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The Natural Horseman, Steve Stevens
The last month has been interesting. My Dad came out for a surprise visit and to help out on the ranch, keeping me in line. We watched the Olympics and preseason football.
While he was here, Amanda found out her grandfather passed. Amanda went to the funeral in Scottsdale, A.Z., and took the kids with her.
I had to stay back to care for the numerous horses, dogs and cats. We have chosen a beautiful path in life. Our goals are to help horses and people and to raise our children with good moral values and provide for them.
When choosing this lifestyle, you give up a lot of things that people take for granted. The hours can be crazy. You might have to stay up with a horse all night long colicing, the weather can be burning hot, freezing cold, or everything in between and livestock still has to be watched and cared for.
You can’t always leave at a moment’s notice for a great party, vacation or even your wife’s Grandfather’s funeral.
We chose this life because we had a dream to wake up in the morning and watch the sun rise over our own horses. We wanted our children to appreciate a hard day’s work and to have a life with animals. We wanted to know that whatever money we earned, we worked hard for.
As we spend twenty-four hours a day with many horses, and we see how they interact amongst each other. We get to appreciate their personalities and their qualities.
My dogs don’t have to be walked on a leash and we can see the stars at night.
While Amanda was gone, the house was quiet, eerily quiet, uncomfortably so. I thought it would be a nice break, but the lacking sounds of kids running, screaming and crying made life feel empty.
I saw some beautiful sunsets and storm clouds roll in and out over a few days. But that can all feel bland without your family to share it with.
I got a lot accomplished, but towards the end of the week we got a lot of rain.
So Amanda and the kids came back to mud.
For us, because we are so far from the cities we were raised in, I think it took Amanda a while to regroup, as it had been a long time since she had been to where she grew up.
For the first time, she was able to take our children to places that she had experienced as a child.
I haven’t been home to southern California in at least three years. It is a funny feeling when your home you once had isn’t your home anymore. When you are raising your children somewhere other than where your family and friends are, it can be an unusual feeling.
But this was all a part of our master plan. We gave up what gave us comfort, to strike out on our own. What once was just a little adventure has become so much more.
Our dedication to horses and people went from a potential occupation to a lifestyle.
I’m not here saying it is all peaches and cream.
Making a living outdoors in Texas can be challenging for the toughest of people—heat, rain, ice, wind, hail, lightning, tornadoes and floods.
But we keep moving forward because of the blue sky, watching our horses be able to run more than ten feet for feed time, the Texan spirit, and people, and, yes, most of all the strong Texas people who have become our friends, partners, and mentors.
No one ever said this life would be easy, but no one also ever stopped us from chasing rainbows.
Farm & Ranch
Meanwhile Back At The Ranch
By: Rayford Pullen
Watching our pastures over the years, I have noticed our forages quit growing when nighttime temperatures begin hitting that 45-degree mark, and in North Texas, that will usually be around October 20.
While growth stops, our forages will still be high quality which allows our momma cows to gain weight for another 40 days or so.
Getting these cows in better condition is key to getting them through the winter and breeding after they calve.
Read more in the October issue of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available online and in print. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive NTFR in your inbox each week.
Country Lifestyles
Emma Harvey- Miss USA Agriculture
Watauga, Texas, a suburb of Fort Worth, is known for its rich history as a railroad stop, but over the course of the last year, one teen girl has put it on the map for agriculture as well. Emma Harvey has lived in Tarrant County her entire life. Despite being highly involved in her local 4-H chapter, she still felt there was more she could do. In the spring of 2023, she stepped up to the plate to take over the title of Tarrant County Teen Miss Agriculture USA.
“It all started when I put in an application for the teen title here in Tarrant County,” explained Harvey.
The Miss Agriculture USA program is a national non-profit, age-inclusive pageant program that offers both competition and non-competition titles to women dedicated to the promotion of agriculture.
Read more in the October issue of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available online and in print. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive NTFR in your inbox each week.
Photo by Hannah Claxton.
HOME
Meanwhile Back At The Ranch
By: Rayford Pullen
Watching our pastures over the years, I have noticed our forages normally quit growing when nighttime temperatures begin hitting that 45-degree mark, and in North Texas, that will usually be around October 20.
While growth stops, our forages will still be high quality which allows our momma cows to gain weight for another 40 days or so.
Getting these cows in better condition is key to getting them through the winter and breeding after they calve.
To read more, check out the October issue of the NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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