Busyness

We’ve had a lot going on the last few weeks! We’re done with everything but corn harvest. It’s nice to have the rest of the crops out of the fields.

Harvest has gone well while we’re in the fields. But, actually getting into the fields has been the difficult part as rain and snow storms keep kicking us out. At least we’re getting moisture.

My job during corn harvest is running grain cart. You can see how the combine fills up the cart, and then…

…the cart fills up the trucks. The trucks either go directly to the feedlots where we sell corn, or into our bins for storage and sale at a later date. In these photos, our good friend, Scott, is running cart. I was slacking off doing another job at the time.

I was busy putting together the Fall Issue of CowCountry. When I left the Wyoming Stock Growers Association this spring, I was able to keep the magazine as a contract job. They just can’t get rid of me.

On October 7 we had a visit from several Canadian producers! It was so fun to visit with Jolene, Andrea and Erika from the Canadian Cattlemens Young Leaders. They were down for the 2013 Agrifuture Conference, an event put on by the Wyoming Department of Agriculture. While in Wyoming, these awesome young women, along with Pamela Rose of the Canadian Consulate in Denver, toured several SE Wyoming ag operations. Brook Brockman with the Wyoming Department of Agriculture and Haley Lockwood from the Wyoming Stock Growers Association were their tour guides. While on the tour, they stopped by to visit with us. Not that we’re anything special, we just can’t say no when people ask us to do stuff.

I gave the gals a general overview of our farming operation. And by general, I mean the very little I actually know about our operation. I’m still a farm wife in training.

Then I took them down to the field where Tyler was combining corn. He gave them the real story. It was really cool to compare operations. The gals were from different parts of Canada, so we got some different perspectives of livestock production and farming from our neighbors to the north.

Pamela gave us some neat goodies that represent the trade partnership between the US and Canada. Included was a handout that gave specific statistics, including the fact that in 2011, $17 million worth of goods were traded between Wyoming and Canada. Visit this website to learn more. I also urge you to visit Erika’s ranch blog! The neat thing about agriculture is, even though our operations vary greatly from state to state and country to country, we all share a lot in common. I hope someday we can get up to Canada to visit their operations.

I’ve also been filling my days with fun projects like canning for the first time! Some friends gave us a 5-gallon bucket full of apples off one of their trees. I’ve been going apple crazy making apple crisp, apple cookies and apple butter. I canned the apple butter and shared with family. So good on toast or even chicken and pork!

Praise God for an awesome life!

God Bless You & American Agriculture,

Liz

Not one of all the Lord’s good promises to Israel failed; every one was fulfilled. – Joshua 21:45