It has begun...

I really like the holiday season. It is full of tradition, family, and friends. There are beautiful decorations, delicious foods, and presents. I love Christmas music. It brings back memories and brings people together. There is one song that is played during this time of year, that I have never understood. My Favorite Things. Yes, the classic from....not White Christmas or Miracle on 34th Street, but The Sound of Music. How, how is this a Christmas song??? It is everywhere, in restaurants, on the radio, in stores. It drives me crazy. This morning Tony Bennett was singing it on the Today show (the inspiration for this post). Here are the lyrics for those of you not familiar with the song. Am I missing something? Is it the packages tied in string? Or maybe the snowflakes and sleigh bells? I know, it is When the Dog Bites!!! That makes me feel like Christmas just thinking about it.


Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings

These are a few of my favorite things

Cream colored ponies and crisp apple streudels
Doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles
Wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings
These are a few of my favorite things

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes
Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes
Silver white winters that melt into springs
These are a few of my favorite things

When the dog bites
When the bee stings
When I'm feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad

Bison

Saturday several of our students organized an outing to a 'buffalo' ranch about 30 minutes outside of town. I learned more than I ever wanted to know about buffalo including theories about how they got to America-ice melts. It was intriguing and educational for sure. I did learn that what we have here in the states are technically called bison, but people including all sorts of associations call them buffalo. Then we got to jump on a trailer for a hay ride to the land where the buffalo roam (didn't see any deer or antelope). I was convinced that these furry creatures would be about the height of an elephant. Not sure why, I just thought they were going to be massive. Apparently, that really depends on their age and if they are a cow (female) or a bull (male). The bulls are big, I mean significantly bigger, up to 2000 pounds big, not as big as an elephant. As we came into the field the bison came toward the tractor/trailer. It was amazing to see these strange looking animals coming toward us all lined up. It made me feel like an early settler in covered wagon seeing these giant creatures coming toward me-it was a bit scary. Did you know that there are more deaths by bison than bears at Yellowstone? The bison came to the trailer and were wanting some snacks. We fed them grass pellets. For some we just dropped them on the ground, but the more aggressive and the big bull wanted them straight on the tongue. He would stick his tongue out, curl it and take a pellet. Bison rely mostly on their sense of smell because their eyes are on the sides of their head. It was a fun outing on a beautiful day. The man that owns the ranch gives tours for free and seems to really enjoy his job. He also sells buffalo meat in different cuts and sizes. Here are just some of the pictures from Saturday's adventure.