Merle Fest

Merle Fest cannot possibly be summed up in so few word but it is an amazing experience that people from all over surrounding states come to be part of. There's so much music and creativity that it is really something to see at least once in your life. This year these was performances from Vince Gill and Alison Krauss, and Zack Brown Band has been known to visit and walk the grounds even when not performing. Sadly, our family didn't get the chance to see any of the above this year. We went on Friday which was school day and stayed until late in the night. It was great and so much fun! One of our favorite things to do, other than paint a wall, walk around all the extraordinary tents, eat some good food, and buy some "in the moment" special items, we looove to go to the dance tent. Oh it is so much fun! There are line dancing and swinging partners and shuffling your feet through parts you don't know or just staying with your partner and making up new steps :) All the musicians that are present are picked out and specially requested to perform at Merle Fest. We spent the day with some friends which made the day even more memorable, but I absolutely get tickled when I see the kid's faces light up with something they found. Joseph, this is a special for you! haha, here are some snap shots of the our Merle Fest trip!

We have to ride a bus there from parking areas just to get in.

Maya with her home-made hoola-hoop. 

The place everyone keeps their eyes on The Watson Stage.

The activities are always fun and this year there was
 an awesome hummer ! 

Each year Merle Fest has it's own sand statue built. It takes
all weekend and always turns out to where you are amazed.

Colors and "hippy" style is everywhere and we loved it! 

Every vender brings their own touch to
Merle Fest and makes it memorable.

Anna with a cute dress.
 "Should I get it?"

This was the honey that is absolutely something else! It's whipped honey
and there are so many different concoctions. 

This is one of the huge tents where SOME of the vendors set up.

A craftsman made nice pens out of deer antlers and bullet shells.

Beautiful handmade jewelry made in front of you! 

Brooke was looking wonderful in a
skirt she had bought there :) 

I absolutely Loved these photos! They were the perfect
 caption for everyday life.

A picture is worth a thousand words.

Time to leave your mark! The wall is a favorite at Merle Fest.

Got to love the instruments that show personality :)

Here's a perfect way to keep track of
all your favorite tunes!  

Some sleep away in the peaceful atmosphere of 

music coming every which way....

While others dance the day away! I loved
watching this couple dance, they were that
 couple you see that you can't tell which one is
 leading because they are in perfect rhythm with
 each other & the music

I love this couple too. They had so much personality
to them and looked like they stepped out of another time
just to see what Merle Fest was all about. :)

Then my own siblings were out there
giving it a shot.

They were cute in their cowboy hats :)

It's the little things that make Merle Fest so interesting.

The story behind this one? Well this is the
wooden frogs and he was acting like he was
the one making the noise...I had to capture the moment. 

Addison and Andrew having fun with
Victor...loving his little smile! 

Yum!!! 

Its always a good time hanging out with good friends. 

Inside one of the other tents playing music...so much talent here! 

Tons of people are in all day but late the front lawn really gets full with
exciting fans waiting to hear some amazing artists. 

More people are awaiting for the night time festivities to begin! 

Bending Backwards for Merle Fest!!!

And then night time began and that is a completely different
experience for those who attend... but one you wouldn't pass up!

Anna, Eli, and Addison joining in a line dance :)

A picture of the grounds when night falls.

The Doc Watson Stage in all its greatness!

Gabby .V.

Springtime Brings Swarms!

Our spring has brought some great things to our "little" farm. The honey bee hives expanded from 3 to 7 within a few weeks. Out of the 3 I had to begin with 2 of them swarmed. Meaning they split themselves to make another hive and provided themselves with a queen. Great thing! So I got some friends to come help us out because they had swarmed about 30 feet into a tree. We managed to get the bigger swarm and the smaller one that we attempted to catch seemed to go back to the "home" hive. Getting a swarm out of a 30 foot tree is no easy task and we were more than happy to have someone around who could hold the pole and grab those honey bees.

About 2 weeks after that escapade Mr. Dick came out and brought me 3 nucs. Yesterday I finished getting the last nuc into a hive body and now I'll be waiting about a week to put the supers on. Some great opportunities are coming for my honey business and I can't wait to see what God will work out! To be prepared for the rapid happenings that bees love to throw at you, then you need to have all your equipment together and ready to be used. So today I spent a few hours putting about 30 super frames together with my    brother...only 40 more to go! 

Mrs. Debbie and Mr. Wayde helping us out... in a big way!  

The bee swarm was incredible to watch.

We put a frame of brood into the bucket to help
draw the bees into the waiting nuc. 

The 2nd swarm was smaller & about the same height up. 

Working with these two was great and I was blessed
 to have them near.

Gabby .V.

The honey bees bearded for a long time in
 the heat of the day...with a curious onlooker.

Bee Happy

Hey yall, good things have happened this past month! Especially with the bees. We have 3 strong hives and have started to put supers on them for the poplar honey flow. We took the Wilkes Beekeepers Short Course and had some amazing teachers. Jon, Jeremy, Howard, Dick and Laurie... yall are great. So inspiring, and you learn something from the people every time you talk to them. Thank you for all the work you put into the class. Us young beekeepers really look up to the more experienced. 

Okay. So we had our test. I was nervous! We studied hard and practiced keeping that smoker lit. 

The Day in the Bee Yard was held at Mr. Howard Blackburn's place and started off with everyone buzzing. While we were suiting up, the bees were ready and we weren't. They decided to swarm. Luckily, they always favor the 'fake tree' Mr. Howard has set up.

 

After the swarm was caught, and the excitement was still present, the students teamed up with the instructors 1 on 1 and got up close and personal with a hive. Ms. Laurie was great with this! 

So brave! No gear... and only stung once.

The supers were full of honey and extremely heavy. 

 Mr. Howard uses this test and day to get his bees split and inspected. Learning is always easier when you get to be involved. Mr. Jeremy helped the class by installing new queens in the splits, and pointing out varroa mites. 

Jeremy leading the splits

Everything lookin good. The bees know better than we do. 

The written test went great, everyone passed. Then we were called to suit up and light our smokers for the practical part. Mr. Jon was our instructor/interviewer, and judge. He did an awesome job and we were very happy with him when he told us we passed! Now we are certified beekeepers :) Thanks yall! 

Bees are such hard workers! They know how to do things in their own intricate way. So simple , but so complex.

Anna .V. 

Busy As A HONEY Bee

"You know you have to make hay while the sun shines, in our case I guess it is make honey while the flowers bloom." - Guy the Beekeeper 

Lately I have been working very hard and Finally, I am seeing results and it is so nice! A Youth Loan is offered by the FSA (Farm Service Agency). This loan is exceptionally great! There is only a 1.25% interest rate, 5-7 years to pay it off and the ability to apply for up to $5,000. The loan is targeted to youth because of the agriculture youth are involved in around my area. After looking into it some, we decided that it would be a good opportunity for me. The paper work took a little while, about 2 weeks. On the 4th of this month the paperwork and signatures were finalized. I applied for just shy of $5,000. By the 6th it was transferred into an account that I set up and the 9th it was time to get to work! Daddy has been helping me with all the accounting and keeping me straight while momma makes sure I have everything and am being safe around the bees.
Monday night I bought 3 beautiful, healthy hives from a long time beekeeper. He showed us quite a few and I personally found the Queen bee in 4 of his hives. That is a BIG accomplishment in the beekeeping world. Thursday I had a man and his son build a nice little honey house for me. Tim Richardson did really good work in a short amount of time, the honey house was finished Friday. Sometime soon I have my mentor coming to look everything over and he is bringing me 3 nucs. -Will explain about that in a later post-

My Honey Bee Journey

The air is full of little  yellow honey bees in the afternoon.

Pottery Barn Colors! Momma loves them and is
sad that I might have to paint over them .

The foundation and beginning of my honey house!

All sides are done and its time for the roof....

The honey house is 10x12 with a 4 ft. loft to store equipment.

Just after being painted, the red is beautiful! 

The Finished Honey House! 

I can't tell you how excited I have been about all this! Many of my friends and Family know that I am Floating because of how ready I am to really get into all that is to come. A Honey House is where I will be able to store: Jars, Labels, Buckets, Supers, Frames, Foundation and Honey. This week will be the time for us to add electricity and water lines. We have been blessed to receive a sink from another house and that will go in here, also some insulation from an old chicken house that I have cleaned to put in there. There's still plenty to do but I will keep ya updated!

Gabby .V.

New Additions

We have had some new additions to the farm over the past two weeks. It is amazing to see all the blessing that God is adding to our lives. Let's get some pictures to show yall!

Malachi and Maya with a Flemmish Giant female. 

Victor with the rabbit that is as big as he is! 

Dad brought the Angora rabbit up.... its  huge! 

Malachi with his Angora. 

She's beautiful and as big as my cat! 

Want a little help there boys? 

Lion Head, isn't it cute? 

It looks like Anna :) 

Beautiful girl with a very cute rabbit. 

This rabbit is about 2 months old. 

Mom went to the cattle sale and came back with this Guinea. 

Me and Anna named him Olaf haha. He makes funny sounds
and Molly likes to chase him.

We also have 2 bunnies that are broken coat and are only about 2 weeks old. They are precious and so small still. The cow, Molly, is supposed to have her calf any day now. We actually think that it could be today. No tellin but its very near her time! That is going to be very exciting. And we have some good advice to go by. We also are buying 4 goats soon. 2 weathers and 2 nannies.  So look for all those babies soon!

Gabby .V.