The very first thing I need to do is tell my Dad Happy Birthday! I love you and hope you did something special for yourself today. I remember one birthday, in particular, we celebrated in Great Falls. I believe that was in 1983. I remember we sat there for what seemed like forever before we finally got just a few more acres to cut before having to head home. I know Pohney used to make you a special German chocolate cake and I can remember Tom “Thumb” always making a point to tell me to tell you Happy Birthday. Good memories!

Gathering the equipment to begin the chore of cleaning and getting ready to move…again.

Life is a collage of events that are one day looked back on as memories. Living life gets in the way of fully enjoying these events while experiencing them. It’s not until you look back do you realize just how good those times were and then wish you had soaked them up just a little more at the time. Sometimes, it can leave regrets and a heavy heart. Other times, it just makes you smile.

The past several days have been a blur! The last post was Friday night – the night we finished with the acres we had lined up in Denton. Both Jim and I hated to see the job come to an end simply because it’s so early in the year. We aren’t usually looking at the end of harvest until at least the first part of September.

Pulling out of the spot we called home for two weeks in Lewistown.

The girls ventured out on a sightseeing expedition while we were in the field on Friday. They packed their lunch and headed for The Snowy Mountains and Crystal Lake. They had a great time but were most excited to tell us about the black bear cub they saw. They were in the car heading out of the mountains when they saw it. We’ve been to Glacier and Yellowstone Parks and that was the first time they’d seen a bear in the wild. They had no idea there were bears in the mountains outside of Lewistown – neither did I. They made the trip to Denton later in the afternoon to take a few more senior pictures for Taylor and to hang out with us in the field.

Saturday morning came way too fast. It was the day I had been dreading for quite some time. The girls had their belongings all packed and sitting by the door. My heart started hurting the night before while watching them gather their stuff. I knew they were leaving and I’d been through this process so many times before – I just couldn’t convince my heart that it was going to be different this time. I KNOW it’s temporary and I KNOW we’ll be home soon…it’s just the change in the routine I don’t like. I like coming home to them and their noise and the chaos when the day’s done. I like knowing they’re there. When they’re gone, harvest just doesn’t feel right. The pain is a little less today but seeing their empty beds and the quiet cottage still gets to me.

They spent Saturday night in Chadron, NE and were back on the road at a decent time yesterday. They were “home, home” by 5:00 last night. It was a relief to us when they were off the road and knew their trip was uneventful!!

We thought we were going to load the combine Saturday night and be ready to head east with it on Sunday morning. Wrong! The inside dual was flat and when Jim tried to air it up, the bead was broke. So, he took it off and put on the spare thinking we could get back to Jordan with it. In the meantime, the farmer called and said we had an extra day. This meant he would take the flat tire to town on Sunday and see if he could get it fixed (which he did). Once it was fixed, he had to take both tires off again to put the original (fixed) one back on before we could load the combine.

As for me and Jim…we attempted to land several other cutting possibilities in and around the Denton area with no luck. The last call we made was to friends of ours in Jordan. They said they would use us for a few days to get finished up. So, it’s back to Jordan. We made the first trip yesterday with the cottage and the Frank/header combo. It’s hard seeing the mountains in the rear view mirror (well, actually, the mirrors on the door). I thoroughly enjoyed our stay in Lewistown and working in Denton – it was the drive I hated! I don’t know if next year will bring us back to this area or not – I can only hope it does.

Putting the fixed one back on.

Today, we woke up to a sound that we haven’t heard much this summer…rain. It was a nice rain and must have been big drops by the sound of them hitting the cottage roof. I asked Jim how much he thought it might have amounted to and he thought probably just under ½”. When I heard it, it made me realize just how much I’ve missed the sounds of a good thunderstorm.

Headed east away from Denton towards the Judith Mountains.

The trip back to Lewistown and Denton went as planned. The combine was loaded and we were back on the road. We arrived in Jordan just as the sun was going down – just in the nick of time! Tomorrow we will begin what will probably be the last acres of wheat we’ll cut for 2012.

The mountains near Denton in the mirror.

The letdown of the harvest rush is starting to sneak its way into my thoughts and feelings. I go through this every year, too. Knowing you don’t have another job to hurry up, pack up and move to is depressing to me. I don’t know what it is and I don’t think I can effectively explain to you how I feel. It’s the feeling you get when you’re nearing the end of a good book. You’ve been so completely absorbed with the plot and the characters you’ve become part of the story. What had consumed so much of your thoughts was now gone and disappointment sets in. Until you begin the next good book.

Ready to go!

Goodbye Central Montana mountains!

Read the story about the red dog house and Judith Mountain which I posted last summer.