Mandy Puppy

Brenda's husband, Jerry, is the VP of Pet Handling. On Bren's Blog, http://purpleranchlavender.blogspot.com, you can see a great story on the life and times of Jerry's job. Anyway, one of the dogs that he doesn't watch is my 78 pound yellow labrador named Amanda May, a.k.a., Mandy Puppy. She is my baby girl. Ok, not really a baby anymore because she is 9 years old, but don't tell her that. She has been my confidante, my friend, my daughter, my roommate and the one who knows absolutely every secret I have. She has seen me laugh and cry more than anyone else on Earth. I can't imagine my life without her. Most of the time she thinks that she is a human and every once in a while she acts like a dog. Unfortunately that is typically around her eating habits. Just recently she decided to eat an entire bowl of rat poison. Who knew that rat poison would be tasty? I am a devout Christian and never doubt miracles and God's presence, but if you do, keep reading.

Mandy Puppy historically will eat anything she can get her mouth on; her current favorite is cat poop she finds in the ally behind my house...gross! Because she isn't a puppy, I don't watch her 24/7. Due to this, she could pretty much eat whatever she wants to and I would never be the wiser. A couple of weeks ago, Mandy Puppy had wandered off from me. Within a few minutes I looked up and she was gone. I went looking for her...why? I felt the Holy Spirit telling me that Mandy was in danger. Within seconds I caught her eating some rat poison that had been recently put down due to too many mice in the area. I was very calm. Less than an hour later, she had been forced to throw up and had charcoal put down her throat...I didn't do this, the late night emergency vet clinic did. The vet told me that she would have shown no signs for at least two days and then she just would have dropped dead. This is actually very common. Good to know. The only residual is that she has to take Vitamin K for a month. Why did I catch her at the exact moment that I did? Praise God! Mandy Puppy is part of the Lavender Ranch Hands and would have been truly missed had this turned into a tragedy. Got Lavender?

Bug Inspector

All the Purple Ranch Hands have "Titles" on the farm and one of my many titles at Purple Ranch is "Bug Inspector". I'm sure most people would think this is because I have a degree in entomology; oh contraire. Personally I don't like bugs, rodents, or things that go bump in the night. The reason that I have this dubious title is because if there is a bug on the 8 acres called Purple Ranch, it will find me. I don't know how this happens, but every bee or fire ant hunts me down to sting me if at all possible. For those of you who aren't from the Great State of Texas, we have these awesome insects that come straight from Satan called fire ants. They serve absolutely no purpose on Earth except to make people's lives miserable. They build large mounds where ever they choose to and if you disturb them, they bite you immediately. These bites aren't like a mosquito, but more like a lightning bolt of pain. You are now saying to yourself.....really, a little bitty ant? Oh yes, trust me, when it bit me on the nose, I knew within a nano second what it was due to the shear pain it inflicted on my face! I mean honestly have you ever known anyone to get bit by a fire ant on their nose? Now how did I do this? I was mowing the yard around Purple Ranch and I leaned down to move a potted plant. The ant leaped a 1000 times its size in my direction and bit me on the nose. Really. That's my story and I'm sticking to it....... Got Lavender?

2005 National Football Champions

The University of Texas at Austin. This doesn't really have anything to do with Purple Ranch Lavender Farm, but hey, Texas hasn't won a National Championship in Football since 1970 so I can't help but be very proud of my team!

Fun Filled Weekend at the Farm

Another great time at Purple Ranch Lavender Farm this weekend! It is amazing to me how we all have the same personalities….give us a deadline and we WILL meet it! Mom told us a few days ago a reporter with The Herald Banner was coming out to interview all of us and take photos of Purple Ranch. To get us "reporter ready" there were a few things that we needed to accomplish first. So over a day and a half, the entire family (minus Sher) pitched in to clean the yard, haul off farm equipment, clean the store, and try to raise the Purple Ranch Lavender Farm sign. Oh, did I mention that we needed to paint the exterior of the store as well? Hey, we liked the challenge. So as the sun was setting in the Texas sky, Brenda and I were on on ladders painting the last of the sage paint on the upper trim of the store. Of course I have no idea if we got the sage on the white or the white on the sage at this point, but hey, it was painted. We did get it done just in time. Mom planted flowers in the beds after all of us placed a new patio in front of the store. Never a dull moment at Purple Ranch Lavender Farm. Got Lavender?

At the farm

Lavender Farm Thriving in North Texas

ROYCE CITY, TX – The Purple Ranch Lavender Farm is thriving in North Texas where just a few years ago, June Hand, owner was told that the dark, Texas clay would not sustain growth.
“We are so pleased that our lavender fields are doing so well. We have had several set backs with too much rain, but overall our lavender is flourishing”, said Hand. Purple Ranch Lavender Farm is located in Royse City, about 45 minutes outside of Dallas, Texas. It specializes in high-quality lavender products such as soaps, bath salts, candles, linen spray, oil, tea bags, wands, and more.

Hand said, “I have always dreamed of owning and running my own business and with a life-long interest in plants and flowers, this is definitely a dream come true.” Purple Ranch Lavender Farm became reality in 2003 with just two hundred plants and has grown to over 600+ today.

“Over the years, we have had our trials and tribulations, losing 75% of our crop the first year, but we were all very determined to make the lavender farm work”, expressed Hand. On Mother’s Day weekend, 2007, 500 more plants were planted. “We had to change the soil to get the proper mixture of sand, dirt, and gravel to make it work, but with the whole family converging on the farm to plant we succeeded.”

After harvesting the lavender, the Hand Family creates hand-made products. “Almost everything that we sell is made from the lavender grown on the farm. Purple Ranch has been a family labor of love with all of us preparing and planting the harvest, to creating and selling the finished products.” At least once a month, they sell their lavender products at craft fairs, business expos, local chamber events, or festivals in and around Texas. Custom baskets, special events and orders can be placed on-line at www.purpleranch.com. The Purple Ranch Lavender
Store is now open in Royce City, Texas.

This just goes to prove that dreams really can come true!

For more information about Purple Ranch Lavender Farm, please visit http://www.purpleranch.com/, Got Lavender?