Honeybees in Iris Heaven

Last weekend when I arrived to do a hive inspection, I was so blown away by how pretty Emily's backyard looked. There was a sea of irises and allium blooming! So pretty!

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on May 18, 2015 at 4:33am PDT

This is my favorite time of year! Isn't this just stunning! I just love spring flowers, and they best thing about bulbs is that they naturally split, so year after year, more and more bloom! Look closely, you can even see bleeding hearts blooming too!

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on May 18, 2015 at 1:43pm PDT

I brought our dog to beekeeping for the first time. And she loved it. Valentina spent the day exploring the backyard.

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on May 18, 2015 at 9:09am PDT

Valentina, was loving the backyard. Smelling all the flowers. Finding sticks. She even got pollen on her little forehead. She is the cutest!

The alliums are so pretty against the lush green!

The beehive looks amazing! I added an additional honey super box on top of the beehive. I already saw evidence of them making honey!

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on May 18, 2015 at 12:28pm PDT

I was using a feeder on this hive, but since there are so many flowers in bloom now, there is no longer a need for a feeder. I removed the feeder and found that the bees have made some burr comb to fill in the space. It was very pretty! I removed all the burr comb.

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on May 18, 2015 at 5:36pm PDT

It was a perfect beekeeping day. Can't wait to see how the season progresses! Hope to get a good honey flow this season!

Naturally friendly products

I'm a huge fan of eco-friendly and natural products. As a member of Influenster, I was sent a package of Hello Products.

The first thing I noticed when I opened the package was that the packaging is absolutely beautiful! It's bright and modern, and my first thought was, this looks cooler than ordinary toothpaste and breath spray! It's so pretty, that I would definitely leave these on the counter of my bathroom vanity! Inside the package was a toothbrush that is made from 50% recycled materials. Pretty awesome. The toothpaste has safe ingredients. It is all alcohol free and is free from artificial sweeteners, and dyes. Love that. And the flavors were so interesting and different. In my box was Mojito Mint and Pink Grapefruit. It tasted like a yummy drink and it cleans your teeth! Score!

My favorite product in the box are the breath sprays. I've been keeping them in my purse for the on the go instant fresh. They are amazing! hashtag instafresh!

disclosure: I received these products free for being a member of influenster in exchange for an honest review.

Springtime in New York City

Spring in New York City is something special. The blooming trees, the spring bulbs, all the blooms put on a show. This street in my neighborhood is just gorgeous with the flowers starting to bloom over the road. So pretty.

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on Apr 23, 2015 at 3:10pm PDT

But the cherry blossoms are the star, it's just spectacular how beautiful these blooms were at the park. It just took my breath away, wow.

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on May 2, 2015 at 2:03pm PDT

I take a walk through the park near us almost everyday, and it always have some surprises. Today I spotted these pretty bleeding hearts. I love this plant. The foilage is a little boring, but then it has these incredible flowers. Just stunning. Spring is quite easily my favorite season. I just wish the blooms lasted longer!

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on May 7, 2015 at 4:11pm PDT

Beautiful Day to Beekeep

I love beekeeping this time of year because the magnolia tree where my beehive is located is in full bloom! When I arrived to the beehive this past weekend, I was overwhelmed with how beautiful this scene was.

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on Apr 25, 2015 at 11:46am PDT

I did a hive inspection of the overwintered hive and the Queen is laying really well. Perfect brood pattern. My only concern was that on the left there looks to be two supercedure cells forming. I didn't remove them and let the bees do what they do. If they decide to replace the overwinter Queen, I will let them be, to see what they do. They know more about the health of their Queen than I do.

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on Apr 25, 2015 at 6:41pm PDT

Here is a closer view of the brood. You can see that there is larvae in those Queen supercedure cups.

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on Apr 25, 2015 at 8:40pm PDT

I moved the brood box to the bottom and put two more boxes above it to allow the Queen to go up and have plenty of room to lay eggs. I really love how the blooming tree looks next to the beehive.

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on Apr 25, 2015 at 8:16pm PDT

Here is a video of our other beehive in slow motion. I could watch this for hours.

A video posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on Apr 25, 2015 at 3:24pm PDT

The bees were building a lot of burr comb, so I removed all of it. I'm so happy the hives are doing well! I'm still feeding the bees sugar water because we are still waiting for the neighborhood to start blooming. Look forward to the next inspection!

A photo posted by Mimi (@meemsnyc) on Apr 25, 2015 at 10:13pm PDT