A City Girl's Description of Beet Harvest

It is October, which for us means sugar beet harvest.  The quickest way I can describe sugar beet harvest is by showing you this video. 

 

 

What do you think?!  It's "a classic" from Sesame Street.  You can thank me later when you have that song stuck in your head for weeks straight.

 

Sugar beets are planted in the spring and given lots of TLC all summer long until October 1st when the 24-hour-a-day "beet campaign" (beet harvest) officially begins.

 

My husband, his dad, plus approximately 10 other hired men (or women) work around the clock to harvest the beets.....as long as the weather is good.  Too warm, and the beets could rot when piled up.  Too cold, and the beets could freeze.  Too rainy, and the trucks can't get in and out of the fields because of the mud.

 

Back in the field, the process goes as follows:  A tractor pulling a 'rotobeater' (or 'topper') first cuts the leaves off, as shown in the beginning of the video.  Another tractor pulling the 'lifter' follows that.  The lifter grabs the beets from the ground.  It has a conveyer which brings the beets through a 'ferris-wheel' to knock off some of the mud or dirt and eventually fills a truck with beets.

 

The trucks haul the beets either straight to the sugar plant or to a 'piler' (piling station), depending on how far away the field is from the plant.  There is a plant in our nearby town, so our trucks transport to both the plant or to a piler.  Sometimes, there can be a long wait at the piler when the trucks are backed up, so truck drivers often bring something to pass the time, such as a smartphone, a book to read, or they could learn how to play the trumpet like my cousin did!

 

Ever since I have lived here, we have hosted my dad, uncles, cousins, friends and friends-of-friends at our house who have come to help during beet harvest.  My husband and our guests are often scheduled to work the night shift, which means they sleep during the day.  Have you ever tried to keep two kiddos quiet in the middle of the day while they are cooped in the house?  Not an easy feat!

 

If the weather cooperates and there are minimal break-downs, we could finish harvesting beets in two weeks.  Last year, however, beet harvest started out with a couple 70-degree days, which meant it was too warm to dig.  Just a day later, winter entered with a BANG and an ice storm hit the area.  The fields became too sloppy and the root temperature of the beets was too cold.  Much of the county did not have power for a few days, including us.

 

You could say we consider this storm a blessing in disguise for our family, because one year ago today our lil' sugar beet, Reed, was born and his daddy got to have some time off work to be at the hospital.  When we returned home with our new baby, the weather continued to be disgusting for much of October and November, so unfortunately some of our beets never made it out of the field.  Last year was considered a worst case scenario.

 

But so far this season, there was only a 12-hour delay on the first day due to high temps, and harvest has been going strong ever since.  [Knock on wood.]  Let's pray that it continues to go smoothly and safely!
 

 

If you ever have the chance to drive past a sugar plant and take in the distinct odor, I will tell you the same thing J told me years ago- "That's the smell of money!"

 

One last plug from this farm wife:  When given the choice at your grocery store, show us some love by purchasing the sugar that looks like this:

 

Handy

A bolt on the lawn mower broke off while mowing today (a breakdown I did NOT cause), and afterward the steering did not work properly.  I diagnosed the problem, found the part, and fixed it all by myself, then continued to finish mowing. All while working on my tan.  BOOM!

My summer ride

Lucas Stories

Although his toy box is filled with trucks, tractors, balls and hockey sticks, Lucas still knows how to play with dolls, kitchen stuff and princesses. The one he always points out and calls by name is "Princerella." You know? The one with the glass slipper!







Here he is shaving just like Daddy





 

During the holiday season, we enjoyed listening to Christmas music in the car. One day said, "Mom, let's sing the Spanish Christmas song: 'Pah-lease Mom and Dad....Please Mom and Dad!" (Insert those words as you sing 'Feliz Navidad' in your head, and you'll know where he was coming from!)

 

 

This morning, I said, "Lucas, look at the trees- they're all white and frosty!" He replied, "Oh, like on cake?"  I realized he thought I said 'frosting' and not 'frosty.'

 

 



He loves it when we give him "piggy-bank rides."

 

 

He says "to-yesterday," which actually makes a lot of sense when the alternatives are 'TOday' and 'TOmorrow.'

 

 

If he could watch movies all day, he'd be in heaven. His latest favorite is Wreck-It Ralph, but he used to call it Rock and Roll since the two phrases apparently sound similar.  Another favorite is "Despicable MOMMA" or "Despicable YOU."  I figured he calls it that because when I would say "Lucas, do you want to watch Despicable Me?" he thought I was referring to myself.

 

He had Jason and I rolling on the floor laughing one time when he meant to say "Are they theirs?" but couldn't figure out how to phrase it. Instead, it came out, "Are them thems?  Are them theys?  Is theirs thems?  Are these thems?"

 

My heart melts when he compliments me: "Nice dress, Mom!" and "Cool paint, Mom!"


The other day, he nicely asked, "Mom, can you turn the light on for me? It's too ghosty in there." (It was dark in the bathroom.)



I don’t ever want to forget how he makes me smileJ



 



 

He doesn't like Spiderman at all





 

Mooooooo

Besides adjusting to life with double the amount of children, our winter has been all about "The Ranch."

 

The Ranch:

A place about 30 miles away from our farmyard near a state park in northwest Minnesota.  A place that has been in the family for 30+ years, which we recently acquired.  A place where a couple hundred head of cattle, a few horses, and dogs reside.  A place in rockier soil where farming is a bit trickier than the fertile Red River Valley land.  A place that is managed by a friend that the kids like to call "Cowboy Dan" who lets them help feed the horses and gives them ear tags of their very own.  A place where my man occupies his deer stand after harvest in the fall.  A place that I have a feeling we will be seeing a lot more of in the future.

 

And so begins a whole new set of adventures.

 

The fact that my husband knows more about artificial insemination, labor/birth, nursing, and all the terminology that goes along with it than I ever will is not news to me.  These are all things he learned while working at The Ranch when he was growing up.

 

It is also not news to me that just like us, the cows have to eat every day, too.  So, I will not protest when Jason is spending his days at The Ranch during farming's off-season.

 

What will be new to me is getting up-close-and-personal with farm animals as I have never done in my life.  And soon a season called "Calving" will be added to our calendar.  I am not quite sure how long those days and nights will be, but ask me in a couple months when we are in the thick of it.

 

How is it being a rancher's wife so far?

 

So far, it has been fun, because I have gotten to assist in re-doing the bunkhouse!

When I say "assist" I mean:

· selecting all of the interior finishes and fixtures including cabinetry, flooring, wainscoting, paint, lighting, faucets

· accompany my husband on numerous trips to "Bee-nards" (as Lucas calls it)

· acheiving a feeling of 'rustic elegance' (Think antler chandeliers.) You know, a place where even us women wouldn't mind resting our heads if absolutely necessary

· being frugal as much as my champagne-taste-on-a-beer-budget-orientated mind will allow

That is such a typical designer-turned-farmwife response, isn't it?!  I am not doing any of that demolition, installation, electrical, plumbing, or messy work.  Just the decorating part.

 

The goal is that after this winter, the bunkhouse at The Ranch will be a cozy, little cabin where the guys can stay during calving and hunting season.  I am already daydreaming about my boys staying out there when they go hunting with Daddy.  I can hardly wait to show you before-and-after photos!

So God Made a Farmer

Two

I am the mother of two.  Two beautiful boys.  One blonde and one brunette.  One born during a minor spring flood two years ago, and the other born during a rare early-autumn blizzard.  Two.

 

 

On October 5th, we welcomed Reed James into our family.

He was 7 pounds 1.7 ounces of perfection.

 

 

 

 



I cannot help but compare my two boys- their features, their dispositions, their size...

L after his first bath at home.



R after his first bath at home.





L one couch cushion long.

 

R one couch cushion long.

 

Immediately after Reed was born, J got to proudly announce to me, “It’s a boy!”  After the tears of joy, my mind turned to pictures of our future:



 

Two little boys in matching outfits.

Two little boys playing in our yard.

Two bigger boys helping with yardWORK.

Two brothers on the same sports team.

Two young men farming together.

Two grown men standing up at each other’s weddings.

 

 

But for now, there is not enough room in their baby books to record every little memory that I don’t want to lose.  Like Lucas’s excitement and comprehension as we prepared for the arrival of the baby...

As my midsection grew, he understood that there was a baby in there.  We would ask him, “Lucas, do YOU have a baby in YOUR belly?”  He would respond, “Noooo!  I have Jesus in my heart.” 

When I felt the baby moving around, kicking, or when it had hiccups, I would take L’s hand so he could feel it.  Then, one night as J was putting Lucas’s jammies on, Lucas exclaimed, “Look!  Jesus has the hiccucks!” as he rolled his bare belly in and out as if to imitate Mommy’s.

 

 

 

Now that precious, little Reed has arrived, Lucas is really the best big brother a baby could ask for.  When the two first met, Lucas was excited to hold Reed and kiss and hug him.  And lucky for us, he still cannot get enough of him.  Neither can we, Big Brother!

 

 

Firecracker, Firecracker!

One of my favorite holidays is right around the corner: the Fourth of July!

Of course, Independence Day is extra special to me because it is the day of my birth!

The story goes:

After I was born, my parents called my grandparents from the hospital and announced,

“Firecracker!  Firecracker!”

I was here, and I was independent!

 

My memories of Fourth of Julys growing up take place in a small town that holds a special place in my heart.  We watched the parade, had a picnic in the park, went diving for pop cans in the swimming pool, caught candy dropped from an airplane overhead, ran through neck-high bubbles in the street coming from the fire hose, enjoyed a ‘flag cake’ made with blueberry ‘stars’ and strawberry ‘stripes’, and capped the night off with a fireworks show and firecrackers of our own.  It was the BEST.

And now this year, an important milestone is taking place-

I am turning 29…. Again.

(Yikes!  I remember when my MOM turned 30.  Now, it is my turn.) 

 

It’s a little scary, but exciting at the same time.  We plan to spend the holiday with our friends and their families at a cabin boating on the lake, having campfires, and watching parades and fireworks.  We’ll be making memories of our own with the next generation of kids. 

I am exactly where I want to be; exactly where I dreamed of being while growing up.  Hey, thirty is A-OK.

She keeps the home fire burnin’

News travels fast around these parts, so I’ll tell you my version of events hopefully before you hear it through the grapevine…

You see, here on the farm, there is no weekly garbage pick-up, or a dumpster, or a recycling service.  So, we separate our garbage as follows:

There is a food-and-other-wet-waste container that we occasionally empty out in the woods, because, go figure, wet items do not make very good fires.  We have another container for aluminum and glass that we haul into town to recycle. Other dry, combustible waste is periodically burned in metal barrels.

(FYI, diapers do not burn, but we haven’t quite figured out a good way to get rid of these…)

Well, being the “well-trained” farmwife that I am, I decided to burn garbage the other day.  My first mistake was doing this at the tail end of a “burn ban.”  A burn ban is a localized restriction on certain controlled fires during dry weather when fires can easily spread.  Can you see where this story is going?

My second mistake was deciding to burn a big, cardboard box that was too big to fit into a burn barrel.  Instead, I laid the box on the ground NEXT to the barrels.  Oh boy.

My third mistake occurred when I walked away and left the fire unattended.  Yeesh.

An hour later, I noticed that my “small” fire had spread across a 30’x50’ area in the woods towards the back of our yard.  That’s when I decided I should probably call my husband and ask if I should be worried…

My father-in-law and husband immediately left the field and came to help put out the fire with shovels and buckets of water until it was under control.  Unfortunately, instead of returning to his fieldwork, my husband had to stick around and monitor the fire to keep it from spreading. 

He checked on it throughout the day and into the night.  But, as I have learned, fire can do crazy things, and by morning it had traveled further across into the entire wooded area. 

That was 2.5 days ago, and it is STILL smoldering as I write this.  The dry conditions and 40-50 mph winds are not helping.

My husband has not been able to leave the yard or get a good night’s sleep for 2.5 days. That equals 2.5 days of missed work.  If there has ever been a time to pray for rain, this is it.

Remember this bunkhouse that I blogged about just a few days ago? Well, we almost lost it.  Look to the right of the house...

See this pile of ashes?  That is where my husband's pile of firewood used to reside.  The one he spent three days chopping...  The firewood that he uses to heat the shop in the winter...  Should I tell him, "Honey, you were going to burn that anyways, right!?!"  BIG oops! 

Why didn't we call the fire department, you ask?  Well, we don't want our names in the county paper, because THAT would be embarrassing!  Almost as embarrassing as the cloud of smoke coming from our yard that I can see from the highway 4 miles away!  haha.  (Sorry, I'm only half-laughing.)  My only saving grace is knowing that I am not the only person who has experienced a situation similar to this.

I feel very remorseful and am fully expecting to not live this one down for a very long time.  I learned my lesson, and luckily, it didn't have much worse consequences.  Something tells me this will not be the last "desperate farmwife" story that I end up sharing with you.  That's what happens when you put a city girl on the farm.  :s

Fun Finds From the Farm

I’d be lying if I told you I took these photos recently, but actually, it was exactly one year ago that we explored this bunkhouse from our farmyard... 

At a closer glance, notice the old beadboard siding and the cute, seafoam green door...

Hanging on the outside was this ornamental key...

...and after flipping it over I saw that it is a thermometer!

Here's the inside...

"Grains and Sugarbeets"

Old lanterns...



Vintage Christmas lights, anyone?

And, most exciting to me, an iron bed!

T-shirts make excellent quilts

I had never seen so many tee-shirts in my life.  Dresser drawers upon dresser drawers.  Work shirts, high school shirts, hockey shirts, college shirts, seed/chemical/farm shirts, fraternity shirts, shirts with cut-off sleeves, and the list goes on and on…

So, I decided to do something about it.  Something I’ve wanted to do for myself for a long, long time, but I had it made for both of us to enjoy instead…

Along with her other talents, my friend is a quilter.  After asking if she would sew a quilt using our old t-shirts, she graciously agreed.  So, I filled up an empty diaper box with a variety of tees that wouldn’t be missed, sent them to her, and a few months later received this:

It arrived just in time to wrap it up and give it to my husband for his birthday.  I admit that our guy-friend was right when he said, “Something tells me that you are more excited about this than he will be.”  But I don’t care.  To me, it tells the story of US.

Our story began in college.  I was in a sorority and he was in a fraternity, and that is how we met.  I was a city girl and he was a farmer, and that was the running joke.  The rest is history, and now we have a piece of our history that we'll have and enjoy forever.


If you would like to see other creations and hilarious stories by my "quilting friend," check out her blog: Little Brick Houses for You and Me.  I have always known she was funny, but her latest blog post confirms that even strangers think she reminds them of Kristen Wiig!!

Guess what I get to do this weekend?

First, we’re taking a small jaunt to commemorate my cousin’s college graduation.  It’s bound to be a good time spent with my large, wild and crazy family.  As a bonus, we all get to meet another cousin’s newborn son.  Celebrations all around, that’s for sure.  I have a feeling a late night is in store for Friday, because that is usually the tradition and I don’t want to miss a thing!

Then, after another small jaunt, I’m meeting up with a friend to attend this:

Our college friend features her fabulous finds and re-purposed home décor at this boutique, so we can’t wait to see what she has been up to.  You can link up to her blog here: House of Maus.

This event is right up my alley, and I cannot wait to be inspired, maybe make some purchases, and figure out how to transfer the business that these talented ladies have created into my own rural life.  I’ve been itching to work on some projects, but that pesky, little thing called “work” is taking up a lot of my timeJ  Don’t get me wrong, I love what I do for a living.  I’m just thinking hard lately about combining that with my other hobbies and making a fun, flexible career out of it.  That just might be what the doctor ordered after baby number two arrives…

Junkin'

In case you were wondering what L’s “big boy” room will look like once the baby comes, here is a hint….

My little helper and I did some exploring in our yard on this gorgeous, sunny, unexpected day off.  I'm thinking some spray-paint and improvising can make this old headboard new again.  That old sled will look perfect hanging on the wall... unless it is still functional, in which case it may be put to use next winter!  And that wire basket is the perfect size for holding books and toys.

How about these RED cubbies?  I think he approves.

And, I have plenty of these laying around.  Just search "pallet" on www.pinterest.com and be amazed at what comes up.

'Tis the season for parking outside, because there won’t be room for any vehicles once I start using the garage for my very own girl-shop.

He is risen, He is risen indeed!

This is a special treat my mom used to make at Easter.  The peanut M&M’s get me every time!  I doubled the recipe this time, because L is going to give some to his cousins.

Easter Nests

1 jar (7 oz) marshmallow crème (about 2 cups)

¼ cup creamy peanut butter

2 tablespoons butter/margarine, melted

5 oz (3 cups) chow mein noodles

Peanut M&Ms, pastel-colored

Powdered sugar

Combine marshmallow crème, peanut butter and butter; mix until well blended.  Add noodles and mix well.  Drop spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet.  Shape with greased fingers into nests.  Let stand until firm.  Dust with powdered sugar and fill each nest with M&Ms.

Did you know that eggs and bunnies are associated with Easter because they signify new life?  As a parent, this helps me to validate celebrating the secular features of this holiday, like the Easter Bunny and candy-filled eggs, while still teaching my son about the true meaning.

We are not straying far from home this weekend, since my husband is planting- already!  (Another blessing that comes along with a dry and early spring!)  We’ll be observing Easter at J’s grandmother’s church and then enjoying lunch with the family at her home. 

Happy Easter, everyone!



Hail the Bison!

All of North Dakota is buzzing: the NDSU Bison play in the NCAA Division 1 Championship game in Texas tomorrow.  As proud alumni, we consider this to be bigger than the Superbowl!  I'll be wearing green & gold and cheering on our favorite college football team on TV.  Go Bison!

Pizza & Lutefisk

Merry Christmas and safe travels to you and yours!  Is this beautiful driving weather or what?!

We are heading to the Big City to spend the weekend with my family cooking, eating, visiting, relaxing, gifting, going to church, and playing intensely-competitive board games with a Wii bowling tournament sprinkled into the mix.  We'll maybe even take a drive through the park to see the holiday light display and hopefully get pulled over by a merry Santa who hands out candy instead of speeding tickets!

Monday morning it is back to the daily grind, so we'll make the most of the weekend while anxiously awaiting future years when holidays fall on weekdays instead of weekends.

A couple of weeks ago we commemorated Christmas with our other side of the family, so we are lucky enough to have an extended celebration.  [Almost] everyone was in attendance, and we feasted on- believe it or not- pizza and lutefisk! 

Eating lutefisk is a Christmas tradition that I married into, and it is always served with mashed potatoes, white gravy and melted butter to combat the tastelessness and Jell-O-like texture. :) 

That same weekend we had the honor of being named our newest niece's godparents at her baptism.  Her middle name is "Joy," so it was extra-special to have her baptized into the Lord's family during this joyous time of year.

Happy Holidays!

Oh, to be a child again.

Christmas is not Christmas without the joy of children. To see the excitement of Christmas in their little eyes is a complete blessing.


We are taking a “hands-on” approach to teaching our son the meaning of Christmas. Last year, he received a Nativity set from his godparents, Auntie and Uncle. Luckily it isn’t breakable, because L plays with it for hours at a time. He thinks the stable is Jesus’ house. He thinks Joseph is Jesus, because every picture he has ever seen shows Jesus as a grown man. He knows Mary is Jesus’ mama, but Baby Jesus…well, he thinks it is completely appropriate that the Baby would take rides on a pirate ship. He corrals his horses and places them next to the scene. Also, he thinks firemen, trains, elephants and pigs were present at Jesus’ birth.

Sadly, Baby Jesus went missing for about a month.

We searched the house high and low.

Then, one day, I glanced over at the Nativity and there he was, sleeping peacefully in the manger like he’d never been missing at all!

Quite the analogy, don’t you think? Jesus has been present all along…



Sure, our toddler knows about Santa, Christmas trees, ornaments, lights, stockings and presents, but we’ll teach him the true meaning of Christmas when we sing “Happy Birthday” to Jesus. (He loves that song!)

Every night we say prayers. He folds his little hands, and repeats slowly, “God bless Mommy, Daddy, Lucas, and all of our family and all of our friends. Amen.” Then he always, always exclaims, “JESUS!” and we add, “And teach us to be more like Jesus. Amen.”

I don’t know how it happened, but he knows that Jesus goes with prayers and family and God.


So, Christmas is alive and well in our home. Decorations are hung, shopping is [almost] done, goodies are being baked, and we even have an early Christmas celebration on Friday when nearly our entire family will be together.  'Tis the season!

Old pickups

L loves being outside...

So we often take walks around the yard to see what we can see.

On this day, we saw some pickups.  Orange pickup, blue sky...

Blue pickup, blue eyes...

"How-weeeeen"

We had two puppies at our house this Halloween: L, the cute, fuzzy and wild one; and Barney, the big, hairy and other wild one.  We attempted taking a photo by the punkins...

..and we got this... (This picture was NOT staged, I promise!!)

L really just wanted to play in his sandbox...

...but then we went to a Halloween Party where he met up with his cousins, a dancing birthday-boy Michael Jackson, an excited little kitty, and a flying fairy.  "Sit, puppy, sit!"

"Goooood puppy!!"

Then, we did a little trick-or-treating at Papa's house....

Everything was "scaaaaaary!"  And he learned that when you "knock-ock" on someone's door and hold out your "bake" and say "choo choo chain" (which sounds a lot like 'trick-or-treat' when your 19 months old), they will give you "canny." 

Halloween is also his cousin's birthday, so he had a lot of fun singing "Bert-day TO YOU! Bert-day TO YOU!" 

I think he will love Halloween for years to come!