A Flood of Memories

It's funny how a simple scent can be so intrinsically tied to a memory that it has the power to instantly take you back to a moment in time as if it happened just yesterday.  When you catch a whiff, you're helpless to stop the flood of memories from crashing in.

I was walking out of Walmart with my three kids and a full cart when we passed by the hair salon.  Suddenly, the violent and distinct smell of...well.... Ammonium Thioglycolate (to be exact).... attacked our nostrils and my kids said, "Eeeewww, what's that horrible smell?"

I chuckled a knowing laugh and said, "Kids, that's the smell of someone getting their hair permed."

Then the memories came rolling in....


When I was a young girl, my mom had waist long, pin-straight hair parted right down the middle.  She was, after all, a teenager in the seventies.  During the week, she kept her hair in barrettes with a long braid down her back to keep it out of her face while doing housework.  But Sunday mornings were special. Every Sunday morning she would use hot rollers before church and sit under the ceiling fan to let them cool. When she took them out, her beautiful long hair had springy curls on the tips and she wore it down, tucked softly behind one ear. I thought she had the most beautiful hair in the world.

A few years later her best friend convinced her it was time to "update" her style, get with the times, and be fashion forward.  Oh yes, and her best friend also happened to be a part-time hair dresser who had a little salon in her house.  My mom walked in to the beauty parlor with gorgeous long hair and came home with some sort of permed eighties doo with bangs.  We were all in shock.  She cried for a week.

She really formed an attachment to her crowning glory. When it was gone, she had to grieve the loss of her long tendrils.  From that point on, her hair styles changed with the times, but she decided that she loved having a perm. She called it a "Body Wave".  Whether using a curling iron or hot rollers, her curls would last all day with that "Body Wave Perm" in her hair.

Always the frugal one in the family, Mom didn't like to spend money on herself. To save a few bucks, she bought those Ogilvie Home Perms and my grandma would dutifully do her hair every few months. When I was in sixth grade, Grandma lost her fight with Breast Cancer and my mother not only lost her parent, but also her hair stylist. One day shortly after Grandma's passing, Mom was having a frustratingly bad hair day and she turned to me in desperation, "Nell, I need you to give me a perm."

I was 12, I was terrified, and I was completely un-qualified to become my mother's hairstylist! Looking back, I'm not sure why on earth she trusted me with such a monumental responsibility. She had much more faith in my abilities than I had in myself.  That's for sure!

Mom got out all of the supplies and sat in a chair in the middle of the kitchen. Then we literally bowed our heads and prayed to God that her perm would turn out well. Looking back, maybe she was a little nervous about my abilities.  I began my trial by fire.  I parted the hair in sections, following the detailed mannequin illustrations from the perming guide included in the box.  Then I began to roll the wet hair methodically like a surgeon.  Mother was my lovely assistant.  I'd section off a small piece of hair and call out, "Paper" and she'd give me a tiny square of tissue paper to put at the tip of the hair. "Roller", was my next request. This went on for a few rows, all the while she was checking my work with a hand- held mirror.  After each section I'd use a spray bottle to keep the hair moist.

When her whole head was in curlers, I applied the cotton strand around her hairline. Next, I mixed two vials of chemicals to form a potion like a chemist. As I shook the bottle and proceeded to squeeze the perming solution onto each curl, my eyes began to sting and water from exposure to the toxic fumes. That stuff couldn't have been healthy.  Mom would try to hold her breath because the smell was so overwhelming. Between gasps of air, she'd say, "Be careful to saturate every curl. Don't miss anything." Then she'd tuck her face back into an old towel until the torture was complete.

We set the timer for the 30 minute "Hard-to-perm" recommendation on the box.  Then, inevitably, my dad would walk in the house with his nose scrunched and a snarled upper lip. "What's that ghastly smell?" he'd ask, as if he didn't know exactly what we were doing.  We moved the make-shift salon to the back-yard for ventilation purposes until the timer went off. From that point the directions were followed precisely. Rinse, apply neutralizer, wait 5 minutes, take out the curling rods and papers, massage the neutralizer into the scalp, rinse again. Apply post-perm conditioning packet, dry with a fresh towel. Done.

It was the moment of truth. My mother removed the towel and stood in front of the mirror for the big reveal. Miracle of all miracles, it turned out fabulous!!! This day marked the beginning of my long career as Mom's personal hair stylist.  Every three months, for the rest of her life, I gave her a body wave.

Over the years our client/stylist relationship changed.  As I matured, she began to trust me more. She retired the old hand-held mirror and just allowed me to work my magic on her locks.  We would use those two hours to talk about everything and nothing, and the time seemed to fly by.  Through the Junior High years, she peppered me with questions about friendships, and baby sitting. When I got to high school, the conversation changed to boys, and crushes, and my waitress job.

There were times as a teenager that I dreaded doing her hair. I would roll my eyes when she told me it was time for her to make an "appointment" with me. She practically had to bribe me for her quarterly perm.  She went to the salon for a cut and color, and I could never understand why she wouldn't just get the body wave  done there, but she insisted that I was the only one who knew how to do it right. Looking back, I think she was just wanting to spend time with me during those tumultuous teenage years.

During college, she would send me gas money in an envelope so I could  make the drive home to do her hair. When I was living on a ranch in Colorado, she made the eight hour road-trip to see me with a box of Ogilvie and perming rods in her suitcase.  We would stay up late talking about the future, and heart-break, and love in that creaky, mouse- infested ranch house.

After my wedding, I moved 3 1/2 hours away.  Our hair appointments continued with a few small glitches.  Each time I was pregnant, she was forced to go to a salon for her perms, but she would always come back to me post- baby.  I began to use her quarterly perming needs as leverage for her to come up and visit me.  I'd tell her that if she made the drive up the mountain, I'd be sure to block off some salon time in my schedule.  She always took the bait.  Then the tides turned. I began to interrogate her with questions about marriage, and parenting, and God.  I soaked up every drop of wisdom she offered me and I treasured every single second that I had her undivided attention.  Oh, how I miss those days.

I permed my mom's hair for 22 wonderful years.

What I wouldn't give to have just one more salon appointment in the kitchen with her.

.....It really is funny how a drifting smell can bring back such a flood of fond memories.

7 Random Things

1. I made this tote-bag from an old pair of jeans I wore 11 years ago, pre- child bearing.  It was time I came to the sobering realization that my body has been sacrificially ruined for the sake of my children slightly changed and that I don't need to hold on to old jeans anymore with a death grip in my closet.  Besides, it has really just freed up some space for a pair of stylish new jeans with more bling on them.

This Friday, I will be teaching the girls how to make the bags in their 4-H sewing class. One of the sewing categories at the county fair is for "Recycled" materials.  I think this will fit it well. (They don't have to put the pockets and flowers on them. They'll embellish them however they'd like!)

2.  My baby came in crying this week, claiming she was maliciously pecked on the nose by a chicken while checking the nesting boxes for eggs.

She was furious and wanted swift and immediate justice!

She's calmed down a bit, but she's still sporting a nice little scab on her nose to remind her of the atrocities that occurred on that fateful day...a day that will live in infamy.

Here's the culprit.  The Turken...a.k.a. the naked necked chicken.  The kids immediately wanted to make chicken soup out of her, and I've had to intervene on her behalf. She may be a cannibal toward her fellow hens, and a real nose pecker, but she lays a nice big egg every morning for us. Therefore, I've given her an official presidential pardon from the death penalty.

3.  The farrier came this week, which means the dogs hit the jackpot! My deaf, half blind, old fart of a dog found the hoof trimmings and spent an entire afternoon gnawing on them in the soft grass.  Retirement is treating him well.  Wouldn't life be grand if we could all be content with such simple pleasures?

4. The kids have been taking turns riding Jake to check the cows.  They've been putting weight and muscle on  him in preparation for summer horse events.  He's starting to slick off and fill out, and he's looking better every week since he came to live with us.

Have I mentioned how much I love old horses? Only a hundred times? Let me make it 101....I heart this old guy.  I don't care what he looks like. He'll always be loved by me.  

5. I just discovered that Jake doesn't like apples! He loves apple flavored treats, but not the real deal.  He snubs his nose at them.  I thought all horses liked apples. Who knew?!? I don't allow my children to be picky like this, but with Jake...I'll let it slide.

 6. We're just about finished planting the garden.  We've got...Early Girl, Husky, and beef stake tomatoes, Anaheim, jalapeno, and yellow bell peppers, sweet and yellow onions, chives, basil, thyme, oregano, cucumbers, zucchini and yellow squash, green beans, sugar snap peas, carrots, corn, mammoth sunflowers, blue pumpkins, giant pumpkins... I think that's all so far. We still have to plant the flowers, but I'm waiting until after Mother's Day to do that. We all look like lobsters after the weekend in the garden, but that's the price you must pay for superior produce.

7. I just discovered Breyers Oreo Birthday Blast Ice cream, and it's taking my taste-buds to a place they've never been before.  It's cake batter flavored ice cream with sprinkles and hunks of Oreos all mixed into one amazing concoction of deliciousness.  When I put it into a waffle cone, it tastes like my all-time favorite ice cream from Cold Stone Creamery...Birthday Cake Re-mix.  Since the nearest Cold Stone Creamery is 3 1/2 hours away, I consider this discovery to be earth- shattering.  Plus, for the cost of one ice cream at Cold Stone, I can have half a gallon of Breyers and a whole box of waffle cones. It's a winning combination if you like these flavors.  If not, then don't try it. There will be more for me.

Thank you for listening to my endless prattle about nothing. I love you, dear readers. 

Nell

Moving Pairs to Summer Pasture

After a few irrigations, our grass is really starting to green up, and it was finally time to start moving cows onto it. So yesterday morning we gathered a load of pairs to move to summer pasture.

I have to confess that moving pairs isn't one of my favorite things to do, and I usually don't sleep well the night before we gather. I've been doing this long enough to know the wrecks that can ensue.  It would be nice if we could just do it the old fashioned way on horseback at a leisurely pace from one end of a gigantic ranch to another. But alas, we don't have one.  Therefore, we must trailer them an hour away from their winter lease.

Ahhhhh....to have a giant spread some day would be so nice......(OK, I'm ripping myself back to reality now.)

Where were we?

Oh yes, gathering pairs.....

[For my non-cow-savvy readers:  Gathering cows with young calves is a bit like trying to herd cats. You can't put too much pressure on the calves or they'll go right through the fence.That can be a real headache. It's a delicate procedure, one that is best done quietly and systematically so as not to stress the animals.  Once the pairs are in the corral, everything must be sorted.  Dry cows and heifers get kicked back out to pasture, calves get sorted off into one pen, and mamas into another area. All the while, the calves are bawling and the mamas are looking for their young ones. Doesn't this sound fun?!? Anyone, anyone? Bueller?

Sorting cows in the alleyway is like a dance, and one that my kids are getting pretty good at doing. They're starting to become great little hands.  After everything is sorted, we load cows first. Then we shut the middle gate in the trailer and load the calves in the back. This is where herding cats comes to mind again.  The calves occasionally try to bolt in all directions with no leader, and sometimes try to even go under the trailer.  The littlest fellers have to be lifted up into the trailer because they'll just stand there all day without jumping in. Young calves can't ride mixed in with their moms or they'll get squished or hurt during the ride over....that's why we separate them. Safety first!]

The whole process went so smoothly this time that my husband and I just looked at each other and chuckled in amazement.  No calves escaped through the fence, no wrecks, and it didn't even get a little "western". It was a flawless procedure!  I don't know whether to credit this to sheer luck, years of experience, upgrades to the corral, or God shining down on us, but we had them loaded in record time! 

After hauling them over to the  summer pasture, we first unload all of the calves into the corral.  

We held back a little bull calf that needed to be castrated, and used the elastrator to do the job right in the back of the trailer.  Some folks prefer castrating with a knife, and we've done it both ways, but in our area, the risk of infection is much higher with the traditional method so we try to use bloodless castration when we can.  If you get them done while they're still small, they don't seem to mind the band, and the area goes numb after a few minutes.

 I know, I know....the traditionalists are gasping right now! But hey, we do what we have to do to keep the herd healthy. :)

The downside to this.....no mountain oysters to cook on the fire during branding. 

After letting the cows out of the trailer, I waited for them to all find their babies and mother-up really good before letting them out of the pen to graze.  

Meanwhile, the rest of the family drove to the back of the pasture to fill the stock tank up.  Everything had gone so smoothly up until this point, and then the dang generator wouldn't start so we could pump water. 

 It's always something, I'm telling ya...always something. If it's not cows, it's equipment.  

Fast forward an hour and we finally had the wet stuff flowing through the hose. And by "we" I mostly mean my husband.  I was just there for moral support while he tinkered with the generator.

After the stock tanks were full and everyone was paired up, I opened up the gates, and the whole bunch frolicked in the green grass the same way I do at the Chinese Food Buffet. There's so much to eat that they don't know where to start. I know the feeling.

Just another productive day on the mountain!

Nell

Bacon in our Future?

Well, It looks like we're in the pig biz for the next 5 months.  We picked up the kids' 4-H piggies this weekend and they are cute as a button!

Meet "Hank", named after the infamous and ever popular "Hank the Cowdog".  He's our son's 4-H pig.  And below is the lovely"Miss Beulah".  She belongs to our oldest daughter.  Beulah is the Collie that Hank the Cow dog is madly in love with.

There's also a pretty old hymn called "Beulah Land" that we sing in church on occasion, but my guess is that no-one's ever heard of it.

Bad picture of the kids, I know, but it was the only one where the pigs weren't on the go.

We spent the  next day building a temporary pen for the little cuties, and I think they're diggin' their new pad.

Today, we hauled Jake up near the house for the summer, and that old man has clearly never seen anything of the swine variety in all of his days.  First, he trotted back and forth in front of their pen with ears  in full alert.  

Then his curiosity got the best of him and he went over to investigate the creatures that were making those weird noises.

Here they are making formal introductions.  A sniff from Jake, a grunt from Miss Beulah, and the two became fast friends.

Jake is saying, "I've got my eye on you peculiar little creatures."

This could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

Kids in Training

Sometimes I'm short-sided in the teaching of my children. I lead them in morning prayer and Bible reading before school and think nothing more than that we are starting the day off on the right foot.  I help them memorize chunks of Scripture and listen to them recite them to me as I cook dinner in the evenings, wondering if they will forget the verse in a few weeks when they've moved on to another one.

I forget that they are actually hiding God's Word in their hearts.  And then I catch a small glimpse of them using their knowledge in life and I'm reminded that they are, indeed, learning and understanding their Bible more and more each year.

Last week, my husband was writing a paper and needed to cite a Biblical reference about money.  I suggested that he write about the Parable of the Talents.

Spontaneously, our daughter piped up and said, "The Parable of the Talents is found in Matthew Chapter 25." Then she proceeded to quote a verse from the chapter.

Of course, when my husband flipped open his Bible to confirm that she was right, he was grinning from ear to ear. 

On the down side, the kids also use their Biblical knowledge for argumentative purposes.  In the heat of a fight, I'll hear them hollering, "Lying lips are an abomination unto the Lord, but those who act faithfully are his delight. (Proverbs 12:22) " or "Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted."(Matthew 23:12).

LOL! I really wish they wouldn't fight, but I can't help but chuckle when I hear them banter back in forth down the hallway. I always wonder how some kid on the playground would react if my kid told them a Bible verse in the middle of a dispute over being cut in the line for the slide. What would they say if my kid yelled, "But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.(Matthew 19:30)"?

That's not exactly how I would prefer them to use their knowledge, but I guess it's a very primitive form of Proverbs 27:17 "Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another."

Hopefully, when they are older, they'll use their knowledge of Scripture in context, and for good reasons. 

Last night the kids were rewarded for their hard work in memorization. All three of them attend an AWANA club at church where they gather together to memorize and understand Scripture.  They were rewarded for their diligence with certificates, medals, trophies, pins, and ribbons. Those things will one day be lost or broken, but the verses they learn and the knowledge they gain will stick with them for years.  One day, when they're grown and gone, those words they memorized as a child will come back to them in time of need, and will be a comfort to them in times of trouble.  It will be a reminder to them of how they should live their lives.

As parents, we need to remember that our teaching is not in vain. God will honor our feeble attempts to train up our children, and He will make something beautiful of it.

Trying to Teach Kids Who Would Rather Climb Trees

Here's where I found my girls at 6:30 this morning. High up in a tree....barefoot. My boy was practicing roping a bucket. No breakfast consumed. No teeth brushed, no hair combed. They threw on clothes and ran straight outside to soak up the gorgeous weather before the dreaded school day began. 

Do you know what this means? It means that we've officially started the toughest teaching days of the year. The ones where I torture my children by making them stay seated inside to do school work while they longingly gaze out the window to the sunny world outside.  Who am I fooling? This mama is just as ready to soak up the sun as my kids are. After the morning seat-work is complete, we eagerly move the classroom to the great outdoors. The kids read to me on the back porch. The girls practice spelling words while hoola-hooping in the grass, and my son recites history facts while swinging a rope in the air.  And I....well, I conduct this three-ring- circus while sitting in a chair in the sunshine.

Ahhhh the perks of homeschooling!

The days and weeks are all starting to run together this time of year, and if it weren't for my iPhone calendar reminding me where I have to be at all times, I'd be wandering around aimlessly. The weekend flew by in a flash with baseball practices, and 4-H horse meetings.  The kids worked on their riding events in our local rodeo arena.  The bleachers are so high and steep that it turns my stomach to go to the top.

After Sunday morning worship, I spent the whole day painting the eaves of the house, and one of the bathrooms. Not exactly exciting blogging material, but it was finally warm enough to paint with the windows open.

Today, my mother-in-law spoiled me by taking me for a spring pedicure. Thanks MIL!!! The salon lady even painted a flower on my toes. This means that flip flop season has arrived! I kept the picture small for my readers who hate toe pics, but for those of you with giant computer screens, sorry for the extreme close-up.

Have a fabulous week, everyone!

Nell

Around Here...

Feel free to fill in the blanks on your own blog or in the comments section of mine. Let me know if you posted so I can hop over and read your thoughts.  I'd love to know what my readers have been up to on this lovely spring day!

1. I know it's spring because...  The calves are growing like weeds!

It must be that liquid gold they're drinking!

 Also, Miss Kitty now spends her mornings sun bathing on the back porch for the first time in 7 months.

2. A new recipe I'm loving....

Sopapilla Cheesecake.  It's made with crescent rolls, cheesecake filling and lots of butter and cinnamon sugar. SO TASTY!(Not authentic in the "sopapilla" department, but I'm willing to overlook the name because of the recipe's greatness.)

Here's the recipe link if you'd like to try it: Sopapilla Cheesecake

3. The weather has been..... ALL OVER THE MAP!  Spring on the mountain is the toughest time of year.  This weekend, we had 6-8 inches of snow and highs in the low 30's.

My son and his buddy made a giant snowman on Saturday. (Bad phone pic.)

 Today, the high will be 73 degrees F and here's what's left of it.

4. I've been listening to..... a fabulous website full of short 30 minute recorded radio segments for Christian women. It's called reviveourhearts.com and it's loaded with great biblical talks on subjects for women of all stages of life. I've been downloading them on my iPhone and listening to them as I excercise and do laundry over the past month, and I feel like I've discovered a gold mine of knowledge! Listening to them takes my mind off of the mundane and makes the time fly by!!! The programs are broadcast on 700 radio stations, but I don't get them in my little town.  Many of the programs are series about different topics women face.

http://www.reviveourhearts.com/resource-library/Programs/p/Revive%20Our%20Hearts/date/date/

I've linked to the radio archives, but the whole website is worth checking out!

5. Here's what's growing in my garden.... Not much at all! We have chives, thyme, mint, and oregano coming back from previous years.  We've planted sweet and red onions, and I've planted a few tomato plants in the ground surrounded by walls of water.  They act like little greenhouses for them.  This weekend we had snow and the walls of water froze, but the plants stayed insulated and are still alive today! 

During the day, the sun heats up the water, and at night the walls of water give off heat to keep the plant and the soil around it warm. They also protect the young plants from the crazy spring wind.  I'll continue to plant some more varieties over the next few weeks. I'm waiting for pepper plants and heirloom tomato plants to start coming in at our local nursery.

We have such a short growing season at 7000ft elevation that we have to cheat if we want tomatoes.  We can't plant seed directly in the ground or we wouldn't have enough warm days to get a harvest.

6. In the craft department.... I've been sewing a simple grocery sack holder in preparation for the beginning sewing class I teach for 4-H. They'll be making them as gifts for Mother's Day.  We've needed one of these things for years!

7. Our latest fun purchase.... A small roping saddle for the girls.  It's always nice to be in the right place at the right time to find bargain basement deals on tack.

8. A good quote to ponder:

"So it is with minds. Unless you keep them busy with some definite subject that will bridle and control them, they throw themselves in disorder hither and yon in the vague field of imagination... And there is no mad or idle fancy that they do not bring forth in the agitation." -Michel de Montaigne 

9. What's blooming around here:

Ok, eggs don't "bloom"....but we're being overloaded with them lately.

10. I'm keeping busy with... The start of baseball season for all three kids, 4-H, homeschooling, spring cleaning, co-op, AWANA, and Bible Study.


That's what's happening in my neck of the woods.  What's happening in yours?

Nell