The Habit of Thankfulness: A Few of My Favorite Things

 Jan 15th- A few of my favorite things...

~Snowflakes made of metal combine with...

~A recipe tucked inside packaging becomes...

~A tasty snowflake spice cake under skillful hands

The Habit of Thankfulness: A Few of My Favorite Things

Nov 19th- A few of my favorite things...
~A bright orange pumpkin with twirly vine
~A sweet leaf with swirly autumnal colors
~A tasty turkey with colorful tail feathers

The Habit of Thankfulness: A Few of My Favorite Things

Sept 22nd- A few of my favorite things...
~A quick trip to Endicott for National Ice Cream Cone Day...
~To get one last ice cream cone at The Custard Corner...
~Before the owner gets his well deserved retirement after giving smiles in tasty forms for 38 years <3

The Habit of Thankfulness: A Few of My Favorite Things

Sept 20th- A few of my favorite things...
~The lure of trains which runs deep in our blood
~The lure of $4 burgers which is a tasty meal to end the day
~The lure of the water's pier which beckons us like a Siren to enjoy the water's views

The Habit of Thankfulness: A Few of My Favorite Things

July 22nd- A few of my favorite things...
~Fishing Nine Mile Creek with Daddy having fun...
~Trying to entice the trout that your worm is tasty or...
~Rock hopping and bank combing with Mommy for treasure

The Habit of Thankfulness: A Few of My Favorite Things

July 7th- A few of my favorite things...
~Turning a bounty of berries...
~And a plenitude of nectarines...
~Into tasty jams to remember summer by...with the help of Thea, my sous chef du jour

The Habit of Thankfulness: A Few of My Favorite Things

Dec 21st- A few of my favorite things...
~Learning all about beekeeping at the Community Library of Dewitt and Jamesville today
~Learning how to safely get the honey from the hive (and imagine that your are doing it too)
~To be turned (literally) into a tasty treat

The beekeeper Emily and her son demonstrating the frames 

that go in the supers (the green box) that get stacked 

as the bees make more honey through the summer

The frames hang inside the supers for the bees to make honey

Smokers are used sparingly to calm the bees

Bee suits protect the keepers from stings. 

They usually work in pairs to make sure they are suited up correctly.

The kids got to try it on for size

Outside they demonstrated lighting the smoker and what they burn in it

A well-lit smoker will last for hours...a poorly lit one for a few minutes

 

Bellows push puffs of smoke out for the beekeepers

 

Bees make wax to seal honey in the frames. 

The wax can be melted down and purified

to make beeswax to be used for a variety of things

After the wax is removed, the frames are placed in the extractor.

Then it is hand-cranked, spinning the honey out of the frames

After filtering your have lovely, tasty raw honey

The Habit of Thankfulness: A Few of My Favorite Things

Feb 14th- A few of my favorite things...
~Surprising 4 little girlies with valentines in cookie form
~One big girlie surprising me with lemon meringue pie 
~And tasty treats in shades of red that remind you how much you are loved <3