Stinging Bees+butch the bad+ bawling Babies

Last week was crazy! Between a new shipment of bees, Butch the calf escaping and the rest of the goat babies having to be disbudded it made for a stressful few days. Starting with the bees. After getting the call that the bees were in at D&B, the kids and I made a mad dash to Pendleton after school. Trying to keep the bees at peace meant driving straight back home with the AC blasting and praying that they would not go exploring around the cab. After turning on cartoons and instructing Lita to make sure Charlie did not do a table dance on the dining table, I ran out to release the bees. Of course this process was not as easy as the instructional video from the bee company made it out to be. However, besides one bee sting that over the next few days swelled my wrist up and made it itch until I wanted to gnaw off my arm it was all good. It was all good at least until that night when I got a phone call that our black calf was spotted by the road, not in his pen. After a valiant attempt to find Butch by our wonderful neighbors and myself he was no where to be found. Justin being at a conference in Portland did what he could by letting people know that Butch had made a great escape. The next morning the vet showed up and it was time to disbud the kids. Holding the squirming hairballs as their poor little heads were fried was a great way to start a Friday, just kidding. After the smell of burnt flesh and hair had dissipated it was time to look for Butch again. Luckily our good friends came to the rescue and David not only found Butch, but walked him almost three miles back to his pen. By the time Justin got home from Portland I was ready to head for the hills, but instead I headed to the bad fence on Butch's hill and started stretching new wire. Needless to say I am happy that last week is in the past and that we have learned some valuable lessons about hobby farming. Lesson 1) Have the actual gloves that beekeepers use; 2) Two lines of barbed wire are not sufficient for a calf; 3) Wear ear plugs if you involve yourself in disbudding goat kids; 4) Be ever grateful for living in such a supportive and helpful community.