To the show pig that showed me

There we were, deciding if this was the year we would go with one species for the show year or make ourselves just a bit more frazzled hauling in two sets of tack, hoping show schedules wouldn't overlap and deciding how to divide and conquer two species at the stock show. 

But our county stock show made that decision for us. Sort of. Not really. The premium sale at our county show doesn't allow heifers in the sale. And since that's our main project, we had to decide to stick with cattle and get a show steer, or choose another market animal to raise for the county stock show. 

As much as the exhibitor of these show projects would have loved to have a steer, the mother - and voice of reason - knew this busy family just didn't have the time or budget to do it the right way. At least not this year. At the time the decision was made I was thinking of the competing extra-curricular activities that jeopardized available time after school, a kindergartner adjusting to longer school days and evenings, and a husband that travels for his job to support our family and thus wouldn't be an extra set of hands for the majority of daily chores. Let's face it, I took the easy road and decided we'd get a show pig for the second year in a row rather than overwhelm ourselves with the workload of two show calves. There was no way we were giving up the show heifer.

After all, we'd done this last year. By no means did we think we knew it all, but we were fairly certain we were capable of raising a decent show pig without major catastrophe. And besides that, we had a pen all set up and ready to go. 

And then you showed up here looking nothing like what we expected. You see, we were expecting a smaller pig, but you showed me you would grow and turn out just fine then coast into your final show just a few pounds under the weight limit. We were expecting a dark colored pig because we don't have an indoor barn to protect you from sunburn, but you showed me we'd just have to find a way to provide shade for you.

You really weren't a very cute pig - and yes, there is such a thing, but you showed me I'd soon alter my definition of cute.

And here's another thing: we promised our show pig last year that he was the very best and we'd never get so attached to another one. But you showed me I'm a liar and we broke that promise within a week of your arrival.

I had show pigs of my own when I was growing up and you showed me that I still remember enough to get by but at the same time everything I thought I knew has changed. You showed me how to learn, how to ask for help and how great it is to give my kids the opportunity to gain skills that will benefit them long after your show year was done.

You showed me I really need to work on my patience, especially with my kids on days we were trying to get chores and work done and just didn't seem to have enough time. That's a reality check I wish I didn't need.

Unfortunately, you showed me the not so great things about stock shows. Like how some people are not so friendly when crammed into the chaos of a crowded pig barn. And as much as they want you to believe it, not everyone is in this for their kids - there exists in the stock show world selfish adults that don't always follow the rules. That's a shame and a reality all at the same time. But enough of that negativity. You showed me they don't matter.

You showed me the great things about stock shows too, like how there really are some people that want to help, and how I just have to trust myself to recognize them and thank them for their guidance and support. And that my kids are building friendships and memories that are sure to serve them well in their future.

You showed me that my kid would learn to win and learn to lose when he set out for the show ring. It wasn't easy seeing his hopes crushed when he didn't win a class or make the sale, but you showed me this was a great format to learn those life lessons. You showed me what it meant to build character - for myself and my kids. 

You showed me that teaching my kids about real livestock production and where food comes from is important. This project was a mere micro-slice of what real production is like, yet the end result was the same. And even though we knew your fate of growing to market weight to provide meat, it was more than we could handle when the time came to send you off. But we gave you the best care we knew how. Because we are human and compassionate. You showed me that my kids were not prepared to learn such a tough lesson two years in a row, yet they handled it with much more maturity than I gave them credit for. Me, not so much. 

So thank you, Jordan, the show pig. You showed me that being a stock show mom is tough yet fun, crazy yet fulfilling, and worth every pen-cleaning, feed-mixing, schedule-altering, trailer-loading, stinky clothes-washing, suitcase-packing, belt-finding, picture-taking, family-bonding stressful moment to spend time with my kids caring for an animal that showed me way more than we showed you.

Sincerely,
Stock show mom

merry christmas from the family ~ 2015

photo by Ashley Lenard Photography

photos by Ashley Lenard Photography

Worrell Wanderings

2015

It is said that every experience leads to growth. Such truth exists for us and preparing our Christmas letter to share a piece of our lives with family and friends is a reflection of not just our experiences, but the realization of how much we have grown with each passing year. We certainly don’t think we are all that interesting but want to share our every day happenings with those we consider part of our tribe.

Pecos is the tallest kid in third grade but that comes as no surprise. He’s just 9 years old but is on target to reach the 5-foot mark before the candles on his next birthday cake are lit. His first show heifer had her first calf this year, a monumental event that has him eagerly planning for the next one. When a bull catalog turns up missing from the magazine rack we know it is probably stashed away in his room. Same goes for the Sullivan’s Show Supply catalog. He had quite a bit of success at stock shows this year with his Hereford heifer and loves showing off the hardware he’s collected. It will be a challenge to keep him in front of the backdrop especially since he’s become fond of it. But it’s the friendships he’s making along the way and pride he has when he does well that keep us in the barn working to get him to the next one. He’s also raising a show pig for our county stock show in January but says next year he’ll be ready for a steer. Too bad our barn and his mother are not. He played first base for his machine pitch team this year and put those long arms to good use catching some wild throws. He has a competitive drive that runs deep and pushed him to the front of the pack in the 600-meter event of our summer track program. Casey thought he could actively participate in conditioning practice only to realize his endurance isn’t quite what it once was. Pecos looks forward to golf lessons in the spring but for now practices in our pasture driving range.

Brazos turned 5 and marched into kindergarten with his typical gusto. That soon wore off and his amusement with education now centers primarily on the social opportunities provided. He’s still a self-proclaimed chicken rancher but Casey is nonetheless working on talking him out of raising broilers when his turn arrives for a 4-H project. He says he may show a pig, which means it is a little too soon to convert the pig pen to another cattle run. In the meantime he loves all animals and has assembled a nice little funny farm. At the rate he’s going we’ll have enough variety for our own live nativity scene next Christmas. He’s quite the comedian...just ask him to tell you a joke. If he can’t seem to remember one be prepared for him to make one up on the spot. He’ll keep going as long as you keep laughing. He relished our family vacation to Florida this summer. It was a dream come true for him to visit LegoLand and he thinks we should go back...every week. Ever the adventure-seeker, he donned an Evel Knievel jumpsuit for Halloween. There seems to be no end to his energy level so there’s a good chance we’ll sign him up to bounce and catapult himself within the confines of a padded space for gymnastics classes. Ninja training is not available here in Harper.

Erin still enjoys photography even though the time to practice is limited. The end goal of her learning is yet to be defined but for now she appreciates the opportunity to attend workshops and study as much as she can about it. She spent a week this summer in Santa Fe, New Mexico capturing much of the enchanting landscape. She can’t wait to return...anyone care to join her? The women’s photography conference she attended this fall introduced her to new photography friends that are sure to expand her knowledge and adventures. She finally took the time to attend the Ag Media Summit this summer to network and learn from others who share the same passion for agriculture communications, but she was beyond humbled when they honored her with the Best of the Bunch photography award. She continues working for Demeter Communications along with taking on a few freelance projects. The ability to share her skills, help others and learn something new keeps her wanting more. That may sound like quite a full schedule but it is all built into and around the time it takes to be a full-time mom, wife and dreamer.

Casey has successfully avoided the accidents and mishaps that should accompany the number of hours and miles he spends on the road. He’d like you to believe it has something to do with cat-like reflexes, but we know he has guardian angels working overtime. He’ll keep at it as long as the customers keep calling although none of us would mind if he had time to finish a few big projects here at home, like expanding and improving the show barn. We are thankful he has the health and ability to continue doing some of the best beef carcass ultrasound work for the finest customers. We say it every year but they really make the time Casey is gone from home worthwhile. Don’t ever doubt that he’ll work all day then drive all night to get home in time to spend time with the boys and Erin. He’s enjoying being a stock show dad and has ambitious plans for adding to the show string. Erin has her reservations about the number of bovine under consideration. Her efforts to divert those plans are coming up short, especially when he has Pecos on his side. It’s only a matter of time until Brazos abandons Erin’s idea for a larger and expanded chicken pen and coop in favor of dad’s scheme.

We appreciate each of you for being part of our lives, sharing our experiences and witnessing our growth. We hope it somehow blesses you, inspires you or at the very least makes you laugh. But above all we hope you experience the peace and joy that comes from celebrating the birth of our Savior this season so that you too may witness growth, for as John Henry Newman said, “Growth is the only evidence of life.”

Merry Christmas and Happy Blessed New Year,

The Worrells

Casey, Erin and the RiverBoys

christmas card {and that darn letter}

December 2014- In case you missed it, here's our annual Christmas card:

I'm still in a non-traditional Christmas theme phase. Hope you don't mind. The pictures this year were an interesting experience for all of us.  It just didn't work out for my best friend to come and take them for us. After I got over the panic that resulted from that issue I had a momentary rush of confidence thinking I CAN DO THIS!!

"Take your own pictures," they said.  "It will be easy," they said.

"They" obviously don't have a Brazos:

And although there was a great effort on behalf of the Worrell men to appease me and my anxiety over Christmas card pictures, this pretty much sums up the session right here:

But as you can see from the card, I ended up with a few that were good enough to send out into the world via our Christmas card list. And for the record, I don't recommend taking your own pictures, especially the group shot. And I hope I don't have to do it again, but we'll see.
P.S.- Casey hates the way he is standing with his hand on his hip. But I promise I did not instruct him to do so. Every other picture with him in a more natural stance had a RiverBoy looking at the ground or some absurd facial expression so I had to use this one :)

Now for that darn letter.  I've created a monster with it. And even though no one cares about it nearly as much as I do I still manage to burden myself with it each and every year. Down to the last minute.  It's not that I feel I have to write something fantastic to compete with anyone else or even project such a wonderful life in yearly summary. Quite the opposite.  You see, this is my thing- I don't run marathons. I don't go on mission trips to third world countries (although I might like to some day). My kids don't have school lunches crafted into cute cartoon characters accompanied by origami love notes from mom...truth be told they barely even get a lunchable thrown into their lunch box. Because those aren't my things. But designing a card and writing a letter is something I can do. So I try to do it the best that I can...for myself. Sorry if you thought it was all for you.

So here is the 2014 edition:

Worrell Wanderings

2014

  

Let’s just say 2014 was a year for great fun, new endeavors and hard work. But like they say, “all work and no play makes for dull RiverBoys”…or something like that. We can’t let that become of us, so although we didn’t take a big family vacation this year, the RiverBoys still managed to spend the summer completing an assortment of fun activities {think swimming, hiking, kayaking, camping, fishing, exploring and the like}. Memories were made, exhaustion was exceeded and everyone survived.

Pecos played machine-pitch baseball in the spring and flag football this fall. Football continues to be his favorite but with such long arms he really has an advantage of leverage when throwing a baseball. He is doing well in second grade and especially loves dodgeball in P.E. He shot his first deer this year, a six-point buck. Casey told him all hunters have to smear the blood of their first kill on their face. He wore it with pride and didn’t want to wash it off so it would still be there for school on Monday. After much discussion about showing livestock this year we decided to wait a little longer before getting into showing cattle. But then Erin was out of town one weekend so Casey loaded up the boys and they set off to pick up a Hereford heifer. And just like that our daily schedule included feeding, washing, rinsing and a multitude of other tasks to get her ready to show. Pecos has enjoyed going to a few shows this fall and is looking forward to more. We took the prize for proudest parents in the world when he won his first belt buckle for showmanship. A show heifer should be more than enough for us to manage, but no. We felt like we needed something that could be in the premium sale at our county show so we’ve added a pig to the inhabitants at our place. Both projects are providing plenty of work, learning and personal growth for Pecos and the rest of us {and more time-juggling challenges for Erin}. Never has a kid had so much sideline show coaching as Pecos.

Our rambunctious second child, Brazos, marches to his own beat. He was not interested in flag football or anything else that involved organized activity. In fact he says he doesn’t want to play any sports, he just wants to show ALL the animals. He got his start at the Gillespie County Fair this year with one of his favorite chickens. He is quite the enterprising chicken rancher. He invested his fair winnings into another chicken he saw there that he liked. The young girl that owned it wasn’t really interested in selling it but Brazos just flashed his blue eyes, turned on the charm and brought home a brand new chicken. Looks like we’re in for trouble in his teenage years. At four years old, Pre-K occupies his days but he would still rather go on the road full time with dad…to supervise {he’s good at giving instructions}. He still does all of his own stunts, like trying to fly by jumping off of his bed. Perhaps taking him for a small airplane ride on his birthday wasn’t such a good idea after all. Now, if we could just get him to slow down long enough to eat more than two bites of any meal he may finally pull himself out of the bottom fifth percentile of weight-for-age and height.

With the boys returning to school in the fall Erin had high expectations for catching up on things around the house. That didn’t exactly happen as planned thanks to an abundance of work in the form of freelance projects and assignments from Demeter Communications. She continues to pursue her photography hobby whenever possible. Casey and the boys surprised her this year by sending her to a David Stoecklein workshop in beautiful central Idaho. She didn’t even realize it was something that should have been on her bucket list but will forever be grateful for the opportunity to learn alongside such an iconic and legendary western photographer. She also managed to squeeze in a weekend on the beach in Florida soaking up the sun with college girlfriends. She still dreams of loading up her camera gear, hitching to a vintage mini-camper and heading west in search of big skies and wide open spaces.

Casey never fails to push the limits of miles that should be driven and work that should be done on any given day. This has been his best year ever with his cattle ultrasound business. He tries as hard as he can to get to his customers on the day they need him but until he can find a way to add more days to a week he’ll go on burning the candle at both ends. Regardless, he works hard for them every time and heads back home as fast as the law will allow {or not notice}. We sincerely appreciate each and every one of you and feel blessed to call you customers and friends.  Casey has definitely gotten caught up in showing heifers with Pecos, but the clipping he does for ultrasound really doesn’t work very well for show cattle.  Our heifer has a few patches of missing hair…because she wouldn’t stand still is our official statement on the matter. With a few more trips to Sullivan Supply and enough practice, he might just learn to clip one someplace other than over the 12^th and 13^th rib.

So there you have it, your yearly update on the Worrell family with a healthy dose of reality. As another year slips away let us pause to reflect and thank God for our many friends and family both near and far. We hope you join us and rejoice as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior on Christmas Day. As the saying goes, the New Year begins with a blank page in a 365-page book. And we hope to write a good one.

Blessings and Beef,

The Worrell Family

Casey - Erin - The River Boys