Tag: hay bales

Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch…

All good things must come to an end – even Epic Adventures. At some point you need to come home and face reality.

In my case, reality included yet another mountain to climb – Mount Laundry. It was almost as scary as Teton Pass! Almost.

In the last few days we’ve all tried to adjust to getting back to school, back to work, and back to a schedule.

But the affects of the trip can still be seen.

Take Buddy.

At 9 years old he weighs about 60 pounds dripping wet.  Yet, one afternoon he was walking past Matt’s boxing bag in the basement and gave it a kick – just like his brothers do – before coming upstairs.

A few minutes later we heard a crash – the whole thing had fallen down! The solid metal hanger split in half!

Could his legs have gotten that strong on our epic hikes?! I guess we now have a Bionic Boy!

Speaking of strength – Angel Girl went to open the microwave door to heat up some lunch and the handle cracked in her hands.

Then there are the times I wondered just what my kids were thinking!

One child put a brand new carton of sour cream in the freezer.

Another (who shall remain nameless to protect his male ego) was shadow boxing with himself in the bathroom and miscalculated – hitting the mirror and cracking one of the hangers holding it on the wall. It’s a wonder he didn’t crack the mirror or his hand!

But the prize goes to Pedro.

He was sent out to move the hay bales.  This task involves driving the tractor up to the bale, backing up to it to spear it with the bale hook, and driving it off to line it up neatly with the other bales until they are needed.

Normally he does a great job with this. Key word – normally.

But on this afternoon – he had issues.

He put the tractor in the ditch – AND HE TIPPED IT OVER!

And to think I worried about him climbing mountains!

Thankfully he wasn’t injured and Dad was able to flip it upright and pull it out of the ditch.

The jury is still out on how expensive the damage will be to the tractor.

You know – after a week like this – I think I’m ready for a vacation!

Make Hay While the Sun Shines

We had a beautiful week! The farmers finally got into the fields and we were able to get tomatoes and peppers (both hot and sweet) in the garden. Then we took a few days to work inside cleaning the pantry and the storage room.

Although they were both in desperate need of a deep cleaning, we should have spent those three days pushing hard to get the rest of the garden in.
Round Hay Bale At Dawn
The old adage “make hay while the sun shines” is quite true. Farmers know that when the conditions are right for making hay they need to do it! They drop everything and focus on what is important, the hay crop. Once the rain comes, their crop is ruined.

Our conditions were right for planting. The garden was dry, the mulch was on and the sun was shining. We had planned to spend Thursday in the garden since the forecast was for rain later in the evening. Instead, the rain arrived at day break and changed everything.

We have since had a storm every morning for the past three days with heavy rains in the forecast over the weekend. We’ve had over an inch and a half of rain in the last 24 hours, with more on the way. It will take some time for the garden to dry out after that.

So, I have a clean storage room and pantry, but the seeds I purchased to feed my family are still sitting on the shelf and not in the garden growing. That was a mistake.

Did I learn a lesson in this? Oh yes! I realized that once again I had let the urgent take the place of the important. My priorities were mixed up.

That happens a lot in life doesn’t it? House work seems more important than reading to the children. Making supper trumps taking the time to listen to the woes of a seven-year-old. Checking emails takes priority over spending time in the Word.

I remember reading the story of a busy mom with several little ones. She had a fussy one who just wanted to be held, but she needed to get a meal on the table. So, with a little one hanging on her leg, she proceeded with the meal preparations.

A few minutes she looked down and saw that her child had actually fallen asleep sitting on her foot and hanging on to her leg.

Her heart was broken. She turned the burners off and lifted her precious sleeping baby into her arms for some cuddling.

So often the urgent things around us; the laundry, the dishes, the bills, the messes; all keep us from the truly important things in life; time with our husband, our children, and our Lord.

What’s important in your life today? Don’t let the urgent take the place of the important.

Make hay while the sun shines!