Bee Bonding

Here is a video of me spending a few moments of quality time with one of my sweet little honey bees-


(Sorry for the shaky camera- I'm not very good at multi-tasking!)
Have a great weekend, everybody!

Weekend Fun

Hubby took a day off Friday to get some much needed rest after working lots of overtime from last week's storms. On Saturday morning, we loaded up the Farmall, went by and picked up Dad, and headed off to a tractor show. The show was hosted by the Tennessee Chapter of the International Harvester Collectors so there were lots of tractors to see- and most of them were red! (Yay!)

The show organizers planned a tractor ride through the town of Crossville, TN, and were supposed to be leaving the fairgrounds at 9:00 a.m.- we arrived at the fairgrounds at 8:56 a.m.! Hubby quickly unloaded his tractor and off he went, barely making it! I had to park the truck and trailer so this is the only picture I have of the tractor parade line-up before they left for the 5 mile trip through town....

Hubby is the first one on the right-

Hubby had a ball! He said they rode one by one down Main Street, while they announced your name, where you were from, and what type of tractor you were driving. He felt like a celebrity! He said there were hundreds of people lining the sidewalk and waving as each tractor drove by. When the tractors made it back to the fairgrounds, he was smiling from ear to ear!

I was so happy Dad went with us.... I was able to spend the whole day with him and have Father's Day on Saturday. It was very hot and I know he was tired by the time we took him home, but he had a great time- he's still talking about all the tractors we saw!

Here he is, "kicking the tires"....

And here is Dad and Hubby admiring the white paint job on this one....

A few more highlights from the day....

Can you believe how big this tractor is?

Here is one for all of you "Green" lovers... I think the wheels on this one are neat!

This is more my department....

What do you think about the color on this one?

This was the most amazing tractor there- a 1937 Farmall F-20! The man that owns it talked to Hubby for a long time... he bought it from the original owner and it took him 2 years to restore it! It was perfect in every way, from the paint to the new tires!

A funny story about this tractor- the man told Hubby that when the original owner bought it in 1937, he was used to farming with mules... the first day he drove his new tractor to the barn he forgot how to stop it and in his panic was hollering "WHOA!!"

Needless to say, the tractor didn't stop and the man and his tractor went right through the back of the barn! *giggle* He wasn't hurt, but the tractor had a big long scratch on the hood and the man that owns it now said it was still there when he bought it!

Same story this week as last- storms came through again yesterday, knocking out power and washing away some of our garden... hopefully the next few days will be dry- at least that's what the weather man says! (Maybe he'll get it right this time! LOL)

Hope you enjoyed the tractor pictures!

The Circle of Life

Not much happening to speak of right now on the Fraker Farm.... even though the days are longer it just means more and more to do outside. Thunderstorms are an almost everyday occurrence here right now.... the afternoon heat and humidity is making for some volatile weather. As I write this, thunder is rolling in the background- we've already had one bad storm that moved through about 3:00 this afternoon, but the ominous clouds seem to be circling us and headed back for an encore. Hubby works for the local utility company and weather like this usually finds him working late into the night to help restore power. Last night he didn't get home until 2:00 a.m., and tonight I may not see him at all. I'm praying for a peaceful ending to this day, so he can come home and get some rest.

I prefer my life to be routine and uneventful, but occasionally that is interrupted or turned upside down- sometimes farm life is good and bad, highs and lows, happiness and heartbreak....

I stumble upon the promise of new life- the Wren family has moved in again....

Only to be overshadowed by the death of a member of our farm family.... this was Cinnamon, my sweetest Green egger- I found her dead in the coop last week.... now I have only three left.

A bountiful harvest appears certain for some things- after three years of anxious waiting this is the first fruit to appear on my pear tree...

While others are mowed down by unwelcome creatures- this is all that's left of some of my beans.

My posts are few and far between these days and visits to my dear blog friends have also been somewhat scattered... a true sign of the season! My computer time used to be early in the morning, but outside chores beckon me instead- I try to get all I can done before the heat of the day arrives.

This too shall pass.... all too quickly, I'm afraid..... because the circle of life continues....

Monday morning

It's Monday morning, 6:10 a.m., and everybody is hungry..... want to help with my feeding chores?

Well, put on your muck boots and come along!

Smokey is waiting for us- he's already been running rabbits out of the garden.

Once we get up to the barn, the first stop is Daisy and Edie's. This is the view from inside their pen.....

I put out grain and hay and Edie goes to work, sampling both of them.

See the hay on the end of her nose? *chuckle*

Daisy's first order of business is to go outside. She'll eat after Edie samples everything. She loves to be the first one outside.

She looks like she's thinking, "So much grass, so little time..."

Smokey thinks he smells a rat.

Literally.

Next stop- the Big House where Hamburger and the girls are waiting patiently. (NOT!!)

I put out their feed and open the door... once everyone is out, I peek inside.

I never get tired of seeing this sight!

Smokey waits for the next stop.

Come on, Paula- hurry up!

The banty coop is next- I let the terrorist offspring (all 8 of them) and Liza Minelli out of their box...

Then the silkies......

Then last but not least, Whitey and Ruthie.

Good morning to you too, Whitey!

The banty coop is now a flurry of activity... crowing, fighting, squawking, fuzzy bottoms.... *sigh*... have I ever mentioned how much I LOVE fuzzy bottoms?

Next stop- Elvis and Priscilla. Who are also waiting patiently, as you can see.

Once E and P are fed, I glance up the hill toward the beehives and the garden-

I'll check them out when the grass dries up a little more. That will be on the afternoon schedule of things to do.

Time to head back to the house- everybody's had breakfast but me and Smokey.

After a quick check of my tomato plants, I put out some food for Smokey...

Then on into the house for my breakfast. It's now 7:00 a.m.....

I fix my cereal while an egg cooks in the skillet. After I eat, the next hour or so will be my time for morning devotions and check in on all my Blog friends... then it will be time to get on with the day.

Thanks for stopping by and helping- hope you have a wonderful day!

Sewing room tour

Toy Singer sewing machine with hand-turned wheel, given to me by my Grandmother.

I think back sometimes to when I first started this blog and realize I don't always post the way I intended to in the beginning. I thought I would show more of my sewing projects and crafts, but it seems farm life is often the focus of my blog. (And of my life, too.) I'm constantly buying cute patterns and I know I'll never have the time to sew them all, but I'm always thinking maybe a little one in the family would love a stuffed animal or toy to play with like I did when I was small. One of my most treasured possessions to this day is a little stuffed dog my Mom made for me. I never played with dolls very much, just once in a while, but I LOVED stuffed animals of all kinds. Along with making the little dog, she also made some little clothes for it and for some of my other animals as well. I had the best dressed animals in town! I still have a fondness for them and every time I sit down at my machine, I think of Mom sitting at her machine. It's a bittersweet memory, but one I will always hold dear to my heart.

One of my other most prized possessions is the sewing machine Hubby bought for me. I had a wonderful little Viking machine, a no-frills model with basic stitches and easy operation, but every time we went into Joann's Fabric in Knoxville I drooled all over the Viking embroidery machines. Not long after Mom passed away, Hubby and I were walking through Joann's and once again I got lost in the Viking department. Hubby started talking to the sales lady and found out we could trade mine in and get full price of my machine marked off the new one! I was so excited... for the first couple of weeks all I did was look at my beautiful new machine! Hubby said, "Are you ever going to sew anything with it?" I was fascinated by the embroidery feature- I just loved to watch it sew on it's own! Since then I've rewarded Hubby by embroidering many shirts for him- mostly with tractors on them. It was such a wonderful thing to help keep my mind occupied after Mom passed away, and Hubby was so special in getting it for me that I will always cherish it.

This is my machine- a Viking Scandinavia 400.

I also have a Singer serger... I don't use it very often- mostly when I'm making a skirt or hemming something- but it's still nice to have. This machine was at a local WalMart that was closing out it's fabric department-it was originally $200 and I got it for $90! I was so thrilled- it was the last one they had.

I don't keep a lot of different embroidery thread on hand, just basic colors, so if I need a special color I have to go buy it. But I do try to keep normal thread in a variety of colors- Hubby bought this thread rack for me this past Christmas and it has been wonderful to have them all displayed like this.

My sewing table is actually a Martha Stewart dining table from KMart- it has one large drawer where I keep my small scissors, extra needles, and other notions. It's big and sturdy and it has lots of room. I keep my other necessities in a plastic bin next to the table so things are always close at hand.

I have more to show you from my sewing room, but I'll save that for another time- have a wonderful weekend, everybody!

Treasured chickies

These are some of the treasures of my chickie collection, because all of them were given to me by people who think I'm special.... and who I think are pretty special, too....

News from around the farm

Taken after an evening storm on Tuesday, May 26th

After a week of no internet, I'm finally up and running again! Woo hoo! I received a new DSL modem today from the phone company to replace the old one that quit working. It's been tough not to be able to visit all my blog friends, but so much has been going on around here the last week I've hardly had time to dwell on it for too long. Hubby has been off from work this week and we've been busy building animal housing again, this time for the two newest residents of the farm....

I bring you-

Elvis and Priscilla!

These sweet little Boer-crossed goats took up residence here just a few days ago, and have already been keeping us entertained with their funny antics. They are brother and sister twins- Elvis has been fixed so he is very calm, but Priscilla (with the blue collar on) is very rambunctious and at times, pesky. She untied Hubby's nail apron while he was working on their little house and carried his hammer away on several occasions, too.

Dad came by this weekend to help us check our hives and said we were ready for hive #1 to have another "brood box" added, which simply means the queen is doing her job laying eggs and the hive is growing rapidly. (All good signs.) Hive #2 is a little slower and fewer in number, but Dad says they are coming along and will do just fine.

Here is a short little video I took of Hive #1 and thought it was interesting- these are the young worker bees cleaning the "flight deck" of the hive. if you watch very closely and focus on one bee at a time, you will see them going back and forth, back and forth- almost like they're mopping the floor!

And as usual, some news around here is OLD news..... and getting OLDER every day.

*Sigh*

Well, I'm off to make my rounds and find out what's new with you- It's great to be back in BlogLand!

A day full of surprises

It's very unusual for East Tennessee to have low humidity and crystal clear skies near the end of May, but that's exactly what we're having right now... in fact, we've had three days of the most gorgeous blue skies I can remember in a long time. It's such a wonderful and welcome surprise after all the rain we've had lately.

Surprise #2 came from the hen house this morning....

A mini-egg!

One of my green-eggers must have had an off day yesterday.... look at the size of it compared to one of my Rhode Island Red eggs.....

While I was mowing today, I got surprise #3- Can you see the baby rabbit in this picture?

Well, I didn't when I mowed over it's nest but fortunately I saw it before I made another pass with the blades going.

I carefully picked it up- trying to handle it as little as possible- and put it back down into it's cozy nest.

Surprise #4 came in the mail... wonderful Christine from a cute little blog called the Tin Can Cottage sent me a "Blog Gal" for no reason other than just leaving her comments! Isn't she precious- I just love her little gingham dress and cherry apron.... she is now in my sewing room watching out the window for me. Thank you Christine for the sweet thought!

And surprise #5-

Just when I think I've seen it all........

*Sigh*....

I'm not sure, but the one to left and closest to the camera looks like she might be being held against her will..... what do you think?