BLOG, FROM THE FARM WIFE
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Merry Christmas from the Sass Family!
We hope this letter finds you well. I decided to start a new tradition and sum up each year in a letter. Hopefully, it doesn’t bore you too badly.
Right after the new year,f we made a hair-brain decision to rip up our entire kitchen and start an adventure which we dubbed “Ronavations”. Yes, that’s right, Josh got the covid and while he was off from that we decided it was a good time to renovate. We originally planned on being done with the project by the end of February, but I’ll get to that part later. We also added a member to our family in January. Anna is a Simmental Holstein cross heifer calf my parents gave to Hank for Christmas, but we all know she was a gift for me and the Trojan horse for us to get cattle. *thanks mom and dad*
February brought more Ronavations. By the time we got through the month, we were on a first-name basis with the cabinet guy at Menards. We almost lost Hank while picking out countertops because he was playing hide and seek in the store.
Ronavations continued through March, we didn’t make our original February deadline, but this didn’t surprise me. Are you bored yet? I kind of am. Oh yeah, I forgot to add, I was pregnant this whole time. That’s exciting!
In April I had my grand entry into the 30’s club. I turned 30 when I was 30 weeks pregnant, so I didn’t go on a rage in Vegas or anything like that. Josh did throw me a surprise party the day of, during planting season, and he invited our close friends and family. Definitely an overachievement on his part.
Planting came and went very quickly in May. We were done in record time and planted every acre on our farm, which is rare. Usually, we can’t get into some parts of the fields that are too wet. Little did we know it was a precursor to the dry season we had this year. Probably my favorite thing about May was getting countertops in our Kitchen after not having them for a couple of months. Thanks #Ronavations.
In early June, my parents had their dairy retirement sale and we were able to be there as each cow left the farm. I wouldn’t have missed that for anything, even if it meant giving birth on the road. Josh was with me, I would’ve coached him through it if I needed to. As the corn started growing, my belly outgrew it at a rapid pace and I got more uncomfortable each week. June felt much more like a year than it did one month at 9 months pregnant. Harper almost decided to be a July baby, but chose at the last minute to come into our lives on June 29th, a few days past her due date.
Harper was so cute I forgot how uncomfortable I was being pregnant with her and July was amazing newborn bliss. I felt immediately better physically after she was out. We had an early wheat harvest due to the dry weather. Speaking of dry weather, we started our irrigation for the first time after 8 months of planning and building on July 29th. It was a great 1 mo celebration for Harper.
Then it was August. Josh broke his leg. Nobody saw that one coming. A toddler, a one-month-old baby, and a broken husband really tested me that month. If I think about it too much I get a little nauseous. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. Josh did end up getting a pretty sweet grandpa scooter to bop around on. We named the scooter Terry. “Back up Terry!” And Hank turned 3!! Wow. How the heck did that happen?
In September Josh was able to ditch Terry and the crutches. I’m really proud of him for how diligent he was in the healing process. And he wasn’t too stubborn except for when they asked him to come in for a follow-up during harvest season, to which he politely declined. We started harvest mid-September and Josh’s 31st birthday was spent in the cab of the combine. He wouldn’t have it any other way.
October was a blur of harvest and cheese. We were able to be part of Autumn Drive and my parents came down for the entire weekend to help. Turns out retirement didn’t last too long because I’ve been putting them (and my mother-in-law who also retired this year) to work at The Cheesery since Harper was born. Oh yeah, we bought a keg trailer. Hank’s favorite place to be this fall was in the grain cart with Uncle Ben. I don’t think Josh thought much of it until Hank decided he wanted to be a tractor and grain cart for Halloween. Ouch.
Soybeans were a bear to harvest this year and we ended up going well into November to get them finished up. Harvest lasted through the end of the month, past Thanksgiving. We made it through, just like we do every year.
It’s December now and guess what… We still aren’t completely done with Ronavations. We did install a range hood the other week though. Now we need some shelving, other finishes, and maybe someday we’ll get to the trim… but that probably won’t be until 2022.
Anyways, I hope I didn’t bore you too badly. We wish you a very Merry Christmas and hope you have an amazing 2022 year!
God Bless!
-The Sasses
(Josh, MP, Hank & Harper)
I so enjoy following your blog and Instagram page!!