SALE OPENS SUNDAY, AUGUST 25!!!

For those of you that have already registered and are chomping at the bit to do some online bidding you will be happy to know that you can begin on tomorrow, Sunday August 25! We are so excited and looking forward to seeing all of you or hearing from you. We have had a lot of traffic so far and there is a lot of excitement about the calves this year. There have been a lot of comments about how deep the quality runs in this group. The calves have been doing great and although we are having a heat wave at the moment, everyone of the calves seems pretty comfortable. The crew has been up early in the mornings to get calves rinsed before it gets too hot. The fridge is stocked with cold water and the staff is ready to answer any questions you might have. I hope to see you all really soon!!!

2013 SULLIVAN RANCH CLUB CALF PARADISE SALE

There are lots of incredible new things going on at Club Calf Paradise this year. I hope you folks are prepared. This year Dan Sullivan/Sullivan Ranch will be my SOLE consignor. I am excited to have the opportunity to represent Dan's calves at my facility in the heart of the Club Calf universe. If you are new to the show cattle industry you will soon learn that the Sullivan name and cattle set the standard nationwide. These cattle are the result of generations of outstanding breeding choices from the world's finest genetics. It is not mere coincidence that the winners circles at almost any county fair or national show have cattle linked to Sullivan Ranch. Over the next several weeks the fine crew of calf fitters will be working diligently to get the sale offering ready for presentation during the Labor Day Sale. We will be opening the gates on or around August 22 and the Bunkhouse will be abuzz with activity. All of the calves are weaned this year as normal but they will not be halter broke. With the intensive handling that they will be receiving until sale time they will most likely be very quiet and calm. All calves will be screened for disposition so if you are looking for something specific please talk to any of us. I am a Mom so I like to make sure my less experienced customers get a calf that is a good "fit"! The calves are arriving today and the first report from Nick Anderson, my Assistant Manager, is that the steers are the best set he has seen! QUOTE: "SOME OF THE BEST STEERS WE HAVE EVER HAD HERE BY FAR! THERE ARE BIG BIG TIME SHOW STEERS IN HERE!" I am taking a moment to blog after hanging sale flyers at the Iowa State Fair today. I can hardly stand waiting to see the calves. These are the top pick from all of the Sullivan Ranch E.T. calves. There will be something for everyone...Herefords, Chars, composites, ...the list goes on and on. And the quality will be second to none. You seriously won't want to miss this offering! I hope to see you all soon!!! Juli

Sexy DOESN'T just happen!

Lot 21: 1/2 Blood Simmental sired by Indian Outlaw consigned by Bates Family.

Here is an offering on our Labor Day sale that will knock your socks off if you are looking for power, style and flash! She is just too sexy for her own good. Honestly, this is easily the most powerful set of calves top to bottom that I have ever had to offer on our Club Calf Paradise sale. If you can't find a steer or heifer here to meet your needs then you need to start showing bunnies! We hope that everyone has taken note of the new sale dates this year. We are kicking off our sale in the West Central Iowa Club Calf Producer group on Friday, August 31 and the final bid off will be on Sunday, September 16 at 6:00 PM CDT. For those of you that are new to our sale, Club Calf Paradise does ALL of the final bidding online. It is a great way to make things more convenient for our buyers. If you have any questions please feel free to call anytime! Also, if you haven't made plans to come to West Central Iowa for the sales you had better get your ducks in a row! Plan to come over Labor Day and look around the area at our members top set of calves. THIS IS WHERE THE CHAMPIONS come from folks! The group will be hosting a buyer social on Saturday, September 1 in the evening. Scott Shelby (hot new Country music star) will be doing a LIVE performance that night. We will also be serving burgers and beverages while you talk with area producers and relax. This will all be held at Club Calf Paradise on the west edge of Denison close to Motels. We hope to see all your smiling faces! There is a calf just waiting to meet you!!!

The Final Countdown

It is literally just weeks before we kick off the annual Club Calf Paradise Labor Day Sale. One of the longest stretches of hot dry weather in recent history have made this summer an incredible challenge for all involved but the work goes on despite the setbacks. With the wonderful help from my summer livestock operations manager, Nick Anderson as well as the grounds keeping support of my beloved father-in-law, Denzil, we have managed to Pull things together and put together a super set of calves. Pictures and video will be up and ready to view by our kick off on Labor Day weekend. My wonderful friend Mark Sneed, who has overcome some pretty huge obstacles in his own life this summer, will once again be taking all of our pictures and video for the sale. I am thrilled to have him with us again. If anyone is around on the 22nd or 23rd we would love to have you join us for picture days! If you havent heard the rumors yet you should know that Scott Shelby will be performing in concert for the West Central Iowa Club Calf Producers on Saturday evening, September 1. There will be food, refreshments and MUCH fun and all centrally located at our farm on the edge of Denison. This is going to be one great night of entertainment. Scott is a great upcoming Country music talent and we are honored to have him perform at Club Calf Paradise. We"ll have a Giant tent just in case it rains...HA! So if you haven't solidified your plans to attend the West Central Iowa Club Calf Sales you had better get in gear! This is where its happening this Labor Day! Hope to see all of your familiar faces!

It's all about percepetion

Everything that we do on a daily basis is affected by perception whether it's how someone else perceives it or how we perceive it personally. My perception of many things has changed of late but most particularly, my perception of our eating habits and what we eat has tracked in an entirely new direction. I don't chastise my friends or relatives that have taken the "healthy" road of soy and tofu or VEGAN but I have to say that I honestly just never understood why in the world you would give up so many incredible foods to eat something that pretty much tasted worse than dried out cardboard. For numerous reasons I have been forced to drastically alter my lifestyle and eating habits. All of the things that I took for granted in my fridge or at the grocery store...or Dairy Queen have pretty much been eliminated. Absolutely forbidden are the all-time greats like breads, cookies, mayo, salad dressing, BBQ sauce, any vinegar products or fermented foods, wine/beer/alcohol, cheeses, smoked/dried/pickled/cured/processed meats, sugar, citrus fruits and anything in a can are just a few things that are not allowed to pass my lips. Also eliminated are most spices unless they are completely fresh. What is left in my diet is the simplest form of food with no spice, sauce, or added anything...not even butter. Thank god for George Foreman!!! At first I thought that I would starve...or would rather starve! I lost a few pounds before figured out the new rotational menu but I have to say that the fresh whole foods I am consuming taste INCREDIBLE now. I bought some unsalted almonds the other day, normally would have hated them, and they were like caviar! I had fresh turkey seasoned with lemongrass...DELICIOUS! After a little over a week on this new eating regime I honestly can't believe on incredible everything tastes. I suppose if I were stranded on a deserted island and somebody dropped a bag of dog chow I would think that tasted like something prepared by Guy Fierri as well. My point is that we are so accustomed to dressing up our food with sauces, spices and various other additives and adornments that we have lost the ability to really taste the basic food that we are eating. My perception of what foods taste like has entirely changed. Oh, don't get me wrong. When this diet is over I am going to spend a night in Omaha eating the most incredible sauce-covered, smoked, processed mountain of carbs that I can sink my teeth into! Then I will wash it down with the cheapest bottle of wine that they serve!!! But when it is all said and done I have to admit that I have a great new respect for the people that choose to take the better road of health. I hold my greasy ketchup covered rare burger up to you!!!

LESS IS MORE

If anyone is under the delusion that having a smaller herd is less work you need to go smack your head against a wall or squeeze your...hand...in a vice grip! The second round of recip cows kicked it into high gear over the weekend. The almost two weeks of blissful sleep came to a screeching halt. We were up most of the night Friday when a recip calved out in the 40 mph wind. She was in a nicely bedded yard but it was like the antarctic. I rousted Bradley out of bed and we took turns trying to get the calf into the barn while juggling it through the frozen cow ruts and dodging Broomhilda (the cow).

Saturday went pretty well but we took a two and a half hour time out to do some book work from the Iowa Beef Expo. I was just getting motivated to go out for a "Maternity" check and start chores when I got a call from Smith's asking when Betty calved. I told them that we were watching her because she was close. They responded by telling me that they were standing outside the pen and the calf was up trying to suck! Good thing I'm the boss or I would get fired!!

Saturday night...a new story. I had just fallen asleep when Brad rousted me from his cow check. Yes, don't be shocked. Brad does support my cow habit on weekends by doing the "before bed" maternity check but that's not the only reason I love him. The cow's water had broken but nothing going on after almost 45 minutes.

After palpating the cow I was pleased to know that I had finally gotten an answer to a question I have had for years. Will I know immediately if a C-section is required? YES...YES YES. The stars lined up...cow too small, calf too big. One feel of the calf laying almost sideways, feet still a ways in and NO space in the pelvis. So needless to say, a C-section later and after convining one TOTALLY P-off momma not to eat her baby...we got back in the house around 4:00 AM.

So, a weekend without sleep. Reminds me of the time I was calving 40 first calf heifers or when I had 150 head to calve out. How did I ever get it into my head that cutting back to running a few incredible donor females and recips was going to be simpler? I need an intervention. I am addicted to these beasts...I might hate them a little right at this very moment but one trip to the calf nursery and all is right with the world. Life is good.