Post Harvest

This year's harvest was done October 6. That has never happened in all of my husband's years growing up and working on a farm.  Unbelievable. Now that the harvest is over, he is preparing for next year's harvest. Leaves are falling. And children are growing.

We were blessed to have extra children for a week. Laura, finally a big sister, recruited help building the walls of her fort.

The Big Guy went bow hunting morning and evening. I grew up in Wyoming eating everything from venison to antelope, elk, buffalo and an occasional moose (some are more enjoyable than others). 

David and, as the littlest one said, "Goover" (Hoover).

While I was out that dark, rainy morning, I stuck my head in the barn to capture pictures of domesticated food--just for you.

The rooster sleeps alone, the rooster sleeps alone, hi-ho, the derry-oh, the rooster sleeps alone.

The big cows--one is missing.  Hmmm.

Why don't the chickens sleep in the hen house?  Perhaps it has something to do with the mink that ate their friends last winter...

The little cows sleeping together in their stall.

On rare nights of the week (when we do not have cross country meets, church activities or other functions) we enjoy at night at home. Unlike many families in America, our only television station is the Public Broadcasting Network. We do subscribe to Netflix, that way we can watch what we want to and leave the rest. We also spend time practicing and writing music, reading and writing books, cooking and baking, drawing pictures, crocheting, knitting and playing games.

Laura  practicing on her keyboard in the parlor.

Rachael doing homework at the kitchen table.

Grace picked pears from Mrs. Hawley's and made pear tarts.

Soybean Harvest

We've nearly finished harvesting corn and have moved on to soybeans.  At the end of the school day, I grabbed the camera and headed out to the fields where the Big Guy was moving farm equipment.

The head of the combine is too wide to drive down roads and across bridges, so it has to be removed and transported separately.  To remove it, the Big Guy lines up the combine with the parked wagon, then lowers the head (cutting bar) onto the supports:

He disconnects the hydraulics and releases the catches, leaving the head behind.

Using a large chain and binder, he secures the head to the wagon--which is especially necessary for traveling across the field, over gravel roads and uneven pavement.

 A rare picture of the truck/wagon driver:

At the new field, the Big Guy reattaches the bean head:

Working with the hydraulics.

 And opens the field to make room for the semi truck, tractor and grain cart:

Matthew was home (smiley face) and drove the semi for the Big Guy over the weekend.  He took a load of beans to the elevator 40 miles away and hauled grain to our grain bin facilities on the other side of town (too far to drive the cart).

While we were out moving equipment, Laura was home, practicing entomology and, note the stained hands, creativity.

With charcoal from our fire ring, she made paint for her sign, peeled and hung up black walnuts to dry (see stained hands above),

and created a new fort in the backyard.

We're enjoying so many blessings this Fall!  The Big Guy is harvesting the last field of beans today (58 acres) and we have one shriveled field of corn that was affected by the drought.

The calves no longer need milk and the girls are rejoicing that they eat grain independently (if we can keep it away from the big guys).

More to come....