empty nesters

We moved Ashley into college last Tuesday and life around here is undergoing quite a bit of change. No longer do we hear the long tales of who is doing what to who; no longer do we hear someone jump out of bed singing; no longer do we daily enjoy that smile. Will have to rediscover who we are.

We have been quite busy this summer and I have not kept up with this blog very much. I also started up on facebook and got involved in getting reacquainted with old friends. I will start to post in here again if I get any indication that anyone looks at this.

Later,

Laura

Oh Oh!!!

Well, Ashley was driving, she had a car accident on September 18th. Now the family is busy trying to repair a 2002 VW Beetle that rear ended a suburban with a trailer hitch. What a mess!! We are certainly thankful for air bags and seat belts, because Ashley was not hurt at all!! Needless to say, the suburban was able to drive away. We have most of our winterizing chores done and now are really beginning to work on the car. As you can see in the pictures, the trailer hitch on the suburban rammed into the section to the right of the motor. Luckily, the motor was not hurt much - there is a small crack in the intake manifold, which we are hoping can be TIG welded. We have started the tear down and determination of what all needs to be replaced. So far we have quite a list - the front body, AC condenser, power steering fluid resevoir, coolant pipe and flange, ignition coil and wiring, headlights, etc. What a project!!

We're Growing Up in this House!!

Remember the infamous "red, white, and blue" bedroom?

A work in progress!!!

Sunday was Ashley's sixteenth birthday!! We had a celebration with some of her friends on Saturday. And the indicators of maturity are happening all over the place. Even as I write, Dick and Ashley are signing up to get her insured to drive, as she passed her driving test this morning. Wanted to send you some pictures of the "new" look for the bedroom. If you note in these pictures, even the hair has changed. There will also be a change on the sports front - Ashley has decided to return to swimming this year. So many changes.

Hay Harvest Over

Looking south from loft ladder

Looking north from loft ladder

Here's what it looks like when we are all done! We have already sold 3 tons of hay and have the entire barn loaded - much more than the horses will need. We only do one cutting in the summer and turn the horses out to pasture after that time and through most of the winter. The hay in the barn is to supplement their pasture feedings, for bad weather times, and during the hay growing season (April - July).

Hay Harvest

Dick checking out the height of this grass!

Laura pitchforking the windrows.

This year's hay harvest yielded about 11 tons of grass hay off of our 7 acre field; the wonders of adding a load of fertilizer!! The harvest was delayed and then interrupted by unusual late June and early July rains. This year has been quite wet. But we got 'er done. We both swath and bale our field and the field of our neighbor (using his tractor to run the baler). Then the neighbor helps with loading both ours and his hay into the respective barns. We did hire two hands to help us get all the hay into the barns (about 24 tons total) this year. Ashley does help with the process and is getting to be pretty good at bucking bales; unfortunately, she took the pictures and we don't have one of her. It was a great year, but alot of work!! Here are some shots of the operation.

Summer Projects

I am really behind on my postings!! Sorry about that, summer just ends up with one thing after another happening, and getting to the computer is fairly low on the priority list. Here are some shots inside the house. Sometimes projects just come through the inspiration of more rain than usual outside, causing us to stare at the walls a little too much.