Rock Pickin’ Time!

Yeah, you haven’t lived until you go out into the field on one of the first warm(ish) sunny days to pick up rocks! Oh. My. Gosh! Where do they all come from??? I guess I haven’t done it in a few years, but this years’ bountiful harvest came from a very small area. Lynn called and said, “Ya had er’  (the pickup) squattin’ purty good!” Thankfully, my grandson, Gregory, helped me unload them. He just got back from National Guard training. Thank you for your service, Greg!

ANOTHER BUMPER CROP!

Lots and lots of repairs this year.  Expensive!  And low, low corn and bean prices.  Lucky for more bushels, but yet, the bumper crop means the demand will easily be filled, thus....well....you get it.  :( The weather has really been holding out for us, though!  Dry, dry, dry!  Also means combine fires. We've had two so far! First one was put out almost immediately and the second one was catching in the field and took about a half hour to get out.  Not bad, considering someone lost two combines in one huge fire through the night by Dunlap.  Apparently, they shut them down and went to bed with a little something smoldering.  Just takes the right little gust of wind.  I heard of someone who started a fire in their field by driving their side-by-side through the stalks.  I've been smelling something hot as I've been doing that.  I think I will be more careful as I get enough crap for my driving.  Could you imagine if I left a trail of flames???!!!!

There is so much corn out there that everyplace we take it gets full and shuts down early.  There is a race to get as much as you can there as quickly as you can.  The ethanol plants have been shut down for awhile already!  Lucky for us, we have some condo storage at the coop, so others have to wait until we get our "condo" full.  Lynn is planning for more bins.  Unfortunately for us, also, is that everything is a little we yet, so we are paying out the _____ to dry them in the bins.

Wish I could have seen the truck at the coop that had a sign on it:  NOT FOR PROFIT  Ha!  Yet....:(

Got home from church to find these handsome fellows in our driveway.  Unfortunately for Bob (far left), his two dogs got out a couple of weeks ago and were hit by a train.  :'(

                                                                   

Century Farm

Reminiscent of last year. Fixed one side and discovered the other side was cracked, too.  Axle.

Kelly atop bins at his place.

Not ours. I remember Lynn pulling a full-sized pickup behind the combine when I was working.

Getting new piggies out of the truck

and into the barn.

Growing pile of corn as the coop bins are full.

Stuck.  

Morgan gets an evening ride with "Lynn's dad".

One of our manure hauling units filling up.  It has to be incorporated now, disk on the back.

Jeff Sanders showing Drew how to seed pheasants.

120 total.  This is a soybean field.

Almost a Year Later--I'M BAAACK!!!

Wow, are we getting old fast 'er what???  I can't believe it's been almost a year since I updated this blog!!! 

Anyway, we got started about 2 weeks ago on beans, however, it's been very slow as the beans just aren't drying.  A little mist and they soak it right up.  As usual, it seems, just starting out we break down quite a bit.  Already had a small fire in the back of the combine on a windy day, of course.  Those little sparks ignite that fine dust and it spreads like.....wildfire!  But we got really lucky as they managed to get it out right away.  I'm good at starting fires.  Ask Lynn.  I can light one match and call the fire department in 20 minutes!  LOL! 

So far it looks like a record crop this year.  We have been so fortunate.  It started out cool and rainy and then got super hot and dry.  I had to water trees that had been in the ground for a couple of years as the leaves were shriveling.  The beans and corn looked so dry and the rain came just in the nick of time with fairly regular rains after that. 

I will work on the photos.  This one is on the "Missouri" farm just southeast of our house which you can see on the upper right.

Kelly called this morning and told me to bring my camera over.  There were three bald eagles hunting over the fields.  I felt pretty privileged as I got this beautiful photo of the majestic bird with our house in the background!

Check these young dudes out:  :D

http://mix97-3.com/peterson-farm-brothers-release-new-video-featuring-4-songs/?trackback=fbshare_mobile_top

I call this photo "The Faith of a Farmer"

AARP is going to publish this on their site and send me a little bag of goodies.  :D 

Oh, and he switched to the corn head as the beans are just too wet!                                                        

Got 'Er Dun!

Yesterday, 11/4/15, we finished harvest!  With smiles on our faces, we went out for a well deserved steak at Charlie's.

 Fixing  :(  

Sweet!  TY, Culvers! 

  Patched 8 pairs of overalls and now need to patch  fingers!!!

Came over the hill to this! Somebody had a very bad day!

                                                                                                                                   

Yes! Putting away the head!

  Windy, so the leaves are about gone.  :(

Who would come to work with a broken leg?

Same guy who drives a jag to work!

Combine head caught fire twice!

No treat?  Take that!

Tiling the Thompson farm

Soooooo GOOD TO BE DONE!  

Carry on.....

Plenty of breakdowns this fall, but it went well yesterday.  Parker got to visit and rode with Grandpa in the truck.  He loved it as he could actually see out the windows.  Kids love spring planting and fall harvest.  Someday I will ask Lynn some questions so I have more to offer than just fluff!

Sampling the soybeans to test moisture.

Dumping beans at the coop...

Parker digs Grandpa's truck.

Fertilizer is kept here.

How you know if someone is in front of you!

Wasn't happy about me visiting.

Poor thing should have been shorn this year.  Not ours!  We don't do sheep.

Hawks love fieldwork. Sends the rodents out.

Shorts with big pockets on a hot day!

Grandpa and Parker checked out the creek.