Summertime blues?
Some books to help beat it!
Hi Dear Reader,
How are you doing this week? Did you do anything fun? Read any good books?
On the radio show I listen to in the mornings, the DJs were discussing how July 15th is the middle of summer. Now, I didn’t go and fact check them and sometimes they are wrong. But the summer is slipping away so fast. With two little kids and a business in full swing, we don’t have any big vacation plans. Hubby and I like to spend summer enjoying the area we live. Do you have any vacation plans?
Summer always brings about interesting cases and stories. I’m not sure if it is the heat or the fact that everyone is outside with their animals. The story I have for you today is about a summer a decade ago in rural Missouri. Hubby and I owned a veterinary practice there that only worked on cows and horses. This story1 is about a cow in need and a very dedicated husband.
One Saturday afternoon, I received a call from a client that she noticed that her cow was calving.
“If you have time, would you please come to help,” she asked.
“Of course,” I said. ‘“Absolutely, and I’ll be there in 15 minutes.”
I changed into my scrubs and coveralls. (Calving get messy and it was a Saturday.) Hubby and I get in the truck and head to her place.
We arrive to the farm and a cookout is in full swing. There’s a grill going, several coolers of beer, and tables of food. Not to mention people. It seemed like all of our neighbors and her relatives were there. She actually lived around the country block from us. Nothing like performing to an audience. So, we head out around the barn to where this cow is trying to have her baby.
It was a wet summer and there was a lot of mud. A lot of mud might be an understatement. The laboring cow was plowing through mud up to her belly. Mud and manure covered everything. The woman pulled on her rubber boots, tucked in her nice pair of jeans, and was chasing the cow in the mud. The cow did not want help and she sure did not want to walk into the chute we had set up.
The woman’s husband, who wasn’t a rancher, jumped into the pen with his white tennis shoes and khakis shorts. He sloshed through the mud to help his wife corral the cow toward the chute. His shoes weren’t white anymore.
He was puffing and covered from head to toe when they finally got the cow up to the alleyway. The cow walked calmly into the chute.
I gave her an epidural to lessen her contractions and helped her deliver her babies. She had twins and they were all tangled up. Once I got them untangled, they popped out. Two healthy baby boys.
Once the cow and calves were moved to a small, grassy pasture, Hubby and I were invited to stay for the cookout. I don’t remember what we had for food, but everyone teased the woman’s husband about his ruined shoes!
Writing/Reading News
I have two things to share with you. One is a low spice Christmas in July romance sale. My First Kisment Christmas is part of it.
The other is a giveaway of wedding themed stories.
That’s all I have for today. I will be sending out a special email on Tuesday. My Unexpected Hero is in a mega romance giveaway. There are over 1,000 authors participating with tons of free books. Look for that email on Tuesday!
Hugs,
Allie
Story was originally posted as The Best Part of Summer!