She's 1 week today!
Monday, May 23, 2011
Milker In the Making
I managed to get a new goatling on Friday night! She's half LaMancha half Nubian, and 100 % adorable!
She's 1 week today!
She's 1 week today!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Free-Bees LITERALLY
This past Tuesday, Mom calls and tells me her bees have swarmed. Both hives!
So first she says she's going to give them to anyone who can come remove them.
Then she says, "Too bad you don't have a hive set up, I'd give you one."
O M GOODNESS!!
I've been wanting bees ever since my mom started taking the bee classes and participating in the Don Meyer program in 2009. I almost signed up in 2010, but too much was going on for us.
So here we are, in 2011 - and I got a crash course in Beeking this week!
Mom, with the help of kel's advice, managed to capture both swarms. Thank goodness they were in bushes low to the ground! She put hers into a cardboard box, and mine in a cardboard nuc box.
She brought the nuc box to us on Thursday night. We set up a dog box on cement blocks about where we wanted the hive to be. Then, we put the nuc box in the dog box to protect it from the weather.
Kel said she could bring me some beeking supplies and help me install the bees.
Lemme tell ya'll, she's an awesome friend! But she couldn't come until today, so the bees were in the cardboard nuc box over the weekend.
By Friday they had found a way out. Bees flying everywhere, but going back to the nuc box inside the dog box.
Kel and TR arrived right around 12:30 pm today and no time was wasted in getting out to the bees. By 2 pm the hive was set up and the bees installed.
Lemme tell you, when Kel lifted up the lid to the nuc box (while I watched and TR hid behind a tree screaming get the smoker get the smoker!) there were THOUSANDS of bees hanging to the box lid!
E said I should have seen the expression on my face when she lifted that lid and I saw those bees - and you betcha, I backed up and hid behind that tree with TR - I mean, she was wearing the ONLY SUIT!
But, it all went rather well, and I did get sorta close - and the bees didn't care that we were there, not really.
Well, the few that got squished when the lid was put in place might have cared but....well...lol
I have pics of the whole install process, and the dog box temp hive, but again, no cord, so the only pic I have to share is this one that Kel emailed me.
If you look close enough, you can see my bees flying in and out!
Her husband has a real obsession with the smoker - kel was working around the hive and he suddenly blurt out, "Need me to check that smoker? it looks like it's going out..."
I have a pic on my camera of the "men" hiding behind the trees LOL
Kel also had me suit up so I could feel comfortable trying things out. I practiced smoking my bees, pretended to use the hive tool (hahahaha) all just for photos!
I'll get to the library tomorrow to upload the install pics. I got an awesome one of the nuc box lid covered in bees.
Oh, and they had already started building comb in the box! Kel saved it for me so i can keep it!
The sweetest moment of the day was when Kel was putting on her bee suit, and her husband wanted to be sure she had a bottle of water on hand so that she wouldn't over heat and pass out.
So first she says she's going to give them to anyone who can come remove them.
Then she says, "Too bad you don't have a hive set up, I'd give you one."
O M GOODNESS!!
I've been wanting bees ever since my mom started taking the bee classes and participating in the Don Meyer program in 2009. I almost signed up in 2010, but too much was going on for us.
So here we are, in 2011 - and I got a crash course in Beeking this week!
Mom, with the help of kel's advice, managed to capture both swarms. Thank goodness they were in bushes low to the ground! She put hers into a cardboard box, and mine in a cardboard nuc box.
She brought the nuc box to us on Thursday night. We set up a dog box on cement blocks about where we wanted the hive to be. Then, we put the nuc box in the dog box to protect it from the weather.
Kel said she could bring me some beeking supplies and help me install the bees.
Lemme tell ya'll, she's an awesome friend! But she couldn't come until today, so the bees were in the cardboard nuc box over the weekend.
By Friday they had found a way out. Bees flying everywhere, but going back to the nuc box inside the dog box.
Kel and TR arrived right around 12:30 pm today and no time was wasted in getting out to the bees. By 2 pm the hive was set up and the bees installed.
Lemme tell you, when Kel lifted up the lid to the nuc box (while I watched and TR hid behind a tree screaming get the smoker get the smoker!) there were THOUSANDS of bees hanging to the box lid!
E said I should have seen the expression on my face when she lifted that lid and I saw those bees - and you betcha, I backed up and hid behind that tree with TR - I mean, she was wearing the ONLY SUIT!
But, it all went rather well, and I did get sorta close - and the bees didn't care that we were there, not really.
Well, the few that got squished when the lid was put in place might have cared but....well...lol
I have pics of the whole install process, and the dog box temp hive, but again, no cord, so the only pic I have to share is this one that Kel emailed me.
If you look close enough, you can see my bees flying in and out!
Her husband has a real obsession with the smoker - kel was working around the hive and he suddenly blurt out, "Need me to check that smoker? it looks like it's going out..."
I have a pic on my camera of the "men" hiding behind the trees LOL
Kel also had me suit up so I could feel comfortable trying things out. I practiced smoking my bees, pretended to use the hive tool (hahahaha) all just for photos!
I'll get to the library tomorrow to upload the install pics. I got an awesome one of the nuc box lid covered in bees.
Oh, and they had already started building comb in the box! Kel saved it for me so i can keep it!
The sweetest moment of the day was when Kel was putting on her bee suit, and her husband wanted to be sure she had a bottle of water on hand so that she wouldn't over heat and pass out.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Strawberry Buckets and Mt. Hope
It was super nice out today, so Ernie and I spent most of it outside getting things together for Mt. Hope tomorrow.
We're taking 24 young chicks, 4 started pullets, a pair of call ducks, and these:
Ernie and I spent most of the afternoon potting up our extra strawberry plants in hanging baskets and wooden buckets like the one above. We have 4 hanging basketes, 3 small wooden buckets, and 1 large wooden bucket.
We're taking 24 young chicks, 4 started pullets, a pair of call ducks, and these:
Ernie and I spent most of the afternoon potting up our extra strawberry plants in hanging baskets and wooden buckets like the one above. We have 4 hanging basketes, 3 small wooden buckets, and 1 large wooden bucket.
I think they're really cute!
We're also potting up 3 of our old fashioned lilac bushes that we transplanted off my adult bushes. The young ones have really taken off and are sprouting out babies of their own.
Plus he has a young red maple and a young silver maple to take, both are potted.
We're leaving fairly early in the morning, so we can get a good set up spot on the main midway. Plan to load up the van tonight so that we can just get in and go in the morning.
It's going to be a pretty busy weekend for us, starting this evening with a special delivery! More details to come later!
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Mid-Week Update - Rain, Rain, Rain, and more Rain
I keep looking for the rainbow - haven't seen one yet!
The animal yards are muddy messes. Grass is green, though!
I would say the growing season is here, but the rain has put everything into growth over drive! Grass sprouts up 6 inches overnight, and makes it near impossible to plant anything in the garden.
We do have potatoes, onions, and garlic planted.
Still have A LOT more to get out there, though!
The beginning of the week, when we had a short lull in the rains, we did manage to get th e garden tilled.
Waiting to go in the ground we have tomatoes (already started), corn, green beans, lettuce (already started), cucumbers, and bell peppers (already started).
Last year, we had potato plants knee high by May 12. Not so this year. Our garden is way behind thanks to the onslaught of earth fluid.
The fruit trees are doing well, with the exception of 1 peach tree that has a blight. We've bought the stuff to treat it, but can't apply it until this rain lets up.
Strawberries are coming along nicely, rhubarb came back from last year, the asparagus patch is taking off, and my blueberry bushes look wonderful!
On Saturday we managed to get some cute 22 week belly pics. I may share those later, but I have to find the cord to my camera first. It was lost in the moving from the old trailer to the new.
Speaking of the old trailer, it's nearly all down! I have pics of the process to share, too, again, as soon as I find the camera cord! LOL
We have saved all the trusses and 2x3's out of walls of the old trailer to build turkey coops! If things continue to go as they are, we should have at least 3 breeds of turkeys by next year - hoping for 4 though! Right now we have Royal Palm Poults and Bourbon Red Poults. This weekend we're getting Narragansett eggs and maybe some Black Spanish eggs.
Have a happy week everyone, and try to stay dry!
The animal yards are muddy messes. Grass is green, though!
I would say the growing season is here, but the rain has put everything into growth over drive! Grass sprouts up 6 inches overnight, and makes it near impossible to plant anything in the garden.
We do have potatoes, onions, and garlic planted.
Still have A LOT more to get out there, though!
The beginning of the week, when we had a short lull in the rains, we did manage to get th e garden tilled.
Waiting to go in the ground we have tomatoes (already started), corn, green beans, lettuce (already started), cucumbers, and bell peppers (already started).
Last year, we had potato plants knee high by May 12. Not so this year. Our garden is way behind thanks to the onslaught of earth fluid.
The fruit trees are doing well, with the exception of 1 peach tree that has a blight. We've bought the stuff to treat it, but can't apply it until this rain lets up.
Strawberries are coming along nicely, rhubarb came back from last year, the asparagus patch is taking off, and my blueberry bushes look wonderful!
On Saturday we managed to get some cute 22 week belly pics. I may share those later, but I have to find the cord to my camera first. It was lost in the moving from the old trailer to the new.
Speaking of the old trailer, it's nearly all down! I have pics of the process to share, too, again, as soon as I find the camera cord! LOL
We have saved all the trusses and 2x3's out of walls of the old trailer to build turkey coops! If things continue to go as they are, we should have at least 3 breeds of turkeys by next year - hoping for 4 though! Right now we have Royal Palm Poults and Bourbon Red Poults. This weekend we're getting Narragansett eggs and maybe some Black Spanish eggs.
Have a happy week everyone, and try to stay dry!
Friday, May 13, 2011
No More Library Trips!
As of yesterday, we officially have internet at home! and not dial up, either, but DSL! Hopefully that means no more neglecting of my blog, and regular blog posts.
Except I'm not having much to post about.
I am feeling Baby Girl moving a lot more. I was worried about that for awhile, because it just seems like I felt the others moving a lot earlier than I felt her. I blame it on the extra padding - all that extra weight I hadn't lost after the others. I hadn't felt any movement until the night before our 20 week ultrasound. I was actually 19 weeks and 5 days, but close enough. She was very active during the sonogram, and her heartbeat has been consistently in the 160's, so I don't know why I've been so worried.
I've been filling my mind with all the cute little girly things there are out there to buy. Big bows for her hair (hoping she has some!) and baby hairbands with big bows and flowers on them, dresses, and I found the cutest chocolate and pink butterfly stuff at Walmart.com.
The kids are so excited to be getting a baby sister. They prayed for one every night before our sonogram, and now they give prayers of thanks every night. And our youngest son, who will be 3 on July 21, put his hand on my stomach today and said, "Mommy, I'm petting the baby in your belly!"
It was just too cute!
Except I'm not having much to post about.
I am feeling Baby Girl moving a lot more. I was worried about that for awhile, because it just seems like I felt the others moving a lot earlier than I felt her. I blame it on the extra padding - all that extra weight I hadn't lost after the others. I hadn't felt any movement until the night before our 20 week ultrasound. I was actually 19 weeks and 5 days, but close enough. She was very active during the sonogram, and her heartbeat has been consistently in the 160's, so I don't know why I've been so worried.
I've been filling my mind with all the cute little girly things there are out there to buy. Big bows for her hair (hoping she has some!) and baby hairbands with big bows and flowers on them, dresses, and I found the cutest chocolate and pink butterfly stuff at Walmart.com.
The kids are so excited to be getting a baby sister. They prayed for one every night before our sonogram, and now they give prayers of thanks every night. And our youngest son, who will be 3 on July 21, put his hand on my stomach today and said, "Mommy, I'm petting the baby in your belly!"
It was just too cute!
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