I was pleased and surprised this past weekend when I went out shopping for the first time in a year, walked into one of my favorite boutiques, and saw a door wreath decorated with cotton bolls. That’s not something you see every day out here in the wild west. Looking at those little fluff balls brought back many childhood memories of our annual road trips through Texas where we’d see miles upon miles of cotton fields on our way to visit my dad’s family in the 1950’s and 60’s. And when I say miles and miles, what I really mean is half the state of Texas. Those cotton fields were never-ending.
I read the best post today from a mom in our Down Syndrome-Autism Connection Support Group on Facebook. She wrote about the long journey it took to be able to cut her son’s hair and clip his fingernails without a huge fight, but now at age 25, he can calmly sit through the procedure. It’s a story every mom of a DS/ASD child knows. It takes a lot of time and patience for our children and adults to accept a new routine.
Today has been an interesting day. This morning I found out I have a repeat offender living in my neighborhood. His name is Chaser and he’s a Bengal cat. I thought he was a stray. He’d been hanging around my house for over a week and I called Broomfield animal control because I figured someone was missing him. His markings were unusual and I could tell he was either a Serengeti or Bengal breed – very expensive cats. Two officers came to my house within the hour. When I showed them his picture, they smiled and nodded their heads. “We know this cat. His name is Chaser, and he lives in the next street. He roams all over, but he’s not a stray, he has owner.” I burst out laughing. “Well, you know you’re in trouble when animal control knows your name.”
It was Thanksgiving of 2014. Why my Dad got it in his head to fry a turkey I’ll never know, except maybe for the fact that he was an old southerner from Texas and as we all know, people in the south love their fried foods. Dad had never done this before, and to complicate things further he wanted to fry two turkeys – one for our family and one for another family he got to know from his grief support group. Dad was 92 that year, but he was in great shape, mentally and physically. The thing about Dad was he always lassoed someone in to help him, which meant you did most of the work, and guess who he called to help that year? Yes, yes, it was me.
Seriously, I really did make jelly. I don’t even know how to make wine, but maybe the next time I get together with my Italian classmates we’ll have a lesson on how to make wine instead of pasta. But in the meantime, move over “Pioneer Woman”, because here’s a step-by-step guide on how the “Free-Range Woman” (that’s me) made her mighty fine grape jelly!
Who knew the year 2020 was going to be such a year of challenge? Not me. I decided this was the year I was going to finish the three books I started. I was going back to the Rec Center to workout after I dropped Matt off at his day program. I was going to lose weight. I was going to plant flowers and bushes in my back yard. I was going to blog more. I was, I was, I was….
Instead I sat by my father’s bedside and held his hand for the last time. I helped plan a funeral and burial. I worked with my sisters as we divided up a lifetime of treasures. I helped pull weeds in Mom’s flower beds. I worked with a contractor to update the old homeplace. I met with a realtor to sell a house full of poignant memories.
Once again, I got together with some of my Louisville High School classmates (Yay classes of 1965, 1967 and 1969!) in December to celebrate Christmas, Life, and Italian cooking! I like to call it my “Being Italian For A Day” day. I used to boast that I was 1% Italian from my first Ancestry DNA test, but alas, they sent me an update about a year ago and now I am 0% Italian, which makes this day even more special to me.
Jeannie, Ricki, Wilbur, Kathryn, me, Joannie, Mary Ann and Rosie
On a beautiful summer day, I left with my good friends, Darcie and Teresa, to drive to Pawhuska, Oklahoma, population 3500, and home of the Pioneer Woman. If you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years and don’t know who the Pioneer Woman is, she’s Ree Drummond. Ree is the wife of Ladd Drummond, a cattle baron and owner of 100,000 acres of land in Osage County, Oklahoma that’s been in his family for generations. Ree is a blogger, photographer, and now famous gourmet cook with her own show on Food Network TV. Every week she cooks up something awesome and shows us what life is like on the ranch, miles away from civilization and the closest pizza parlor, which is one reason she became such a good cook.
Ree DrummondLadd and Ree DrummondRee and her family have been helping rejuvenate the dying town of Pawhuska. First, they bought a big building in the middle of town on the main street of Kihekah that at one time was a big mercantile. (We didn’t know how to correctly pronounce Kihekah, so we called it Kenickie instead, but that’s another story.) They restored the whole thing, put in a restaurant, bakery as well as another mercantile, and named it, what else? The Mercantile, or “The Merc” for short. They didn’t stop there. They then purchased three other buildings and put in an exquisite boarding house with eight rooms for tourists to stay while in Pawhuska, a pizza parlor, and an ice cream/sweet shoppe. Ree also opens the “Lodge”, the place on their ranch where they film her cooking show, at no charge to the public during the summer, and everyone is welcome to look at anything and everything. Nothing is sacred, and you can open every drawer and closet to your heart’s content. Continue reading “Beef! It’s What’s for Dinner! (AKA Girl’s Trip “Of Death!”)”→
When I started writing “Cowgirl Up!”, I had visions of my main characters in my head. They were created in my imagination, and not based on any real-life people I knew. Samantha Kendrick was a large animal vet, physically fit with long blond hair and sky-blue eyes. She was smart, she was sexy, and I wanted to grow up to be just like her. Cheyenne Wells was a tall, athletic Ute Indian with long midnight-black hair pulled back with a leather string, and a face chiseled by Michelangelo.
Over the years as I wrote my second book, “Cowgirl Crazy”, and am now into my third book, “Cowgirl Tough”, I know Samantha and Cheyenne like the back of my hand. They’re my best friends when I’m writing, and I miss them terribly when I take a break. We’re close, connected, and I’m always excited to continue their adventures and have them in my life again when I start a new book. Yes, I have imaginary friends, and I’ve had them for years! Continue reading “Glory Be! It’s Cheyenne from “Cowgirl Up!””→
Since I published my first book, “Cowgirl Up!” in 2012, I’ve been blessed with the support of my family, friends and fans. And some of those family, friends and fans have blessed me with gifts! Yesterday I received an anonymous gift in the mail, and since I don’t know who sent it and I’m not able to thank them with a personal note, I decided to thank them through my blog.
So, thank you, “Anonymous Giver”, whoever you are! And yes, I heart horses too!
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Carolyn Anderson Jones 