Hay, we're almost done!

Well, this certainly has been a neglected blog all summer. But that does not seem to be too unusual - most of the blogs I like to read have also only had about half of an update in the same time.

We've been making hay. A lot of hay. Ramont is the one who has touched each and every bale twice (or more), while my dad and I fill in driving tractor and helping to unload.

Last week we baled the newly-planted alfalfa fieldlets at the Barge land near Butterfield. The harvest wasn't exactly bountiful, but we did get about 2.5 loads to put into the barn at our place.

The weather has been sunny, hot and dry - perfect for baling and a picnic with fresh sweet corn while Ramont was raking.

These alfalfa bales were the heaviest bales I have ever, ever lifted. By the end of the second load I felt ready to puke (for real), and so we saved the last one for the next day. Then Saturday we put two big loads of wheat straw bales into the loft and it felt like tossing up marshmallows.

Many of the ditch grass bales are stored here on the "Schultz" yard; the hay loft of the barn on my folks' yard is also full. Altogether Ramont has made around 5,000 bales so far this summer. He's pretty much done now, save for a few nice ditches that he might cut again if we get more rain.

Good thing we finished, because my brother Willmar and his family were here last week!

We spent one afternoon at Mound Creek county park, which is by far our favorite place to swim and hang out.

The cousins got along swimmingly, especially Jonathan with the youngest two boys. It's such fun to watch them running all over the farm yard together.

Our garden is coming along nicely. We've had lots of beans and carrots lately, with cukes, tomatoes and peppers starting to trickle in.

This year we tilled up a new patch on the other side of the raspberries, in which are growing the melons, squash/etc this year. I know/knew it was too small a patch for all those vines, but I just couldn't help myself.

And one final picture: Anna drawing portraits of the cousins.