Every year we haul corn out of the grain bins in December or January to the elevator. The kids are always giddy about pushing their favorite shovel to move corn, as you will see in the video. Usually the weather is bitterly cold but emptying the last bin the beginning of this Jan. was unusually warm.
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Here is the video from last year. You can see the difference in the kids’ sizes in just one year. They eat lots of beef.
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Well, Monday coulda been the day we finished. We had started the last field of beans late Saturday afternoon. The weather was warmish. We whittled away at the last 160 acres for the next couple of days. With the elevator staying open ’til 8:pm, we could get quite a bit done in a day. But it started getting cloudy late Monday morning. NOAA kept increasing the chance of rain from 30% to 70%. By 3:pm it started raining and we had to quit with 20 acres left of the 2011 harvest season. Then we’ve had drizzle for the next two days to keep us out.
BigGreenCombine ran this skunk out of the beans. Lots of critters in the field
The drillers came and did what they do best and put a 140′ hole in the ground for our new well. They said it was good for 90 gallons/minute. William is just giddy about having water.
William is holding sand that came up like it's gold. He's going to bottle it. (not kidding)
The picture above was early in the morning. The picture below was what was left after they did their magic. They were pumping air down the hole to bring up water ’til it ran clear. So we had a 6ft fountain in our hay field.
Next time you see William congratulate him on his new well. I think he would pass out cigars if he had any. Below is the video we made for his blog.
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A Week in the Life of My Farm Family
We are a family of 5 (William, me, and 3 kids; 16, 14, & 13 yo). The following is what we did this past week in addition to the daily cattle chores and school work.
Wednesday May 4:
Cultivated ground- 65 acres; planted corn – 170 acres; evening Planning Commission meeting
Thursday May 5:
Helped two heifers have calves; Planted corn – 105 acres; Artificial Inseminated a heifer and cow; Rained; evening Zoning meeting
Friday, May 6:
fields too wet; did book work; washed show heifers; after ground dried planted corn – 15 acres; hauled manure
Saturday, May 7:
cultivated 22 acre field then moved to another field to work gulleys; planted corn in two fields – 90 acres; cleaned the barn; hauled manure
Sunday, May 8: Mother’s Day
After church cultivated 29 acres; planted corn 120 acres
Monday, May 9: Wedding Anniversary
Assisted cow having a calf; planted corn 65 acres; replanted corn on sections of two fields; hauled manure; Artificial inseminated a heifer; went out to eat for anniversary
Tuesday, May 10:
Double disked 30 acres corn stalks where cows over-wintered; planted the field; replanted section of another field; worked on cattle fence; hauled manure; washed show heifers; drained Buttercup’s udder
Wednesday, May 11:
Made 3 trips to pick up more seed corn for replant; replanted on sections of 2 fields; hauled manure; trimmed hair on weaned heifers; washed show heifers; had a rain shower; electricity went out because of storm to the north; went out to eat because couldn’t cook and celebrate finishing corn planting & replant
Thursday, May 12:
Picked up load of soy bean seed; switched planter units over to beans; ect.
Like the socks that are eaten by the washing machine, there are four things (sometimes more) that never seem to make it back to where they belong.
4. Sharp knife: We keep large pocket knives in the tractors that move the round bales. Before we put bales in for the cows, we cut the wrap off of them. Last time a few bales were put in, I got a phone call: “Send one of the kids out with a knife. There isn’t one in this cab.”
3. 1/2 in. wrench: For some reason this size wrench is never to be found on or near the equipment that is being worked on. But if someone goes to another shed, a fist full of them are within a few steps of each other.
2. Duct Tape: This one might be unique to this family. The duct tape roll (or rolls) are always hard to put our hands on. We even have a pink roll that can be difficult to find.
1. Pliers: These win the most elusive prize. We could buy a pair of pliers every trip to Big R or Tractor Supply ;and we’d still never have a set on hand when we need them. I believe pliers do have legs that carry them out of tool boxes never to return.
With five of us (six if you count grandpa) running here and there, grabbing tools we need for whatever project we are working on; it is no wonder we can’t find things. At least once a week you can hear someone complain: ” Put it back where it belongs when you’re done!”
Do you have things that “have legs” around your place?
