A Shift in the Matriarchy.

I have really busy with some projects. Like I said I got some bees from my friend Mr. S. Yesterday, I finally finished the upgrades to my top bar. I built a lip under the top for the bars to rest on. This will help the lid close more snugly. I also screwed two bars in that will keep the sides from bowing out again. That will also help the lid. I moved the bees over from the box Mr. S is letting me borrow in into the top bar. 
When I was moving them in I noticed the queen cell that was on one of the frames was empty. I know its too soon for her to have hatched. The night after we moved the bees to my house it got down to 36 degrees F (2.2 C). I think that cold snap killed her. 
However all is not lost! Yesterday evening, I went to "Fun in the Bee Yard" with COBA. This time I went prepared. Mr. S gave me an insulated lunch box with a plastic bag full of warm water and a bunch of soft bedding. This way if there were any more queen cells they were knocking off this week I could put them in this bedding and take them home. There were three in the same hive as last week and two of them were in pretty good shape. The third was small and didn't look healthy. I drove home with the windows rolled up and the heat on. It was terrible but I wanted to keep my girls warm. When I got home I took one of the frames out and shook off all the bees on it. I used cutting edge technology to install the new queen cells. Then I tucked my girls in for the night. I will check them again saturday. 

Cutting edge technology. (Twist ties)

This morning I started a new project. Well I started it last night, but the work started this morning. I am trying to build a smoker using Cider cans. These are some pictures from the project so far. I a currently taking a break from it cause its frustrating to get that many cuts on your fingers. Soon I will post the plans and instructions on how to do it your self.