July Happenings...So Far

It has been my goal to get out and do more this summer. I think I'm succeeding at it and I've even been able to drag Ben along with us at times.

Here's Helena and I kayaking on Lake Ewauna.
My Mom, Hannah, Helena, Grandpa, Uncle, Aunt and cousins went for a day of kayaking on Orr Lake.

The view of Mt. Shasta from Orr Lake.

Daddy and Hannah fishing at Little Medicine Lake.

Helena sleeping at Medicine Lake.

Hannah scaring all the fish away at Medicine Lake.

Swimming with Uncle Jared and Cousin Waytt at Medicine Lake.

View from the south end of Surprise Valley (A.K.A God's Country)

Annie Lake where we spent an afternoon fishing.

Hannah sharing her Goldfish with her new friend Ty. These were the only fish to be had at the lake. The were jumping right in front of us but we couldn't catch them...frustrating!

After a Hard Day's Work

I guess we should try to teach her the proper way to care for her hat. A good start might be to wear it frontwards.

Who me? Work? It's my job to eat, sleep, make dirty diapers and give out as many smiles as I can.

Alfalfa Field (Part 5)

Now that we are back to irrigating the field I thought I would share with you some of the pictures of what that involves.

This is where our water comes from. OK, that's kind of like saying milk comes from Safeway and not cows, but I think you know what I mean. Our water is delivered by a system that includes storage and delivery canals that was developed in the early 1900s. Virtually all of the farmed land in our area is irrigated either through the system in the link above or by wells.

In the bottom right hand corner of this picture is a head gate. The water flows through the head gate and then into a pipe to get under the road.

Next the water flows into the sump. That's the big shiny, round thing you see. It flows out of the sump and into the pumps. They are a dark blue-green color. We have two 50 hp pumps but only use one of them to irrigate the field right now. By the time the water has gotten to the pumps is has been screened or filtered four times. The water that comes down the ditch is nasty! It is filtered one more time before it is pushed out of the pump and into the reddish colored pipe in the background of the picture.

Here's the pipe up close. We call this the mainline. Right near the pump the mainline goes underground. The water is transported underground 1/4 mile down the field to a valve system that is 1/4 mile long.

I attach the wheel lines to the valves/risers and turn on the pumps. It takes me 5 1/2 days to run the wheel lines all the way across the field. I only had to run them across once before first cutting but I'm going to have to do it two times before we get to cut the hay again.

Hannah and Helena had their maiden voyage in the hay squeeze today...with MOMMY! Ben needed to go directly from raking hay to squeezing hay and had taken his pickup with him. We offered up our services and got his squeeze to him this morning. They weren't sure what to think of it but were very good riders.

First Time on the Swather

Since 2003 we have rented out our field to farmers in the area. This year we decided we wanted to take a more active role in farming our ground. We have been working with Laurence Bagg to establish our field to alfalfa. Today was the day to swath the first cutting! Hannah and I spent several hours on the swather today. We got to see the fruits of our labor since we did get to run the wheel lines across six times since the middle of May. It was her first time ever on the swather and my first time for this year. We had fun. Hannah sat on my lap and watched while I drove and she took a little cat nap in her car seat. It seems like she will make a good rider in the future. Notice the dark sky in the background. It looks a little like thunder showers. Hopefully the hay doesn't get rained on tonight. I also posted a bonus picture of Hannah doing tummy time after we got in from the field.

Hannah's Dedication to Christ

Today at Malin Baptist Church with Claude Hagerty officiating we dedicated Hannah to Christ. Hannah Grace literally means "grace grace." The hymns and songs were sung about grace and Jesus' little lambs. Claude's sermon was also about God's grace and forgiveness. It was a very special morning. We were joined by family and friends in this special occasion. We appreciate those that wanted to come but couldn't and instead sent their thoughts and prayers.

Lunch After Hannah's Dedication

We had lunch today at our house after Hannah's dedication. Hannah's name means "grace" so Grandma Mary had a special cake made for her special day. Every one pitched in and helped make it a special day. We had a good turn out and were glad to be able to visit with our family and friends.

Four Generations on Mommy's Side (Cheyne)

Here is a picture of the four generations on Mommy's side. Great Grandma Bonnie, Grandpa Lee, Erika & Hannah.

Four Generations on Daddy's Side (Branstrom/DuVal)

Here are the four generations on Daddy's side of the family. Great Grandpa Bob, Great Grandma Doris, Grandma Bevie, Uncle Jared, Wyatt, and Hannah. Hannah and Wyatt got to spend some time together for the first time. They don't get to see each other very often and we were glad they could come up for a visit. Where was Ben? Out working hard to keep food on our table. We are proud of him and all of his hard work. We appreciated that he could spend a little time with us today at lunch but are sure he didn't mind not getting his picture taken!

Little Cowgirl in a Ten Gallon Hat

Ok...maybe not ten gallons but it's a bit big for her head. Uncle Jared, Aunt Ivy, and Wyatt got her this cute little hat and we couldn't resist taking a picture of her in it. It fits on her head but doesn't really fit. Looks like Hannah's ready to ride!

I guess this should have been part of my original comments. Here's what my Mom said in one of the comments. "There's a little more to the cowgirl story than Erika is fessin' up to or maybe she just didn't want to bore people. I went down Friday to help her clean house (for Sunday's bash) and we got to talkin' about how neither of us played with dolls much as little girls. She preferred playing with tractors and I went around with six-shooters strapped on each hip. Well, somewhere right smack dab in the middle of all of our spittin' and shinin' we decided to take care of some unfinished childhood business and play "dress-up baby doll" (the cleaning could wait) but all we had to play with was Hannah. First we put the cow girl hat on her - that was cute - and I took a few pictures of her. Then we decided to see if she had a pair of overalls that would fit. Erika looked through Hannah's great big closet of teeny tiny clothes and found a pair. Of course we had to drag the saddle out and ... (the waving hand to you all was Hannah's idea) I wanted to keep going and paint her toenails but after briefly considering, Erika decided she was not willing to paint that toxin on Hannah's toenails even though I assured her it would be only long enough to take a picture and then we would take it off. (Besides, the house wasn't cleaning itself while we were off playing.) Now you know the rest of the story! "

Gator Baby

Hannah was all decked out as a little farm girl hanging out in the John Deere Gator. It won't be too long before this becomes her favorite ride and kicks Daddy out of the driver's seat.