Slipping into summer.....

Another busy weekend, and the weather finally cooperated! Here's Doug & Buddy, lounging in all the grass they haven't eaten yet. Looks like they are both headed to 'freezer camp' in November, but we won't be cow-free for long....
The bees are doing great, but not ready for the honey super yet. This is one of the outer frames of the upper deep hive body we put on last week. No eggs in it yet, though they are drawing out comb and filling it with honey/nectar/pollen as fast as they can.

Check out the girl-next-door! Isn't she cute? This is a couple-week-old Shorthorn/Galloway cross heifer, who might just end up moving to Seven Trees when she's a bit older. This coloration is a newer one for the Galloway breed, but Shorthorns & Galloways are old Scottish cattle that do well in our climate, put on good weight on grass, and if you're lucky, still have some milking ability left in them (though they're mainly used for beef these days).

These precocious little bean plants are now planted outside and getting ready to tackle their bamboo pole teepees. The other pots are full of cuke, squash, melon, pepper, tomato & herb starts. It doesn't look like it in this pic, but in one warm sunny day, nearly everything sprouted at once. Hopefully all these plants will keep at it once they hit the dirt so we can have a bumper crop of good food.

Here's the genius himself, with his lack-legged sidekick. Nothing says love like a fresh tennis ball...

Gemini took us for a nice long drive this weekend. There were all kinds of 'scary' things going on, like motorcycles, pink flagging tape, hay trucks, tractors, kids, mailboxes, chickens, his own shadow....but most terrifying of all was the giant pig at the hog farm down the road. Who knew that pony-boy has hog-phobia. But we spent some quality time walking him close to all the spooky things, and he's really getting the hang of being a reliable cart pony no matter what is going on around him. After we got him home & cooled off, I just had to see if he'd hop in our utility trailer. No problem! He's pretty willing to try anything if you ask him nicely.

Last, but never least, Stewart demonstrates proper chewing technique on his tennis ball. We have to buy these by the case because it doesn't take him long to shred one with his monster grizzly-bear jaws.....