Another Chance Ranch

My Home in the Fall

Here is our little slice of heaven here on earth. This photo does not do it justice, but you get the idea.

The trees behind the house look short because they are growing up out of the canyon behind our house.

This morning I went out and snapped a few photos of the trees because as I sat on the porch this morning I watched the leaves start falling. It was quite cloudy this morning, but I tried to get a few good shots anyway.

These are the trees behind the little barn.

There are so many different shades of gold that it is breathtaking. The little bits of red vines add the perfect touch.

God sure knew what he was doing!

Who Does This Remind You Of?

Not long ago, a couple of friends and I went to the Wichita (Kansas) Zoo. We had heard great things about it, and had to go check it out for ourselves. We saw all kinds of cool animals, and exhibits. Our favorite thing of the day was the fruit bats, they were crawling from tree to tree and kind of showing off for us.

But, then we saw this dude.

Take a good look at this and tell me who this reminds you of.  I will give you a hint on who it reminds me of. :)

He is in a Disney movie.

Thankful Thursday - May 2, 2013

Snow.

Really?

It's May, and we have snow in the forecast. I know we live in Okla-freaky-weather-homa, but this is crazy!

All of these photos were taken during our last snow, which might have been the prettiest snow ever!

The cows had been huddled under this tree, and had knocked a lot of the snow off of it. I bet it was pretty warm under there with all of them huddled together.

Peace.

That is the feeling that comes over me when I look back on these photos.

This is where the horses come to get out of the wind. McD would cut all of these cedars down if the animals didn't use them so much.

As I sat here going through all of my photos from this beautiful sunkissed, snow covered day I remember how McD came into the house and told me he wanted to drive me around to show me the pretty snow. He thought I might want to take some photos before it all melted away. I didn't want to at first, it was cold and I felt pretty good cuddled up on the couch. But I went.

It's Thankful Thursday, and there are so many reasons to be thankful.  I could sit here all day writing about every little thing, but instead I will name just a few.

I am thankful for the unbelievably beautiful world in which we live. I love capturing the beauty on film with my camera.

I am thankful for the different seasons. Not just Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall, but the different seasons of our lives, as well.

And lastly, I am thankful for the wonderful man I married. I am thankful that he encourages me to step out into the world, soak it all in, and capture the stills. He encourages me to be me, and loves me for me. He is my rock.

What are you thankful for?

A Bright Spot in the Flurries

These pics were taken just a few minutes ago through the bedroom window & screen. 

It was so nice to see a little color out in all those flurries.

Guess I should get back to what I was working on. :)  I have a couple of PinTests to share with ya. And I really, really want to get into the kitchen and try something else. 

Do you see anything pretty out your window? Do share!

What A Difference A Year Makes

Oh my! I was browsing through my photos on my phone and came across this one. Believe it or not, my hair is even longer now. It is curly too.

I am looking forward to having long hair again. I miss my ponytail! Maybe this fall. Hmm.

 

52Pix - Mordecai

Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur.

52 Pix - Pepper

New Year's Resolutions? Yay or Nay?

Usually my answer would be, Nay. Not this year! This year my list is chock full of resolutions! Honestly, I like the term "goals" much better.

A few years ago, one of my resolutions goals was to take a photo every day, and post it on a special page. It didn't work out to well. This year I have modified it a bit. My goal is to take a photo each week, and post it here.  I am calling it 52 Pix. At the end of 2013 there will be 52 pix (photos) in that category. That is my goal.

I am starting the 52 Pix project with a photo of Pepper.

Okay, a part of Pepper. I love seeing the heart on her nose.

Join in on the fun! Just leave a comment here that you plan to participate. If you don't have a blog use Instagram with the hashtag #52pix. Not on Instagram? (you really should be) Email the pix. I can't wait to see your pix!!

 

PinTest, Cowboys Locker Room & A Visitor

I've pinned a lot of stuff on Pinterest, and recently I have started to test some of these pins.  I plan on sharing each bomb or success with you, and this is one of the successes!  Yeah!!

It is a sugar scrub that was promised to leave your legs silky smooth. 

The test results:  It worked!!  I really liked the scrub; it was easy to make and felt so good!  The recipe makes a pretty big batch for one person, so I will scale it down a bit next time.  Also, cleaning the bath tub after using this scrub isn't much fun.  But I am getting ready to try another pin that claims it makes cleaning the tub/shower easier.  We'll see!


Recently, we were able to tour the Dallas Cowboys stadium.  It is an amazing facility!  What was even more amazing was the tour guide that could recall how many seats, television screens, feet of handrails, etc there were throughout the whole stadium. 

We went to the Cowboys Locker Room, the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Locker Room, the press room, the field, and even had our photos taken on the field.  McD wanted to race Farmer Ribs from the 50 yard line to the goal line, but there was some debate whether one of them cheated.  The race ended early.

If you get a chance, you ought to take a tour.  Our next tour will be of the Texas Rangers ballpark.


Hello Spidey.

You know, for the longest time I watched this guy just hang from his web.  In fact, I thought he might be dead.  I grabbed a piece of water hose, and started aiming it at him and he ran.  He ran, I squirmed and ran in the house.  I still get the heebie jeebies just thinking about it. 

I have no idea what kind of spider this is, what he eats, or if it is a he or a she.  This photo was taken when I thought he was dead.  If you click on the photo it should show you a bigger photo, and then you can see just how close I was to it.  I think you can see its eyeballs. 

I wanted to feed it something, but I don't know what he eats, and I guess I just don't want to take the time to figure it out.  I never see anything in his web, so maybe he will starve and I won't have to kill him.  :)

That's kind of what has been happening here. 

What's happening in your neck of the woods?

Monarchs in Our Backyard - Must See!

About a week ago, McD and I went for a ride around the place.  Loading up in the Ranger and cruising around is just a way to relax together.  Usually, I take my camera along just in case I see something that catches my eye.  This time I just wanted to relax, soak up the sun, and enjoy McD's company.  Big mistake!  Huge! (Movie?)

As we made our way into the canyon, I saw several Monarch butterflies.  I asked McD to stop so I could watch them.  He did, and we sat there in awe.  You see, we watched a documentary on Monarchs a while back, and talked about how cool it would be to have them around here. 

After watching the butterflies for a while, we turned around and came back to the house.  We went out again the next evening, but instead of turning back around after only seeing a couple of butterflies we kept going.  When we drove down into the canyon behind the house, we saw lots of them floating around.

Again, we sat there in awe. 

I've never been a big butterfly fan.  I mean, I've always thought they were pretty, but I never chased them or went ga-ga over them.  Today, I go ga-ga over them.  I could sit and watch them for hours.

So, last Sunday night, I asked McD to take a walk with me.  This time I was taking my camera.  There was no way I was going to miss out on pics again. 

I had taken a hundred or so photos when I realized that McD was bored.  I told him that he could go back to the house, if he wanted.  As he was making his way out of the canyon, he stopped and started whispering. 

He said, "Julie.  Come back towards me, but take a really wide swath and come up on my left."  At the time I was to his right, so I did as I was told.  I had no idea what to expect to see, and I never expected to see so many Monarchs.

This is just a few of the limbs covered in butterflies.  There were lots and lots of butterflies just resting on the leaves.  Thousands of Monarchs are in the canyon behind our house, and we never knew.

The document we watched said that they stop at the same places as they migrate to warmer weather, so they might have been here every fall and we didn't know it.  I keep walking back down there to see if they are still there. 

I can't even begin to describe the feeling I get when hundreds of butterflies are flying around me.  It is awesome!

Do You Think They Really Meant To Say This?

Or am I the only one that thinks it's funny?