First we raked... and raked...
Then we loaded it in the tractor bucket... 
Then dumped it into our hay "manger"!
The first person who ever said "make hay while the sun is shining" actually had a pretty good idea! We mowed the pastures recently and there was so much grass lying on the ground, looking all sad and lonely, that we decided to try making our own hay "while the sun was shining" - the old fashioned way! We bought an extra yard rake, and went to work yesterday. It took us all afternoon/evening, but it was well worth our effort in the end, and we didn't even get to all of it! We stored 20 tractor buckets full, which is about a month's supply for our 3 hay-burners. (At the outrageous price of hay in this area, we got blessed just at the thought!) All it cost us was a bit of diesel fuel, a $10 rake, some blisters on our hands and a lot of energy. Yet, while it may not sound like your idea of a good time, I actually thought it was a ton of fun, and though it made me feel exhausted at the end of the day, it was also somehow totally relaxing just to be outside in the beautiful weather, burning off energy and smelling that wonderful hay. Although, today I feel like I need a serious back rub, and wouldn't you know it... Joe is gone again for another couple of days! Maybe I should go out and rake a little more to see if that soreness eases up. I told Joe we could even make our own "down on the farm" exercise video's - guaranteed to get you looking great in no time! Farmer's tan and all. =)
First we raked... and raked...
Then dumped it into our hay "manger"!
