:: Stop Focusing on How Stressed You Are ::

This beautiful double rainbow happened Monday night. It was amazing and lasted so long!

I knew it needed a beautiful quote to go with it, so I went to my go to : pinterest. This quote was the very first quote that popped up. Talk about stopping me in my tracks. This is so so true. Some days I look at my to do list & the things that didn't get done and the stress level goes through the roof. Some days I stress over the little things (Okay, that's most days). Somedays I forget to just breath and let kids be kids and remember someday they won't bicker at each other 24-7 (they won't forever right?). Somedays I forget how quickly they are growing. Somedays I need a swift kick in the butt reminder like this quote to make me slow down and just be blessed. 

:: Growin amongst all the Weeds ::

We've been blessed with a lot of rain this year. And yes I know too much rain can be just as bad as not enough but I'm thankful for not having to drag a hose around the yard every other day. It has however created a horrible weedy mess out of my garden & I've completely slacked at keeping up with it. Ugh! What a mess.

I'm embarrassed to say that is my garden. Holy crap. That's awful. But, if you look deep you'll find beauty within any chaos right? 

We dug these babies last week and had them with a delicious deer roast.

The zucchini, well you know how that's growin like crazy & there are tiny little tomatoes growing nicely. 

I planted a row of sunflowers and zinnias around the edge of my garden this year since we took the fencing out. I'm hoping next year to have some sort of fencing back up so we can let the chickens free range year round. 

This time of year we watch the spray planes zip over our house spraying the fields.

I have total mixed feelings on this. It's amazing to watch what those guys can do with their planes and the hours they put in. I of course worry like heck about my bees so that's why I got on the DRIFT WATCH list. And to be honest so far they have been paying attention to it (whether they mean to or not). They have been spraying around us late in the evening or early morning when the bees are less active. I am thankful for that. However, two nights ago we are pretty sure it appeared they sprayed our CRP ground instead of a field just west of us. We of course weren't driving out to see and get right under the spray if that was the case. I guess time will tell.

:: Having a Bee loving friend is the Bee's Knees ::

Okay, okay, that's about as corny as I could get with the title. But, it's true. This whole beekeeping adventure is one of the most exciting and educational things I've attempted in a long time. It also keeps you wondering if you're doing it all correctly. Read one website or facebook group about the same issue and you'll get about a thousand different answers & suggestions. It's sort of a guessing game at times, but it also puts you in contact with one of the most important groups of people in the entire world : Lovers of the Honeybee.

Yesterday, a friend & I got together to help each other with inspecting our hives. We've both done plenty of them on our own, but sometimes it's so nice to have an extra set of hands and eyes.

We had one major mission to complete and that was to clean house; so to speak. We both had so much burr comb built up between the two boxes where we had put a shim for an extra entrance.

While it wasn't hurting the bees to have it there, it was preventing us from getting into the bottom super to check on everything.

Photo credit on most of these captures goes to my youngest son Chase. He does an excellent job finding fun angles to help tell a story. 

Obviously, having a friend who is into beekeeping is so beneficial for sharing advice and asking questions, but also being able to view someone else's hives. Her bees are doing SO amazing. Neither one of us have ever used our smokers to enter our hives; nor are we dead set on taking any honey this year. It's important to both of us to build our hives up strong and help them make it through the long upcoming winter months. 

We are approaching our beekeeping adventure in the most natural way we possibly can. 

Next, we headed to my hives to do the same sort of clean up. 

We scraped and removed a bunch of burr comb and I experienced my first bee sting. And yes, it hurt like a Hell! 

Phew, got that over with so it won't happen again right? LOL! 

 When we pulled the burr comb off it was full of drone (boy bees) brood and larva. Yes, we killed a lot of bees during there developing stage, but it's sort of a catch twenty-two (I never have understood that saying) and something that needed to be done to keep things nicely in order within the hive.

 In the above photo you'd notice little white worm looking things on the right side and some within the comb. Those are drone larva. Cool right?!? And, see all the wet areas on the wood. That is honey! It was literally dripping from our gloves. I took one little section back to the house so Aaron & the kids could taste it and rest was left for the bees to clean up and enjoy. And it was SO SO good!

I left all of the burr comb pieces and bees alone for a few hours so they could clean up what they needed and then make their way back into the hive. Once they were pretty much all gone I came back to collect the comb to prevent animals like skunks and raccoons from being attracted to the area. 

 I've been collecting all the extra little pieces of comb & wax in a bucket so that when I have enough we will melt it down to make candles or chapstick with. Oh I can't wait! I think I'm more excited about doing that than the honey!

Enjoy your Thursday everyone!

:: Zucchini Chips, Zucchini Bread, Zucchini Fries, Zucchini what!?! ::

This morning we woke up to yet more rain. Wouldn't it be a good day to snuggle on the couch and watch movies?

And then I was reminded about the pile of extra large zucchini that was piling up on the counter. Okay, okay, let's see what we can do with these monstrosity vegetables. 

I started with zucchini chips which a friend had recommended. I found the recipe HERE via Pinterest & chose to do them in the dehydrator because I knew I was going to be using my oven.

These turned out really well; although I think next time I'd add on a few hours to make them a bit crispier.

Next up was THIS Chocolate Zucchini Bread...

Believe it or not, the kids were not impressed with this one. They said it was too chocolaty. What!?! There's no such thing. With that being said; it doesn't mean it's the recipes fault because I've been known to screw up a box brownie mix.

Then, SIX loafs of Zuccini Bread. My personal favorite.

:: Zucchini Bread ::

3 eggs, 2 c. sugar, 1 c. veg oil, 1 tsp. vanilla, 2 c. shredded zucchini

Cream the first four ingredients and then stir in the zucchini.

3 c. flour, 1 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. baking soda, 1/4 tsp. baking powder, 2-3 tsp. cinnamon, and 1/2 c. nuts (optional)

Mix together all dry ingredients listed above and then incorporate into the wet mixture from step one.

Pour into 2 bread pans and bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes.

And then there was Zucchini Cake. Another recipe found HERE via Pinterest & it was definitely a winner and one I'll be making again.

Oh, and yes then there were the Zucchini Fries. These were Aaron's favorites. The recipe can be found HERE & we recommend dipping them in Ranch Dressing.

We had them with supper along with Beer Butt Chicken (which we raised & butchered last year) and homemade applesauce (that I had frozen last fall).

Finally a night at home & a good meal!
Disclosure :: We are not all laying around with horrible stomach aches from eating all of these Zucchini Recipes. Five out of the Eight loaves of bread are in the freezer and the rest went to a neighbor and brother-in-law. The cake was taste tested after supper & the chips; well those didn't last long.

:: County Fair Week ::

This week has been our local County Fair Week & we are almost to the end.

This is the boys' 2nd year in 4H. The first year I let them choose one general project each. Meaning they choose a category (Chase did baking & Coe did Forestry) & they make a poster about what they learn. Well needless to say, after watching their friends show animals last year they were dead set on showing their own this year.
But, I still insisted they submit a few general projects because I think it's an important part of the 4H & Fair experience.
The Fair kicked off Monday with the general project judging. Chase chose to do an Animal Science Display about how we hatched our own chicks this year.

Coe chose Animal Science which he shared how we butcher our meat chickens,

as well as Forests of Fun & Vegetable Garden Display.

Coe's Sprouting Sweet Potato poster (which also doubled as his Science Fair project this last school year) won a State qualifying ribbon.

His Farm to Table entry and Chase's Hatching Chicken Eggs were both awarded State Alternate ribbons. 

Both boys were super excited and proud!

Tuesday (Day 2) brought a bit more craziness. It was Poultry & Rabbit Show Day!

The alarm went off at 5:45 and we were up and getting the birds & rabbits loaded.

We had organized most everything the night before, but a few loose chickens and crabby moments lead to a not so perfect morning. Hell, to put it lightly we were all stressed to the max by the time we pulled the truck out of the driveway at 7:10.
We wheeled into the fair with fake smiles & good behavior death threats. To my relief the other parents seemed to be wearing that same "we almost had a knock down drag out before we got into the truck" look. Oh thank goodness. We were normal!!!

The Poultry show came first & the boys were exhibiting a few of our chickens, turkeys, & a dozen eggs each.

 They learned SO much from the judge & had a great time with friends.

The Egg judging was so interesting and everyone learned a lot about what to look for in a good egg. They were all concentrating pretty hard on this one, even Grandpa.

The rabbit show left the boys & myself hoping to expand on our rabbit breeds for next year. Now, how do I go about telling Aaron we need to add onto the rabbit hutches? That might have to wait awhile.

Wednesday (Day 3) was a just for fun day hanging out with friends.

We watched a few of the kids' friends show their bucket calves in the morning and did pedal tractor pulls in the afternoon.

We walked around and watched the rides

 (mommy is too cheap to buy the wrist bands on kids day),

but Coe got to have his first Elephant Ear,

 & Ella got to play one game;

which resulted in a $5. plastic ice-cream cone that we got to carry around for the rest of the day. She was so proud so it was worth it ( I guess).

The afternoon ended with one of my favorite Fair week activities called AG Olympics. It's put on by the Illinois Extension office; it's free (again, cheap mom here), and the kids have an absolute blast!

It started with an egg toss & a lot of yolk on kids' clothes.

 It was a chilly day in the 60s for this years fair games, but it didn't stop the kids from participating in the water races.

 Sack races in the Show Ring are always hysterical to watch.

 And watching rough and tumble farm kids shake it with their hula-hoops is just priceless.

Thursday (Day 4) was Goat Show Day. 

Chase was all about showing goats & he did fantastic!

With a lot of help from some friends of ours we got our goats ready and to the show on Thursday morning. 

When I was a kid  I wanted sheep or any kind of animal I could show at the fair. I remember being so jealous of my cousin who got to wear the cool button up shirts & rope belts & she even got to sleep in her camper at the fair ALL week! Every once in awhile I got to help wash a sheep and lead it back to it's holding pin. Oh how I longed to be one of the "fair kids". 

Coe had no interest in showing goats this year, but did get a chance to help a friend show a hog. And now he is hooked and begging for hogs for next year. I of course say, okay!

Again, when to tell Aaron we need a hog pen...

Tonight is the 4H Livestock Auction and then the Truck & Tractor Pulls followed by the Demo Derby tomorrow night. We've almost made it! What a week!