Honors Choir

It is Saturday and we have a full schedule. Our lives are very hectic. With my hobbys, choirs, children and grandchildren events, this time of year beckons you to cut grass, tidy the yard, garden, and outings with friends there just isn't much time left.
But we couldn't forget to attend Dylan's Honors Choir. There were two students picked from each school to participate in the honors choir. We are very proud of Dylan. What a nice young man he has become. Way to go! Dylan is the little guy looking at the ceiling.

IF I WANTED AMERICA TO FAIL:



Secret Of The Rooster's Crow

He is an icon of the morning. In most every rural scene he crows to greet the dawn. He says"Cook-a-doodle-do". Biblical scenes center around his call, and he takes top billing in the folklore of countless cultures. But why is it that the rooster gets so excited about dawn's rosy fingers? Does he take his job as the farm's alarm clock too seriously? Does he just have something important to say?
Turns out the answer is simpler than you might think. First, roosters crow all the time. The connection with the sun coming up is a misconception. Roosters crow whenever they feel like it. Morning, noon and night, not to mention afternoon, evening and the parts of the day that don't have names. Roosters crow to show that a certain place in the coop is their turf. They even gloat when a hen cackles after laying an egg. My roosters are now 8 weeks old. They will start to crow when they are 4 to 5 months old. I am longing for that sound. 

Honey Trivia

First of all, I need to mention that I lost my Uncle Charles today. He was 96 and in a nursing home for the last two years. I feel so badly about it. I only have one of my mothers sisters left. What will I do when they are all gone? I love each and everyone of them. What a wonderful family. My mother was the oldest of 10 and they were all such sweet people. They are all dearly missed. I feel empty inside, but this too shall pass.


How many flowers must honey bees tap to make one pound of honey?
About two million flowers.

How far does a hive of bees fly to bring you one pound of honey?
More than 55,000 miles.

How much honey does the average worker honey bee make in her lifetime?
About 1/12 of a teaspoon.

How fast does a honey bee fly?
About 15 miles per hour.

What is mead?
Mead is wine made from honey.

How many sides does each honeycomb cell have?
Each cell is a six sided hexagon.

How many wings does a honey bee have?
Each honey bee has four wings.

How many beekeepers are there in the US?
Between 139,600 and 212,000.

How do honey bees communicate with one another?
They communicate by dancing?

Well, how did you do? Did you know any of the answers? Pretty tough questions I think. Before I started keeping bees I may have answered one right.

The Hunger Games Movie

The Hunger Games is a wildly popular new movie set in a dystipian future where an all powerful, high tech centralized government rules over districts of impoverished populations barely surviving in third world conditions. Jennifer and I saw the movie yesterday. Of course we read the trilogy of books by  author Suzanne Collins.
The central theme is domination and control over the land, media, DNA, and life itself. Throughout the film and the books the government is obsessed with total oppression of the people. Isn't that what is happening today in our society. Don't think it can't happen, because it already is.

Future Egg Factory

Just had to show you bloggers out there my chickens. Are they growing, or what? I do miss my black puff balls. They were so cudly. Now I can hardly catch them to love on.
Remember May 4th is Stick Up For Chickens! Celebrate chickens throughout the world and protest the bleakness of their lives in farming operations.

The Colony

Honey is honey, it's just that simple. A bottle of pure honey contains the natural sweet substance produced by honey bees from the nectar of plants or secretions of living parts of plants. Nothing else.
Honey is made by bees in one of the world's most efficient facilities, the beehive. The 60,000 or so bees in a beehive may collectively travel as much as 55,000 miles and visit more than two million flowers to gather enough nectar to make just a pound of honey!
The color and flavor of honey differ depending on the bees' nectar source (the blossoms). In fact, there are more than 300 unique kinds of honey in the United States.
Check this website out. www.cornucopia.org

Quotation Details

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, You get my meaning.
My daughter and I were talking on the phone the other day when she mentioned how bad allergy season was this year, but what a beautful spring it was. All of a sudden Meagan spurted out the classic quote from Charles Dickens; The Tale of Two Cities. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Too funny. I couldn't stop laughing. Oh how true. These allergies are killing me. Sneezing, sniffing and blowing.

 The boys wanted to come over Saturday and paint the chicken house. Well Dylan painted half and I finished the rest. While Landen made a cross for them.

 The chicken ladder is up and they love it. You should see them walk down. Its a hoot!

 All work ceased at 4 and everyone did their thing. Dylan is on the computer.

While grandpa and Landen watched TV. I think Grandpa is just bearly hanging on.

Nosema Disease

Oh no! Not again. I went through this problem last year. My middle hive seems to have Nosema again. This infection has specific negative effects on honey bees. Worker bees that ingest spores when they are less than a week old normally do not digest food well and are not capable of producing brood food secretions. Infected bees tend to skip the brood rearing phase of life and become foragers at very young ages. Their life spans can be reduced up to 78%. Queens that ingest Nosema spores normally are superseded within a month. I can't believe it. They were doing so well. I just hope it dosen't spread to the other hives. Will keep you posted. 

 

Handle Criticism And Verbal Attacks With Jedi Communication Skills

The initial anger, shock or fear that arises when verbally attacked seem to be automatic and handwired for the average person. Once fear and resentment take hold, they quickly succumb to hatred. Thus, the Dark Side leads yoiu into the eternal trap of fault finding. Soon your foolish defensiveness leads you to engage in a circular battle of wills to prove your innocence and the obvious evil intentions of your accuser. This dance of hatred is no place for a Jedi!

The rule is as follows: When attacked, seek information. Seeking information in the face of a verbal attack allows the attacker to release the pent up energy behind the attack and diffuse the anger. It allows the one being attacked to understand what is going on before responding.

Of course, it takes patience with your natural instincts to respond without a counter attack. Sometimes a counter-attack is useful, but not very often. Exercising patience, managing your mind and seeking to understand will diffuse any attack worth diffusing, and without any need for drawn sabers. 

Chicken Coop

Saturday David and I worked on the chicken coop and surrounding fence. It was a full day. Finally at 8pm that evening we finished. I carried the chicken box to the back of the yard and clipped each bird before putting them in their new home. This is a strange bunch. They never come out of the coop. They eat and drink from there, and never venture to step on the ground. I know it has been so windy and quite cool that maybe they are adjusting to the coop and taking it one step at a time. When the weather warms up I am sure they will scarf up all that green grass and worms just waiting for them.

Easter At Our House

I had lunch yesterday followed by an Easter egg hunt for the boys. It was great fun, and what a beautiful day! Then we walked up to the park, and as you can see I just enjoyed the sun.

Ressurection Sunday

On Easter Sunday, we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ. We believe, according to Scripture, that Jesus came back to life, or was raised from the dead, three days after His death on the cross. As part of the Easter season, the death of Jesus Christ by crucifixion is commemorated on Good Friday, always the Friday before Easter. Through His death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus paid the penalty for sin, purchasing for all who believe in Him, eternal life in Christ Jesus.
Have a wonderful Ressurection Day bloggers!



The Spice Is Right

"If carrots got you drunk, rabbits would be messed up!" Okay, couldn't resist from beginning this post with a classic comedian joke. I cannot deny fresh seasonal produce, and carrots are popping up at markets all over the place. From a local grower they are really sweet.

Carrot soup
10 small carrots 2 cloves garlic
4 stalks celery
1 large baking potato, peeled and sliced into chunks
2- 14.5oz cans chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp. ginger

Cook carrots and potato till done. Mash and add rest of ingredients. Simmer and stir till done.

A Taste Of Beekeeping History

Horse drawn honey wagons, queen bees for $1, and creative beekeeping inventions are some of what characterize beekeeping in the 1800's. This section shows some of what I found in old beekeeping books, magazines, and ads.

I put my honey supers on and am waiting for it to fill up just as you are.

Happy honey!

Spring Clean Your Diet

Spring is a great time to clean out, dust off, and rake away the debris that collects over the winter. It's also a good time to look at what we are doing for our health. Have we let some of our resolutions lose some of their resolve? Have we let some "trigger foods" into the house to sabotage our way of eating? Let's clean out the pantry, tune-up, and renew, starting today!

That buzzing-noise means something. If there's a buzzing-noise, somebody's making a buzzing-noise, and the only reason for making a buzzing-noise that I know of is because you're a bee. And the only reason for being a bee that I know of is making honey. And the only reason for making honey is so I can eat it.

~ Winnie The Pooh

As you read this, I hope that spring has arrived in your part of the world and with the warmer days and nights, plant production is in high gear and your bees are taking full advantage of the foraging opportunities available. Have a great day!