We Are Done

As of today, we are officially done with harvest.  Bill & Tim got done with anhydrous today, and I ripped the last field.  We got done combining Thurs. evening just before the elevator closed.  I was right behind the combine ripping that field when Bill's brother Jim got here so he took over.  Then he ripped the bean field end rows over the weekend.  Now all of the equipment has to be power washed and put away before the snow starts although we did have an inch one day last week.

We had a fairly warm but windy day yesterday so I got busy and took out window screens and scrubbed them and our outdoor chairs and things to get them put away clean.  Also cut off iris leaves and some other perennials.  I'd like to get a few windows washed but supposedly rain is coming in the next couple of days so maybe it's a good thing I haven't gotten to them yet. 

the anhydrous rig - long!

corn peeking above the top of the combine

our last harvest meal made for us by Aunt Bette Jo

the snow we had already last week

Harvest News

With snow in the forecast for Tues., all the farmers around here quickly switched from combining corn back to beans.  The corn can hold up better than the beans if snowed on so trying to get the beans done.

I got caught up with the ripping today.  My goal was to be done by 6:00 so I could get home to watch Sunday Night Football tonight.  It's the Colts vs. the Broncos.  In case you don't know, the long time Colts quarterback, Peyton Manning, now plays for the Broncos.  Should be an exciting game!!  Mom tells me that all the Indy area hotels are booked and fountains were being dyed blue downtown.  One of my friends said "everyone" had on their blue Colts shirts today.  I did too here in Iowa but I was the only one here! 

Today I finished Tim's field and then moved to a 40 acre field.  I got both done right at 6:00!  Then had to drive the tractor to Tim's house, grab our pickup and go to another field where Bill had started combining beans to wait for Tim to get there with the tractor and grain cart.  Then I dropped him off at our bin site where a semi was that he needed to take to Bill's mom's bean field where Bill will go after he finishes the other field.  Farming involves lots of moving!  I got home about 6:45.  Bill plans to combine as long as he can depending on the moisture tonight or until trucks are full.

It got very windy this evening which made 50 degrees feel cold.  

Yesterday I had my great niece riding with me all day.  She loved it and learned a lot!

Rain - Finally!!!

We're on a rain delay - we FINALLY got a decent rain Sunday night - .8" at our house.    Yesterday Bill went to Algona to the U.S. Cellular store, and I went to Ft. Dodge to Walmart.  He has a new Bluetooth so he can answer his many phone calls handsfree when he's combining and has been having a problem with the volume going all the way to Low after every call which is not good when you have loud equipment noise.  (I have to say that I don't call him near as much this fall!)  It seems that this Bluetooth has a "safety feature" that does this to protect your hearing.  They're sending out a new one to try, but we don't think it's going to work either.

Then Bill and Tim worked on switching corn around in the grain bins.  Last year we didn't use our grain bins at all which is unusual, because the corn was so dry when combined due to the drought that it didn't need to be dried in the bins.  This year the storage prices at the elevator are high so we're storing in our grain bins.  Using the bins adds quite a bit more work.  For one thing, they have to be checked all the time which means climbing a bad, flat little ladder to the top.  You can get stairs with railings to hold onto that go around the bin to the top but they're very expensive. 

The next step on the shed was done recently.  Bill hired Midwest Spray Foam to spray foam insulation in our shed.  I think it took two days.  Now Bill can put the steel "walls" up this winter after he gets insulation above the ceiling. 

fun picture

insulation up close

  

Almost Life Changing

This is kind of a silly post and maybe I'm the only one that didn't know this, but did you know that you can freeze raisins and marshmallows???  I just found this out this summer and I'm so excited!!!!  No more wasted half bags of stuck together  marshmallows or 3/4 of a box of dry wasted raisins!!   

This morning I opened a new box of Raisin Bran cereal and you know how all the raisins are always at the bottom of the box?  I poured some cereal in my bowl and saw that only about two raisins came out with all the cereal flakes so I got my raisins out of the freezer and added some - perfect!!  I love being able to pull out part of a bag of marshmallows that I've had 'several months' maybe and be able to add them to something like apple salad or pineapple-cheese salad!  I bet I'll be able to freeze the half bag or so we have left of HUGE Campfire brand marshmallows that we toast for dessert when we use the charcoal grill, and next spring they'll be like new!  I hope this helps somebody else out there!

We had a relaxing rain day yesterday and got to watch the NASCAR race and the Broncos game.  We didn't get that much rain, but it was coming down lightly for quite a while.  Enough to keep me from ripping until later today.  The sun is out so it will just take a little time to dry the ground enough.  The combine may be able to run earlier.  We're almost halfway done with corn, and have not combined any beans yet.

I had a cute little rider with me for a little bit Sat. - Diane's little one.  She loves combines and tractors so last year she rode with Bill and me in the combine but was scared.  She thought riding in the tractor was fun but a little scary since it's bumpy.  The first thing she said to her mom when her mom opened the door to get her out was "I had fun Mommy"!     

Uh Oh - Door Damage

We had had warnings of severe weather coming for a couple of days.  Last night we did get a very small amount of rain - about a tenth - and had strong wind for about a minute and a just a little hail.  The worst of the storm, including a tornado, missed us.  

This morning when Tim got here to take a load of corn to town, he noticed that the bottom of our south shed door was bent in!  Not good, especially when the combine is inside!  It turns out that when they installed the doors they forgot to put in the bottom bolt on both sides.  Bill has called the door company and insurance and was able to get the combine out the east door.  Two of my big flower pots were blown over.

They finished the combining the last load from here at our house and have moved to the next field north of Bill's mom's.  After lunch at Tim & Bette Jo's, I hope to get back to ripping if it's dry enough by then.  The sun is out so it should be.  I'm now a field and a half behind the combine.

I took these pictures with my old camera so I hope you can click on them to make them bigger.

You can see that these doors have some "pockets" that are coming loose too!  The company says they're having a problem with doors and hope to have it figured out and a new one to us in the spring!  

bent rail inside

to keep it from swaying in

Bill started building one of the lofts just before we started combining.  The heating guy also came and and hooked up the gas for heating.  I have another post to do showing the guys doing the spray foam insulation - the green stuff.  

Recipe - Frozen Fruit Cups

At a P.E.O. meeting a few months ago, one of the ladies served this Frozen Fruit Cup, and I really liked them.  She was nice enough to give me the recipe.  I've recently made two batches of them.

The first was for a meal I made to serve at our Farmers' Market a couple of weeks ago.  Our market manager, Beth, likes to line up a meal to be served each week at the market.  We have lots of widowed and/or single folks in town that especially like to be able to pick up a home cooked meal.  Sometimes groups will do the meal as a fundraiser.   Beth was needing more meals this market season so I volunteered to do one.  I made and served chicken & noodles, homemade butterhorn rolls, frozen fruit cups and chocolate chip oatmeal cookies.  My friend Terri came to keep me company and help serve.  We served 40 meals with the proceeds donated to the Farmers' Market for advertising, etc.

These fruit cups are nice to have on hand.  It seems like people don't eat enough fruit so these make it easy to have some with a meal.  I set a couple out when I start making a meal, and by the time we eat, they're slushy perfect.  

FROZEN FRUIT CUPS                                      makes 25 - 5 oz. servings

(include all juices with fruit)
3 - 15 oz. cans apricot halves in heavy syrup, cut in sm. pieces
2 - 8 oz. cans crushed pineapple
1 - 8 oz. can pineapple tidbits, cut up
1 - 12 oz. can frozen orange juice, NOT DILUTED
1 T. lemon juice or Real Lemon
6 mashed bananas
1/3 c. sugar

Mix all.  Freeze in 5 oz. cups.  Makes 25. 
 ** I found this size plastic cups and lids at our party supply store.

     

Recent Cards I've Made

A little bit of a rain delay this morning.  We got .04" and it quit.  Just enough to make the ground too sticky to do anything right now, but the sun is trying to come out.  

There are a ton of people we know with Oct. birthdays, a friend  got married this past weekend and friends had a baby so I've had several cards to make lately.  Thought I'd share them here.
 

wedding card - the wedding colors were lavender and purple

baby card - cute popping out of the pumpkin!

birthday card

I still have another birthday and congrats to Grandma and Grandpa to make.

All products used are Stampin' Up!  Order from me 24/7 through my web site above (www.cindykemna.stampinup.net) or contact me to order for you.   The main catalog and holiday catalogs can be seen online on my web site.

Here We Go!

Sunrise from the kitchen window.

I love watching for pretty sunrises and sunsets!  Yesterday was our first day of combining this season and it started off with a really nice sunrise.  Our alarm goes off at 6:00 during Harvest.  We're spoiled and don't like waking up when it's dark, but if I get to see a sunrise like this, it makes it worth getting up early.

We started in a field of corn that's about 94 acres.  It's completely done as of today, and we've moved to the next one across the road.   With the wet spring we had, most of the crops got planted late.  It's unusual to be combining corn before the beans but the beans are just not ready yet.  The elevator is closing at 6:00 so we can only work after that until our semis and grain cart are full.  The guys take the trucks to the elevator in the morning when it opens at 7 a.m. and then we can get started again.  

The ripping job that I do after the combining is done can usually be done about any time night or day.  Last night I stayed out until about 9:00.  I don't like being out there after dark much.  It's hard to see what you're doing, and I don't like walking to the vehicle in the dark (yep, I have a flashlight).  So far (knock on wood) things are going much better for me this season.  I'm not nervous any more (except driving on the road), and I can even back up!   My corners still need some work.  Maybe by the time we're done this year . . .

Combine almost full - the corn is peaking out of the top.

  
I got caught up with ripping so was off this afternoon.  I did a couple blog posts and scheduled them to post in the next few days.  Thanks for reading.