This And That

I swear that if we studied the bees a little more,

we would find that a beehive can be used as a natural thermometer.

The hotter the day, the more bees cling to the outside of the box.

So, I guess you can tell by that picture that it is a hot, lazy afternoon

here on the farm.

By the way, this is our one and only living beehive,

having lost the rest to colony collapse disorder.

Thankfully, this hive is robust and full of brood and honey.

The horses seek out the shadiest spots to graze on days like this,

while the dogs head to the pond to cool off.

Maddie, of course goes right in and swims with the ducks.

Sam is a bit more timid,

and settles for the safety of the shallow end.

He has been getting bolder, though,

and now lies down to cool off his undercarriage.

Look at the size of our ducklings!

In two and a half weeks they have grown to half the size of the adults.

By the time they reach 6 weeks of age, they will be full grown.

I suppose that is a survival adaptation.

Tuesday I was telling you how we lost most of our strawberries to the birds this year.

Well, I learned my lesson.

I placed nets on the blueberries.

It is hard to believe that when we planted these one hundred bushes,

four years ago,

they were just sticks with a bare root at the end.

They are now vigorous bushes,

loaded with berries. 

With berries ripening daily,

it won't be long before I can make a batch of blueberry lime preserves.

Is there anything better than a snack of just picked fruit?

Hopefully in a few years, we will be able to open our 

blueberry patch as a "Pick-Yer-Own".

And finally a special request from our most favored goat, O'Malley.

O'Malley is finally back to her pre-pregnancy weight,

and is dressed in her summer wardrobe.

She wanted me to show you her picture looking so fine....

Isn't she beautiful?

She will look like this for a couple more months.

By September she will start to grow her angora winter coat

(yes, the one that catches hay, goat berries, and anything else close to it!)

Sadly, that winter coat makes her look a bit frumpy.

But for now, she is sleek and sassy and quite proud of herself!

I hope that wherever you are, your gardens are planted,

your hay is growing,

and you are enjoying some hot, lazy days of summer!

Happy Summer!

PS....is there anything else around the farm that you might like to see more of??

Let me know....I love suggestions!