Huge Harvest to Come

Raspberries taking off.

     We have some minor casualties in our vegetable garden. Some of our seeds that we planted have not made it above ground. Some have and are moving right along. The seeds that have not made it above ground will need to be replaced with plants that are already growing in order to harvest before our summer runs out.   There are established raspberry vines that were growing and had been tied to a trellis that over the last two weeks have doubled in their growth and are now a mass of vines teaming with blossoms. Busy bees are at work all over the blossoms taking special care of each one. This is going to be a fantastic year for the berries. It will soon be time to pull out the canning recipes for making jam and some fruit leather. Among a few losses is a huge harvest awaiting.

Busy bees.

Guests Over the Weekend

The weeks leading into this Memorial Day weekend were busy beyond busy. I had plans and notions of completing a whole lot more then I did before our guests arrived but settled with what was completed and moved forward. We had one set of guests come in on Friday afternoon to come to the country and get away from it all and find some rest and relaxation here in the wheat fields. Rest and relaxation they found and then later went out to wine taste in the local tasting rooms in town with other friends they were to meet up with later in the day. I was pleased to supply them with a restful and comfortable place for the first leg of their vacation. Our second set of guests came in on Sunday afternoon and had changed their plans to stay in town through the weekend-to instead head home late in the afternoon to get back and settled before his work week began. We had a wonderful few hours together chatting and enjoying each others company. She is my besty and their middle child is my sons besty since kindergarten. When they decided to move to Montana four years ago it was a sad day for all of us. But we hold such a natural friendship that when we come together even with long periods of time without seeing or talking to each other it is as if we had just seen each other the last weekend. We consider ourselves in the company of a very lucky few. I am happy to have been able to have offered peace and serenity this weekend, to have been able to sit and enjoy the company of my very good and true friend and to watch my son and his very best friend unite and play together like they have never been apart.

My son with his best bud and his best buds older brother and little sister. They all  get along well together.

 

Guests, Flowers and Some Down Time

     After a very long and busy week spent in work and catching up with some things left undone here at 3Beeze after our very long and busy week last week I managed to complete most of what I had set out to do in preparation for our guests which arrived yesterday afternoon. We had a relaxing evening sitting at the fire pit enjoying the company and friendly conversation. Too soon we all were yawning and ready for bed. We enjoyed coffee this morning with our birds and the warmth from the coals left in the fire pit from last evening. Our guests commented that it was the best nights sleep that they had had in a very long time. That they slept through the night and could have kept sleeping through the morning. I am very pleased to have been able to offer the atmosphere of such comfort that our guests came away from our homestead feeling rested and relaxed. I can not take all of the credit for this though. The country has a way of slowing you down and offering the clean fresh air and quiet slow pace that lowers the blood pressure. A part of our daily lives that I am so very thankful for.

Add caption

After our guests left today I was able to plant the flowers that have been waiting patiently for me to put them in their containers on our back patio. Something I have been looking forward to since the beginning of the week. The rest of our day has been spent recouping from the last two weeks of being very, very busy and having some quality family time.    

 

Lots To Catch Up With

Oh my, over a week since I was last here. I am amazed that this week has flown by as quickly as it has. However not surprised. It has been a full week. Some of the events that made it full were intended, others not. My tasks at the beginning of the week were to complete readying our home and yard for guests coming in on Memorial Day weekend. I did manage to accomplish quite a bit of the house cleaning and de-cluttering that I had set out to do. Right on schedule. Even a little ahead. In the later part of the week certain events took place that took our focus in a different direction. Our focus has been consumed with this other direction since Thursday and nothing else has been accomplished including rest until today. We had a bit of normalcy today in that we have been able to get some much needed rest both mentally and physically and doing mundane tasks such as treating the wood floors as a family has helped to take our thoughts into a restful state. At least during the time that we were working around the house. Or, I guess more-so, we were able to focus on something less demanding for a short bit of time. I have been able to come here and see all that I have missed. All of you have been very busy this past week. I have lots to catch up with. I will do that through the next few days. No fantastic pictures to post and share this time, but soon. 

So Much To Do

     I have so much to do. Or at least that is me telling myself I do. You see we are getting a house full of guests over Memorial Day weekend. Two different sets of guests. The first set coming in on Thursday prior to the weekend, coming and going till Saturday and then the second set coming in on Saturday or Sunday. I need to have certain things accomplished so that I am comfortable with the way things are here at 3Beeze for my guests. The house needs a deep clean of all nooks and cranies of dust and dirt, floors mopped, clutter cleaned up and put away and the wood floors need to be treated after the wet winter and they always look gorgeous after they have been treated. All of this I would do anyways but I would take my time in getting a lot of it completed. Now I have a timeline. There are still some things to finish up outside. Then there is meal planning and baking to get done ahead of time as well. I have a week and half to get all of these things completed. I guess it's time to get started!!

 

Weekend

     After a week of heavy rain on and off the level of productivity for things getting done outside was way down. As the weekend approached the weather was looking promising for getting some things done. Had blue clear skies with no rain over the weekend. Spent the whole weekend outside. First item on the list was getting the garden planted. This took most of the day on Saturday but it was a success. Planted seeds of every shape and size and a few plants. It will be nice when the seeds sprout so that we can see where stuff is. Right now, outside of the few plants we planted, the garden is a large dirt slab. The only way to know where things are is by the small labels that are stuck in the ground at the beginning of each row. Hurry up and grow!!! 

The planted garden. You wouldn't know it but it is.

Tomato plants and onion sprouts in the background.

     We also painted a garden tool shed that we acquired for free. Unfortunately I didn't take any before pictures but let me just say that this shed looks a billion times better then it did before being painted. Amazing what a little bit of paint will do! This shed will store our rakes, shovels etc. and the tiller as well as our hay mower and some plastic garbage cans that will store the wood shavings that will be used for the coop.  

The painted garden shed that looks a billion times better.

The Buff's looking out of the window at bed time.

The huge evergreen tree got a nice trim job, building materials and gardening items were picked up and put away, the lawn got mowed and we even had some time to enjoy sitting around the fire pit and visiting with the neighbors and letting the girls out to forage in the yard. Glad to have been able to accomplish so many things this weekend.                                                                                                                       

Tea From Mountain Rose Herbs

Had lots to do today in town. But managed to stop at all the places I needed to and get everything I needed today before it was time to head back home. When I arrived home I saw a package sitting next to the front door on the porch. It was from Mountain Rose Herbs and it contained the tea that I was so delightfully surprised to be the recipient of from the Earth Day Giveaway at Deborah Jeans Dandelion House. 3 very nice size boxes of tea and a stainless steel tea and herb ball to go with it all. I have only been able to admire the boxes and enjoy the smells of the tea at this point but fully intend on sitting down with a nice hot cup and letting it soak away my busy day. I am so looking forward to this. Thank you Deborah and Mountain Rose Herbs.

Chicken Break

Excavating the garden. aka having one heck of a good time playing in the dirt.

After working our patooties off most of the day on Saturday this past weekend it came time for a much needed break. We found our selves sitting around the patio table numb from a hard days work. My son came over from his excavating in the garden dirt and asked if we could put the dogs up and open up the run and let the chickens out into the yard. What a splendid idea this was! So we did. We all had so much fun watching the peeps explore the yard for the first time. The peeps looked like they were having a good time. We took turns holding different ones and even sat in the grass with them. It was a good afternoon.

Light Brahma babies at 4 1/2 weeks old. So many things to peck at.

Nap time for the Light Brahmas. 

Buff Orpington and Light Brahma girls enjoying all of the scrumptious bugs in the grass.

The Welsummer and Black Australorp peeps at 3 weeks old. They didn't want to step on the grass. It must have felt strange to them. They wouldn't move off of my son.

This pullet turned rooster has been my sons favorite since we brought the chicks home.  He has always liked to perch on his shoulder.

My sons favorite chick who likes to perch on his shoulder went for a knew view from the top of his head. Surprised us all when he (Yes he. Purchased as a pullet) decided to jump up to the top of his head.

The two Buff Orpington girls decided to settle in for bit on my lap while I was sitting in the grass. (6 1/2 weeks old)

.