Meanwhile Back at the Ranch

Our Wild Thanksgiving

I hope y’all had a great Thanksgiving! Ours was fun, wildlife-filled, and unlike any Thanksgiving I’ve ever had. What’s it like being in a family where every Thanksgiving is the same? My family has Christmas down to a science, but when it comes to Thanksgiving, every one is different.

The one constant is always my mom’s cornbread dressing.

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The first way this holiday was unique was the fact we spent it down at my family’s farm, in an old farmhouse we have been renovating.

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The house was built back in the 1950’s by my grandfather, and we haven’t spent Thanksgiving here in ages. I have the VHS tapes to prove it!

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Staying out in the country has its perks. We got to drive around in the 4-wheeler.

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Enjoy incredible skies.

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See the latest crop of baby cows.

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One of the highlights of the weekend was seeing a flock of green jays at our corn feeder.

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Green jays are the prettiest bird we have on our farm, and it’s always a joy to see them.

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Speaking of birds, we saw a ton of turkeys!

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We’ve never had turkeys on our ranch before so this discovery has been exciting.

I loved watching them wander around and be the awkward birds that they are. Anyone who has seen a turkey will agree they are rather goofy looking, and their gobbles and clucks are comical.

Given that we have a solid population of turkeys, we decided we needed one for the table…

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More on that to come in a later post!

On another note, Trooper has been adjusting to life as a “Ranch Dog.”

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So far the score is Sticker Burrs: 1, Trooper: 0. He likes city dog life a tad bit better.

In the mornings I enjoyed a walk down to the mail box, about a quarter mile from the house.

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A morning or evening walk to the mailbox is tradition around here.

Last, but definitely not least, we had venison chorizo tacos.

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Venison courtesy of our neighbors.

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(Lest we go hungry.)

Even though Thanksgiving takes a different shape for us each year, it still is always about the bounty of the land and gratitude for family and neighbors.

Now, time for the big kahuna: Christmas!!

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(PS. You’ve reached the tail end of this blog post!)

 

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