"Do you have questions?" That's a dangerous thing to ask a group of farmers.  Let me clarify: It may not be dangerous for the questioner. It may not be dangerous for the presenter. But it definitely is dangerous for an amateur tour guide trying to keep a group on schedule. On Monday, April 8, Kansas Master Farm Families from across the state came to Stafford County for a Discover Kansas event. Each year, our group travels to different counties in the state to see what each has to offer. This year, I organized a tour of Stafford County. For a place that many people consider "flyover cou ..read more

The sun set last month for the final time on what we always called the Palmer barn. During our days of active farming, we loaded cattle and bulls through the rickety old barn.  After we retired, Randy's sister sold the property to the Millers, who took over our farm ground and cow-calf herd.  Tye texted Randy the morning they set the barn on fire. But Randy was out of town at a co-op meeting, so we just saw the aftermath later that day. In truth, we couldn't believe that the Kansas wind hadn't already brought the old gal to her knees. Though the barn hadn't been in good shape for y ..read more

Moose Munch popcorn is a Harry & David trademark. Their signature popcorn is one of their most popular treats for Christmas. They call it "premium popcorn," and it definitely has a "premium" price tag. So when I saw a recipe for a homemade version, I decided to try it.  As a teenager, I loved to make caramel popcorn. The caramel base for this recipe is similar to the caramel corn recipe I've used for years. This version has nuts and some chocolate drizzled over the completed snack. Chocolate is sure to make anything premium, right?  I first tried it for our Super Bowl watch par ..read more

We were in the Nora Larabee Memorial Library in Stafford as the sun was setting. As always, the light streaming through the stained glass window cast beautiful, warm color into the library.  Stained glass window at the Nora Larabee Memorial Library in Stafford   We were there to celebrate a $100,000 2024 Heritage Trust Fund Grant from the Kansas State Historical Preservation Office. This is on the heels of a $90,000 Heritage Trust Fund grant that was the genesis for a renaissance of refurbishing and restoration at Stafford's library which began in 2022. Later, as I again loo ..read more

  Maybe it's a face only a mother could love. But that face - and, in reality, the whole body - certainly peaked the curiosity of long-time beef cattle producers. A hairless baby calf was born to a mama in the local maternity ward. Randy and I have been around cattle our entire lives, and it's a first for us. My dad - who will be 90 in April - hasn't ever seen one. Other long-time beef producers were similarly flummoxed.  However, in some ways, it reminded us of the 6-legged calf we had several years ago. (See that blog post HERE.)  File photo from our cattle herd in 2018 ..read more

I'm late to the party. That's not much of a surprise because I'm not much of a party animal anyway. And, I don't need a special month to celebrate libraries. Every day, as I open up a book to read, I'm thankful for the way libraries have enriched my entire life. But February IS Library Lover's Month, so maybe that's a good enough excuse for another book review blog post. (me and Lisa in November 1959. Lisa always says I taught her to read. She was a year behind me in school, but she sat right beside me as I learned to read. By the time she was in first grade, she was an old pro.) Y ..read more

Last Wednesday morning - Valentine's Day - I worked on a future blog post. It combined sunset photos and a few light-on-ice photos from Quivira National Wildlife Refuge that hadn't yet made it into the blog or my Facebook page. On that Ash Wednesday, the blog post also had a tie-in to the transfiguration of Jesus, which was the Scripture and theme for Pastor Benjamin's sermon the previous week.  I was happy with it and thought it was a fitting beginning to the season of Lent in the Christian year. I hadn't written a devotional-type blog for awhile, and as I went upstairs to work on dinn ..read more

With Taylor Swift's sudden interest in "football," security at certain football stadiums has had a corresponding uptick. A whole new breed of paparazzi is more interested in what's happening in a stadium suite than the action happening between the goal lines.  Tye and Todd have to deal with their own influx of paparazzi these days. So far, security has not increased, and we are allowed to view and photograph the Class of 2024 with no impediments - as long as we shut the gates.  While we aren't doing the day-to-day cattle chores any longer, we still own our mama cows. Tye and his dad ..read more

  Back in November, I introduced you to the newest residents of The County Line. So, I figured it was time for an update.  Will and Avery have made themselves at home, and they have been growing like proverbial weeds. My Facebook feed reminds me every so often of how quickly time marches on. Kinley's 12th birthday has come and gone, but my Facebook memory feed still offers glimpses of her first few weeks of life. It's hard to believe - whether we're talking human sisters or cat brothers.    Before anyone thinks we are abusing the cats based on photos I took from their igl ..read more

From a trip in 2020 It took 14 years for Mount Rushmore to be translated from idea to stone. Brooklyn Bridge construction took 14 years before it spanned the river, connecting New York and Brooklyn. But we don't typically make a big deal about a 14th anniversary. And while 14 isn't a magic multiple of 5 - the hallmark of anniversary celebrations - I still want to mark this day as the 14th year since I first pressed "publish" on my inaugural Kim's County Line blog post. As I've said before, I began blogging for that reason every mother hates hearing: Other people were doing it. In my c ..read more