed. I drug (or is it dragged?) the calf up (Greg had tied it with a rope), for them to see.

At this point I must insert that today was the absolute worst day for me to start my exercise plan. 3 miles + 1 hour of Pilates and I was sore dragging that 80-90lb calf, but I did it.

Of course there were lots of questions:
  • what's that slimey stuff all over her?
  • is it a boy or girl?
  • why's it's tongue sticking out?
  • why's it's eye open?
  • why is it wet?
You get the idea.


But at this point, we had a problem. Momma-cow wasn't getting up. Until today, I didn't realize they were supposed to get up and walk after giving birth, but they are or they can become paralyzed, and so we were in danger of losing another cow.

Greg called the vet and tried several techniques, but she would just get up, stumble and fall down. After an hour or so of that, the vet came with a shock-stick and had some mild success. What we needed was for her to stand up and stay standing for awhile so the circulation and nerves could repair.

So, it was back to TSC for me to purchase a shock-stick. I wish you could have seen Richard's face (the sales clerk who looks like he's been farming for 4 lifetimes), when I came in asking for that. Thankfully, he put it together for me, batteries and all.

We stayed at the farm, shocking momma-cow every 15 minutes or so until about 11:00pm, at which point I took off my boots and realized one was an inch taller than the other. Upon further examination, one was a 5 and the other was a 6. So, not only was I wearing ugly boots, they didn't even match. Major faux paux, don't you think? I mean, if you're going to wear mud-colored men's boots, they should be the same size at least.

Greg returned to the farm at 6:00 this morning to check on Momma-cow and received this text:
"She's okay....Billy is taking care of her."

Billy's the bull and he was mighty protective of her as she was getting shocked with the stick. So, even though he basically has 11 wives, he attends to them in their hour of need. heehee.

I can already tell this farm thing is going to be filled with ups and downs, if yesterday is any indication. I went from a state of excitement that the calf was being born, to a feeling of sadness at it's death, to a feeling of pride that my husband was able to step up and do something he's never done before or even seen done (pull the calf), to a feeling of relief that the mom was okay, to a feeling of fear that the mom might be paralyzed, and to a feeling of calm that this is just life on a farm and I better get used to it.

I'll leave you with a card I made for Greg's mom. It's a little more cheerful than the story I told.

Supplies: Patterned Paper (Studio Calico, October Afternoon), Buttons (vintage, Jenni Bowlin), Punch (Martha Stewart), Stickers (American Crafts, Making Memories)

I'll let Greg take care of the inside. Hopefully it will be good....you never know if he's going to put his heart into it or wait until the last minute to write something.

Friday, May 8, 2009

i just couldn't wait to post more

These are about the last of the photos I took yesterday of Natalee.
Let me know what you think. I'm open to critique!















Thursday, May 7, 2009

why buy a farm if you can't use it for photos?

Just a little preview for Lorie.
Thanks for letting me borrow Natalee this afternoon.



Until Greg wiped off the tractor wheel, she wanted nothing to do with this photo spot.

This one is just Natalee being Natalee....she's not barfing, I promise. See her acting as if she is, while keeping her eyes on Greg for a reaction.



And a special thanks to Maggie.

Because, although these photos are not nearly a perfect as yours, I wouldn't have had a clue what to do in this lighting situation if it weren't for your class. It was 6:00 and the sun was in the process of setting in the west, which was to Natalee's left. The tractor was casting weird shadows, but I knew the best angle and a general idea of the exposure settings, so I told my entertainer (aka Greg) in which direction to entertain so the light could fall just right.

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To answer your questions from my previous post:
  • We haven't been kayaking from our property yet, but we do have a map and have asked some friends to go with us week after next. Hopefully I'll have some good stories to share. Last time, we went, G and I took the canoe. I was in the front and he was steering in the rear. I kept thinking it was difficult to paddle and felt more muscle strain earlier than I normally do. Come to find out, G was letting me paddle and when I'd look back to talk to him, he'd put an oar in and pretend. So, next trip, we'll be taking separate kayaks.
  • If you'd like to order a Studio Calico tee, you can find them here.

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

i'm really not a practical joker

I'm seriously not a practical joker.

I'm practical, which is why I'm not a joker.

Playing jokes usually means wasting money, and I'm just not into throwing money away for any reason....until an opportunity presented itself that only cost me $5.

Lorie was putting together a co-ed softball team and they needed a sponsor for their t-shirts. Since both she and Greg were playing, I offered to let Studio Calico provide the tees. Word got out that we were the sponsor, and one of our mutual friends, Shaun, decided to make a snide comment, "They're going to be pink, aren't they?"

First of all, I'm not a "pink" sort of gal. I don't even think I own a piece of clothing with pink on it, so the thought of making pink co-ed softball shirts wasn't even an inkling of an idea until he made that comment.

So, when I ordered the tees, I had them make one extra....can you guess which one it was?


Greg is on the team, although you can't see him in the photo. He kind of wanders off at times.

I'll leave you with a layout I created recently. As always, let me know if you have any questions.
Supplies: Patterned Paper by Crate, Wild Cards, Typo Alphabet by American Crafts, Fabulous Die Cuts, Journaling Stickers by Sassafras, Chipboard by Maya Road, American Crafts, and Jenni Bowlin, Label Stickers, Felt by Chatterbox and Creative Imaginations, and Vintage Mini-Postcards from Studio Calico.

Saturday, May 2, 2009

NSD Mist Challenge Winner

The winner of the Glossary add-on is:
Stephanie (maste)

with this fabulous LO:

Congrats! Please send an email to info@studiocalico.com with your address and the prize that you won by Monday, 8:00am EST.

having fun on NSD

Got my scrapping snack (thanks mom!)



I was incredibly inspired to complete Kelly's challenge. Here's my take on it:


Supplies: Jenni Bowlin Alphabet (negative image), Hazel Cardstock by Bazzill, Sassafras Stickers, Jenni Bowlin Stickers, Making Memories Puffy Alphabet and Woodgrain packaging, Felt by Chatterbox, Typewriter Stamp and FabRip by Studio Calico, and various patterned papers from Studio Calico and Chatterbox.




Oh, I just realized doing this LO, I completed several other challenges as well: mine, Maggie's, and Nik's.


The reason I decided to do Kelly's challenge is because I had seen what Lisa had done with it and just couldn't wait to play along. Isn't her LO awesome?

Friday, May 1, 2009

Happy NSD!!!!

To all my non-scrappy friends, you may quit reading because you'll find this post incredibly boooooooringggggggggggg.

My challenge for NSD was to use mist over a pattern. You can read more about the challenge here as well as the prize involved.

Now, for my take on my own challenge.


Here, I used black/white patterned paper by October Afternoon as my backdrop. Then, I punched circles from a piece of scrap paper using my Mega Punch by Marvy. I used the negative image of the punch to mist in orange. After making about 5 orange circles with Maya Mist (the key here is to let the circles "fall off" the page), I then used the 5 punched circles and laid them over top of the orange circles as a mask. Finally, I sprayed brown mist over the whole page. So, I created a circle pattern over the existing pattern. Kind of busy, yet fun, don't ya think?

I used blue and green mist with punched stars from the Chatterbox Fabulous Die Cuts (the cork scallops came from there as well). The rest of the layout was made exclusively from items in the May kit, Playground.

I cheated a bit, since it's not actually NSD today, but I plan to do another take on this challenge plus participate in some of the other designers' challenges all day tomorrow. So, I'll post my layouts here as I complete them.

Please post links to your LOs ON THIS POST in order to win. I will be closing down at 11:59pm EST on 5/2 and will announce a randomly drawn winner on Sunday. Happy Scrapping!