And... the Holidays are Upon Us!

We have been decorating steadily at the National Agricultural 

Center, for our Santa's Country Christmas event on the 

14th and 15th of December. 

Two years ago, we hardly decorated anything but the barn and the train depot. 

(Smile) 

Last year, we began to decorate a few more buildings. 

This year... well, we have been busy, and one of our volunteers, 

Debbie, has been particularly busy!  I won't show what she is 

doing, yet. 

We use the General Store for crafts at Christmas time. 

I don't know if you can tell, but we went with a Snowman 

these this year, the trees are not decorated, but we have snowmen 

scattered around the store. The tree in the center is lit. 

Yes, the sun was glinting off the display case, but I can 

tell you it looks so festive.  There are lights in the windows of 

this building and the Hatchery. 

The schoolhouse has a tree, and bows in the windows. 

(kids make a craft to decorate this tree) 

There are small hints of Christmas (and a tree) in the Smith farmhouse. 

I will be changing out the greenery as we get closer to Christmas, it smelled 

heavenly.... but... we wanted the "candles" on for a school tour last Wednesday. 

There were greenery and candles all around the farmhouse.  I tried to keep it 

simple, in keeping with the history. 

I had a lot of fun doing all this, but yes, it takes many hours for me and the other volunteers to pull this off. 

We have lots of new things this year, I can't wait to show you all. 

Our admission fee for this event is 5.00 A CARLOAD. 

Yes, 5.00 a carload! 

There is a Reindeer 5K run (or 1K walk) on Saturday morning, and then we are open from 

10-5 on Saturday, and noon to 4 on Sunday.  

For the tour on Wednesday, Charles, our bee expert, 

showed a new frame he had made in one of the hives, so he could 

show the bees up close and personal to the kids! 

It was fascinating to see and hear the bees. 

The frame was put back in the hive when we finished. 

Two of our men volunteers were busy putting up the 

banner on the corner as I was leaving.  

Of course, our train will be running, barring any heavy snow... and Santa will be seeing all the kids coming ... instead of in our train depot, he will be in the main museum building this year in a winter wonderland... more on that later. 

I can tell that I, and my fellow volunteers, will be glad when it is all over, and I suspect I am going to store some of the things I hauled over last year and this year there, so I won't have to haul them again!

This huge Santa, that I found at Dollar General, will be going over, but 

coming back here for our family Christmas, my two year old 

great-granddaughter is coming this year. 

Back to farm stuff...

I got another ten bales of hay two weeks ago today, and I am satisfied I have enough 

for winter, unless for some reason we have a terrible one.  I did talk to my hay man that night, and he told me he has plenty, which relieved me.  

There is still grazing, so the sheep are turned out all day long in the pasture and in the yard. 

They won't be able to come in the yard next summer, once I have planted flowers. 

The stinkers! 

Actually, they do not do this very often.  I have even quit closing off the doorways with the 

chairs!

I still find it so very peaceful to watch them grazing, they have just been great pets, and yes, they ARE pets. 

They crack me up, they were standing there calling me. 

The beautiful tree is done now, for the year. 

My beautiful Ferdie, the oldest rooster here, has been 

picked on by his clone son, Buddy.  He has been living on the house side of the yard, I don't know if he is flying over or getting through somehow I have not seen yet. 

He has plenty of food and water, and I put him back in the henhouse every night.  If any 

rooster would go, it would be Buddy, the protector but also the combative one. 

He hid out yesterday in the overgrown garden beds.  

I'm getting ready to go out and put everyone to bed, including 

Ferdie... have a great week everyone! 

The Bees' Knees!

I have been having a lot of fun experimenting on the back deck. 

My brother Pete used to do the same kind of stuff. 

Even while I was feeding the hummingbirds, 

I noticed the ground bees hanging around. 

Then, I started to notice them in the jelly cups I 

put out for the finches. 

I talked to our bee expert, Ray, at the Ag Hall, and he told me those are ground bees. 

I still have not figured out where they are living. 

I started feeding them directly on the deck rail.  

They literally clean it all up. 

Yes, it attracts flies and some wasps, but they stay right there. 

I was using grape jelly, but I have been cleaning out the fridge this week, and 

I had some strawberry jam.  It still smelled good, so I tried it. 

You see they left the grape for the strawberry.  

By that evening, they had cleaned up everything you see, both jellies. 

That's strawberry. 

Yesterday, I put out orange marmalade, I had bought some at one point 

to make some Chinese recipe, and we never used it again.  I thought surely it 

was bad. 

It wasn't. 

Do you notice anything?  I mean, besides the wasp on the right? 

Honeybees! 

I had never seen honeybees on anything before, but they liked the orange peel. 

Two honeybees with that wasp. 

They are out there this morning, too. 

You see how everything was eaten down to the rind parts. 

The honeybees love it, obviously...

While as soon as I put some grape jelly down, the ground bees abandoned ship and flew and crawled to the grape jelly. 

I just find nature so fascinating, and wish my big brother was here to see it. 

Still not stung.... knock on wood! 

Thank you all for the wonderful comments and prayers for Keith and me. 

I appreciate them all so much. 

It is so hard adjusting to life alone again, but 

I am taking it one day at a time, the best we all can do. 

I pray a lot... and I know others are praying for me. 

Thank you! 

Not Ranging Far

I have not been ranging far this week, because Keith has been hospitalized again since 

Wednesday. 

This time has been more serious, and we ask for prayers. 

Tomorrow (Sunday) he will be having several procedures that 

they cannot put off any longer. 

We expect him to be home around mid-week. 

Needless to say, this has been a going back and forth week 

for me. 

I am going to run to do the chickens this morning (now down to 20) and 

then on to the hospital.  Keith called as I finished showering, and sounds

good for the first time in days, so prayerful thanks from me. 

The dogs have been getting walked... on short hospital breaks. 

The weather has been glorious, every day.  There is cloud cover today, but no rain expected until 

mid-week. 

Notice my dainty little finger in the shadows? 

My patio flowers have been coming to the end.  I need to collect seeds tonight, if I can remember. 

See that rogue tomato?  It has bloomed and set fruit... there are three tomatoes on it. 

I'll be starting my own seeds next year, the tomato plants I bought this year were not 

great. 

I did get to spend a little time with the chickens... I have to get away from the hospital off and on. 

I found this character on his/her way up the hummingbird pole.  As mantises can kill hummers, I was glad that it was literally the day of the last hummer!  

I have left two feeders up just in case some late stragglers come by. 

I did not kill the mantis (you all know me better). 

Here is something else I am doing: 

Yes, the deck rail is getting gooey. 

I don't care. 

I was bringing in the finch bowl every night... now I leave it out.  Once the bees leave, 

the moths come, and they are just as much fun to watch. 

I have three blobs out.... I realized the bees had taken over. 

I notice they found the hummer feeders, too. 

They are making honey for their long winter. 

I'll post as I can over the next few days. 

(still no stings!  I am calm around them, and they don't bother me) 

These Last Few Days

I usually go to the Ag after I drop Keith off at dialysis on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays. 

Friday morning, the geese were back.  The Renaissance Festival is right next 

door to us, and for six weeks after Labor Day, we have a cannon booming as they 

open and close.  The wild animals don't like it.  I don't like it. 

The geese have been away, so I was glad to see these four on Friday. 

This guy was back at the vet on Friday afternoon.  He has a badly infected ear (his right) and 

eye infection in both eyes, so we are treating both. 

He is doing okay, but we may have to get more ear meds. 

You know I love the Beatles.  I went with a good friend on Saturday night to see the Liverpool Legends at the Topeka Performing Arts Center.  Keith and I have been to several concerts there, it is a wonderful small venue.  Louise Harrison, the 85 year old sister of George Harrison, manages this group, and they have a residency in Branson.  They also sponsor a program to keep music alive in high schools, and they work with master classes with local schools in each town where they sing. 

Hayden High School was the high school for Topeka, and the band played the orchestral parts to numerous Beatle's hits in the second half.  It was wonderful. 

A snippet of "Revolution" without the band, sorry: 

We drove home through a terrible rainstorm, and it was heart-in-the-throat time. 

The jelly feeder had water in it from the rain, but look whom I saw 

drinking from it! 

I actually saw this for two days running, but.... temps are dropping here, 

and today there was a lone hummingbird left. 

On the way to the park Sunday afternoon, we saw this little guy with a big burden. 

Remember our llamas? 

Some new neighbors have moved into the neighborhood, about 12 of them! 

Uh Huh. 

It was raining when I passed the bluffs on Sunday morning on the way to church. 

I missed the most beautiful shot... an egret was winging it's way through the canyon of the creek, and I could not get the camera up before it went around the bend.   

You see the leaves are beginning to change. 

Sunday's sunset almost hurt to watch. 

Yellow and blue always go well together! 

The dogs resign themselves when I jump out of the car.

There goes Big Daddy into the pond. 

And my favorite calf. 

I think this is probably The Last One. 

I'll be surprised if I see him tomorrow. 

This one will be around for a while. 

Scenes from the Deck

The Finch Jelly feeder has become the Bee Feeder! 

(Bee and wasp!) 

I have still not been stung, knock on wood. 

Acrobats of the air! 

The fifteen of two weeks ago have dwindled to five, and my guess is, 

with the advent of colder temps next week, these will go on their way, too. 

I have been cleaning the feeders daily.... UGH... the humidity has caused 

mold all week. 

Sharing the feeder with one of his friends!