Echoed Roots

06/19/2026

Zinnias and calendula are only about 6 inches tall, so they aren't ready for big bouquets yet—but they look pretty darn cute sitting in a pint jar on the table.

Welcome Summer Flowers! 💐✨

06/18/2026

Oldest: "I bet I could walk all the way to Grandma's!"
Me: "I don't think you could."

Spoiler alert: I was right. The oldest lasted a mile, and the middle hopped on and off three times.

The good news? I just found my new favorite parenting threat for future misbehavior: "Don't make me make you walk home together."

06/17/2026

Take a deep breath with me. In and out. 🤍

​It’s a topic people usually avoid, but lately, Farmer and I have been talking a lot about what comes after. We have the practical stuff like life insurance lined up, but when it comes to the actual where, our hearts keep pulling us home to our own soil.

​Honestly, while I don't know why a private plot wasn't thought of in the past or set up by previous generations, it is something that we would love to consider for our family's future. I say that with the utmost respect for our family members who are buried locally—those established resting places are beautiful and meaningful in their own right. But for us, there’s just a unique personal pull to this specific ground.

​There is something so beautiful about the thought of being laid to rest on the land you love, work, and live on every single day. We come back to the vision of leaving a quiet, peaceful space right here on our grounds—maybe just a simple bench in nature—where the girls could always just walk out, sit, and feel close to us if they ever needed to.

​I know older family cemeteries used to be the norm a century ago, but I’m curious if any modern families have set up something similar on their own ground recently?

Whether it’s traditional burial or creating a special, dedicated area for ashes, how do you plan to stay connected to the land you love?

​I’d truly love to hear your family’s perspective or if anyone else has walked this path.🌾

​

06/15/2026

Hey Farmer, if you see this, keep scrolling! I’m trying to plan a surprise here and I need you to stay in the dark on this one. 🫢

Father’s Day is this weekend, and in true fashion, I have absolutely no clue what our actual plans look like or how much time we’ll actually have between chores. But we do know we want to make something great from scratch for dad.

The girls and I are on a mission to whip up some homemade ranch. We have a serious ranch lover, and I am not talking about that thin, watery buttermilk stuff. Think thick ranch—the kind of gold standard you get at Runza or Mac’s in McCook.

Give us your absolute best, tried-and-true recipes for thick homemade ranch so the girls and I can get to mixing!

👇 Drop your secret recipes in the comments please!

06/15/2026

ROOTS AND RESOURCES | HACK #11

YARROW vs YARROW

Same plant, two completely different jobs around our place. I love the cultivated garden varieties for their long stems and sunset colors, but the wild white yarrow out in the pasture is where the real utility hides.

Known historically as "woundwort," wild yarrow grows under rugged conditions, which actually forces it to pack a much higher concentration of potent medicinal oils than the pretty garden versions.

Here is how to use the wild stuff:

For quick field first aid, crushing fresh leaves into a paste and pressing it onto a minor cut stops bleeding almost instantly.

For the pantry, dry the white flower heads and infuse them into olive or coconut oil. That infused oil makes a base for homemade salves that work wonders on bug bites, fence scrapes, and cracked hands.

I was pleasantly surprised to see wild yarrow thriving this year despite the drought. I’m only making a couple of infusions, so I’ll just gather what I need—leaving plenty of plants to go to seed and keep the patches growing wildly for next year.

06/12/2026

First flush of yarrow has been picked and delivered to town!!

**I haven't gone through last years buckets yet, so the ever so classy juice pitcher made its appearance.**

06/12/2026

06/11/2026

PSA to future farm and ranch wives: April, May, and June are tough months to get married if you ever hope for a timely anniversary! Thank God for Grandma and Grandpa swooping in for the kiddos this weekend, otherwise our 10th anniversary getaway would have never happened.

This was actually our third time staying at the Cambridge Bed and Breakfast. Since we didn't have a honeymoon after our courthouse wedding, we spent our wedding night here, came back again as an anniversary gift, and just spent this past weekend celebrating 10 years.

It truly is the perfect, quiet, getaway. History sings out loud in this beautiful home, whether you're learning about the hand-carved molding or just lounging on the gorgeous front porch. Plus, they always have delicious cookies and a fresh-made breakfast!

If you're looking for a unique gift for your significant other or a favorite couple, this is a beautiful place to just walk about and enjoy. No matter the occasion, this lovely family makes sure you're completely doted on.

And to the men in this corner of SW Nebraska-ish: this is the perfect getaway without being too far from the farm or the kiddos!

606 Parker Street on Highway 6&34
Cambridge, Nebraska
**308-697-3220**

06/10/2026

The monarchs are officially back! 🧡

The girls have already broken out their butterfly identification books and nets. I’m currently trying to convince them that it’d be much better to just look and not touch, but my pleas are definitely falling on deaf ears. Pray for the butterfly wings around here!

Have you spotted any monarchs or caterpillars in your yard yet?

06/09/2026

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