30 December 2020 – Sunny and 30 degrees

Hey out there!  Sorry I have been absent for far too long, but we are still here and still livin’ the dream. 

Feeding Hay with the tractor

The last time I wrote was in October so I wish I had a lot to tell you, but our last two months have been (thankfully) very uneventful.  We did finish the shed with the drain tile and the fill dirt.

Cow shed complete, but the cows have refused to spend the night inside so far.

We spent more than a few days cutting down trees in one of the northern pastures. We dragged the wood splitter up there and split and stacked firewood for next year.  It looks like we probably have enough to fill the shed.  

  • Stacking wood to dry for next year
  • Splitter in the meadow
  • Slashpiles and more stacked wood
  • The Sheriff is tired from supervising wood cutting operations
Firewood

We really haven’t had much snow so far this year, so we haven’t had a chance to burn the slash piles, but we’re expecting winter to come callin’ anytime now.  We currently have a little snow on the ground, but not enough to do any big slash pile burning.

A little late December snow on the Holler

We decorated for Christmas and had a nice quiet time here.  My mom and dad did get to come visit for a few days before the holiday and it was so great to see them.  We ate a lot, mom brought a ton of Christmas cookies, and we took them out shooting one afternoon.  We also drove over to Hermosa where we picked up a second load of square bales along with a famous Lintz Bros. pizza.  It was great to see them and I hope they come back soon.

Sorry I don’t have any good pictures. But if you do make it to the Black Hills you cannot miss Lintz Bros Pizza.

Lintz Bros. Pizza | Pizza Restaurant

At Christmas, it was a balmy 52 degrees here.  Unbelievable!  So we grilled steaks and drank some beers on the deck and laughed at all of our relatives that live south of here and had much colder temperatures than we did.  HO HO HO!

Toasting to a not white Christmas

But two days ago, Old Man Winter came callin’ and we dropped into the single digits and got a few inches of the white stuff.  We really cannot complain as it is December in the Black Hills and we are desperate for moisture in any form. The cows actually didn’t seem to upset either, as they often do during the early snows in the season.  They are all fat and happy.  Hard to believe we are only three months away from the start of calving.

Lucky is looking like she’s ready to calve already. Hang on, girl!

Some close-by neighbors set up a game camera bordering the east of our property and caught these two prowlers out on Christmas Eve.  

Photo courtesy of Bison Pines at VRBO in case you find yourself up this way. Mountain Lions not included. Bison Pines! Beautiful Country Setting on 51 acres! Enjoy Peace and Quiet! – Hot Springs (vrbo.com)

I hope they weren’t hunting reindeer! If they were they didn’t get them until Santa got to visit the Sheriff.

That about does it for the Holler Happenings in 2020.  It has been a strange year for our country, but we still have a lot to celebrate as we ring in the new year.  We’re toasting you all tonight and hope everyone has a wonderful 2021.  Hang on tight to your liberties and God Bless!

Sunrise from the deck