Wheat Harvest Items

We are here not only to share our story but to educate as well.  To give you an inside view of the farming life that we live.  Different farms and different families  have different ways of doing things, here's how our wheat harvest usually goes down!  Wheat harvest is normally in June for us.

Dad- RV
During harvest he primarily drives the semi truck and old Chevy truck. So he is the truck driver. He patiently waits for them to get filled, then he heads to the farm and unloads into the pit, where the grain is augered into the various grain bins we have.  Once the bins are full, he then heads to town and gets to sit in his truck in a LONG line to unload at the town elevator.  For you city folk, you might not care for harvest time, as the street next to the elevator is lined with an array of semi and grain trucks!  Sometimes it makes for a hard time to get through, but please remember, those grain trucks are holding food for our world!

Mom- LV
She usually assists when they are unloading trucks at the farm.  We have a scale that weighs the trucks, so we can later determine how many bushels we cut and figure our yield.  She takes the information down and fills out the scale tickets.  She also helps when trucks need moved or someone needs taken to the field, or her grandkid, fixes some meals, usually has a sheetcake in her house to snack on,  and is good support all around!

MV
He usually drives the combine. Although some may think this is the easiest job, it can be hard to sit for 7-12 days straight for 12 plus hours per day.  Especially when you have a back that isn't 100%.  He also has to listen for "odd " sounds and like I explained here, actually drive the combine.  Ours is a Case IH 1688 with no automatic systems!  About a week after harvest starts he also gets up early when it's too damp to cut wheat and plants soybeans in the wheat stubble.  So it's non-stop for him for several days for long hours. Oh! And if it breaks down, he is the mechanic too!

JV
I am moral support and food support.  My husband's family doesn't stop to eat.  I recall as a child going to the field and eating together for abit. Giving the guys a break and enjoying food on the tailgate.  I miss that, but instead I make sure he has one large meal a day.  The other meal is usually a sandwich and I pack lots of snacks for him.  Sometimes he will stop long enough to come out and sit with us in the pickup to eat, but normally not for long.

PV
She's combine riding little gal, and keeps her momma busy so mommy isn't missing Daddy too much! :)  She tags along and this year spent a great deal of time in the cab of that Case IH 1688 combine with Daddy!  It's a wonderful feeling for me to watch this all play out.  Someday I hope she looks back at the oodles of photos I take and realizes how lucky she was to grow up on a farm!

This year's wheat harvest included but not limited to the following.

900 acres to harvest.
14 days of harvesting.
1,000 Gallons of diesel fuel used approximately.
131 Number of hours the combine ran.
2 breakdowns

Things I hope to keep track of next year, just for fun!
# of semi truck loads
# of Grain truck loads
Menu
Combine rides of visitors

By the way, our wheat harvest was one full of blessings.  The outcome was definately one of the best years Milton and I have seen.  The best part is watching my husband live his life doing the one thing he loves the most.


BEING A FARMER!

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

Julie