Heinäkuu - The Hay Month (July)

The Finns were never conquered by the Romans so they didn't have to name their months after Roman emperors or gods like we have.  Their calendar largely followed the agrarian year.  Haymaking was traditional done in July, just as it is here in the Copper Country,  so July was called the Hay Month- Heinäkuu.  You need warm, preferably hot,  and dry weather for hay to properly dry once it is cut, so haymaking coincides with the warmest days of summer.

Getting back to the Romans, I will say this for them.  I am grateful that Augustus Caesar took a day off February, which was the last month in their calendar, and tacked it on to his month - August, so that it would be just as long as that of his predecessor Julius - July.  When you are the emperor you don't have to settle for a second-rate month.

We picked up two hay wagon loads - about 200 bales - from our neighbor up the road.

I used the tractor to back up the load to the hayshed.  Backing up a long-tongued hay wagon is a skill that takes a lot of practice to master.  It took many tries to get it this far.

One of the things you learn about gravity as you  get older is that things go down a lot easier than they go up. Notice, if you will, who is throwing the bales down and who is picking them up.  Last year the roles were reversed, but this year I made sure I jumped up on the wagon first.

Sam is half my age and an endurance athlete to boot, so this was excellent cross-training for him.

Throwing bales in the hot sun is sweaty work, but you need to wear long clothing to protect you forearms and legs from getting scratched up.

What's papa doing?

He's piling 50 pound bales.  It was shady inside the hayshed, but about as comfortable as a poorly heated oven.

The girls of course thought it was great fun.

Whoopee!

My future hay piling crew.

Playing Catch Up

We were out of the country for most of June, so summer was in full bloom by the time we got back.

We planted our garden on July 12, more than a month later than we normally would have.  However, the soil was warm and we were in experiencing a heat wave, so we decided to go for broke.  I even planted a couple of rows of corn.  The package said "matures in 62 days", so I figure we might have a chance.  We will see.

We planted the greenhouse full of various tomato seedlings and covered the soil with newpapers to keep down the weeds.  The results look promising so far.

The chickens had grown considerably in three weeks.

One of my goals for the summer is to build a shed for the tractor.  I dug and transported over twenty bucketfuls of fill dirt from a sandy spot....

...and dumped it just off the driveway where I plan to build the shed.

These peonias were transplanted from plants that were originally in my father's mother's yard.

Swimming!

Finally the pond is warm enough to swim in.

And horse around in.

Ready to dive!

Me too!

Whoever invented these water wings for children deserves a prize.  It is an excellent way for children to become comfortable in water.

Uncle Sampo prefers the lounge chair.

Uncle David is up to something suspicious.

I learned to swim at a small lake a couple of miles up the road.  At that time it was open to the public, and on warm summer afternoons the lake was filled with kids.  It is one of my best childhood memories. I hope that our grandchildren will have similar memories.  The Old Swimming Hole is an American tradition.

May 2019

The girls get excited when cousins arrive

Children naturally see the beauty of dandelions, the heralds of summer.  It is a tragedy that so many people poison their lawns to eradicate them.  What has shriveled the hearts and minds of people so that they can no longer see what a child sees? A poisoned lawn is a sign of a poisoned mind.  

The pond was still quite cold, but it felt good to swim again.

You can tell the temperature of the water by how many turtles are sunning themselves on a log.

These deer survived a hard winter and are shedding their heavy coats.

The cousins want to sit together.

Four to a bench.

All the toys and books come out.