bitter :: sweet

on January 29th the sap started to flow and we went out and tapped the trees.  last year we tapped more and ended up making enough syrup to sell about a gallon and a half, which helped us to recoup the cost of some of the equipment (pans, extra stovepipe, a second old stove off of craigslist).  this year though, we're keeping it small(er).  it takes a lot of time to boil down sap, and a lot of wood.  there's something to be said for all that time and wood, of course.  I do enjoy it, especially on cold, clear nights.   the couple weeks a year that we spend hauling wood back to the 'sugar nook' and feeding the roaring fires and being huddled up close in there with the good sweet smells are pretty nice.

this weekend, Sunday in particular, was amazingly warm.  I think it topped out around 70 degrees.  there were barefoot picnics (it's strawberry season in Florida- woohoo!) and loads of yard work.  I got the seed-starting-mix mixed and looked through our recently received seed order.  the sap fire was tended quickly and I did not linger to absorb the warmth.

also, and here is the bitter part…..  we made the sad discovery that one of our hives did not make it.

this is their super loaded with honey

dead bees

we had noticed that one of the hives seemed less active than the other on warm days.  I didn't want to admit that maybe there really was a problem, though, and so I kept telling myself it was just fine and that maybe this or that or the other was the reason.  after all, the hive had been so strong going into winter.  well, when a 70 degree day strikes in February and the bees aren't out, there is indeed a problem.  so I opened up the hive with a bit of dread tugging at my insides.  I pulled off a super still full of honey to find next to nothing in the brood box below.  no eggs, no larvae, no honey (well, a tiny bit), and no live bees.  just a small cluster that seemed to have been trying unsuccessfully to stay warm.  our best guess is that something happened with the queen and after a while passed with no new bees being born and the numbers dwindled more and more they just weren't numerous enough to make a large enough cluster to stay warm on the colder nights we've had.  I was bummed.  and angry, even.  though at what I don't know.  you just never know with bees.

and so- we'll go into spring with one hive and fingers crossed for the best.

on Saturday, which happened to be Laura Ingalls Wilder's birthday, Claire helped Mike smoke some bacon in a homemade cold-smoker.  it seemed fitting to me that it was on Laura's birthday, because she (Claire) has been asking to 'help Pa smoke the meat' ever since we started to reread the series a month ago.  this is a bit different from hanging the meat inside a hollowed out log like Laura did with Pa, but it'll do.  we also threw in a hunk of sharp cheddar.  mmm mmm good.