Harvest 2016...

Fall harvest is in full swing all around these days...

Last evening the combine arrived to harvest soybeans.  They finished combining late last night, and emptied the last of the beans from the grain cart into the semi this morning...

Then it was time to switch from the bean head to the corn head...

Then he headed out across the harvested bean field towards the corn.  He opened up the fields here at home so that Jim could pick the rest of the corn here for the corn crib...

Jim began picking around lunch time this morning, and here are the first two bin wagons emptied into the corn crib...

Jim doesn't fill the crib every year, but decided it would be a good idea this year to pick at least a portion of our fields rather than shell them out to be sold or stored in the grain bank.

If the weather stays nice and the equipment works like it should, he should hopefully finish up by tomorrow.  Then it will be time to shred stalks and bale corn fodder.

First Frost...

After a record setting hot summer, we woke up on Tuesday morning to our first frost...

It wasn't a hard, killing frost, but a sure reminder that the seasons do change, as always!  Our typical "frost date" here is around October 15th, so it really wasn't that early.  It's been flannel shirt and jeans weather in the barn (for me at least), and that's a welcome change...

The cows have been staying in overnight the past few days, and the tender plants on porches are gradually moving inside.

The puppies are spending their nights in the barn too.  They're seven weeks old now, have had their vet checks, first round of shots, etc, and are for sale, available for adoption next weekend!  They're so sweet...but I feel like the Mom of seven toddlers, continually counting heads when they're out for playtime.  Oh my.

The wear themselves out playing. Here they're playing tug of war with a dog toy...
(photo courtesy of my friend Denise who came to visit yesterday with her daughter)

...and then they crash...

Just like toddlers!

We're going to miss them when they're gone!

Waiting For Breakfast...

There are so many creatures around here depending on us for their breakfasts...

These two heifers in the corner hutch saw me coming.  They're anticipating hay, grain and silage...

The chickens get excited when I fill their water tub, knowing that something else is coming soon...

Murphy saw me toss some stale bagels into the chicken pen yesterday, and she's been keeping vigil...thinking that somehow, sometime, she'll get one. Shy of digging under the fence...which she tried...grrrrr...she's going to be waiting a long time...

The puppies have been staying in the warm barn overnight, and they can hardly contain themselves when they see someone in the morning. Anticipation of freedom and breakfast and attention has them so excited...

How do you anticipate your breakfast?

5th Cutting Is Finished...

It's hard to believe we're finally at this end of the summer!

Jim started mowing and baling hay in May...and five cutting later, here we are at the end of September.  He finished up with baling the last two contours here at home this afternoon.  Perhaps just in time, because the weather forecast is now calling for rain over the next few days.

We've finally said goodbye good riddance to the horrible humid heat wave that was summer...and have begun enjoying blue jeans and flannel shirt weather the past two days.  Yeah!  Can you tell I'm happy about that?

Anway...

This load got backed into the barn to be unloaded another day...

Peanut has a "thing" for hay wagons, and promptly found a cozy hole to curl up in.  She's raised several litters of kittens in hay wagons over the years, but there will be NO MORE Peanut babies...

I still don't think she's forgiven us for that, but...

Now we move on to other things...like the West Lampeter Fair.  The hubbub begins tomorrow (for me) as the baked good will be entered for Wednesday's judging, tasting (!!) and bake sale.

Hope to see you there!

Fresh Country Air...

Smell that fresh. country. air.

All that manure that was stored all summer is now being spread on the bare fields for fertilizer.

Even if I couldn't see it, my nose would tell me the corn fields are bare!

Filling Silo 2016...

It's been a busy couple of weeks here, and I haven't taken the time to post much, other than about the puppies.

They're sweet...and growing like crazy!  Two weeks old already...here's a quick  peek from a few days ago...

We've been doing more than playing with puppies though...although that's definitely been the most fun "job"!  Last week we had a return of horrible hot, humid weather.  When it comes in September, it's especially draining.  Both kids had cross country meets on Saturday...one high school and one college...and the heat was not helpful!  We're done with heat and ready for flannel shirt and blue jeans weather.

Anyway...

On Saturday evening they started chopping corn and filling silo here at home. Here's the chopper...ready to go, just waiting for the tractors and silage wagons to come up the road...

I'm always anxious to see this particular field chopped, because then I can see out again.  Some people like to be surrounded by corn fields, but I like to be able to see out!

This morning they came back to finish...

The fields look so different now.  Jim said that he thinks it really starts to feel like fall once you see bare fields appearing...

One of the wagons unloading at the silo...

There was some trouble with the goose neck at the top of the silo this morning, so Jim was at the top working on it for a bit.  I'm not a fan of heights, so I'm sure glad it wasn't my job!

Clean up at the bottom of the silo this morning after the silos were both full...

Deciding when the moisture is just right to chop corn is not an easy thing, so to have this job behind us is very satisfying!

Now it's time to concentrate on fifth cutting of hay.  That starts tomorrow.

Puppy Love...

Day 11

We just can't help it...

They're eating like little piggies...and growing like weeds...

Look at their tiny, perfect little feet!

We're in love!