SPRINGTIME MEMORIES ON THE FAMILY FARM

by

Laurean Brooks

As a child growing up in the country, I have many fond memories of the days my siblings and I spent exploring the woods and wading streams. I especially have sweet remembrances of the pets we made out of farm animals. 

When I was seven, I doted on a neighbor's half-grown Guernsey calf and named her Dusty, while my sister made a pet out of their Holstein bull she called Cloud.

In tears, we soon left Dusty and Cloud behind when Daddy bought a farm a few miles down the road. It was there our uncle brought us a half-dozen bantam chicks. I claimed a little red hen, Sandy, which I taught to jump on my shoulder to eat corn from my hand.

Besides two dogs of questionable heritage, we soon had a cow, a pony, chickens, and a pair of goats. My older brother bought two pigs to add to the mix. He named them, Porky and Ham. With each spring, came bursts of new life. While the fruit trees blossomed and the locust trees gave off their sweet fragrance, baby chicks pecked out of their shells to venture out into a new world protected by their clucking mother.

One spring while the baby chicks hopped around their Mama, a new addition to our farm animals made his appearance. “March” was the first goat born on our farm, and by far the cutest little creature I had ever seen. The little white goat and I immediately bonded. I claimed March as my own and named him for the month in which he arrived.

A fallen Catalpa tree in the barnyard became the perfect prop for us to compete for “King Of The Log.” I couldn't wait to come in from school to play our game. March and I spent countless hours winning and losing the crown.

I would climb up on the log and yell, “I'm the new king of the log!” My coronation lasted about five seconds before March butted me off with his surprisingly hard noggin. Before I could pick myself up, he sprang up on top of the log to announce himself as the victor of the coveted title. After a playful struggle, I regained the title. But only for a moment. March nudged me off the log again. So, the game continued.

Those childhood days have drifted farther from me with each subsequent sunrise and sunset, but I would be fibbing if I said I didn't yearn for those simpler times and special moments on the farm. Rural living is a busy life and the chores are never-ending, but greater are the rewards.

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If you enjoy heartwarming romance with a bit of mystery, check out  my ebook,

OVER THE COALS. 

Jill doesn't know how to take Rob. One minute he's boisterous and outgoing,, the next minute, he's close-mouthed. When she asks him about his childhood, he starts avoiding her.

Rob has a secret. What is he hiding? Will Jill's uncovering of the truth destroy their budding relationship?

AMAZON BUY LINK:

https://www.amazon.com/Over-Coals-Laurean-Brooks-ebook/dp/B075H3WF92/ref=pd_rhf_dp_p_img_5?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=TMGZDE402F9KWMGXVXJ6

4-Legged Characters--Always Unpredictable #romance #western #pets

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Critters Liven Up the Place!

This is my latest release, Don't Go Snaring My Heart. If you get past the handsome hero and beautiful heroine, you'll see a chicken in the lower right corner. Yes, a chicken. It's not Jethro the Killer Rooster--actually one of his harem wandered onto the cover. Don't worry, Jethro's on the alert and he won't let anything happen to her.

Then there's a goat named Lady Jane Grey. She adores her mistress Betsy so when Dex, the hero, arrives on scene (upside down), Lady JG gives him a little butt, er, love pat, just to let him know she's got Betsy's back.

Even when the deputy comes out to help Dex save the day, guess who's riding with him? Yep, Deputy Duke from Much Ado About Miners.  So besides a lawdog cat and a killer rooster and his harem, there are more goats, including kids who bounce all over the place, and canine-type dogs, too. And that's just in a single read. So my question is this, do you enjoy animals in the stories you read?

People have asked me why animals horn their way into most of my books. I'm not sure. I suspect it's because I grew up on a farm and animals are part of farm life. I had a cow named Cleopatra and a dog named Pinkie. Actually, I had dozens of animals, including an evil Shetland Pony named Smokey and an actual real horse, Penelope.  I'm a country girl, so in my view, animals have their place in our world and that's just the way of it.

Then there's the two-legged critters.  Oh, my.  The man in the original cover didn't suit us so Livia Reasoner (cover designer) swapped him out for my nephew, who's also on Much Ado About Mustangs.  Same costume, even.  But we use the same cover models all the time, so I'm not concerned about that.  

And, it's not a critter, but check out that background photo by Chelle Gluch.  Awesome!  Because guess what?  It's the exact location of Betsy's claim and home.  Exact.  How many times has that ever happened?

About Don't Go Snaring My Heart

Alone in the high-mountain desert, self-sufficient Betsy Lynch is determined to eke out a living selling goat cheese while she fulfills her father’s dream to find a rich silver lode. Claim jumpers threaten to take everything she holds dear, so Betsy uses a bullwhip, her wiles, traps, goats, and an attack rooster to defend her land.

Rancher Dex Madsen needs to feed his hungry crew. He tracks a herd of pronghorn and shoots one, then steps into Betsy's snare and is jerked upside down. The goats and rooster attack before Betsy cuts him down, and soon he's neck deep in her fight to protect the claim. But can he get past that killer chicken to claim her heart?

Return to southwest Idaho in the 1880s in Jacquie Rogers' acclaimed Hearts of Owyhee series.

Hearts of Owyhee

Much Ado About Madams

Much Ado About Marshals

Much Ado About Miners

Much Ado About Mavericks

Much Ado About Mustangs