Catching Up

The week before this past week we worked on harvesting soybeans most of the week.  Light rains caused us to switch back to corn for a couple of days.

Last weekend we spent a blessed day of worship and fellowship in Princeville at the Illinois Potluck.  I always enjoy visiting with old friends and catching up with their lives.  We took Dad, Mom, and Aunt Pearl with us and we got them to church a little later than they are used to. :)

Monday, we worked on soybeans again and finished our last field.  We then switched the combine back to corn and entered the harvest home stretch.

Monday night, I let the old farmer's lovely wife turn on the furnace for the first time this fall.  She said the temperature in the house was in the fifties.  Just like camping.

Tuesday morning we welcomed 540 head of 3 week old weaner pigs to the farm.  We got them all settled in to their new home and then it was back out to the field.

Not only was it a good apple year, it was also a good walnut year.  Since I have not gotten around to cutting down the walnut tree over our driveway, I still have to do a lot of walnut kicking several times a day.  Something unusual happened with the walnut tree this year.  I would say about 75% of all the leaves (most still green) dropped in a 24 hour period.  Since walnut leaves are compound, it made for quite a carpet under the tree.  It reminded me of the Ginkgo trees on campus at both ICC and U of I.  I loved the way they dropped their unique fan shaped leaves all at one time.

We harvested the corn in the field that the pipeline split in half.  Most of the pipe is buried, but the piles of black dirt are still blocking the way.  Again, we had to cross a neighbor's field to get to the back half of ours.  I saw the first pheasants of the season in that corn field; one cock and three hens.

Saturday night was the Eureka Home Benefit Dinner.  I stayed in the field as long as I could, so I didn't get in on the preparation work that I was supposed to help with.  Apparently they got along just fine without me, because it went off without a hitch.  I did stay after to help clean up and take down.  I was the only male at our table, but I survived, and even enjoyed the conversations.

After a full week, I was thankful today for a day of rest.

Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest: in earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest.
Exodus 34:21