It's 5 pm, and I am hoping it doesn't rain, at least not until later...there has been thunder and clouds for the last hour, and the wind had picked up the branches of the trees are trashing around outside, there were even a few sprinkles of rain when I stepped outside a few minutes ago. It is hot and dry, the corn needs rain on it, but the hay they are baling right now does not!

These bales weigh about 80 pounds, last year's straw ones were 16!

Note the sandals and shorts, the kid  does have his cell phone

Right now three guys are unloading a huge load of hay, but the Garry and the rest are still out baling. It was raked up this mrning while Garry, John and I were in Dnepropetroesk - I shopped at METRO while they ordered wood for more form building in the barn remodellng (the alleyways are done now, moving on to bigger and better parts of the design) and bought yet another shovel. We ate ice cream on a stick on the way home (they sell boxes of three - normally Garry would just eat two, if you wondered.)



 After lunch ( I made salad with spinach, mushrooms and strawberries, Maxim decided we were haveing dessert first) Andree worked on feeeding the cows while they all went out to bale the dry hay, because the forecast told them today was the day. Yesterday Maxim spent the whole day baling for other people, maostly related to his fiancee, I think. A little here and little there, hopefully the hay was dry enough to bale. If you are wondering in Russian a baler is a press-board-ka.


 The weather forcast is calling for a week of cooler, wetter weather for the next week, starting Thursday. NOT TODAY! Oh, no, sounds like rain on the roof.

I went out and looked, we haven't got soaked yet. Garry will not be happy, instead of putting the bales in the mow his crew seems to have stopped and tried covering the wagon with plastic. ..with bales on top to hold it down. Looks like they could have put more away in the 20 minutes since I went out and took photos. OK, now they are unloading again, and the ground is still dry, just a few drops.

Looks like the baler is back....and it's  raining a little more, maybe Garry plans to back it in under the machine shed, or maybe just the baler since it was there before, right where they unloaded the wood from the truck, must be why they stopped unloading the hay before.

Now there are more unloaders since they have come back, it rained some on the hay, with storms on either side of them for the last two hours. Garry said there are six rows left to bale, but it was getting tough with the rain and the wagon was full. Now Garry is in the haymow, they will have it unloaded in no time...

Maxim went back out and baled the rest when the first wagon was unloaded, they put them in the bottom of the barn to feed first, since they are a little wet. However, the alfalfa was going to be a lot wetter soon, 90% chance of rain for the next two days.  I carried a bale of hay  (I thought they weren't that heavy, but they say 80-90 pounds)  across the mow, then a second,  but they had lots of help, so I left. I was just bringing out a second bottle of water for them to drink, before getting some milk, and picking some spinach for a casserole for suppertime.Garry unloaded most of the second wagon to the guys in the mow, Andrei jumped down to help him and fell off the wagon onto the cement when I was heading in, but he seemed uninjured. His back may bother him in the morning, Garry's I mean... The casserole was done about the time they came in, looking for showers and something to drink, and eat.