Ruby Slippers and Georgia Peaches

(look at that, I’m managing to sweak out a blog post, three months late, and before the new year.)

The Game.

“It’s Saturday in Athens!”

“Are you going to the game?”

“See you at the Dawg Walk”

“Well, I had a little rooster..”

“Good afternoon football fans, I’m Brooks Whitmire…”

“In the upper South West deck..”

“SATURDAY, SATURDAY, SATURDAY…night’s alright!”

“It’s time to tee it up between the hedges”

“Goooooooooooooo Dawgs! Sic ‘Em! Woof, woof, woof!”

“First down, Georgia!”

I miss it. I miss it all. The smell, the grass, the hedges, the loudness, everyone pointing to the upper deck, the waves of hands in unison holding the four going into the fourth quarter, the beautiful music of Tara playing after the game, and the ringing of the chapel bell.

It’s like being home. That deep, deep welling up feeling of home when everything is just…right…and you are surrounded by 93,000 of your closest friends.

It’s the tradition.

We’ve been away from it for almost four years but it’s exactly the same. The names on the back of the jerseys have changed; some of the coaches have changed. But it’s still all the same.

We love it.

Tennessee…not so much.

It’s one of our biggest rivalries. Heck, just about anybody else in the SEC is our rivalry, but the Tennessee one is right up there in the top three or four.

One of my sweetest, most loyal Dawg fans, friend happened to have some tickets available to the Ga/Tenn game when we were in Georgia and we got to go.

It was Ruby’s first time post-womb stay going to a UGA game.

First there’s the Dawg Walk.

Then the band under the bridge. It’s one of my favorites. “If I had a little rooster”.

“Hey what’s that coming down the track? A huge machine that’s red and black. Ain’t nothing finer in the land, than the Georgia Redcoat Marching Band. Go Dawgs!, Go Dawgs! Go Dawgs! Go Dawgs!”

Iconic Sanford Stadium pic on game day.

The Game

Our seats were really nice and everyone around us was very polite. The girls did really well. Clara had to have her diaper changed in the third quarter and then again at the beginning of the fourth. So, most of the fourth quarter was spent walking around and letting her stretch her legs. That was the tense part of the game so it worked out perfectly for me. J We watched through the openings and on the closed circuit tvs with the state troopers. The girls did not mind the noise at all.

The Dawgs pulled off a win over Tennessee 35 to 32. Whew!

It was a great opportunity and we are so glad and blessed that the girls got to experience it.

Living in the Cowboy State we get to see many, many different things. We’ve been to Devil’s Tower, the biggest outdoor rodeo, over mountain ranges, to Yellowstone, seen elk in our yard, deer on our porch, snow and negative temperatures. But, one thing that Wyoming doesn’t have is the beach.

It’s been almost five years since Matt and I have been to the beach or large body of water.

It used to be one of my favorite things. Matt would usually surprise me with a beach trip right before we would have to go back to school for the fall. We’ve been to Daytona, Cape San Blas, Hilton Head, Jekyll, Myrtle and Tybee. They were good trips and some that we’ll never forget.

Our hometown in Georgia is roughly five hours away from the Atlantic Ocean. Here in Wyoming, five hours away from something is “close”. Our girls are pretty good car riders/long trip riders (except that one time on the airplane). So while we were in Georgia we had to make a trip to the ocean while we were so “close”.

We made our way down to Savannah and then over to Tybee.

I grew up going to Tybee Island. We had family that lived near there and went to reunions hosted near there. I am VERY familiar with the area.

It was Ruby and Clara’s first view of the ocean, beach sand, the salty air and the smell.

They LOVED it.

We got there right at low tide. The tide pools were warm and wave-free. They are the best to play in.

There was a great deal of splashing, digging, jumping of waves, chasing of birds, and laughter.

We also took in a little history at the light house, River Street, the Waving Girl statue, watching cargo ships and cobble stone roads.

We got to eat some fresh, fresh, fresh seafood, sit out under the stars with a salty breeze, get some freshly made pecan, PECAN praline ice cream and just soak everything in.

It was a good time.

I love the beach and I’m very grateful that the girls got to experience that salty air.

With the close of the summer and the hay season, we get to see our Papa more. Recently we got to be with him for 11 straight days. We decided to make a vacation and pack as much as we could into the 11 days.

First stop, Mount Rushmore in South Dakota.

The Black Hills of South Dakota reminded me of parts of North Carolina. It was a really pretty and easy ride.

We studied about Mt. Rushmore during our presidential unit back in February. We were VERY familiar with the presidents and the information.

Wooster had been through the area back in 2001 with just his motorcycle. Thirteen years later, two kids and a wife, he came full circle.

We flew from Rapid City, SD to Denver, then Denver to Atlanta. We’ve spent a lot of time in airports, with two kids. Our main goal during any time at the airport is to let them run, move, jump, and play as much as possible.

In Denver we had to walk out from the plane, to the plane each time and then into the bottom area of the airport. For us, in all the travels, we’ve never had to walk out to the air plane. It’s interesting. Our plane also had propellers.

The trip from Denver to Atlanta could be classified as “worst flight ever”. Ruby was great. Clara…not so much. We were THAT family with a screaming kid. She got mad at the upright tray and it was downhill for our section for a solid 30 minutes. Thirty minutes of straight screaming, crying, snot, on an enclosed tube with 150 other people equals to a LONG ride. THIRTY MINUTES. There was NOTHING that was going to make her stop, make her happy or calm her. We tried every single thing from snacks, food, water, pacifier, holding her tight, straws, cups, sitting in her own seat, letting her loose, playing with a toy, EVERYTHING. It only made her madder and she would chunk anything handed to her. At one point she was screaming and trying to crawl under the seat in front of her. I’m pretty sure she stole the water bottle out of someone’s bag while under the seat. THIRTY MINUTES of yelling on an airplane feels like 5 hours to the parents and I’m sure everyone around us was having a pleasant experience. From a direct quote of the single, well kept, probably-never-been-around-kids girl behind my seat yelled out “are we there yet? How much LONGER will this last?”, I figured they were ready to get off the plane just as much as I was. One of the guys in front of us got up and NEVER returned. I was seriously thinking of asking the pilot to pull over to let us off. Finally, in the 31^st minute of the tantrum, she stopped screeching and climbed calmly back into her seat and asked for water. She was done. We had an hour and half of flight to go. I prayed the whole time. She made it to Atlanta without any more tantrums.

There aren’t any pictures of us in any of the airplanes. I was a little preoccupied.

But there’s Georgia.

It’s home. Home, home.

It’s green, lush, rolling hills, diverse trees and people. (We live in “White Wyoming”)

It is cousins, parents, grandparents, great grandparents and lifelong friends. My people.

We have a ball every time we go.

Well, most of us do. The little one is pretty attached to her mama and papa. But she made it through.

And Krispy Kreme. Those are in Georgia too. Yes, she had one and she LOVED it.

Georgia is always on our mind….and doughnuts. Those are too.

**This blog post is one in a series of three (or four) about our adventures in Georgia**

“Just make it ’til October”, has been my little mantra for about 3 years now. I think all farm and ranch wives say the same little sentence over and over.

When people find out that we live on a working ranch (as opposed to a dude ranch), people instantly think of cowboys, big skies, free roaming kids, the Pioneer Woman, Little House on the Prairie, Bonanza, slow clocks, ease of mind, and many other things.

Wyoming Spring 2014

Kansas Spring 2013

Kansas

Kansas Summer 2012

Wyoming Late Summer 2013

Kansas Wheat harvest summer 2012

Kansas 2013

Kansas Fall 2013

Wyoming, Summer 2014

It’s all those things, but it’s also lots of time by myself, short-sleepless nights by both of the parents living here, broken equipment, dead cows, dead horses, fires, long, long, long days, sweat, disappointment and any other thing that could go wrong.

And work…there’s lots of work.

From the months of June to late September, our world has revolved around the weather, humidity, dew points, moisture levels, water trucks, water tanks, slick mud, stuck tractors, hay equipment, hay rakes, hay balers, hay netting, pivots, wheel lines, gated irrigation, flood irrigation, hot spots, hay stackers, hay bines, disc bines, more broken equipment, new swathers, cow grazing schedules, cow movements, feeding and grazing schedules, calf selling weights, etc.

The craziness started even before that, sometime in late February when calving started, and we really haven’t slowed down from there.

There are so many meals delivered to the field, cold cokes, lemonade, freeze pops, gallons of sweet tea made, cold water, cold candy bars, flowers picked, cookouts, bonfires with s’mores and encouraging notes written that I lose count.

One day off a week turns into no days off for weeks on end just to get grass down, equipment fixed, dried grass rolled up into bales, etc. The people here are working…hard, hard, long, hot, monotonous work.

Not many people will do it. The work is hard.

But…there’s October.

Oh…glorious October.

I love October. (I know…classic white girl statement.) We got married in October. It’s a good month for us.

Things almost stop. The ranch almost comes to a complete stand still. Except for the elk and a few hunters, the ranch is almost empty of people.

The work day goes from 18-19 hours to a short 10- 12. It’s a good feeling.

The time alone with the children greatly decreases and the day doesn’t seem so long at all. I have my partner and reinforcement back in October.

October…just make ’til October.

October is here! The days are slower, but shorter and people are getting sleep again.

The air is cool again. We are wearing long sleeves and sweat shirts. The 3 year old isn’t sweating as much. We aren’t running the air conditioning or the heat. The windows are open and the crispness is beautiful. There are not as many mosquitos. The leaves are changing. It’s just simply great.

The elk, mule deer, turkeys, cotton tails, pheasants, and the other animals are all moving around. It’s the joy of life before the bitter cold and snow sets in.

Maybe I should just stop there and not mention the S word again. We’ll just reflect on the things happening now.

October

Wyoming, October 2013

For me, October is the runners high after along marathon or race. In the middle you think “why am I doing this?”, but at the end you are planning and ready for another one. I think teachers say the same thing sometime during the school year too. When I was teaching, October was my golden month. Everyone had the routine down, students were falling into a groove, paper work was getting easier to manage, etc. “Just make it to October”.

For the ranch, the managers are already planning, strategizing, laying out plans for the next year…planning the next marathon.

Wyoming, October 2013

Just make it ’til October. I’m always glad I did.