I had a lot of things on my agenda that I wanted to accomplish when I was in Denver for the stock show and the cattle were on the top of my list. I got to walk through the barns to view the cattle up close and personal as well and seeing them in the show ring and in the yards. I was interested in seeing what kind of calves looked the best and what bulls we might want to consider using at home.
I also spent some time connecting with people from different farms and ranches while I was out there. I probably did more of that than I usually would. I had to channel my father in law for the task. He very comfortably visits with perfect strangers all the time and I thought, if there is one thing that us cattle people like to do, it is talk about our cows so this should be easy! It allowed me to meet people I might not have otherwise had the chance to and stepping outside the box paid off for me this time!
I met a fellow blogger ( I guess I can technically say "fellow". I do have what, 5 posts or something??!!) and cow girl while I was out there which was fun. Take a look at the Crystal Cattle blog for fun if you want! She is recently married and grew up showing cattle. Her and her husband raise Herefords in Iowa. It's a fun read for anyone, but especially for the ladies. Besides the cows, she's into boots, fashion and turquoise too!
I also stopped by my husband's employer to say hi and enjoyed meeting some of the people working with him. It was a really proud moment to hear how much they love him and appreciate what he has been doing. He willing stayed home and ran the daddy daycare for our kids while I spent the 5 days with some girlfriends! What a guy, right?!?! Reason #1001 why I love him!
I also made it a point to stop by some of the show strings that I have admired and tell them there is someone out there admiring what they are doing. I think a lot of times we don't share our gratitude for others enough and I'm trying to do that more. Remember when I talked about Jan Ward showing that bull and hugging her husband?? I saw Jan Ward in the Hereford Hospitality area in the Yards, which by the way, was great! I told her what I told you all in that blog post. Her husband Ned, has MS and although she was thrilled with the win, she wished that it could have been him showing Hometown, not her. We both stood there with tears in our eyes (man, these cattle make me cry a lot) as I told her how much I admired what they were doing with their program and the partnership she has with her husband and daughter. I'm not for certain but I got the feeling that she doesn't hear that every day. And not because she isn't worthy of the compliment but sometimes we have a hard time conveying those thoughts. I think it was only about 10 AM or so when I ran into her and I can honestly say that by 10 AM, my day was complete!
The trade show sucked a few bucks out of me as I picked up a few things for the kids and my main squeeze. I also fulfilled my mission impossible to find ANOTHER pair of boots! All I will say is mission accomplished! My aunt has been wanting to gift me a turquoise ring for a milestone birthday and I have been on a tireless search for the right ring for the better part of almost two years. Denver did not disappoint and I found one I absolutely LOVE! Thanks again, Auntie Rube!
My entourage and I also did a little bit of site-seeing as we checked out nearby Golden, CO and did a little exploring in the Denver nightlife. There is the distinct possibility we may have been close to having too much fun! My travel companions were awesome! Seriously, the best. We ate well. We laughed A LOT and celebrated life!
It was so great to meet you, and I could tell you and your friends were having a blast. I agree that we probably all could do a better job of telling the people that we admire that they do a good job! Can't wait to read rest of your posts! You are definitely a blogger now.
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It was great to meet you too! :)
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