Hi guys! Brea and I have decided to observe a little bloggy break - sort of a sympathy break for M, since she can’t go near her keyboard until her grades come up. In truth, NOTHING has been happening here at Pepperweed Ranch for WEEKS. I am so bored. It’s the snow, don’t you know. And, of course, Bella and I are still doing extra chores to help out until Jake’s arm gets out of that cast.
Anyway, we’re still here, just not blogging at the moment. If you’re just meeting me (or Brea or M) for the first time, read our archives! You’ll get to know us pretty good from them!
I’ll catch up with you guys as soon as I have something cool to report.
Cowgirls Rock!
Mac
Just wanted to send a big Cowgirl THANK YOU to Caron and Gia for all the support you gave Autumn. Great advice! You know, Jasper and Paca have been a little cranky this winter because we’ve had soooooo much snow and it’s been just plain icky outside. So, Bella and I have been grooming them - a lot. And Bella has been reading to them, too. She started with Twilight, but Jasper’s not really into vampires and he quickly got bored. So, she decided to try The Prisoner of Azkaban, which is Bella’s favorite Harry Potter book.
Keep us posted on your progress, Autumn!
Cowgirls Rock!
Mac
P.S. This picture of Whiplash, the Cowboy Monkey (that’s his real name) has absolutely nothing to do with winter or dealing with cranky horses. I just liked it; it made me smile 
Hey, Autumn -
I just read your comment and, I hope you don’t mind, I sent it over to Caron, cause she has more horse sense than anyone I know. I’m also copying your comment in this post, in case anyone else has suggestions for you. I had this problem with Jasper when I first got him. He was wild, you know, and we just had to get to know each other.
I need help! My horse, Gypsy, has been a real pest this winter. She bucked several times, reared, and acts like she is going to bite me when I try and put the saddle or saddle blanket on her back. My dad says it is a confidence issue, my confidence. What do I do to win her trust back? If I don’t help her soon, my parents are going to sell her!
Cowgirls To The Rescue!
Mac
But Bella and I are warm and snub in front of the fire with our trusty computers! Honestly, I don’t know what the early settlers did out here in winter without computers. Bella says they probably spent all their time trying to keep warm! LOL
Bella and I have been spending a lot of time online the past few evenings. Correction: I have. Bella has been knitting… something. It’s supposed to be a sweater, but so far it looks like a giant sock. She got all inspired by Patty and Caron and now she wants to get creative with yarn. As for me, I would rather buy my socks at The Mercantile and spend my time reading mysteries.
Little M was right - Montana is a treasure trove of great TRUE mysteries. There is an old ghost town not too far from here called Garnet. It’s just a collection of run down old buildings, and it’s pretty ugly from the road, so I never gave it much thought. But I read about it online, and do you know what it USED to be? A mining town! People used to mine for gold and garnets there (hence the name, Garnet) The story I read is pretty dry, so I’m going to ask around today and see if anyone has insider info on Garnet.
Oh, I forgot to tell you - we got a break in the snow, so Bella and I are going into town today with Dad and Jake. Jake has a doctor’s appointment for his arm. I’ll let you know what I find out.
Cowgirls Rock1
Mac
When you live in Clancy (like me) and you’re tired and frozen to the bone, there’s only one thing that’ll perk you up - Snickerdoodles! The store bought ones are fine, but home baked are the BEST! Bella’s Mom makes the best Snickerdoodles on the planet. I thought I would post the recipe she uses. Tell me if you try these, and lmk what YOUR favorite winter snack is!
Mac, the Snickerdoodle Cowgirl
Cream:
1/2 c butter
1/2 c shortening
1 1/2 c sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
Blend in:
2 3/4 c flour
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
Shape dough into balls.
Mix:
2 Tbsp sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
Roll dough balls in cinnamon mixture.
Place on ungreased baking sheet.
Bake @ 400, 8-10 minutes, or until set.
Cool 4 minutes to let set before transferring
to cooling racks.
Recipe from allrecipe.com.
We’ve got a break in the snow today and, you know what? I think it’s gonna get above 10 degrees! Bella and I are going for a ride. Mom says we have to wait until noon to give it time to warm up a degree or two. Like 12 is sooooo much warmer than 10! LOL Mom. you gotta love her.
Hey, did you check the Forum today? I’m there, too! Brea’s idea. I think it’s great! Now, I’ll be blogging here and posting there, too! Gotta check it out. I’m hoping my regular readers will help out with questions like, Who is Mac? LOL I know I’m gonna get a few of those.
Okay, you go enjoy your weekend and I’ll catch you HERE and on THE FORUM!!
Cowgirls Rock!
Mac
Got an email from Niles Elliot Stone today. Yeah, he went back home a week or so ago, which is good because there’s so much snow here there’s no way we could do any rock sleuthing… or hounding… or whatever you call it.
Anyway, Niles read my list of Montana Facts and wanted to add a couple. Here goes:
1. Montana is known as The Treasure State. That’s appropriate because:
2. The Montana Yogo Sapphire is the only North American gem to be included in the Crown Jewels of England.
He sent me this picture. Pretty, huh? Too fancy for me, but it does sparkle. Bella loves it, btw! lol I’m guessing the saphires are those blue stones; that’s usually the color of saphire.
Oops, Brea is calling. Wonder what’s up? Gotta go!
Cowgirls Rock!
Mac
Hi guys! I thought I would share some of the amazing things I learned about Montana. No wonder I love it here! Oh, that’s our state flag up there. Here’s my list of favorite things:
Mac’s 10 Favorite Facts About Montana
1. The first inhabitants of Montana were the Plains Indians; today it is home to seven reservations.
2. Our state bird it the Western Meadowlark. Very pretty. It’s mostly yellow.
3. Montana’s official animal is… the Grizzly Bear!
4. Montana comes from the Spanish word for “mountain.”
5. Our state density? Six people per square mile. I told you it was quiet here!
6. Granite Peak is the highest peak in our state. It measures 12,799 feet!
7. No state in the entire country has as many species of mammals as we do!
8. Miles City is known as The Cowboy Capital! Yahoo!
9. The elk, deer and antelope outnumber the humans!!!
10. Bitteroot is our offical state flower.
Bot a blizzard coming in tonight. I’m going down to the barn to visit Jasper, then I’ll probably be on the computer all night studying more Montana stuff!
Cowgirls Rock!
Mac
If you said tell tall tales, then you’re wrong. Sorry. Wrong kind of Yarn. At this camp you learn to spin hair into yarn and knit and weave and do other stuff like that. So, Mac, why are you interested in Yarn Camp? Well, I’m not actually, BUT Patty and Caron ARE. In fact, that’s where they are this week - at Yarn Camp learning… more yarn stuff.
See this baby llama? Well, this cute little thing lives at Caron’s farm! No, we don’t have any llamas at Pepperweed Ranch. We have cows. Lots of cows. Cows are nice but they are not as cute as this llama.
I knitted a scarf once, but I didn’t sheer the sheep, clean the wool, spin it into yarn and dye it before I knitted it - I just bought 3 balls of yarn at Miss Ruth’s. So, this is my question; it’s sort of a 2 parter -
1. Have you ever been to (or heard of) Yarn Camp?
2. Do you knit?
This Cowgirl Wants To Know!
Mac
