So thankful for the rain over the weekend. The kids spent hours playing outside. Only coming in when mom insisted they needed to dry out.

My husband and I checked heifers, enjoying the mud we had to slog through to look at all of them. A couple of new baby calves were up and eating. A great sign, especially in the damp weather!

The forecast warns me to expect rain or snow all week. We shall see; but for today I am content to hang wet coats out to dry and tromp through mud to check baby calves.

Water. It’s easy to take it for granted. Easy to forget how much we rely on it every single day. Easy to forget the ripple effect water has on our daily lives. Drinking water, bathing water, stock water, crop water, recreational water…

The drought in the western US is taking a heavy toll. My husband and I are faced difficult business decisions. Can we afford to buy more feed for the cows? Can we find grass elsewhere for them? Is our only choice to sell them?

Selling cows is our absolute last choice…if we can avoid it. We have invested years of hard work and resources into the genetics of our cowherd, focusing on moderate sized cattle that produce consistent carcass quality. To sell those cows and walk away from our genetics program would be heartbreaking.

We are trying to keep things in perspective. Remind ourselves that our fathers and grandfathers faced their fair share of catastrophes. We, too, will find a way to make the best management decisions possible.

This is the life we choose to live–the good years and the tough years. In the good years, we thank the good Lord for all that we are given. In the tough years, we thank the good Lord for all that we are given. And we ask Him for rain.