I couldn’t get anything done this morning. . .the kid’s breakfast was put on hold, lunch ingredients stayed on the counter, coffee cooled. This sunrise made me stop in my tracks as I silently watched the sky explode in colors and dimensions. The cows started their morning movements of grazing, finding calves, moving from their bed ground. The fall ground fog hinted at much needed moisture seeping into the ground. It was spectacular.

 

So, why is this “blog worthy”?

Because it reminded me that much of this life remains out of my control. I worried fitfully in my sleep of cows coming in from the desert thinner than expected as a result of a dry summer. I felt my mind not turning off, but thinking through the night of things that needed “fixed”. I find that much of the time in this livestock business, one continually finds things to be “fixed”; some are individual, some are regional, some are international, some are intentional, some are perceptional.

And then, I witness something tangible that says, “Things are in control; no need to worry.”

~ Julie

Julie and her family own a cow-calf, yearling operation and custom feedlot in southwest Idaho. She and her husband were raised on livestock ranches and their industry roots run deep. Their children have been very active and involved in the ranch and feedlot, and are developing their own herds of quality cattle.

I grew up a farm kid in the rural Midwest, and was an active 4-H member. We had a great program, which rivaled others in the state for the quality. I credit so much of my success today, both personally and professionally because of what I learned in 4-H. It included life lessons like it’s probably not a good idea to hit your horse at the end of a showmanship pattern to get her to move (went from winning the class to a white ribbon), making life-long friendships (people from across the country I still love to visit with), and honing valuable skills (cooking, sewing, taking care of an animal, managing money and time, giving to others…the list goes on).

I am thankful for our county 4-H agent and the countless hours he spent teaching us kids, and hauling us to different shows and contests. In fact, it was a sad day in our county when he decided to retire. I watched and earned from the older members and, in turn, shared my knowledge with others as well. I’m also grateful for my parents and all the other parent volunteers who guided me along the way.

Some of my greatest childhood memories happened because of 4-H. My mom loves to remind me of how I would immediately fall asleep in the truck while she drove me to/from horse shows. I like to remember that time together also gave us a chance for lots of conversation. Either way, thanks for driving, Mom! I’m excited to share the 4-H experience with my own kids as well and looking forward to making new memories with them.

So in honor of National 4-H Week (Oct. 7-11, 2014), I [continue] to pledge my head to greater thinking, my heart to greater loyalty, my hands to larger service and my health to better living, for my club, my community, my country and my world.

Another youth program creating leaders across the country is FFA. Now the high school I attended didn’t have an FFA chapter, so I didn’t get to experience that program myself, but I know many past and current members. And because I wasn’t a member, I had never heard the FFA Creed. Well, that is until the other night.

I heard it given by an FFA member practicing for his national contest, and I was totally blown away. (In fact, it was the inspiration for this post.) For one, his delivery was articulate and engaging. And two, the words of the FFA creed give us a powerful message about self sufficiency, pride in ourselves, helping others, our work as agriculturists and the promise of tomorrow. So whether you are an aggie or not, I believe these are words that anyone can live by. Best of luck to those youth traveling to the National FFA Convention (Oct. 29-Nov. 1, 2014)

FFA Creed

I believe in the future of agriculture, with a faith born not of words but of deeds – achievements won by the present and past generations of agriculturists; in the promise of better days through better ways, even as the better things we now enjoy have come to us from the struggles of former years.

I believe that to live and work on a good farm, or to be engaged in other agricultural pursuits, is pleasant as well as challenging; for I know the joys and discomforts of agricultural life and hold an inborn fondness for those associations which, even in hours of discouragement, I cannot deny.

I believe in leadership from ourselves and respect from others. I believe in my own ability to work efficiently and think clearly, with such knowledge and skill as I can secure, and in the ability of progressive agriculturists to serve our own and the public interest in producing and marketing the product of our toil.

I believe in less dependence on begging and more power in bargaining; in the life abundant and enough honest wealth to help make it so—for others as well as myself; in less need for charity and more of it when needed; in being happy myself and playing square with those whose happiness depends upon me.

I believe that American agriculture can and will hold true to the best traditions of our national life and that I can exert an influence in my home and community which will stand solid for my part in that inspiring task.

The creed was written by E. M. Tiffany, and adopted at the 3rd National Convention of the FFA. It was revised at the 38th Convention and the 63rd Convention.

Did you know? A Few 4-H and FFA Stats

4-H Membership:
• 70% Caucasian, 15% African American, 12% Hispanic, 2% Asian or Pacific Islander
• 2% American Indian or Alaskan
• 57% of 4-H members are from large inner cities, larger cities and their suburbs.
• 43% of 4-H members are from rural areas and towns with populations of 10,000 or less.
4-H meets the needs of youth. Number of youth enrolled in projects in these major areas include:
• 3,724,625 plants and animals
• 2,364,989 healthy lifestyle education
• 1,811,719 personal development and leadership
• 1,535,386 science and technology
• 1,250,635 environmental education and earth sciences
• 1,052,859 communications and expressive arts
• 680,425 citizenship and civic education
• 495,078 consumer and family sciences

FFA Membership:
• 67% of FFA membership is White; 22% is Hispanic/Latino; 8% is Black/African-American or American Indian; and 3% Asian, Pacific Islander or two or more races.
• FFA chapters are in 18 of the 20 largest U.S. cities, including New York, Chicago and Philadelphia.
• 92% of FFA chapters offer agriscience; 71% offer advanced agriscience and biotechnology; 59% offer agricultural mechanics; 49% offer horticulture; 43% offer animal science; and 24% offer environment-related.

4-H and FFA are not just for those in agriculture, but any youth wanting to gain valuable life skills.

~ Maggie

Fall means so many things- back to school, crisp mornings, Friday night football games, and some beautiful new colors. At my house it also means its harvest time! We take whatever we can get and either can it or freeze it. We don’t do anything too crazy, but maybe some day I’ll get a little wild!

The craziest we got this year was picking some plums for plum jelly. Actually, a LOT of plums.  We have a beautiful little plum tree on the ranch, but after an unfortunate meeting with Grandpa, it doesn’t produce well… or like at all. A few years ago I got a few and was TICKLED to make plum jelly. Unfortunately my blonde hair got the better of me and I was so distracted that the juice scorched and was ruined! No plum jelly… Ever since then I have been dying to make some.

To my delight, there was a friend of a friend (I’ll spare you the details of the connections…) that has a plum tree and asked my mother-in-law and I to come pick them. She pretty well said to pick them all and then dig up the tree and bring it too! I got the feeling she wasn’t too thrilled to have the plum tree in her yard… So we did. We picked and picked and picked. And I might have even shook that little tree just to make the ones on the top come down. We went home with close to 18 gallons of plums! Needless to say, we stopped by the grocery store to stock up on jelly ingredients!

Have you done jelly before? I hadn’t before this little excursion. I usually stick to the tried and true strawberry freezer jam my family loves. I knew it was simple, but I didn’t realize just how simple. Before I share our jelly recipe there are two things you gotta know about this cook- first that you can find this recipe with your pectin… that’s all I did! And second- I don’t always follow the rules. Yes, sometimes it’s to my detriment, but for the most part it works out great!

Ready to “make” some plum jelly?

Step 1- Pick plums… duh… I don’t recommend doing it in the middle of a thunder storm.  There might be a crack and a flash all at once while your standing on an aluminum ladder under a tree… Probably not the best choice…

Step 2- Wash the plums… kinda self-explanatory.

Step 3- This is one of those times that I went my own way. I borrowed all the juicers of the valley (actually just from Grandma and mom-in-law) to do all the work for me. You just dump the plums in and as they heat up from the steam coming from the bottom, they release their juice. Awesome. Another way to do it (if you don’t have a juicer) is to cook the plums with some water and put the cooked fruit in some cheese cloth. And then squeeeeeze the fruit to get the juice out and let it drip for a while to get the last bits. I don’t really have the patience for that…

Step 4- Now that you have your delectable plum juice you can get to work on the jelly. Now, the instructions in your pectin packet will tell you NOT to double the recipe. I’m not giving you permission to break the rules, but just know that I did and it turned out fine, every time. If you are going to double it, get a big pot. Like maybe your canning pot. If not you will boil over and have a sticky mess. Learned that one from experience… Measure 5 1\2 cups of juice, pour into your pot and combine with one package of pectin powder. Bring the juice and pectin to a roaring boil (I know it is really a rolling boil, but doesn’t it sound like it is roaring?) while stirring all the time.

Small side note- you know how the saying goes that a watched pot never boils? How are ever supposed to get to boiling if you have to stir constantly? Ok, back to the jelly…

Step 5- Add 6 ½ cups of sugar to the juice and return to boiling. Still stirring, but maybe with your eyes closed so you don’t watch the pot…. Ok, not funny, I know…. Boil for two minutes and head to your jars to start filling them up… promptly. If you wait long, the jelly will begin to set a little. Scrape off the foam from the top of the jelly and then pour into the jars, leaving ¼ inch head space.

After filling all the jars, wipe the tops, put on hot lids and rings, and place in water boiler canner. Once the water has reached boiling temperatures, process for 5 minutes.

And Ta da! You have fresh plum jelly. Delicious, fresh plum jelly. In fact, you might want to go make some fresh bread to enjoy your delightful jelly (and not feel guilty eating the jelly straight from the jar!).

Fresh Plum Jelly

5 ½ C. Fresh plum juice

1 Pkg. (1 ¾ oz.) Powdered fruit pectin

6 ½ C. Sugar

Collect 5 ½ cups of plum juice from the plums, approximately 5 pounds. Combine juice and sugar in a large pot and bring to a boil while stirring constantly. Add sugar and return to boil while stirring. Boil for 2 minutes. Immediately remove from heat and spoon of froth. Pour jelly into prepared sterile jars, leaving ½ inch headspace. Clean off rims and adjust lids and rings. Place in hog water bath canner and cover with water. Bring to a boil and process for 5 minutes. Yields 6 pints.

 

Hi! I’m Allison. I’m a busy wife and mom of two, living life on the ranch in Holbrook, Idaho where our family raises Black Angus cattle. Growing up on a ranch, I always knew that I wanted to live this life and raise my family on the foundation of country living and hard work.  Whenever I can, I gather my kids and my camera to head out to work with my husband. At the end of the day, there is nothing more than spending time with my family and sharing our ranch lifestyle. Come and see more of me at The Idaho Rancher’s Wife!

Aside from owning a ranch, I am also a member of the Idaho CattleWomen and the Idaho Cattle Association. I have sat on the ICA Board of Directors and served as Chairwoman for the ICW. Now I am responsible for the scholarships that are given out each year to college students from our great state that are going into some form of agriculture-related field.

This year we had an unfortunate situation. The applications that were mailed to our main office in Boise then mailed to me have been lost in the mail somewhere. We are hopeful that they will show up, but would like to ask all of the students who did submit an application to please do so again either by mail to by emailing to me at lablvid@gmail.com. The new deadline to submit applications will be Sept. 15, 2014. Scholarships will be announced at Convention and monies paid to the respective colleges for the spring 2015 semester.

Applications can be found at this link: https://www.idahocattlewomen.org/about-us/

Thank you and good luck with your future endeavors.

~Lyndella

Hi! I’m Maggie. So glad you stopped by! If you come back often, you’ll get to meet many different women and families who share a passion for the Idaho cattle industry. Our stories are similar, but unique. There’s a lot of diversity in our industry and our people, but one common theme—a passion for raising cattle, eating beef and living this lifestyle.

I grew up in a small Kansas community as a farmer’s daughter. Agriculture is in my blood and I always knew I wanted to be a part of the food and fiber industry. I just wasn’t always sure about how I would be involved. My interest in language and fine arts led me to study agricultural communications while in college. Now, my work involves telling the story of agriculture—and the people who raise our food—through writing, photography and design. My husband and I met in college and after graduating, we decided to return to his family’s operation. Now we’re raising cattle and kids in the Gem State. We feel very blessed to live on a ranch taking in God’s beauty every day, raising our kids to work hard and doing exactly what we love. It’s certainly not easy, but definitely worth it!

Our ranch raises registered Black Angus and Hereford cattle. Basically we are raising cows and calves, but our cattle are all purebred or seedstock. We breed the parent stock (females and bulls) to sell. Our bulls are sold to cow-calf producers to raise beef for our dinner tables. Most of our females are sold to other purebred breeders raising seedstock as well. Basically, we are raising the parents of the cattle that becomes the beef on your plate.

Our lives are busy and a little chaotic at times, but I am trying to simplify what I can and embrace the rest. I’m a mom like many of you who also juggle work and family life. It’s important my kids learn how to work hard, but we have fun too. Sports, showing cattle, 4-H, church and other activities fill up most of our free time when we’re not helping on the ranch. I love to cook, our oldest daughter loves to bake and I’ve been known to try a DIY project every now and then.

So, if you stay tuned, I’ll be sharing some recipes and a little bit more about our life on the ranch.
~M