May 6, 2010

May, and things that buzz


Due to some circumstances of my crazy childhood...
I'm an advocate for sufficient recovery time between
"new animal projects."

But, the cows are old news by now -
we've had cows before.

So as of yesterday,
we embarked on a summer journey we haven't tried yet.
And that says a lot.
Because we've tried almost everything.

(Except for pigs, and llamas,
and wild ostriches...)

I had to take quite a hike to the back of our twenty acre
pasture in order to get a look at them.

On the way I spotted this adorable little guy.
He saw me coming,
So,
walnut in mouth -
he jumped out on a cut off limb,
hugged it,
and closed his eyes.

I seriously think he believed he was invisible.
The cut off limb thing was pretty ingenious,
and the fact that he closed his eyes was way too cute.

After thirty seconds he spit the nut out -
and went for higher ground.

And there they are.
Several thousand - all in one little
white box.

We're hosting a honey bee colony this summer...
If things go well, we may end up with more.
It's exciting for us - not having had bees before -
but I'm still grateful they're so far from the house.
I took these pictures from about thirty feet away -
and that was too close for me...
More and more of them kept coming out on the shelf -
and I was just sure that the one running back and forth
amongst them was giving each bee the coordinates of
my exact location.
They can do that you know.
The more I thought about it,
the creepier it became...
I didn't stay long.

On the way back,
There were a couple dozen male red-wing blackbirds that
weren't happy with me.
A sure sign that they had families nearby.

It's been awhile since I've had the patience to find
a red-wing's nest;
but I happened to spot this one.

Swaying in the branches of a thistle plant -
intertwined with the blooming alfalfa.

What a charming spot for a little bird
family to grow-up.

I should take this hike more often.

7 comments:

Amanda said...

Bees!?! That should be interesting! Loved the invisible squirrel!! How funny :)

Jill said...

Springtime at your place is lovely. Thanks for sharing those pictures. Annie wants bees, but I have feelings similar to yours about them. (and on 9 acres, I would feel too close for comfort)

That redwing blackbird nest is so sweet. It looks cozy.

Jill

Anonymous said...

Wow, these are great pictures! I could easily picture myself there. Haha, being near a hive of bees would freak me out...big time.

Laura said...

Dear Miss Kate,
Your pictures are just so lovely! What a wonderful way to spend the day. Are you going to sell honey?

Have a blessed day,
Mrs. Laura

Kelsey said...

wow, Kate, after a busy and tiring day that was like an...um, I don't know...a cool breeze blowing through my mind. wait that sounds weird, and would make me an airhead which is something I hope never to be. :P Well, I don't know how to describe it but anyway I gave a big sigh after reading it, and it was SO refreshing (your post, not the sigh, haha). :)

There is so much to see and be delighted by in this life, if we just move slowly enough and LOOK for it! And since there's still so much beauty in this fallen world we live in, it makes me SO excited to see what Heaven will be like, with no sin, and mansions prepared for us by Jesus, and most of all JESUS Himself!

so yeah, you just totally brightened the last part of my day--thank you!
Kelsey :o)

Christianna said...

Wow! this sounds like quite an adventure for you and your family! I hope all goes well.

Kate said...

Thanks for the sweet comments everyone! :)

Mrs. Laura - we don't own the bees - we're just hosting them for a local bee keeper; so we we won't be selling any honey - but I'm hoping that we will be getting some as part of the deal. :)