Starnes sets out to raise tallest corn in Iowa

This was the headlines in the Bee Star. (local paper serving the Donnellson & West Point Area) Hey dad and Mary Ann, your copy is in the mail. ☺ To read the article you should be able to click the picture for a larger version.

Who would have ever thunk it, me raising corn! Well, I did and it turned out pretty darn good.
I was so excited to see that I was on the front page!! This is a small community paper but hey, it's fame right. (wink) The contest officially ends Oct. 1st so I'm excited to see the next issue of Our Iowa magazine to see the final results.

Now my next adventure will be taking a plane ride to capture Fall from the sky. Rick and I are going to charter a plane for a trip around the area. Hmmmm, that sounds like we are living the lifestyles of the rich and famous but it is actually very inexpensive. $35.00 for a 1/2 hour. What FUN!! I will be posting that soon. Come on leaves turn them pretty colors and rain, well, you need to stay away since you have the tendency to wash the leaves off the branches.

Corn is Down! 167"

Being a subscriber to the Our Iowa magazine I was excited to see that they were doing a corn contest. I planted my seeds in late May and began watering and watching. A month later in had only grew about 6". I was getting bummed out. I started dousing it with Miracle Gro and away it went. By the 4th of July it was well past knee high and by mid August I couldn't reach the top. I was really getting excited so I called Edward Jones since they are the offical measurers. I spoke with Rich Mueller from the Mount Pleasant office and he told me to call him back when it was 13". We went on vacation over Labor Day and came back to a taller stalk. I put in a call to Rich and he came out with his daughter Gabrianna to measure it. Once it was cut down I was astounded, it measured 13' 9" from roots to tassle. Rumor is that someone up North has 15' so I wil have to wait and see. The winner of the contest is awarded $200 worth of pork, $200 worth of beef and a $100 ethanol gas card. All I can do is sit back and wait.

Time for R & R

For the past 2 weeks it's been a little frantic around here. I just finished processing pictures from my nieces wedding ( I took 1200, yep I go a little bizerk with the camera) and now I have to prepare for vacation. So, all projects on hold, except for tending to my corn. As you know from reading past posts, I entered a corn contest. Well, it now stands about 12' tall and is almost done growing. It will probably reach 13' which is pretty darn tall. That's a bummer because I heard that someone has already reached 18', geez how did he do it! I called Edward Jones ( official measurers) and they told me they would come out measure and do a little write up for this area. Oh well, a little fame is ok but the prize of 200# of pork, 200# of beef and $100 gas card would have been even better.
My nieces wedding turned out great, or at least the pictures did. I didn't get to enjoy the wedding since I was behind the camera from 1PM- 9PM. That was a long day and then when I got home I had to start on the pictures to get them all ready before I go on vacation. Pictures are done at least for the most part. You can get a looksie here
Vacation time is here - New York here we come. NOT New York City, there's more to NY than the big city. We are going to Rick's moms in Franklinville for an overnight stay then on up to Wellesley Island State Park for camping. The park overlooks St. Lawrence River that hosts - 1,000 Islands. The 1000 Islands Region is an international tourism destination, encompassing communities on both sides of the US and Canada border along the St. Lawrence River and the eastern shores of Lake Ontario. The region takes its name from the more than 1000 islands that dot the lake and river along this international waterway. The region extends from Kingson to Cornwall on the Canadian side, and from Oswego to Massena on the US side, reaching inland to the foothills of the Adirondack mountains to embrace the communities that are west and north of the Adirondack Park, and the four NY Counties of Oswego, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence. Sounds like a good time, don't ya think. Now it's time to get off this computer, get my house work done and start planning what I'm going to pack. We will hit the road Thursday evening. What could be more relaxing then camping, sightseeing, shopping ( of course) and weenies over an open fire! Not to mention with the cool temps I might get to see some Fall colors! Pictures will be posted when I return.

Happy Birthday America

I can say it sure has been a busy time for me. I'm working on my photography web site which I hope to have complete today or tomorrow. If I could stay out of Wal-Mart, stop lounging in the pool and working in the yard, I may get it finished. Oh well, it's that time of the year when outside is what I like!! How about you?
So I've been stalking birds again- I'm not sure what kind this is but I can say one thing, she's a mean one. I let her build her nest at my back door over the light. Well, I didn't actually let her, I knocked it down several times as she was building but within 2 hours of my back being turned, she had it complete. The reason was, she was ready to lay those eggs! Several of them I might add. Here's a shot of the babies. I hope I don't come outside one day and one has fallen out! Talk about ugly ducklings, these sure are some ugly babies! I took my camera and tripod to the garage to stand because when I approach her nest from the backdoor, she dive bombs me!
Fireworks in West Point! Rick and I drove up town this year to watch the fireworks and I got some pretty good shots.

The weather here has been a little crazy. Here Rick is battening down the hatches. Hot one day, cool the next and did I mention rain! I think we got 9" in the month of June alone. I hope July is not as bad. All the rain seems to make the grass and weeds come on a little stronger. The only thing I need the rain for is my "contest" corn. You know the old saying, "Knee high by the 4th of July." Well mine is but I bet I'm along way from winning the contest. You can read more about the contest HERE .
Now for a funny note- We went to Wal-mart ( I know stay away from there, right ) and I bought some Jiffy Pop popcorn. This way we could act like we were at the movies as well as reminisce about the good ole days. Anyway, Rick had to show me how to pop it. Now I know I'm getting old but come one, not being able to pop popcorn, geez!
OK back to the corn.I need some pointers on how to make it grow faster and taller. The corn behind me in the picture was planted later and is taller. HELP !!! If you have any ideas let me know by posting a comment. If I win, I will send you a really nice gift. How does $50.00 in pork products sound to you? The contest ends in October.

I have my heirloom photography session set up for July 12th. It's going to be a great shoot. I have contacted a costume shop so I will have some really nice outfits for my model to wear. Look for the fun and exciting post next week. I will also be posting the link for my web site.