Friday, January 31, 2014

Take A Load Off Fanny! or DQ!

Today has been great. I apologize for not posting anything for three days and the reason that I didn't was because I have been a little too busy with all kinds of paperwork, etc.

This morning June and Jim, our great volunteers came out to walk our dogs for us and Dawn, from Medina, came out to volunteer to walk our dogs for her very first time.

Because I was winding up my paperwork, I was running late to get outside. When I finished doing my paperwork, I took a shower, quickly got dressed and then I went outside to greet everyone and then do my morning chores.

While I was feeding Mr. Rogers and Miss Dee, I noticed that my 501 Levis were awfully loose fitting on me, in fact, they were so loose I bet that I could have just pulled them down, without unbuttoning them. It was like I had dropped two sizes overnight.

When I went to my next pen to feed Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton, I started getting concerned about loosing so much weight so fast, because I don't think you burn many calories sitting and doing paperwork and then I remembered that yesterday, Carol had also made a comment about me looking like I had lost some more weight. Then I started worrying, because you can't take a load off fanny so fast, unless you are sick.

After I finished feeding the dogs, I jumped inside Kermit and took off for The Cabin, so I could weigh myself, which normally is something that I am never in a hurry to do.

When I weighed myself, I had only lost one pound and that is not enough to make your jeans baggie. Then it hit me—maybe I had accidentally put on Tony's Levis, in haste to get outside. And I was right!

When I went back outside, in my tight-fitting jeans, to help Tony finish cleaning the dog pens, I was happy that I wasn't sick, but I was also sad, because I still need to drop more pounds.

When I arrived at the feed barn, Tony and June were talking about one of our dogs. A minute later, when Tony asked me if I was okay. I confessed to them about accidentally wearing Tony's jeans, instead of mine.

The five of us ate lunch, at the Medina Highpoint Resort and it was so much fun. During our lunch, we got to talking about our childhood nicknames given to us. June's nickname was hilarious, but cannot be divulged, Jim's was Jimmy, Tony never had one given to him and mine was Doodle Bug.

When Dawn told us that she didn't have a nickname and then started telling us about her childhood days things started to get a little funny. She told us that she had lived two miles away from a small town and having to walk to school with cows walking with her. "Seriously, my best friends were cows. I loved them so much and they loved me back. They were Black Angus cows and I even gave them names, even though they weren't my cows."

"Then your nickname ought to be Dairy Queen or DQ for short," I teased Dawn. After everyone had quit laughing, I said, "And, you were the cow-ard of the county and one day when you were hoofing your way to school, with your cowfriends, this big, bully, cowboy came along and milked you out of fifty-five cents, so he could buy enough gas, for his black Mustang, to get him to Cowtown. Because he was going to ride a bull and rope a steer, at a rodeo that night."

"Look out everybody," June jokingly remarked. "Nancy's on a roll, again."

"And that's no B.S. too," I shot-back, ending my long-winded roll. Then I quit talking and let everybody else do the talking, so I could eat the rest of my delicious lunch.

Before we adios-ed our good friends: Pete, Sarah and Chris, who work at the resort, Sarah and I talked about me possibly doing a book signing, at the Medina Highpoint Resort, sometime in March. I told her that I would love to do it and the only date that didn't work for me right now was Saturday, March 1st, because I will be at the Boerne Library, from 10 -2 PM, to sell and sign my books, along with other local authors.

Then I told her about our exciting, upcoming benefit, Concert For Utopia, on Palm Sunday, April 13th, at the Cailloux Theatre, in Kerrville, at 3:30 featuring Ray Benson & Asleep At The Wheel, Billy Joe Shaver, Chet O'Keefe and Jesse Dayton's salute to George Jones. Which Kinky said is incredibly great. And that is about it for tonight, because I'm fixin' to watch a movie.

Y'all have a great evening!

Monday, January 27, 2014

Fay Maclachlan Is Coming!

Today has been great, but first I want to tell you about last night. I had so much fun writing the beginning of my new fiction book. Everything just kept flowing and easily falling into place, that I couldn't type it fast enough. Which proved to me that I was meant to write this book right now, before finishing my third, fiction, mystery, cliffhanger, Cowgirl Sisterhood novella.

Because I am so excited about writing this book, all that I can tell you is that I don't have a name for it yet, but I know that it will reveal itself to me when it is time. My new book is going to be humorous and serious fiction and it is about dogs primarily and other animals. Enough said, because I am superstitious and I don't want to put a jinx on my new book project. For now, my lips are sealed and only Tony and Steve know what I am writing and they have promised me, not to tell anyone. (I am so glad that we went over to see Steve yesterday, because on our way over there, that's when I got my inspiration to write it! And when Tony and Steve encouraged me to write it—that sealed the deal for me.)

This afternoon, after lunch, Tony was in his office working on his computer and I was doing my daily paperwork, at the kitchen table, when Mama barked, ran out our bedroom, flew past me, straight to the front door. When she opened the door herself and went outside, I had to chuckle to myself, because I knew that I was not having a deja vu—The Hole Under The Fence Gang had once again dug out of their pen.

When Tony walked into the big room, he was putting on his coat, and said, "Grace Kelly and Tom Landry got out again. Dang it. I'll take care of it this time." Then he went outside, jumped on Kermit, our Polaris 4 wheeler, and took off to go catch the two greatest escape artists, ever to live, at our rescue ranch.

Thirty minutes later, Tony walked back inside our thirty-year-old trailer and said, "They're back in their pen and I fixed it, so they won't ever be coming out of that hole, again..." Then he went back to his office.

Now, let me tell you about the three things that have made my day so great. This morning, a nice woman named Sandy, who works at the Boerne Library, called to invite me to come and be a part of their annual, local authors event, to give the opportunity to local authors to sell their books, on Saturday, March 1st, from 10 -2:00 and I was thrilled about being invited. And I am going to be there!

More great news is that my dear friend Fay, up in Toronto, that has, over the years, adopted two dogs from us, Kris Kristofferson and Kia aka Lassie, is flying down to help out and attend our dynamite Concert For Utopia, featuring Ray Benson & Asleep At The Wheel, Billy Joe Shaver, Chet O'Keefe and Jesse Dayton, at The Cailloux Theatre, on Palm Sunday, April 13th, at 3:30.

Tony and I are so thrilled to hear that Fay is coming down, because she is a dear friend of ours, that we have never met in person. ( FYI: Fay is one of the main, fictional characters in my mystery, cliffhanger novellas.) Anyway, we cannot wait to see Fay. And trust me, we will make sure to give her a good time in Texas.

The last great thing that happened today is our dear friends, Chet O'Keefe and Don, came over, around 4:00, for a really fun visit. While we were inside The Cabin, Chet announced that he has just written and recorded another song and we got to be the first to listen to it. Because listening to his new song gave me goose bumps, because it was so beautiful, I made sure to tell him, before they left to go back over to Kinky's. And that is about it for tonight.

Y'all have a great evening!

Sunday, January 26, 2014

This Weird Idea!

Today has  been great and so was last night's Mel Tillis Concert, at The Cailloux Theatre, that Carol treated us to. Mel, his band and his son, Mel Tillis, Jr. were fabulous.  When Mel went off stage and came out to the crowd, to give away a few CDs to the audience, he saw Carol sitting next to the aisle, he gave her Snowflake, his Christmas CD and Carol and us were thrilled. And during intermission, we  also got to visit with our dear friends, Kris & Jim. Mel's dynamic performance lasted for two and a half hours and it was a concert that we will never forget. In fact, Tony and I are still talking about what a wonderful show it was.

Early this morning, I was doing some paperwork, before Tony got back from The Old Timer. And yes, once again, the dogs started barking outside, causing Mama to race from our bed, in our bedroom, past me, sitting at the kitchen table, to the front door. Then she opened the front door and went outside, barking, so she could see what was going on.

I immediately grabbed my coat and went outside, behind Roy, Belle and Beau, who also started barking, too. And guess what, as if you didn't know by now—Tom Landry and Grace Kelly had escaped once again, from their pen and they were running around the rescue ranch, just to show off.

I jumped into Trigger and we took off, to go catch them. It took ten minutes before Grace finally jumped inside Trigger and it took me ten more minutes to finally convince Landry to get into the truck with Grace.

While sitting inside Trigger, listening to country music, with Ms. Kelly and Mr. Landry by my side, I decided to temporarily put The Hole Under The Fence Gang, in our small, tall, portable pen, while I tried to go fill up their latest hole. And that turned out to be a bad decision, because as I climbed out of Trigger, with leashes on the dogs, they both jumped out and Landry pulled and yanked my arm so hard, I accidentally dropped Grace's leash, so she took off running, dragging her long, brown leash behind her.

I immediately locked Tom, in the small pen and then I jumped back into Trigger. Then we took off, to go catch Grace. Oh my goodness, Grace was having so much fun running around the rescue ranch, it took me twenty minutes to finally catch her, when she ran down the alley, with a gate at the end, between Buster Brown and Springsteen. 

I walked Grace back to her and Landry's pen and loosely tied her to a cedar tree, so I could fill up their latest hole. And she didn't seem to mind being tied, because she was so exhausted from running. Twenty minutes later, my work was finally done, after laying down three, heavy pavers, on top of the big rocks that filled up the holes. Then Trigger took me back to The Cabin and seven minutes later, Tony was home and ready for me to cook him breakfast. And while I cooked breakfast, we laughed about them always escaping when Tony is gone, and Quik-rete costs.

Around 1:30, Tony and I jumped inside Buttermilk and took off to go see our good friend and famous artist, Steve Pietzch, because yesterday Steve had come over and had asked Tony to come over today and shoot him—with his camera, for an upcoming magazine article about Steve's amazing art.

After Tony had shot Steve about ten times, in Steve's super cool, art studio, that's located, on top of a mountain, with an incredibly, beautiful view—the fun photo shoot ended, because Steve had already selected one of Tony's first pictures, to be used for the article. 

Then we went outside to the deck and had a really fun visit. While we were visiting, I told Tony and Steve about this weird idea that I had for a book or a short story, that had just come to me, while we were driving over to Steve's place. They both liked my idea and encouraged me to write it. So, I am going to spend the rest of my evening writing, while letting our DVR record The Grammys for me.

Y'all have a great evening!

Friday, January 24, 2014

Thank You Carol!

Today has been great. Late this afternoon, while I was over at Kinky's having a business meeting with him, in his kitchen, the phone rang. Kinky took off for his office to go answer the phone. I heard Kinky say, "Yes." Then he chuckled. "Okay. Bye."

Then he returned to the kitchen and said, "That was Tony. He asked me to tell you that you need to come home, because Carol has just arrived."

"Okay, I'm out of here, Kink." Then we adios-ed each other as I jumped into Trigger, to go home.

When I walked inside The Cabin I greeted Carol and then Tony said, "Carol brought us three jars of her Daddy's delicious salsa. And, she also baked us some oatmeal cookies to share with Kinky and Chet." Then Tony took a sip of Green Mountain's Donut Shop coffee.

"Thank you, Carol," I said. "We can go over to Kinky's right now, if you want to, or I can take them over there, later. It doesn't matter to me."

"If you don't mind, I would rather stay here, because my allergies are bothering me."

As always, we had a fun visit with Carol. We talked about the weather, the high price of hay, where the three of us will be sitting, at the Mel Tillis concert, that she is treating us to. We did a lot of laughing too, when we talked about our horses, Rosebud and Maya and her dogs, Jake and Scout. Then we talked about how much fun we had on Tuesday, when Chet O'Keefe came over and treated us to a enjoyable mini-concert, in Outer Space.

When we started to talk about healthy soup recipes, Carol jumped up and said, "Oh! I need to leave. I've left soup cooking, on the stove top. Nancy, the two, smaller bags of cookies are for Chet and Kinky." Then we adios-ed each other.

Five minutes later, I called Kinky to tell him about Carol's cookies, that Kinky and Chet love as much as Tony and I do.

A few minutes later, I walked inside Kinky's kitchen to deliver the cookies, but Kinky wasn't there and the dogs were gone, too. I figured he had decided to take a nap, so, I left Carol's bags of cookies, on the table and came back home.

An hour later, figuring that Kinky was done with his nap, I called him. "Kinky, where were you when I came over to deliver Carol's cookies?"

"I guess I had walked down the hill to see if my cigars had been delivered. I've been home all day. Thanks for bringing them over and please thank Carol for me."

Y'all have a great evening!

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Chet O'Keefe's Music Rocks!

Today has been great. Late this afternoon Tony and I asked our dear friend, Chet O'Keefe, if he would please come over and play and sing some of his awesome songs, that he has written, because Carol, Tony and I have been dying to hear more of his music, after listening to his incredibly great Game Bird cd.

When he said, "I would love to play for you." I immediately called Carol back and told her that Chet was coming over, in just a few minutes, to play some of his music for us, in Outer Space. And I am not sure who was more excited about it.

When Chet and Carol arrived, almost at the exact same time, Tony had already gotten my Benz-Genz amp, out of my writing cabin and had it ready to go, in Outer Space. After I welcomed them, at the gate, Chet teased Carol about the quirky, fictional character, that I had created for her, in my Cowgirl Sisterhood novellas. Carol laughed and said, "None of it is true. She made all of it up." And, I did.

When we went into Outer Space, Chet started getting his guitar out of the case and said, "I forgot to grab my guitar jack."

"Not a problem," I said. "You can use mine." Then I took off to go fetch it.

When I went back into Outer Space, with my pink guitar jack, Chet and Carol started laughing when they saw that it was Pepto Bismol pink and after a few funny jokes about it being pink, Chet joked, "Well, at least, I'll be wearing the right color, burnt orange, in Nancy's pictures, for her blog tonight." A few minutes later, after Chet had adjusted my amp to get the right sound that he likes, Chet started playing and singing his awesome songs for us and our rescued dogs outside.


Chet's magical, musical talent mesmerised us with each and every song, and every time that I looked over at Carol or Tony we just kept smiling and shaking our heads, in disbelief, that his music was so great. 

After Chet had played about six or seven fabulous songs, that he had written, he took a break. While Carol, Tony and I raved and complimented him on his talents, I said, "Chet, I know that you're going to be the next musician to hit it big time and we are going to get to brag that we knew you when. Willie Nelson, Billly Joe Shaver and Kinky have signed my guitar and I want you to sign it and date it."

"Sure," Chet replied. Then I left and went inside The Cabin to get my guitar. When I returned I handed my guitar to Chet and said, "Let me hold your Martin, so you can sign it." Chet handed me his awesome guitar to hold. Then Tony took this picture of Chet signing and dating my guitar for me.


After Chet signed and dated my awesome guitar, I thanked him. While I was still holding his beautiful sounding guitar in my hand, I said, in a serious voice, "Okay, now I can sign yours!" It was hilarious, because there was actually a moment of silence and you could have heard a pin drop, then I started laughing and then they started laughing, too. "I got ya." Then we exchanged guitars.

When we finally quit laughing and making jokes about me putting Chet on the spot, he picked up his guitar, again and to our delight, he started singing some of his latest songs that he has written. 

During Chet's awesome mini-Concert For Utopia, in Outer Space, I took this short, 18 second video of him, just to show y'all how great of a musician Chet O'Keefe really is, because we are so excited about him also going to be performing, at the Concert For Utopia, on April 13th, at the Cailloux Theatre, at 3:30, along with Jesse Dayton, Ray Benson & Asleep At The Wheel and Billy Joe Shaver.

Around 6:00, the sun had gone behind the mountain, the temperature outside started dropping, Chet was tired and Carol needed to leave, so we thanked Chet over and over again for playing his fabulous songs for us. 

Along with the sweet comment made early this morning, on last night's post, by Cathy and getting to have a private, Chet O'Keefe, awesome mini-concert, in Outer Space, is what made my day so great. A special day that Carol, Tony and I shall never forget. And that is about it for tonight, because after hearing Chet skillfully playing his guitar, I really do need to practice on my guitar a whole lot. Chet O'Keefe's Music Rocks and so will the Concert For Utopia, on April 13th!

P.S. Kinky, Brian Molnar and Chet O'Keefe loved the Thai food, at the Thai Ocha restaurant, too! Kinky told me this morning that they all plan to go back there soon.

Y'all have a great evening!

Monday, January 20, 2014

iPad!

Today has been great. This morning, before Tony and I went outside to do our morning chores, I called Kinky. "Kinky, I don't know if you already know this, but Carol just sent me an e-mail about Steven Fromholz dying on Sunday. We loved him and are sick about it."

"Yes, I already know. Steven was one of the good guys...."

After we had talked about our friend's passing, how talented he was and Steven, a few years ago, doing several benefits with Kinky, to help raise money for our rescue ranch, I changed the subject. "Kinky, our chickens have gone crazy. They're laying four to six eggs per day. We've got so many eggs, I was wondering if you would like a few dozen eggs."

"Yes, I am out of eggs and need some."

"Great. They're green, white, off-white and brown and all different sizes. We'll bring you two dozen right now." After we adios-ed each other Tony and I jumped into Trigger and went over to the Lodge to deliver the colorful eggs.

When we arrived, Kinky, Chet O'Keefe and Brian Molnar came outside to greeted us. After Kink put the Golden Girls eggs inside his refrigerator, he suggested that we go outside and sit on the porch, to visit.

During our visit we talked about Fromholz passing, mountain lions, the weather, The Friedmans, Chet's cool dog, Willie, Sophie's new weight loss plan that Kinky has put her on and our upcoming Concert for Utopia, on Palm Sunday, April 13th, at 3:30, at The Cailloux Theatre, in Kerrville. Tony and I ended up staying over there for a little over thirty minutes and it was a fun visit, except for the part about Steven.

After Tony and I did our chores I told him that we had to go to J.C. Penney, in Kerrville, to buy socks and I suggested that we eat lunch, at the Thai Ocha restaurant, that has recently opened up, that Kris & Jim had rave reviews for. To say the least, "Tony wasn't sure about going there, because he has never eaten Thai food and he wasn't sure if he would like it."

A little later, after I had showered and cleaned up, we went over to Kinky's, so I could drop off my iPad-mini, for a few hours, so Chet could check it out, because he is thinking about getting an iPad. Before we adios-ed Brian, Chet and Kinky, I told them about the new Thai Ocha restaurant, in town and I invited them to join us for lunch there. "Nance, I love Thai food. In fact, it is my favorite food, but all of us just ate a late breakfast. Why don't y'all go, to see if it is even open today and to check it out and then give us a report when y'all get back? If it is good we'll go there tonight."

"Okay, Kinky. Tony and I've never eaten Thai food," I confessed."

My confession made Kinky chuckle. Then he jokingly said, "Okay, y'all. This is my impersonation of what Nance just said." Then he grinned at me, stood back and using an exaggerated, thick, North Texas accent, said, "I ain't ever ate Thai food." We all burst out laughing.

"It's true, Kinky. We don't even know what to order." Kinky suggested that we try curry. Chet suggested we order Thai Pad, which sounded like he was trying to say iPad, but just couldn't do it and Brian suggested something that I can't pronounce or even know how to spell. Then Tony and I thanked them for their confusing suggestions, adios-ed them, climbed into Trigger and took off to go eat Thai food for our very first time. Tony was nervous and I was excited.

When we arrived at the Thai Ocha restaurant, it was after 1:00 and the parking lot was nearly full, which I think is always a good sign that the food is good. When we walked inside the restaurant, the vibes were excellent and we only had to stand in line for a couple of minutes before we were taken to our table. A friendly, pleasant waitress greeted us before giving us menus and taking our drink order. "I 'll have water, please," I said.

Then Tony, still not sure that he would like their food mumbled, "Tea." While our waitress was gone to get our drinks Tony and I studied the menu.

When she returned with our drinks and asked us if we were ready to order, I said, "I want the Saigon Noodle with hot & sour soup."

Tony told the pretty waitress, "I want the Thai Pad." Which sounded like he was trying to say iPad, too. "With chicken and a dinner salad with ranch dressing." Then our waitress smiled at us, before going to turn in our order.

Y'all, our Thai food lunch at Thai Ocha was absolutely delicious and we told our waitress that, too! Tony ate everything on his plate. And while we were shopping for socks, at Penneys, he told me, "I love Thai food and that restaurant. We've got to bring Carol here, because she is going to love their food..." And I totally agreed with him, as I purchased ten pairs of socks.

When we got home I immediately went over to Kinky's to pick up my iPad and to tell him and our friends about how great the Thai food was and that I highly recommended the restaurant. When I was fixin' to leave the Lodge, holding my pink covered iPad, in my hand, Kinky asked me what Tony had ordered. And I had to laugh before I said, "Thai Pad." Which sounded like I too was trying to say iPad.

This evening, around 5:00, Kinky, Brian and Chet took off in Kinky's truck, Mr. Green Jeans, to go eat  delicious Thai food, at the Thai Ocha restaurant.

Y'all have a great evening! And go eat at the Thai Ocha restaurant, on Water Street, as fast as you can, because it is a great dining experience.

Saturday, January 18, 2014

Jeremy Clyde!

Today has been great. We had many visitors come out to take tours of our rescue ranch and we enjoyed meeting everyone. Around 2:40, the nicest, retired couple came out to possibly adopt one of our super dogs and Jeremy Clyde stole their hearts, so they adopted him. To say the least, "Kinky, Tony and I are thrilled about it."


I took this picture of Jeremy, just before he happily, leaped up into the backseat of their SUV. It made Tony and I laugh, because this sweet dog could not wait to leave our rescue ranch and be chauffeured away to his new, fantastic, forever home. 

Right after Jeremy and his forever family drove away, I came inside The Cabin, so I could put the lid on our trash can, that Roy Rogers always raids, because we needed to take off and get groceries, at the big H-E-B, in Kerrville. And believe it or not, Roy actually frowned and wrinkled his forehead, when he watched me push the trash can lid down tightly, on his "treasured tub of treats" that he had been looking forward to eating.

Halfway to Kerrville, just before the Quiet Valley Ranch, that annually hosts the famous Kerrville Folk Festival, we saw a beautiful dog, that sort of looked like Jeremy, running down the middle of Highway 16, so Tony pulled Trigger off of the road and parked. I jumped out of Trigger and hollered, "Come here, buddy!" The dog looked at me and started running towards me.

Then I heard a woman holler, "He's my dog!" I looked around and saw the woman standing on her front porch. "Come here, Buddy! Bad dog. You know better than that." As I watched Buddy, turn right and run to the woman. "Thank you, for trying to rescue Buddy! Y'all have a wonderful day!"

"You're welcome!" I hollered, as I jumped back inside Trigger. As we drove off, I said, "Tony, that dog looked exactly like Jeremy, except his ears were erect. And his name was Buddy. Can you believe that?"

"I know. I thought for sure that we would be taking him back home with us to replace Jeremy. I'm just glad that he didn't get hit. He's home and off of 16. Nance, please add a can of Planter's Mixed Nuts to your grocery list. I'm also out of..."

During my brief shopping spree, at H-EB, I did put a can of Tony's favorite mixed nuts into my grocery cart and scratch it off of my shopping list. 

As I finish writing this, Tony's happy to have his favorite mixed nuts and he is, standing in the kitchen, munching on some of them, right now and I'm just happy that today has turned out to be so great. And that is about it for tonight. "Tony, please save some cashews for me."

Y'all have a great evening!

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Tailgate Party!

Today has been great. Around 3:30, the phone rang, I recognized Carol's number and answered, "Hi, Carol!"

"Let's ride! It is a beautiful day, so come on over so we can ride our horses."

"I would love to and it is exactly what I need. I've got to go find Tony. He's somewhere on the ranch taking pictures. We'll be over there in about thirty minutes..."

Tony was not hard to find. When Trigger and I pulled up, at Kinky's Lodge, Kermit was parked near the gate. When I walked inside Kinky's kitchen, Kinky half-hollered, we're in here."

When I walked into the big room I greeted Kinky and Chet and then said, "Tony, the Cowgirl Sisterhood needs you. Carol and I are going to ride our horses and we need you, our personal paparazzi, to take pictures."

"Well, I hope I don't receive an emergency phone call from Tony telling me that you're dead," Kinky half-joked. "Have fun and please be careful, Nancy." I started laughing.

"Don't worry, Kinky. Those days are over. I only walk Maya and if she starts to walks too fast, I dismount. Come on, Tony. I've got to go grab my cowboy hat before we go over to Carol's."

As we were leaving, Chet O'Keefe said, "Have fun and tell Carol that I said, "Hi.""

When we arrived at Carol's beautiful ranch, she had already saddled Maya and Rosebud and she was loping Maya, in the corral. When it was time for us to get on our horses, I tried standing on a turned-over bucket, to get on Maya, but because she is so tall and I am just the opposite, I couldn't.


So, I suggested,"Let me stand on Trigger's tailgate to get on Maya." Then we took off.



Tony held Maya for me and I got into the saddle just fine. Then Carol and I took off, with Tony snapping pictures of us.


Before Tony took this picture of us, parked by the big Oak tree, he said, "I'm so lucky, getting to take pictures of the four prettiest girls, in Medina." And that made us smile.


Carol and I laughed. "Yes, you are, Tony," Carol teased. "And that's why we don't pay you anything to take our pictures." 

Then I jokingly said, "Tony, because you are so sweet to take pictures of us, Carol and I are thinking about making you an honorary member of the Cowgirl Sisterhood." Then the only two members, in our club, rode off.


Carol and I rode Rosebud and Maya for about an hour and it was a total blast for me. We laughed and got to catch up with each others news and then we laughed some more. The weather today could not have been more perfect, for us to ride. "Thank you, Carol, for making my day great." And that is about it for today.

Y'all have a great evening!

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

We're Talking Cement!

Today has been great and a lot of fun. This morning Kinky called me and asked me to come over to the Lodge, so we could discuss some things about our upcoming, exciting benefit, Concert For Utopia. After Kink and I had our business meeting, in his office, we went outside, to visit with Chet O'Keefe.

During our fun visit, Kinky jokingly told us, "Sophie has put on so much weight, I'm thinking about getting her a personal trainer to help her lose the weight." We laughed and then suggested that he cut back on feeding his precious Cocker Spaniel so much.

"Walking will help Sophie shed the pounds," I suggested.

"I guess I could start taking her on a couple of short walks everyday," Kinky said.

"I'll be glad to loan you my Walk Away the Pounds DVD, for Sophie," I joked. "Then she could walk away her pounds, in the privacy of the Lodge." Chet and Kinky thought that was pretty funny and they both started laughing.

"Maybe Sophie should go over and spend a couple of weeks in The Okay Corral, at the rescue ranch," Kinky said. "Sort of like a boot camp to help her lose a few pounds."

"Kinky, Sophie is so fat. She needs to lose at least five to ten pounds," I pointed out. "I think you should keep her over here, cut back on how much you are feeding her and call this place, "Echo Hill Fat Camp." Then I looked down at Sophie, laughed, and said, "Sophie just shot me one of her "go to h@&&" looks."

About ten minutes later, after a really fun visit with Kinky and Chet, Kinky invited Tony and me to join him and Big G for lunch, in Kerrville, to discuss the Concert For Utopia. Then Trigger took me home.

Our lunch with Big G and Kinky was hilarious from the git-go. If we weren't laughing—we were eating. In fact, it was so much fun, Big G and I are going to talk about it tomorrow morning at 7:20, on Big G's Texas Roadshow, KERV 1230AM and on the REV 94.3FM, before I do Harley's Show at 7:45.

At 5:15, as I was writing this, the dogs cranked up outside and Mama ran from our bedroom to the front door, opened the door and went outside barking. Since Tony was gone—hauling off trash, I stepped outside on the front porch and then I skipped all of the way to Buttermilk. Tom Landry had dug out again and I saw him down at Kate Middleton's pen, flirting with her.

It only took Buttermilk and me five minutes to catch Tom and return him to his and Grace Kelly's pen. He had dug a huge hole this time, so I started filling it up with the rocks that he had earlier removed.

Two minutes later, Tony and Trigger arrived and Tony finished filling up the hole, as I stood there and watched. "Tony, we're talking cement," I said. "Tomorrow, after we get done with our chores, let's go to town and buy some Quik-rete and line the outside of their pen with bags of it. I know that will solve this problem once and for all." Needless to say, "Tony said nothing, because he knew that he would be doing most of the heavy-lifting work. And that is about it for tonight.

Y'all have a great evening!

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

The Secret Is Out!

Today has been great. Kinky, Tony and I have had a big, exciting secret and we've been so excited about it, but until "it was set in stone" we couldn't announce the great news, except to just a few of our closest friends.

The Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch's great news is—there is going to be a "Concert For Utopia!" Yes, thanks to Kinky and our dear friends, at the Cailloux Foundation, Billy Joe Shaver and Ray Benson and Asleep At The Wheel, are going to do a Utopia Concert to benefit our rescue ranch! And we can't wait!

The "Concert For Utopia"will be on Palm Sunday, April 13th at 3:30, at the Kathleen C. Caillioux City Center for the Performing Arts Theatre! So, everyone please mark this date on your calendar, now.

When the tickets become available we will be announcing it on Kinky's site, utopiarescue.com, my blog. And with the help from our dear friends, Harley Belew and Big G—it will sell out fast!

We love the Cailloux Foundation, Ray Benson and Asleep at the Wheel, Harley and Big G, for helping our rescue ranch! And that is about it for tonight, because I am so excited about the Concert For Utopia I can't type.

Y'all have a great evening!

Monday, January 13, 2014

Kinky Is On Imus Tomorrow!

Today has been great. I just want to let everyone know that Twitter has contacted me about my account being compromised and the problem has now been fixed, even though I don't plan to tweet ever again, because it is just not my cup of tea. "Thank you, Karin, for letting me know about it."

This afternoon Tony and I finally did our do-overs, in Kerrville. He filled Buttermilk up with gas and I purchased my French Vanilla Coffee Mate, at the big H-E-B, on Main Street. Then we went by Wolfmueller Books and had a very fun visit with Sandy & Jon.

Early this evening Kinky called me to ask for an early wake up call, in the morning, so he can be awake to do the Imus Show, in the morning. Tony is going to call him at 6:00, in the morning, to make sure he is up. And tomorrow morning, I get to sleep in, because Big G called me this afternoon to reschedule our Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch segment, for Thursday morning, at 7:20, before I do Harley's Show, at 7:45. And that is about it for tonight.

Y'all have a great evening!

Sunday, January 12, 2014

Just To Let You Know!

This morning I received an e-mail from Karin, in Germany. She told me that she received an e-mail supposedly sent from me on twitter. She knew it wasn't from me and she said it had something to do with money. It wasn't from me, because I have not tweeted for over a year or more and I don't plan to tweet any more. So, if you receive an e-mail about me tweeting—I didn't tweet it and I suggest that you not open it and just delete it.

Saturday, January 11, 2014

Do-Over Day!

Today has been great, even though it was filled with do-overs. In the earlier part of the week I spoke to the nice couple that in October had adopted our super sweet, four-year-old Beagle, Peggy Sue.  As much as this fabulous coupled loved Peggy Sue and had tried very hard to make her happy, they had decided to return Peggy Sue to us, because they wanted her to be happy again, like she had been at our rescue ranch.


Peggy Sue had stolen their hearts and they were sad and depressed about giving her up, but they felt it was the best thing to do for Peggy Sue and I agreed. Before our conversation ended, we made a plan to meet them, Friday afternoon, around 2:30, in front of Pet Supplies Plus, by the little H-E-B, on 16.

But unfortunately that didn't happen, because around 1:30, while Tony was gone, taking photos, at the Bandera County Stock Show, I was home alone doing paperwork. I don't like doing paperwork, but it was peaceful and quiet here, until all of the dogs started barking outside. Grace Kelly had gotten out and she was happily running around the rescue ranch, teasing the other dogs.

Ten minutes later, after chasing Grace (Escape Artist #1) Kelly from one end of the ranch to the other, I stopped Trigger and got out of the truck and said, "Load Up!" Grace smiled at me and then she jumped inside Trigger ending our little rodeo!

After Grace had dragged me back to her and Tom Landry's pen, she happily ran inside it. She kissed Landry and then she laid down to rest, in the sunshine.

Ten minutes after that, round two of my privately run, mini rodeo occurred when the dogs outside started barking again. I figured it was Grace again, but I was wrong. It was Tom Landry this time, happily running around the rescue ranch, proving that he could do it too. He had dug out.

Tom (Escape Artist #2) Landry was easy to catch and was back inside his pen within two minutes. Then he unknowingly showed me the hole, where he had escaped from, because he was fixin' to go out it again, so he could run around the rescue ranch some more. I caught him and ten minutes later, after having filled up the hole with big rocks, I returned to the trailer.

Ten minutes after that, the dogs outside started barking again and when I went outside, I saw Tony pulling up, in Buttermilk. After I calmly told him about the exciting adventures of Grace Kelly and Tom Landry, he apologized for not being here, "Dang it, Nance. It seems that every time that I leave you at the ranch, something like this always happens. I'm just going to have to stop going anywhere and just stay home." (Tony is so sweet and that is one of the reasons that I love him so much.)

"It's not your fault, Tony. And yes, you are going somewhere, too." Then I laughed and said, "There's a broken pipe near the barn that needs to get fixed. I have already shut off the water." By now, it is getting late in the day, so I called Peggy's parents and asked if Tony could meet them today at 1:00, instead and they didn't mind one bit about keeping Peggy Sue for one more night.

Before we adios-ed each other, this super nice woman says, "Call us when Tony leaves and then we'll take off to go meet him."

"Okay, will do. Bye."

Today, around noon, Tony took off early for Kerrville, so he could buy some gas, buy dog food for our rescued dogs, mail some letters and pick up a few groceries for me, before picking up Peggy Sue and bringing her back to the rescue ranch.

Around 1:45, I went outside, on the porch, to greet Tony. "How is Peggy Sue?"

"I don't know. They never showed up. I waited twenty minutes for them and then I came back home. By the way, I didn't get gas either, because the pumps were down, so we'll have to get some tomorrow. And I also forgot to buy your French Vanilla Coffee Mate, even though it was at the top of your grocery list."

"I've got lunch ready and I'll call them after we finish eating. I hope everything is okay..." (Hang in there. I'm nearly done telling my story.)

After lunch, I called the couple and spoke to the sweet woman. In a few short minutes we were both laughing about me forgetting to call them when Tony took off. Of course, it was totally my fault and after I apologized to her and to Tony, who was in the kitchen listening to me, we all decided to do another do-over.

So Tony took off again, in Buttermilk, to go meet the couple, at the Mini-Mart nearest to us. Fifteen minutes after he had gone—the phone rang. "Hello, Nancy. We're at the Mini-Mart on the corner of 16 and Ranchero Road. Tony's not here. Is this the right Mini-Mart?"

"No, ma'am. You need to drive about three or four more miles. I think. You'll see it on your right." Then we both started laughing, before we adios-ed each other.

At 2:45, Peggy Sue and Tony arrived, so I went outside to greet Peggy Sue and Tony. Peggy Sue looked absolutely beautiful, healthy, was in great shape and she seemed very happy. We had to put Peggy Sue in The Okay Corral, because our pens are full and we have no extra space for her. She loves my writing cabin's front yard and I think she's thinking that it is the Presidential Suite of dog pens out here.

After I took these pictures of her, Tony opened up Buttermilk's back door hatch to show me the boxes filled full of Peggy Sue's cute toys, leashes, etc., that this super sweet couple had sent back with her.



Tonight I plan to re-watch the movie, On Golden Pond, one of my favorite movies. Tomorrow, after we do our morning chores outside, we need to do one more do-over and that is to go back to Kerrville, to hopefully buy gas and get my Coffee Mate. And that is about it for tonight.

Y'all have a great evening!

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Cedar Fever!

Today has been great, even though I woke up this morning coughing and sneezing non-stop. At first, I was scared that I might be coming down with the flu, but I know it is definitely cedar fever, because when I was outside helping Tony with the morning chores—it got worse. And get this, Buster Brown, our cute, six-year-old Jack Russell terrier was sneezing too, because of the cedar.

The good news for today is all of Ginger Rogers' puppies have been adopted to great homes. Around 1:00, Tony and I me up with his friend, Patty, in Kerrville, so she could adopt Jase and take him home. And late this afternoon, Karon brought her friend over, who works at the children's home too, so she and her delightful son and daughter could adopt Sopapilla and take her to her fabulous forever home.

And that is about it for tonight, because I am sneezing so much, it makes it hard for me to type. Hopefully, the cedar count won't be so high tomorrow, because I am close to running out of Kleenex.

Y'all have a great evening!

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

My Chicken & Dumplings!

The last two days have been great, because they were quiet days, with no excitement. Yesterday, while Tony and I were in Kerrville, enjoying lunch with our friends, Jim told me about him cooking up the best chicken and dumplings that he and Kris have ever eaten. After he told us about how easy it was to make, using a crock pot, he told me how to make Jim's Chicken & Dumplings.

After an enjoyable lunch with our friends, Tony and I went to the little H-E-B to buy the ingredients needed for Cousin Nancy's Chicken & Dumplings recipe, that I had just stolen from Jim. Then we came home, so I could pre-cook the chicken and dumplings and only have to heat them up for today's lunch.

Early this morning, before I did the Utopia segment, on Big G's popular radio show, I made Mama a special meal. I mixed her dry dog food with a heaping scoop of chicken and dumplings, because she doesn't like to take her pain pills and I knew that I could hide one inside a big dumpling. To say the least, "Mama is feeling no pain and she loves my chicken and dumplings recipe."

Around noon, Tony and I came inside to eat lunch and to say the least, once again, "Tony and I love my chicken and dumplings."

When Kinky called me around 12:30, I told him about my chicken and dumplings and I asked him if he was interested in trying some. "Yes, Nance. I'm very interested. Come on over..." Five minutes later, I was over at the Lodge hand delivering Kinky a baggie full of my delicious chicken and dumplings.

About an hour later, Kinky called me again, to discuss "our big secret", which is our upcoming benefit for the rescue ranch . When I asked him if he had liked my chicken and dumplings, he said, "I've not eaten them yet, but Chumley loved them and he licked his dog bowl clean." And that is about it for tonight.

Y'all have a great evening!

Sunday, January 5, 2014

Hey! Bo Diddley!

Today has been great. Early this morning, before Tony and I went outside to do our chores, I signed copies of my first two novellas to Chet O'Keefe. Then Tony and I jumped into Buttermilk and went over to Kinky's, so I could give Chet my books, because last night Chet told me that he loved to read and would like to read my novellas.

We had a fun visit with Kinky and Chet and before we left to come back home to feed the dogs and clean their pens, the four of us decided to meet for lunch around 1:00, at La Fours, our favorite seafood restaurant, in Kerrville.

Lunch was so much fun and while we were eating our delicious meal, Chet and I got to talking about his music and some of the bands that he has been in and famous people that he has played lead guitar with. When Chet humbly mentioned Bo Diddley's name, Kinky's, Tony's and my jaws dropped down to the floor, because we love Bo Diddley's music. Then Tony and I spent several more minutes being fascinated, as we listened to Chet and Kinky chat back and forth about some of their mutual friends they know, in the music business.

And that is about it for tonight, because this evening I am going to get back to writing regularly, on my third Cowgirl Sisterhood novella series, since the holiday season has ended.

Y'all have a great evening!

Saturday, January 4, 2014

Sparky!

Today has been great. Late this morning the phone rang and I actually took the call, which is weird, because I always let Carlton screen my calls for me. "Rescue Ranch." I said. "This is Nancy."

"Hello, Nancy," a nice sounding man said. "I'm Dallas. A few months ago my wife and I came out there and adopted Sparky from y'all. We wanted to do this during the holidays, but decided to put it off until now." (My heart immediately sank, because I knew that he was going to tell me that Sparky hadn't worked out and they wanted to return her to us. Poor Sparky.)

"Yes, Dallas. I do remember you. Is Sparky okay?" (Then I held my breath.)

"Sparky is doing great!" Dallas said. "She is a fabulous dog and she..." (Then I smiled, let out a sigh of relief and listened.) "The reason that I am calling you is that my wife and I are at Pet Supplies Plus right now and we wanted to know if we could come out and drop off a big box of dog treats for the dogs."

Thirty-two minutes later, I went outside to greet Dallas and his sweet wife. After handshakes, they gave me the gigantic box of dog treats that was too big for me to carry, so they put it on the ground, just as Tony walked up to greet them. "Thanks for the dog treats," Tony said, as he picked up the heavy box and put it in the back of Kermit.

Tony and I spent over twenty minutes outside, talking to Dallas and his wife about Sparky. All they could do was brag about what a fine dog she was. We found out that their veterinarian had insisted that they change the spelling of Sparky's name to Sparkie, because she is girl and it made Tony and I laugh. We also learned that Sparky(ie) is mainly an inside dog and she gets along great with their other dogs and they love her so much they spoil her regularly. To say the least, "We are so happy for Sparky(ie) that she finally found her fabulous, forever home and is living with such nice people.

After we adios-ed Dallas and his wife, Tony took off, in Kermit, to go see Chet about a ladder. Five minutes later, Mama started barking, so I went outside to see who or what she was barking about. "Howdy, Steve!" I half-hollered, as I walked down the porch steps, so I could go greet our dear friend. "Come on up to The Cabin and drink a cup of coffee with me. Tony should be back in just a few minutes..."

As soon as Steve and I started sipping our delicious Donut Shop coffees, Tony walked inside the trailer and said, "Hey, Steve..." Then Tony said, "Nance, did you know that Chet can also play rock 'n roll with the best of them?"

"No, I didn't," I said. "Steve, Chet O'Keefe is a friend of ours that we met through Kinky and he is a great singer/ songwriter, musician and we love his music." Then the phone rang, I looked at the telephone number and picked up the phone, "Hi, Carol! How are you doing?"

"I'm doing great."

"Our artist friend, Steve, is over here right now and you ought to come over, so you can meet him."

"Darn it, I can't, Nancy, because I am leaving Fredericksburg right now and heading home."

"I was just talking to him about you being a very talented oil paint artist and that you were thinking about taking some more painting lessons. When I showed him my poster that I had made, of your painting of Maya, he told me that you don't need any lessons." That made Carol laugh.

"Tell Steve I already like him." Then Carol laughed again. "The reason that I called you was to invite you and Tony and Chet to come over for happy hour. Maybe Steve can come over too?" After I had invited Steve to join us for happy hour and he had agreed to meet us, Carol and I adios-ed each other. Then we adios-ed Steve. Then Tony went back over to Kinky's to invite Chet to join us for happy hour.

Around 3:30, we adopted Phil Robertson, one of Ginger Rogers five, adorable puppies, to Mike and his new bride Ally, a super nice couple, that live and work at the children's home, across the street. They told us that Phil's running buddy is going to be their little Yorkie. And before the newly weds left, they also told us to feel free to come over any time to see Phil.

Early this evening, Chet, Steve Tony and I showed up at Carol's ranch, for a really fun happy hour that was filled with laughter. An hour and a half later, when we got back home, Tony and I spent ten minutes rounding up a chicken that had gotten out of the pig pen. And that is about it for today.

Y'all have a great evening!

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Secrets!

The first day of the new year has been great. First, I overslept and did not climb out of bed until 8:45. I don't feel guilty about it, because I love sleeping with our dogs.

For breakfast, I cooked Leisa, Rick and Tony bacon and a very tall pile of Aretha Frankenstein's Insanely Great Pancakes. They loved the pancakes even though I had to cook Aretha's pancakes using milk instead of buttermilk, which is the major ingredient for making the pancakes delicious. The reason that I was out of buttermilk was because yesterday, Tony not knowing that I was going to need it for the pancakes, drank up all of the buttermilk.

After Rick, Leisa, Tony and I did the morning chores outside, Kinky called me, "Nance, call me as soon as you get this message. I've got some exciting news..." So, I got excited and called Kinky immediately, even though I didn't know what his exciting news was. As soon as Kinky picked up the phone he said, "Nance, you're not going to believe the great news....." And Kinky was right about that, but unfortunately I can't tell y'all the great news yet, because it is a secret.

Before Kinky and I adios-ed each other he told me that he was hungry and couldn't decide what to eat, so I told him about having seven, leftover, Aretha Frankenstein pancakes that he could have. Five minutes later, I was sitting in Kinky's kitchen, watching him eat two pancakes, as we talked about our big secret. Before I left the Lodge I invited him to come over and eat lunch with us and he told me that he might, because he wasn't sure if he was going to Kerrville to eat lunch.

When I returned home, I immediately told Leisa, Rick & Tony our secret and they got all excited, too. One hour later, when Carol arrived, to eat lunch with us, I told her the secret and like the rest of us, she got all excited about it. Then Leisa, Carol and I cooked up the four pounds of fresh, two-day-old, Gulf shrimp, that he had brought up from Port Aransas. Before we started to eat I called Kinky to invite him over and he said, "Dylan is on his way out here and we might come over in a little while..."

The grilled shrimp and the sauteed shrimp were mouth-watering delicious and so was my homemade split pea and ham soup, that we had to drink out of coffee mugs, because all four of my bowls were in use. (Two of them were in Ginger's portable puppy pen.)

Our healthy feast was so delicious—we ate all of the shrimp and soup, so while Leisa, Carol and I cleaned up the kitchen, I asked Tony, "Would you mind calling Kinky and telling him not to come over, because we ate all of the shrimp and soup and Carol is fixin' to go home and all of us want to take naps?" Tony did and Kinky thought it was very funny that we ate it all.

When I finished my sleepless nap with Mama, Roy, Belle and Beau, I took this cute picture of Roy resting and using Belle as his pillow. He's perfect, so sweet and such a great dog.


Late this afternoon, I baked a peach cobbler, because Rick and Tony love it so much. While it baked, I called Kinky and asked him if he wanted some peach cobbler. "Yes, I would love some and I know Chet definitely does..."

Because of my temporary bowl shortage, Rick and I used plates to eat the cobbler that was topped off with Blue Bell Vanilla ice cream and we joked about it being difficult to eat the ice cream, as it melted on our plates. Tony was the lucky one and he ate his out of our only bowl, while Leisa put her cobbler and ice cream in a large mug.

When we finished eating our dessert, I told them that I needed to take the rest of the peach cobbler over to Kinky, so he and Chet could finish it off. When I started to put the half-full carton of ice cream into a thermal bag, Rick looked startled and asked, "You're not taking the ice cream over there, too?" We started laughing.

"Yes Rick. My peach cobbler has to be eaten with vanilla ice cream."

"But what am I going to do if I want to eat some ice cream later on tonight?" Rick teased.

 "Go over to Kinky's," I joked. Then I left and went over to Kinky's to deliver a half eaten peach cobbler and the ice cream.

When I returned home, we got ready to go over to Carol's ranch, so we could eat some of her homemade black-eyed peas—for luck in 2014. On our way over to Carol's we teased Rick about me taking the ice cream over to Kinky's and him having to do without. Right before we arrived at Carol's gate, I jokingly remarked, "Rick, you should know this by now. When you come see us it is always BYOB. Bring your own bowl and Blue Bell." Then I jumped out of Buttermilk, so I could open Carol's gate.

We had a lot of fun over at Carol's and her black-eyed peas, that she served in big bowls, were the very best black-eyed peas that I've ever eaten, so I asked her how she cooked them. She joked that it was a secret, then she told all of us.

When we got back home and I walked inside The Cabin, Roy greeted me with kisses, that he normally doesn't do and then I knew why he was being so sweet to me. Yes, Roy, my hero dog, had once again robbed the trash can. When Leisa, Tony and Rick walked inside a few seconds later, I said, "Roy's done it again."

"Let me get a broom and clean it up," Rick said, as he went to go get the broom.

"Let me take a picture of Roy's mess, first, so I can document it," I said. Then I grabbed my camera, so I could document Roy's latest robbery. As I started to take this picture, Roy stepped back into the picture frame, to make sure that he hadn't left any shrimp heads, on the floor and to prove once again that he was guilty as charged.


While Tony and Rick quickly swept up the trash on the floor, I told Leisa about me shaming Roy on my blog recently and the Bandera County Courier picking up the story and running a funny story about me shaming Roy, in their fabulous newspaper. It was in their October 10th edition. And y'all that is about it for tonight, because I must go to bed.

Y'all have a great New Year!