The weather turned cold this week.

There is no denying that winter is coming.  

Before the snow starts flying, there are several things we always do to make sure the cows are ready for the cold months ahead.  

Halter Break Calves

Show season is just around the corner, so fall is always a good time to halter break the calves.  We try to handle the calves as much as possible from day one, but with fairs and hay duties, we don't always get to spend as much time with them as we would like.  

They must be ready for the show arena by November, so it is now time to really get to work and fine tune the calves.  

We prefer to halter break with the tractor to save our backs, and then always put in a good amount of ground work and show stick practice.  

It is fall in Ohio...

Or is it summer?

I don't know...but I am confused.  

The last few weeks have been inching towards cooler fall weather, lots and lots of rain....

And then 86 degrees.

What in the world?

I know come the middle of January I will be looking back at these days and wishing I had spent every waking moment outside.

But, I am really in the mood for some soup...

When we walked out the front door, we could smell the sweet aroma of pure honey.

We knew we couldn't put if off any longer...

The hives were overflowing with honey.

It has been a really long time since we have robbed the bees.

Several years ago, Daniel developed an allergy to bees, so this really isn't the safest venture.  ​

The radar apps on our phones were our friend last week...

Or maybe our enemy...

But anyway, we spent a lot of time looking at the radar.

We had hay down, and had to check and see how Florence was moving and if/when we were going to get rain.  

Weather forecasts can change by the minute.

Most weather apps have the ability to zoom in so you can see exactly where the rain is falling. 

Living in the country, it can be really important to zoom in. 

You see, our neighbor 2 doors down sometimes gets half the rain that we do.  Our next door neighbor on the other side of us may get twice as much rain as we do.  

Why?

They may be neighbors, but from the edge of our field to the far edge of the neighbors field can be more than half a mile away.  

And believe me...a half a mile can make all the difference in the world.  

Last week, Daniel was looking at his radar once again.  

And he zoomed in...and then zoomed in a little farther...and a little farther.  

Do you know what he saw?

Last week the remnants of a hurricane dumped 5 1/2 inches of rain on us. 

​We can't complain because we have been relatively dry this summer.  It gave us a nice break to get some inside work done, but always in the back of our minds was how in the world we were going to get our second cutting of hay in.  

September brings cooler weather, heavy dews and foggy mornings.  Hay isn't impossible, but it becomes more difficult with each passing day.  

Full time job.

Weekend blogger.

​One computer household.

I have been busy lately...

Busy buying stuff.

School supplies, uniforms, books, pencils, pens, shoes...

All the stuff kids need for the first day of school.

Then...

They come home from the first day of school with one more item they need...

And then one more thing...

And then one last thing.

So, I have been busy at my computer ordering all these "things" on Amazon.  

Because we all know how much I love shopping in real stores.  

I fill my cart with all the "one last things" and I find I am just a few dollars short of the $25.00 minimum for free shipping (yes, I know shipping is free for Prime members...but I am too cheap to pay for a Prime membership).

But I got the greatest e-mail from Amazon recently.  It is a list of some of those inexpensive "filler" items that I can add to my cart to get to the minimum amount for free shipping.  So being the nice person that I am, I thought I would share some of my favorite "cheap" finds with you, so you don't have to stare at the computer trying to remember something you "need" to fill your cart.

The school year has started and we have the opportunity to begin fresh with new goals, work hard and achieve great things academically.  

We all want our kids to learn...that is why we send them to school.  

​If I have learned anything from farm life, it is that there is so much more to learning than just book learning.

We finally went found time to get out of town for a few days of rest and relaxation...well sort of...Daniel is still working.

I am also taking a break from the computer.

So I will make this short and leave you with a few photos from this summer.  

I am sitting here on the couch writing this post just thankful to be home.

You see...the last couple of weeks have been very full.

With both boys off to church camp and then heading straight to the county fair, we were all pretty exhausted.  Then, after leaving the Knox County Fair, we unpacked, cleaned up and re-packed for the Ohio State Fair.

By the time we moved in to the Ohio State Fair we were just in auto pilot mode.  However, we did actually get to sleep in until 6:00 a.m. a few days.

But...we pushed through and it was well worth it.