The Van Zante Family: Baling Hay

There's nothing unusual about us baling hay. But what was special about this particular day of baling was that it was Caleb's first time baling with Daddy on a "no cab tractor"! For safety reasons, up to now, Caleb has only been allowed to ride with Josh during jobs that required the use of one of the cabbed tractors. But much to every mama's dismay, every little boy must grow up. And Daddy decided, much to Caleb's joy, that Caleb was now big and strong enough to help finish baling the last 15 minute's worth of hay in the field on the 4020!

Caleb couldn't wait to get to Daddy! There's a story behind this: earlier in the week, Josh had promised Caleb he could help bale the hay that was down. But sometimes even the best laid plans just don't pan out and Josh ended up using a different tractor to bale with than originally planned. Like I explained earlier, Caleb doesn't usually ride the tractors with no cabs, so when he learned Daddy was using the 4020 to bale with, he was broken hearted. But it all worked out... Josh suggested we come out to the field to see him, so we grabbed a couple pops from the fridge in the shop and away the kids and I went! Caleb couldn't get out of the car fast enough when we got there!

There he is, right where he wants to be! He's rode on this tractor before, but not while its actually working.

It was quite a dusty job, what with the drought and all.

Keeping an eye on things, making sure everything is still running smoothly.

I love this picture. That's the Van Zante farmyard in the background. The silos make the picture!

Back and forth, back and forth... keep baling until there's no more hay to bale.
(They're waving to me in this picture.)

Caleb in the driver's seat. (Not driving, just in the seat!)

Gotta stack them bales!

Sarah and I had to wait a while while the boys were baling, so we got out the chairs from the trunk and took it easy. It was very peaceful, sitting in the hay field with the hum of the tractor in the background. Sarah was quite disappointed when she learned that she couldn't ride with Daddy, but when I broke out her pink chair she was absolutely thrilled. Anything pink makes the day better! When Josh joined us, he kept looking at Sarah and shaking his head saying that Sarah look so much like Grandma Elizabeth, how she was sitting with crossed legs and all.

Caleb wasn't feeling all that swift anyway (beginning of a summer-time cold), so he didn't hesitate to accept when I offered to get his chair out as well. With Daddy's hat on, he looks pretty relaxed!