My iPhone buzzed with a text message. It read, “What you decide on chicken coop?” The phone rang an hour later and I sent the call to voicemail. Later, when I read the transcript, it said, “This is, um, Eric – the chickn’ coop guy – um, wondering if I can deliver it today.” There were also two emails, “Wondering if you want this chickn’ coop. Plz respond.”

Through some recent life events, I have come to familiarize myself with the acronyms MSHA and OSHA. Before this year, I had never heard of MSHA; I knew OSHA had something to do with safety because I often heard cowboys say, “This probably isn’t OSHA approved,” while doing something fairly dangerous.

Branding cattle is a tradition (and practical measure) that dates back as far as the ancient Egyptians, but for most Americans the tradition is immortalized in Western movies as a symbol of the Old West.

Depending on where you call home, spring and winter swapped places this year. While the Winter Olympics were taking place, it was 50 to 60 degrees in Idaho. But once March rolled around, winter decided to show up.

Atop his bay gelding, the cowboy rides through the undulating hills one last time in search of the missing calf. He is rather certain he knows the calf’s location, but the sheer pleasure of such a ride, in such a place, is worthy of the excuse.

Nike’s mission statement is: “To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world.” In 1988, at a Nike advertising meeting, the slogan “Just Do it” was coined. Their slogan pairs beautifully with their mission, because sometimes the hardest part of getting inspired to put in the work is to put your shoes on and just do it.

In the novel Anne of Green Gables, the heroine proclaims her favorite month of the year by saying, “I am so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.” While October is not my favorite month, I understand Anne’s partiality for a specific month. I love June.

This year we had a lease deal fall apart, and it really upset the apple cart. It caused financial hardship, emotions were high, stress levels went through the roof, and we were faced with the question a lot of people have been faced with at one time or another: Is it over? Where do we go from here and what will we do if something else doesn’t work out?

Our girls have been practicing the songs for their Christmas program for church. Their Sunday school teachers kindly gave us a disc with all four of the songs on it, which was promptly pushed into the CD player in my car (because that is the only CD player we own). I love their sweet little voices singing “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” but listening to the same four songs for the next three weeks is likely to make me lose my mind.

A few weeks ago my husband spotted a couple of bull elk in our cornfield, and since then, he has been plotting his ambush. Today is the appointed day of attack – they are chopping our corn.