Nope…not today. We thought we might get to start later this afternoon but it just didn’t happen. And, it wasn’t because we weren’t ALL anxious to get started.

Jim and I are helping another harvester on this first job of ours. The other harvester is a longtime friend of ours (Delane and Travis Reimer) whom we’ve known for over 20 years. Our kids played together when we reached the Chappell, Nebraska area. There were always a whole slug of kids at that stop – Zeorian’s, Krumbach’s, Reimer’s, Trummel’s, Slattery’s and more. It was the stop the kids looked most forward to (except Jordan, MT) because there were friends to get together with. There were times when the kids were all together in one trailer and the old folks were in another. Rain days were most looked forward to in Chappell so we could gather together for a meal and friend time.

I haven’t been around Travis for quite some time and have gained a whole new respect for the young man – and dad – that he has become. The little boy that I remember torturing his sister and the other girls has turned into a fine adult! The first time I met his little girl, Harleigh Jo, she melted my heart. I am having a real difficult time getting her to warm up to me! I think I may have made a few points this afternoon, though, by sharing my cherry limeade, blowing bubbles with her AND drawing pictures with chalk on the sidewalk. I think I MIGHT be gaining ground.

Today’s weather just wouldn’t allow any cutting in our area. We took four different samples beginning at 12:30. The final moisture test was taken about 6:00 p.m. and it was 14%. The elevator employees said, “NO – cut tomorrow”. So, that’s what we’ll do (hopefully). I will share with you pictures from today:

Jim’s scratching around making sure the combine isn’t leaving an excess of grain on the ground. It was not.

Meet Harleigh Jo 🙂

A true harvester’s kid! Eating wheat straight from the combine is the BEST!

Time to check out the chairs for a while. You just have to do it when you can because once the wheat’s ready to cut – there’s no time to relax and enjoy each other’s tales.