Many of my book readers may not realize we’ve raised American buffalo since 1999. Since 1999 to last year, my blog was about our bison herd and our farm attractions – with only a little information about my books.

Our bison farm developed into a big tourist attraction over the years to the point it was more work involved that we (and the herd) wanted to deal with, so we drastically changed directions over a year ago to a simpler life without tourists. (And that’s why I now have time to devote to my writing again…)

 I get google alerts on my name to track my author marketing, and last night, low and behold, there as a five minute video from about six years ago when America’s Heartland did a TV segment on me and our tourist attraction.  Because of the internet, that video will live on forever.

I watched it again, (and thinking about the filming behind it which was a hoot when the camera man realized how fast a buffalo could move) and so glad that now we enjoy quiet time with the buffalo instead.

I took this picture of Darcy and her little 10-month old bull calf yesterday in the pasture. (It’s he just a cutie with his growing horns?) Life is much calmer now for both us and them compared to the video of my past. Sorry tourists, but I’ll only share my buffalo by photos now…

One of the major questions I’m trying to answer for the Kansas Quilter series, is when Kizzie and her family were living in the Oklahoma Territory.

Great Uncle Ralph’s version is that three of the Pieratt brothers decided to go on the Oklahoma Land Rush and stayed down there for a while before moving back to Kansas. But of course, I’m trying to decide which one of the territory openings, and was it during for land rush, or later for a land lottery.

Kizzie had her first four children in the first five years of their marriage, between 1894 and 1899. Then it was another five years before, Mildred, her fifth child was born on March 11, 1904—107 years ago today.  No other children were born until daughter Birdine in 1909, when the family was already back in Kansas. (I haven’t had much luck finding school records in either place, but I’m guessing Kizzie’s family was there between 1903 and 1907.)

Another fun thing to find is a few photos when Mildred was a baby. (She is in Ira’s arms on the right side of the photo.) I can identify everyone. Some we know lived in Oklahoma and some in Kansas, so apparently the Kansas relation came down for a visit.

If only photos can talk— or if this was a video instead. I’d love to hear the conversations of the parents getting all those boys sitting still long enough for a photo on that porch.

Anyway, I’m having fun looking a photos and thinking of great aunt Mildred today on her birthday.

Finally getting some good sunny weather today after two days of clouds and rain. Now it feels like spring in on its way. Gray Cat is enjoying the sun too- moving to a new spot every time the sun changes its angle coming through the window.

Today’s project is setting up a Goodreads account to showcase my books and to list some other authors that I have read. (And of course it connects up to Facebook too.) I also plan to finish submitting my ebooks to Kobobooks and check in with the marketing on other site too.

Marketing takes more time than writing a book in the first place- but is needed so readers can find and enjoy my books. (I’d appreciate it if you’d pass on my blog along with links to my books to your friends too.)

I wonder what my great grandmother Kizzie had planned for today in 1911? I’m sure she had a standard routine with feeding her large family and taking care of her farm. But I hope she had a little time to enjoy reading today too.

I actually started my Kansas Quilter book series back in 2002, but finally shelved it in 2005 when agri-tourism took over our Bison Farm.  I didn’t have the dedicated blocks of time to work on it anymore.

Now that we’ve retired from our farm business, I’m going back over research notes and already written chapters to pick up the series again.

And I’m also looking for information that wasn’t available before online. Like census records. Instead of going to a physical place to actually see the written pages, I can put in the name, state, choose the year of the census I want —and voila— the actual page pops up on the screen in its original handwritten form. It so cool to see who was in the family at the time, and it even lists anyone that is working for them too.

Pieratt family- 1900 Kansas census

Of course some information is easy to find, and other questions I have will never be answered. I guess that’s where the fiction part of my writing fills in the gaps.

I’m also working on the list of family members that will be my main characters, their conflicts, plot, etc. Kizzie will be the “heroine” of sorts, telling the early history of her part of the Kansas prairie along with her family’s dreams. And quilts and quilting will be primary theme for this Kansas pioneer.

I’m sure every quilt Kizzie made had a story behind it…and I want to share it with you, my readers.

“For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

As I celebrate my birthday today, I think back to past ones. One of the earliest ones I remember is my 7^th birthday when I marked seven days off the calendar, and it was the same number as years I was old.

I’ve had quiet birthdays with my family (of course with chocolate cake and ice cream) and a few memorable vacations on my special day with my husband.

Today’s quote I received by email reminded me that every day and minute, not just on my birthday, is special and I plan to celebrate them all this year!

We need to enjoy life while we can…

“A room without books is like a body without a soul.” ― Marcus Tullius Cicero

Gray Cat with Swedish Books

Each morning I look forward to the daily quote I automatically get from www.realsimple.com. Many times it doesn’t pertain to me or my life, but other times it “hits the spot” and makes my day.

Of course one of the reasons I like today’s quote is because I write books, but it is so true when you think of your home and where books are either stacked on shelves because you have read them, or plan to read them in the future.  Or you have a book by your bed or recliner that you pick up to read whenever you get a chance.

Looking around my office I have a collection of very old Swedish books that I’ve used for research when working on immigrant pioneer stories. It makes me wonder- who bought, read, and cherished them in the past century? How much did they cost? Were they a gift for a special occasion? What pioneer woman treasured this book in her homestead dugout?

I have an Engelsk-Svensk Ordbok (English-Swedish Dictionary) that was published in Stockholm in 1899. It measures 6”  x 9” (with a three inch spine)… and weighs four pounds! Who packed this important book with them to use when they arrived in America?

And then I think of my Kindle. It’s so handy and holds so many, many books…but it will never have the “soul” of these antique books on my shelf…