It’s a GIRL! (about 10,000 of them…)

My honey bees are finally here!

It was a rocky start… the bees didn’t take to their new home right away…

But with (the whole day!) a little bee wrangling, they settled into the hive nicely and are now super content.

It really is a full house at the old homestead right now! Matt and I are complete with 3 dogs, 3 hens, a million+ plants and a buzzing honey bee hive full of about 10,000. As I type this, I’m watching Sprout (the big dog) staring at the chickens who are attacking a snail – and there is a bee buzzing around my strawberry Italian soda. Despite the chaos, we are a happy bunch and everyone is co-existing. I have to keep the dogs away from the grasses I grow (since they eat them!), the chickens have to stay away from my seedlings and the bees are all over the flowers so now I can’t cut them! Oy.I say OY a lot now.

Above is a pic of me and Cat Fraley, who graciously gave me the swarm and helped me set everything up. She is a bee goddess living on the coast – making gorgeous honey-related products. Here we are all puffed up in our mass of bee gear! Later, when she was gone and the bees swarmed again, I bravely gathered them – sans gear – and was amazed at how gentle they were.

More bee posts to come!