Hay

The main theme of our summer has been hay baling. Ramont and my dad (and, on occasion, I) have mowed, raked, baled, loaded, and unloaded between 4000 and 5000 bales of grass hay this summer. Ramont gets the prize for lifting every single one of those at least once, often twice.

Alas, I don't have pictures to illustrate the whole process. Here are just a few.
The first two are taken beside the fields we rent near Delft.

This was a common morning sight on my folks' yard: several racks waiting to be unloaded before it gets too hot.

This year we discovered that unloading hay is a great family affair. The baling itself doesn't work so well, since the kids would have to be either on the rack (no room) or running alongside the trailer for miles at a time. So, Oma has been a patient babysitter.

All those bales are stored in various sites around the area, and will get sold throughout the year to private individuals or at area hay auctions.

One recent morning we put a few loads into the barn where we live.

It sure smells nice in there now!

Another job done.

Random kiddie photos

This post is one that only grandparents could love...it's really just about our kids.

And lest you might think that Jonathan and Anna play together beautifully all summer day long, I should disclose that at the moment J is sobbing because A is playing with a doll. I don't even want to know why.

Jonathan consults the plans to fix the firetruck, while Anna holds the nail in place with her toes.

One morning Jonathan made a beeline for the tractor catalogs, found this poster he remembered, and we hung it up as a poster in his room.

If you look really hard, you might see the wee little dollhouse TV they're "watching."

Lounging in their cousins' chairs, playing with their cousins' toys.

New hitches for all the tractors.

Waiting for company.

Waiting for church (pretending to ride the horse and buggy there?).

Anna models her new dress made by cousin Noelle and Grandma Schrock.

Anna pulls Jonathan's ear.

Too good to be true, obviously.

 A little more like it.

Tarts I made for a good friend's baby shower.

If at all you like tractors...

...this post is perfect for you.

In fact, that's pretty much all it is.

 Standing while mowing, like daddy and Opa do.

[These tractors all belong to our landlords, who kindly let these monkeys climb all over them.]

I've been negligent in posting pictures about the main activity around here for the last month: hay baling.

Almost 3000 bales have been made from ditch hay so far, and Ramont has stacked almost every one of those twice! Luckily he really likes the work.

I help out when I can -- which is not nearly as much as I'd like to, for whatever reasons. Mainly, though, I just pose for pictures.

Seven years

Seven years after getting married, we can both say we couldn't be more content with life. What a match!

Another cousin visit

I must say from the outset that all these photos have been heisted from my sister-in-law, Rachel, who is also the mother of the two youngest cutie pies in most of them.

They and my brother Dave came from Kansas last week for a much-anticipated visit. What fun to see how the twins have grown...they're walking! And (almost) talking!

Our kids had been looking forward to this visit so so much. I don't know if it fully lived up to their expectations (does it ever?) and there was a lot of parallel (rather than together) play, but all told they do love their cousins a LOT.

(They just don't like for their cousins to ride this particular trike/tractor.)

Drew especially seems to be a farmyard kind of kid. Those sheep were like a magnet to him. Is he the son of a vet or something?

Playing with water was a special treat.

As were some fancy toys we had on hand just for the occasion.

 This cannot be other than David's son.

Fingers getting nipped.

The line-up of Russian Swissys.

 With Opa.

Yerba-slurping was a common refreshment, as usual.

Riding in Opa's big tractor.

Learning to share. And color-coordinate.

 This is definitely Rachel's daughter.

 Here's to many more summer visits from twin cousins!

And a final round of Reere gret, reere gret... for the road.

A dream come true

About a month ago, Ramont told me during morning mate that he really didn't NEED that chainsaw he's been hankering for since we moved here. This after my Father's Day gift to him was that he could buy it (we sure know how to express love through gifts around here, ha ha).

That very night, a storm blew over no less than five big trees in the pasture. Luckily none of them hit the machine shed, the cows, or even the fence. But it was a mess back there.

And that was definitely reason enough for Ramont to finally go buy that chainsaw.

Let's just say he put it to extremely good use over the next many days and many, many hours.

Next on the wish list?

A wood burning stove.