30 Things I learned in my 20's

Life after college is rougher than anything I ever imagined. Some days I feel like I'm 24 going on 40. I got this idea off another blog and decided to spin it to real things I've learned. 

1. Wine > vodka. Probably because I'm allergic to vodka. Im a real sucker for tequila or whiskey though. 

2. Disney movies will never get old. Seriously they make you feel like a kid. Finding Nemo never gets old. 

3. Tell your family you love them as much as possible. You never know when shit will happen. My dad was in the hospital for 4 months where I fell apart and couldnt tell him this enough.  

4. Drinking & driving is not worth it. Neither is texting. Still need to work on these more. 

5. Mexican hole-in-the-wall restaurants have the best margaritas. Miss el' presidente so so much! 

6. You’ll fail a couple of times. Its a part of growing up. 

7. If you need help with money, don’t continue to struggle. I ended up having to take out a loan 3rd year in college. Don't max out credit cards or ruin your credit score. 

8. Not everyone is going to like you. Live with it. 

9. You can never have too many shoes. Life is too short. Just buy them! 

10. Stand up for your beliefs. 

11. Sometimes you just need to cry. Necessary 

12. Traveling is the best money you can spend. Biggest regret, not traveling right after college. I wished I would have traveled and saw the west before I started working. Now I cant because I cant get time off. 

13. Exercise. Your health is everything.

14. Wait to get a puppy, they’re a lot of work. Going through this one right now 

15. Wait to have kids. Yes.... muchly. 

16. Use sunscreen. Fried suntans are no fun 

17. Moisturize!

18. Chamomile tea. Its a lifesaver. 

19. Get in the best shape of your life — working on this. 

20. LIVE OFF COFFEE. and Redbull 

21. Set goals and actually try to reach them. Have soo soo many goals right now. 

22. Smile more.

23. Never lose touch with your siblings and cousins.

24. Don’t forget to call dad.

25. Being single isn’t the worst thing in the world. I'll admit it sucks, but Id rather be happy not having an asshole than having one. 

26. Set your alarm, and actually get up. Lifes too short to sleep in. 

27. The real world can be really cold.

28. God’s timing is perfect.

29. Remember to take pictures. Snapshots in time 

30. You’re only in your 20s for 10 years. Live em up. 

Still reducing

Still trying to get down to half a dozen Mini Lops. I feel like it might take a while just because I am still so addicted and indebted to this hobby. I have however, have made it to 10 after the Turlock show.

Zachary, White Chocolate Mocha & SNV2 for bucks
Michelle, Reba, Reflection, Blizzard, Kallie, RP1 and Syrah for does

Michelle had 6 yesterday, and Reba had 7. Blizzard is due sometime soon as well.

Our next show is the Pear Blossom show end of March

Looking up

My dad was finally released from the hospital on Christmas eve. It was a miracle really. Things have all been positive a few weeks later and we're climbing the tall mountain back up.

I ended up getting rid of a few more rabbits, I got a few does bred, McBride to Pond on 12/25 and Reba to Romero & Michelle to Pond on 1/5. We'll be letting go of 2 more of the chocolate juniors with this in mind.

My first rabbit show since September is this weekend. I am judging at St Helens, I haven't gone to this show since I went as a judge assist and worked with Erik Bengston. It's a great show, but so far away. It's for a great cause though, to raise money to have the ARBA convention in Portland, OR in 2015. So I'll leave friday morning for that. I am not showing any rabbits, and I dont intend to bring any for sale. But I will bring a carrier incase I find something that I want ;) I am looking for a good herd ML or a pair or trio of meat rabbits.

On a sad note, I am losing my lifelong dog Chopper, of 9 years to bone cancer. I took him to the vet last tuesday and the diagnosis was unexpected. We will be putting him down shortly after I get back from this trip. Just a rough start to 2014!

Finally some positives

post 100 days in the hospital, my dad is now ready to be transferred back up to the IRC center to do his rehab, and hopefully within the first few months of 14' he'll be looking at a prosthetic leg. Its all been a climb, a few weeks ago we were looking at the worst, but things have turned around now for the better.

Work has been keeping me afloat. Among many to-do lists on my days off. The holiday season doesn't make it any better for getting things accomplished.

We've had our first frosts. No frozen waterbottles or stock tanks. Pipes got into the ground finally and we're pretty set on other things. Right now we're focusing on pastures for next year and getting a few things done around the house via a contractor.

In the meantime I got rid of a bunch of rabbits. I am down to 10 SR/Jrs and growing out 8 babies that will eventually turn into 2 or 3. I don't plan on re-expanding until I know what is going on, and I will still have some bucks to sell next month or in January. I got rid of a few I really didn't want to, but at the same time it was necessary.

What's left?

Reba  (needs to be bred)
White Chocolate Mocha - Jr Buck
Romero - for sale after litters on ground
Ponderosa - for sale after litters on ground
Blizzard - older jr to be bred at age
Zachary
Zachary Jr - still on the fence on keeping him
McBride (needs to be bred)
Tan - hoping to find a home soon
Reflection - on a litter
8 babies from Smart Nicole and Michelle
Michelle (needs to be re-bred)

2 litters, soon to be 3.

Smart Nicole has a litter of 8. All doing well. 3 are solids, look like 2 GT steel, a ST steel. 5 brokens, chocolate chestnuts, a gt steel and I think a chocolate chin.

Michelle had her litter by Zachary, 5 healthy ones. a couple solids and brokens, most likely all chestnuts.

HM1 recieved her box today. She was also bred to Zachary.

drug out a few more nestboxes to clean since Reflection and Reba are also bred.

Where did the summer go?

Where I had left off, the fires had just started. About 3 weeks of hazardous air conditions hampered many summer activities. During the worst of it, my father was admitted to the hospital. Two surgeries, many cat scans/x rays, three blood transfusions (including 1 rejection and a blood type change), and even spending a night in critical care, he is doing much better and is ready to transfer to our neighboring hospital for the intensive physical therapy unit. Thursday will mark 2 months in this hospital and we're looking at 3-4 weeks in Medford. To make a long story short, its already well into fall, with craaazzzy weather (wet & cold so quick already!) and none of us, are prepared for whats in store. Thankfully the people at work, family and friends have got me through this stressful time in life.

I've been to 2 rabbit shows ... first was the CORBA show in Redmond, OR. I went primarily as a stress reliever and took the long way with a day in Corvallis with friends first. Nicole & Zach ended up sending me with a pair of Tans to see if I like the breed, but luckily the ML's are starting to pick back up. This next round of litters, will ultimately determine my future success with them. I feel like nothing in the barn is really worth keeping or competing with, since the shows I do get to attend are far and few between.
Second show was our local RVRF show in Grants Pass. I went solo on this show as it's primary people and folks I grew up with. I was really out of it this show though, and basically nothing notable happened. I did win a nestbox and 2 coffee mugs in the raffle - which is my best yet! I really needed the nestbox since some of mine are starting to fall apart after all of these years.

Smart Nicole started fall litters this morning with a litter of 8 chocolates by VE4. We sent VE4 down with Bob and he traded us a chocolate chestnut doe out of LHHR's Sergio which I sold him at Reno last year.

Michelle, HM1, Reflection & Reba are also bred, and only 3 does remain to get bred. 2 I dont forsee much problems with, but one in particular, Express, I've been trying to get her bred for over 6 months now. If she wasn't such a gorgeous doe, I'd probably have let her go by now.

Cullll

Culled 14 rabbits today...

What's left?

Bucks:

• Zachary
• VE4
• Romero
• Ponderosa
• Zachary Jr

Does:

• Michelle
• Reflection
• Kicker + 7 babies 
• Reba
• Express
• HM1
• Smart Nicole
• CBF1, VELN# & AF1

and an unsexed litter of 5 from Michelle & Fieldmaster

Tooooo hot.

The other day it got unbearably hot, and with all efforts Reflection lost her litter a couple days early. 9 scattered on the wire, all chocolates & lilacs. It really was devastating but she seems so much more happy to not have a litter...

Kicker kindled yesterday and did amazing! 7 all live, and atleast 2 of them are a chocolate variety. Kicker goes alll the way back to our original starter doe, so this litter is super special and it's a must to keep a few from her ;)

Improved the cull pen, it's a double pen now, so about 7 feet long, 2.5 feet wide and pretty tall. Now have 11 to cull with the 4 I added today. I'm waiting until I have several to do, really.

The weather is starting to cool down for this next week, but 100 fires still surround us, only 3 "big" ones. Ash and brown smoke fill the skies and it's hard to breathe at times. It is a 0% containment and they are letting it burn and focusing on structures/houses only. Selma, a town a few miles north of us, has been evacuated. I figured we'd have another big Biscuit Fire (2003) this year, but there is still time I suppose. Crazy.

10 years with ARBA

July 22nd, 2003 was my membership join date as a youth at age 13 :) I had a few "pet" rabbits and was begging to breed, mostly Mini Rex at the time, though I had a few Mini Lops and a Holland Lop. Never would I ever imagine that I would get involved in 4-H, ARBA royalty or even get my registrars or judges license! I can look back at these 10 years and remember all of the good memories, with my family & friends. Where will I be in another 10 years? Well, certainly ... I don't know!

Yesterday was also the 1 year of Rylee's passing away. Rylee died and left her litter of two 4-week old babies behind. One of those is Reflection, which is due in a couple of days. Kicker, Rylee's GGG-daughter, is also due. Related to Rylee we also have Stupid Lana, Smart Nicole & VELN# We're so excited to get this project back on it's feet, since Rylee is the sole reason I didn't sell out in college. Having that "one" rabbit to hold onto, is all I needed!

Summer Heat

Temps have risen to triple digits this week -- no losses. The help of proper barn placement, shade grasses and an industrial fan do most all of the work for me. I can turn the fan on before I go to work and off when I get home. 

Michelle and Avocado both had their litters -- 5 each. Avocado has 2 REWs, 2 seal/sables and a chestnut. Michelle has a chestnuts and blacks like her 1st litter. 

I bred Kicker and Reflection to a new buck I picked up from Deb (bred by Nicole). He's a chocolate chestnut. I also got a Bkn Chocolate JR buck from her sired by Jones's Mahler. I got a Lilac GT Steel Jr Doe from LHHR's Stupid Lana (GC lilac steel 8 legs) that I gave to Nicole and also sired by Jones's Mahler. 
I'm getting Stupid Lana and one of her babies sired by McNay's Neo (bkn lilac steel) in a couple of weeks. Needless to say I got my chocolate/lilac program back on its feet. Thanks to Yvette for making this happen! 

Got a cull pen started 6 jr bucks from Cherry Bomb & Sweet Potato. Holding one of SP's babies back, a bkn chin jr buck. He looks nice so far, so we'll give him the benefit of the doubt. SP, Cherry Bomb, and a chin jr doe from a March litter are headed to CA soon as well. So we'll see a few holes opening up soon. 

Got a broken bag pallet from work yesterday. It contained 10 bags of pellet bedding, a bag of rice bran, 2 bags of poultry food, 3/4 bag of cat litter and some random gate latches/nuts/bolts all for $10. The pellet bedding will come in handy for more litters, carriers & trays. 

Work has been good, the 40 hours ended the start of this week when our company attempted to abide to ObamaCare. We discovered in 3 short days this will never work out, and with the extension, I'm hoping to have my hours back soon. So we'll see what happens! I'm aiming to make it to 3 or 4 shows this fall.