Growing up on the east coast I had a dream for as long I can remember. To work on a ranch out west and ride horses all day. This simple childhood dream led to a life that I never could have imagined: a small town called Darby, a cowboy for a husband, Two Feathers Ranch as my home, and now raising fifth-generation Montanans... boy and girl twins. 

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My husband manages this little slice of Bitterroot Valley heaven, Two Feathers Ranch. When I'm not at my "day job", working and playing here fills most of my spare time. Although my husband proclaims he's just a professional "s***-shoveler", I know he's so much more than that. He's the animal caretaker, irrigation specialist, mechanic, fence builder, wildlife manager and construction worker, to name a few, all under the name "rancher".

 

The ranch was a dream of Paul and Pat Shirley's, who own these quiet one-of-a-kind 360-acres of fields, forest and creek (pronounced "crick" here) to this day. So when the historic Chief Joseph Ranch next door was chosen for the setting of the wildly popular Yellowstone tv series, I have to admit, it's extremely strange and exciting to see the gorgeous mountain views we see every day on national television.  From the positive impact the show has made on our little town, to the people we have met and the things we have experienced through the show's production next door, it all has exceeded our wildest dreams.

 

This day-to-day ranch lifestyle may not be as romantic (or dramatic) as they portray it to be on Yellowstone, but in some ways maybe it is (I can tell you though, we brand cattle, not people). In either case, I can't imagine a better place to be.  

 

So here's what real ranch life is like...for me at least!

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Lauren