Navigating Grief: Making Cowboy Christmas a Family Affair
The rodeo road has been a bit different for our family this year, and we are making every moment of it a family adventure. The past few years my husband, Brady, and I have had different rodeo goals that have put us on separate paths. Pretty much Brady has been on the "big rodeos" road, and well, I have been on a small, very bumpy trail that stays pretty close to home.
After we were married in 2019, a family became a very important factor for us. From 2020 to 2023 I spent the summers staying close to home and to sum it up - very pregnant. After our first baby was born in 2021 I packed my newborn around with me to smaller rodeos. The year 2023 brought our second daughter to us and she joined in the rodeo rig for the summer. While I was close to home Brady would go with other steer wrestlers and venture out further than I was willing to go.
This year both Brady and I have entered together for the first time as husband and wife. Which, in itself, is a difficult task through Procom's system. We have a pretty heavy schedule planned over the notorious Cowboy Christmas so planning and packing has consumed our evenings after working and completing our normal day-to-day routines.
We do not travel lightly as we have made this summer about family. So, we pack our five horses (three bull dogging horses and two barrel horses), four dogs, and RyLynn, our recently turned three-year-old daughter, with us everywhere.
Of course we carry our youngest with us in our hearts. A lot of the reason we decided to travel together as a family this year and make every moment a family adventure is because of the loss of our youngest daughter Ronnie in September of 2023.
In a few days we leave for a wildly busy few weeks. It takes a lot to keep our rig and rodeo athletes going under such an intense schedule. We will leave our little horse ranch in Keenesburg, Colo. and stop a few miles down the road at the Greeley Independence Day Stampede for the start of our run. From there it is off to Livingston and Red Lodge, Mont., Cody, Wyo. and then back to Colorado for a few circuit rodeos before the I-25 run beginning July 5th. We will be in attendance at Estes Park, Colo., Sheridan and Casper, Wyo. Gunnison, Colo., Laramie, Wyo., and Monte Vista, Colo. PRCA rodeos.
We own and operate our construction business on the road during the summer run from our horse trailer. Often, you will see one of us on a computer while the other is driving or playing with RyJo. We plan our driving around what benefits our horses the most and keeping them comfortable, and of course business meetings or calls.
We are particular about our horse care and their health. We do not take their jobs lightly and from their diets, to exercise routines, and treatments, or vet appointments the horses alone keep us moving daily.
Ry loves the horses and helps us do all the feeding, grooming, and of course she "trains" on them for us, too. Truly she is the boss of the rig. She also is the star. Everywhere we go our extended rodeo family asks for Ry and are sure to give her high fives and fist bumps.
We have set our goals high and though we are making it fun, we take our horses and the rodeos very seriously. I have not been to the circuit finals since 2012 and It would be a dream to be able to compete, alongside my husband at the Mountain States Circuit finals. We are also trying to get a boost into the winter rodeos for next year, so we are venturing outside of our circuit as often this year as we can. We enjoy going to rodeos and towns we have never been to which allows us to get bucket rodeos checked off our list.
As we set out for another family adventure, we are hoping to make a "Buum" (pronouced boom) over the fourth both in and out of the arena; all the while setting a great example for our daughter about hard work and chasing dreams and continuing to make core memories as a family.
SAMI JO BUUM
From tiny pink cowboy boots and pigtails to pro rodeos and fast horses, Sami Jo was definitely bitten by the horse bug at a very young age. She was born and raised in Colorado on a small backyard farm in Brighton. The western industry has been a huge part of almost every aspect of her life. She was not born into a rodeo family and is a first-generation professional barrel racer. With her husband, she co-owns and operates a construction company out of Keenesburg, Colo. as well as run a small performance horse breeding and training operation, Dark Horse Equine. She is passionate about animals, rodeo, family, work and Christ. She plays many roles from business owner, professional cowgirl, rodeo wife, horse trainer and breeder, animal therapist, writer and more; however, being a mom is her favorite job title. I look forward to sharing my experiences and all things western with my audience.