Looking Back On a Strange Summer...

As fall has suddenly arrived here, it's interesting to look back on what has been an unusual year...

Let me start by saying, we do have so much to be thankful for.  There are so many people who have dealt with drought, fires, hurricanes and other issues that we need to keep it in perspective. The weird weather has all of us in the same boat.  All we can do is shake our heads, share stories with our farmer friends and hope for a good harvest despite the weather difficulties that were/are 2018.

We saw rain totals this year like I don't ever remember. With the exception of the month of June, I can't say with confidence that we had many long stretches of consecutive days of sunshine all summer long!

Lancaster County averages 43" of rain annually.  This year we surpassed that total by the end of August.  There was a storm that stalled over the county on August 31, that dumped at least 10" on a nearby town in just a few hours, resulting in unprecedented flooding.

The West Lampeter Community Fair saw major mud this year.  I saw tractors pulling 4 X 4's out of the mud on Wednesday morning, as the vendors were trying to set up their booths.  The fair's board of directors "and company" did an amazing job of making it a memorable year despite circumstances that were out of everyone's control.  Trailer loads of mulch were hauled in and spread...they arranged shuttles from satellite locations for fair goers and they patiently dealt with the many headaches that they were handed.  Hats off to them~ it was still a fun community event!

Baling hay was a challenge all summer, but right now Jim is raking up the last of 5th cutting hay, hoping to bale tonight or tomorrow morning.

Here's what the corn and beans look like today...

It sure would be nice if all the beans looked like this!

There are reports of corn sprouting on the ears in the fields.

There are reports of truck loads of soybeans being rejected at the mills because of mold.

It's been that wet.

It's been cool and windy this week, so I went to the basement and dug out the quilted flannels, washed them and hung them out to dry in the breeze. It didn't take them long!  We haven't had to run the big fans in the barn, so it's been blessedly quiet...

...and just for fun, here's a picture I took at a neighborhood auction about a week ago.  Our little Amish neighbors couldn't wait to try out their "new" sled!

I guess they're dreaming of snow a  bit  lot more than I am!

Friday's Hunt #5...

I enjoy having a set of guidelines for blogging on Fridays, so here we go again!

This week's prompts are...

Starts with "E"...

I could have chosen and easy E word and gone with eggs...I have plenty of those right now, but instead I chose the word EAT.  We all do it...and it's oh so much more fun if we have a good recipe to try!  Here's a photo of what we were eating last week...

Avocado Mango Salad

Last week, Jim and I were going to a meal with an Indian theme, and I was to take a salad.  I googled Indian Salads, and this recipe popped up.  It was absolutely delicious!  Here's the recipe if you'd like to try it...I don't think you'll be disappointed!

AVOCADO MANGO SALAD

Combine the following ingredients in a bowl:

Lettuce, washed and torn
1 peeled and sliced ripe mango
1 peeled and sliced avocado
1 sliced red pepper

Dressing:
1 crushed garlic clove
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp honey
salt and pepper to taste

Combine dressing ingredients, pour over salad and toss until well coated.

Chill and enjoy!

The second prompt is "Week's Favorite"...

I could have chosen just about any picture from the snow storm and called it my favorite, but this one wins...

It was Sunday morning, and folks were beginning to shovel out from the big storm.  Jim had just come inside from opening up for the milk truck and to warm up and have some breakfast, when out of the corner of my eye I saw one of our Amish neighbors walking up the road, kids in tow.  The two older girls (maybe 1st and 2nd grade ?) were carrying small shovels, and the two littler ones were riding on a plastic sled, pulled by their Dad. They had walked about a half mile to check on a couple who lives in the house you see in the picture. They discovered that Jake and Lydia were fine, and started their walk home when they noticed that the neighbor who lives to the right had just opened his garage door to begin what must have seemed like an overwhelming task.  No problem.  Melvin and his four little ones pitched in to help him, and in what seemed like no time at all, the driveway was clear! That's what you call being neighborly, and it's one of my favorite things about our community!

The last prompt is "Sky"...

I used this picture in my post about digging out, but I think this sky is so gorgeous I'll use it again here.  Not a cloud in sight the morning after the blizzard, and I just love the brilliant blue...

Here's another one, for good measure.  The sunrise this morning was beautiful...but only for a few minutes until the sun disappeared behind the clouds...

I just wish the tower and telephone pole didn't have to always be in the picture, but oh well, it's pretty anyway!

I hope your weekend is a good one!  Click here for more links to Friday's Hunt, with Teresa.

Amish Farm Sale...

What a fun morning...after being cooped up all weekend with the big snow!

One of our neighboring Amish farmers had sale today....

One of the married sons will be taking over the farm.  The cows will be sold, and he will be growing produce and raising beef cattle, so there was a lot of equipment for sale today.

How do you have a sale just days after a major blizzard?

I asked one of the sons what they did, and he said they hired someone to come in and move snow.  And move it they did!  There was a cleared area for parking...

...and a snowbank for scooters...

The horses were unhitched and spent their morning in the barn...

As we walked in, we were greeted by the wonderful smell of barbecue chicken.  Neighbor Leroy was in charge of this, and it was delicious!  Proceeds from the food stands at Amish sales usually go to benefit someone...either a family in need, or in this case, the school where most of the neighbor kids attend...

The home made soft pretzels were good too...

While the women hung out in either the house or the shop where food was served, the men gathered out behind the barn to bid on or watch the farm equipment sell...

The young guy in the middle holding the iced tea is one of the farmer's sons. He said he's excited to see the coming changes, but will probably miss the cows too...

Temps are in the 40's today, so there was an abundance of mud.  I sure hope these guys take their boots off before they go in the house...

The last thing to sell were the mules.  The boys led them back and forth between the crowd.  They sold for $2500 - $3500 each...

They're huge animals, but so well trained...

It's always fun to go to these sales and spend time with our neighbors. Everyone enjoys talking and catching up on the latest news in the neighborhood, and supporting the family having sale.

And I was especially glad not to have to make lunch today!

Changes In the Neighborhood...

There are changes in the neighborhood...

For many years, our road has been one that the local tour guides would bring their tourists down.  They could point out the difference between Amish and English farms...curtains at the windows, cars and rubber wheeled tractors, "small" gardens...the Amish schoolhouse and no electric poles...

This week there have been some changes.  Can you see what I do?

One family has left the Amish church, and they are putting electricity in their home. They would have preferred to put the lines underground, but for some reason one property owner didn't give permission to cross his property, so a whole new line of electric poles now dots the landscape.  The poles just went up yesterday.  No electric lines have been added yet...

We are so used to seeing the road clear of poles, that it's glaringly obvious to us, although it might seem like "nothing" to someone who might not drive by every day...

There's still one stretch of road that is clear...

I would never want them to not get electricity...it'll just take some getting used to!

Amish School Christmas Program...

What a special treat we had today!

Our Amish neighbors invited us to their childrens' school Christmas program this afternoon.  This is the second time we've been able to attend...but this time at a different school.  There are Amish schools every few miles in our area, and we see the children walking to and from school every morning and afternoon. The school that is closest to our house is full, so some of the neighbor children ride the public school bus to another one about a mile away, and that is where we went today.

I wish so badly that I could have taken pictures inside...the children were so very cute...the boys wore black hats, bow ties and of course their suspenders for one of their funny songs, and even though we couldn't understand it (it was sung in PA Dutch) it was hilarious!  The little girls would come out and recite their poems as quickly as they could, often turning and walking off stage as they finished their lines.  The singing was nice...one of the children would start singing a verse and the others would follow.

Every available space was filled and the windows began to inch open as the hour went on.  Even though it's below freezing outside, if you pile over 100 people in a one room school, it gets a bit warm!

This is the progam they gave us...

This is the schoolhouse as we drove in the lane.  The van parked there is an Amish taxi, probably bringing several families who didn't want to hitch up their teams...or maybe Grandparents who didn't live close...

Yes, we see them every day, but there's something beautiful about Amish buggies in the snow.  The team is tied to the back stop that they use when they play baseball at recess...

This wagon brought the students from another school to the program.  We saw them go by as we were getting ready to go...

It was a privilege to be invited, and we are so glad we went.  The innocence of little children, and the sense of community is something to be held close.

Apple Snitz Pie...

A week or so ago, on a Saturday afternoon, we were just getting ready to head out to the barn for milking, when Jake came strolling across the yard.

Jake is one of our Amish neighbors...and he didn't come empty handed...

Before you wonder...no...he didn't bring us a half eaten pie!  It just didn't take us long to devour eat it.

This is an Apple Snitz pie...usually just referred to as a Snitz pie around here. It's a pie that the Amish make often, and this one came our way because Jake's son was hosting Church at his house the next day.  When you host Church, you also provide lunch, and this is a staple at this meal.

I've never made one of these, but they're quite good.  The filling tastes kind of like apple butter.  Here's a recipe that I found...

APPLE SNITZ PIE

2 cups dried apples (snitz)
1 1/2  cups warm water
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cloves

Soak apples in water overnight.
Cook apples in the water they were soaked in.
When soft, mash the apples and add the sugar, cinnamon and cloves
Pour mixture into an unbaked pie shell.
Cover with second crust and seal edges, cutting several slits in top crust to allow steam to escape.
Bake at 425 * for 15 minutes.  Reduce heat and bake at 370 * for 35 more minutes.

Makes one 9" pie

Have you ever tasted one of these?


I'm trying something new...and linking to Alphabe-Thursday.

When Two Worlds Meet...

I thought this was kind of fun today...watching two worlds meet.

We have wonderful farm neighbors...and most of them are Amish.  We get along with them well, and help each other out when needed.

But how often do you see a team of horses working in an English man's field?

There are several Amish men in the neighborhood who own round balers, and who do custom baling.  This one, who came to finish up our rye grass and alfalfa hay today, used his mules to pull the baler.  Jim operated the wrapper with our tractor.  I thought it was fun, seeing them working in the same field together.

No matter that we do things differently...the end result is the same!

Life's Interruptions...

No matter how busy we are, life happens.  Interruptions happen.

Today was a funeral for Dan, an Amish neighbor of ours.  He was only 74...way too young...but he passed away on Tuesday after a very brief illness.

Amish funerals are typically held in the home of the deceased.  As soon as the obituary is listed in the newspaper, visitation begins.  Family, friends and neighbors stop in any time during the day to pay their respects.  Yesterday we walked down to Dan and Emma's.  We talked to one of Dan's sons, who was outside with some of the children.  He told us where to go in, so we made our way inside.  The men and women sit separately around the edges of the open rooms.  It was very quiet, and we weren't quite sure what procedure we should follow, but we made our way around the first room where the women sat, shaking hands as we went...that's the way they greet each other.  When we got to Ruth Ann (Dan's daughter in law), she quickly stood and graciously made us feel welcome and comfortable.  I think she sensed our unease, and she took us into the room where the casket was.  Her husband saw her do this, and he and his brother (another neighboring farmer that we know well) joined us.  After a few minutes of quiet talking, we made our way home again.  The buggies and cars rolled by all day and into the evening.

The funeral was this morning.  (Amish funerals are by invitation only, and are in German, so we wouldn't have understood it anyway)  By 9:00 the driveway was full of buggies, and the road lined with vans...some of the English drivers waited in the shade until the service was over.

Around lunch time, we knew that the procession to the graveside was about to begin when a police escort drove by and stopped traffic at the end of the road.   I took these pictures from an upstairs bedroom window...

The Amish hearse...

If you enlarge this picture, you can hopefully see the #10 written on the side of the buggy with chalk.  They do this so that the person directing traffic knows when all of the buggies that are part of the procession have passed.  There were 29 or 30 buggies today.  Jenna was watching from the porch and she counted them...

While the family and close friends were at the graveside, there was work going on back at the house.  Within 45 minutes or so, the benches were cleared away and loaded into this wagon.  This young man is likely taking the wagon back to the house where the next Church services will be held...

As I was running an errand a little while later, I passed a number of buggies coming back from the graveside.  I knew where they were coming from because of the chalk numbers on the side.

Tomorrow will be another day...life will go on.  But it will be different for their family and for the neighborhood.   A new normal.  Dan's thirteen children and fifty grandchildren will miss him.  We'll miss seeing him standing along the road, letting his horse graze on the road bank.  He was a good neighbor!

Smell That Fresh Country Air...

I made the mistake of hanging out our bath towels to dry on Saturday...

It was a gorgeous drying day, with a strong south air, but...

...it was also a great day for hauling pit manure.

Take a whiff...can you smell that fresh country air?

Christmas Happenings...2011...

To the Amish in our community, Christmas is a really big deal.  Yes, they give gifts like any one else, but their focus is not so much on material things, but on spending lots of time with family and friends.

One tradition they have in their schools is a day of Christmas caroling. That was on Thursday.  It was raining, but I saw the horse drawn wagon going down the road, filled with school children, covered with a plastic tarp...and I heard the children singing Jingle Bells at the top of their lungs from 1/4 mile away!

Another tradition is their annual school Christmas program.  This was on Friday, and Jim and I were invited by our neighbors to the school right up the road from our farm.  We were excited to go!  Of course we didn't take our camera to the program, but I'll try to describe it...

Rocky Ridge school is full this year...35 students from grades 1-8, taught in this one room school house by a young single woman.

It was a beautiful day, so we walked to the school, less than a mile away.  By the time we arrived, the school yard was full of horses and buggies, and we made our way inside.  The teacher met us at the door, and we told her that we had been invited by Reuben and Ruth Ann, our neighbors.  She shook our hands, and motioned for us to go and sit with them.  

The school was packed...every available desk and bench was filled.  Entire families were there...fathers took time off from work, and mothers brought all their children, down to the tiniest babies.  We sat shoulder to shoulder with our neighbors.  And even though we were the only "English" people there, (Jim was the only man without a beard, and I was definitely the only woman with my hair cut short) we felt welcome.  

It was really interesting for us...we both know most of the men through farming, but not all of their wives and children.  They didn't necessarily sit together, so we figured out who belonged together when a woman would pass her baby back a few rows to her husband. 

The program began by a young student welcoming us, and then the entire group sang several songs to start things off.  Their singing style is much different from what we are used to...each line of a song is sung followed by a pause, and then someone leads out in the next line, and so on.

The singing was followed by numerous poems, skits and recitations.  Some were humorous and some were more serious, and everything was in English except for one skit.  That one was in PA Dutch, and it's too bad we couldn't understand it, because there was a lot of laughter, and we missed the punch line!  Guess we'd better brush up on our Dutch!


The children did a great job!  The entire program lasted two hours...that's a lot of memorizing!  Our neighbor Ruth Ann told us that her children began practicing and memorizing their parts around Thanksgiving, and that for the past week or so they spent most of their time in school working on the program. 
 

 

 After they were finished, the children each gave their mother a rose, and we made our way out of the school house.  Two students were standing by the door offering cookies.  We visited for a few minutes, greeting neighbors, and then made our way back home.  The Amish families stayed for a while...visiting and playing games outside in the school yard for the rest of the afternoon.

The children have off school tomorrow yet, for what they call Second Christmas...a day of more visiting with family and friends.  Then they'll all head back to school or work on Tuesday.  Their Christmas vacation is short, but packed with activity.

It was an honor to be invited to share part of their Christmas celebration!  Once again we were reminded of how many wonderful neighbors we have. They're not just neighbors, but a wonderful community of friends!