We ordered two nucs in February and they showed up in April. By June we had honey. By July we had no idea what we were doing. By October we did. Here is the short version.
The first inspection
Wear the suit. Yes, all of it. We have a friend who does not. He looks like a cautionary tale. The bees mostly want to be left alone. They are very polite about it most of the time.
Smoke is a love language
A cool steady smoker keeps you and the bees in a better mood. Wet burlap is our favorite fuel — smells like a hearth.
What we would do differently
Start with two hives, not one. If one fails (and our first one almost did), you can rob a frame of brood from the strong hive and save the weak one. With one hive, you are just watching.
The honey is the smallest reason we keep them. The bigger one is that the garden has not been the same since they arrived.