Seattle (Oliver's Great Adventure)!

We have been on vacation in Seattle for the past eight days, so I don't have any bee or chicken news to share. I decided to post about our adventure off the property. Vacationing with a small child poses many challenges. For example, Oliver was so excited to be on a bridge in downtown Long Beach that he peed. Although Glenn and I shared his enthusiasm, we were able to control ourselves. The benefits of traveling with a three-year-old include excellent perks and enthusiasm for the mundane. First I will show you a couple of perks.

The Pit
I have never, in all of my years of flying, been invited into the cockpit. Flying with a cute little boy is like holding the golden ticket. Sure, I was only allowed in to take pictures of Oliver, but it was still special.

The Moose
How many baseball games have I attended? Twenty. How many mascots have I encountered? At least five. How many have stopped to take a picture with me? None.

The Fountain
"Mommy-quick! Take off your shirt! Let's run in the water!" Before having a child I would have admired the fountain from a distance. Oliver made me realize how much more fun it is to enjoy the fountain while in the fountain.


The other great part about traveling with a child is just how amazing everything is. For example:

The Slug
"Oh my gosh, a slug. COOL! Where are the eyes!? Yay! A Slug! Aren't we lucky!?" (Okay, much of the excitement was probably mine-but still.)


The Shrimp
"A giant shrimp! I want to meet him! MOMMY! There he is! Can I see the picture? Why is he a shrimp? Why? Why?"

The Space Needle
"Look, it's SOOO TALL! A huge space needle going 'round and 'round!" Can you believe it Daddy? There it is AGAIN!"

The Flight
"We are FLOATING! In the AIR! Thank you pilots! Look at the ground Daddy. Are we going to splash dive into the water? YAY!! How did we do this?!"

A Warning for Parents

Have you ever wondered what happened to those poor babies whose parents let them sleep in their beds, carried them everywhere, and breastfed them well past the age of speaking? I give you naked dancing boy. This could happen to your child too, if you are not careful.

Camping, Chickens, CCD, Coop Changes, and a Snake

My creativity has been completely sucked dry lately by another small project, so I'm going to make this another boring old update post.

1. Ethel
Ethel is doing great and has finally moved back in with the other chickens. She is so happy to be back with her friends. You can see the wound on her left thigh is healing still. It gets smaller every day.


2. Bees
Our hives have been doing well, too. We opened the hives to taste the difference in the honey flavor. Our first hive produces a much sweeter honey. The bees are not actually strong enough for us to rob large amounts honey from them. We are looking forward to next summer, when we can bottle some.


This pretty lady fell into the sugar water. She looked just like a cat, cleaning the sticky water off her body.


3. Chicken Coop Renovation
Glenn and my dad opened up and enlarged the coop. Glenn made this cool before and after picture so you can see the changes.




4. We spent a wonderful weekend in the Sierra Nevada Mountains camping a couple of weekends ago. Here are three of my favorite shots from the trip. The adorable boy is my nephew, Reid.



5. CCD is Here! :(
Our neighbors recently lost their hive to (what we think is) Colony Collapse Disorder. One day the bees were a healthy, active group, the next every bee was gone. Being the annoying bee lady that I am, I asked if I could photograph the empty hive. It was really strange, no bees, no honey, no nothing. It was as if the contents had been suctioned out. Beekeepers, do you think this is really CCD?


6. Aracauna Chick
Our friends gave us five Aracauna eggs to put under our broody hen. Only one hatched-isn't she cute? She is now a couple of months old.


7. And a Rattlesnake for Good Measure
Sorry, I didn't want to do this, but I can't help myself. We met this friendly guy on our hike this evening. I promise not to publish a picture of the next rattlesnake I find. I'm done, I swear.