My girl is feeding my girls

It took her some time for her to get comfortable, but Hannah has discovered the fun of having a chicken peck at her fingers while feeding them from her hand.

She started to freak out when all 13 came running after I called them, but now she sits and feeds them every chance she gets.  It helps her learn to sit still and calm, that's for sure. hahaha

 Here's a few close ups of my babies.  This is Red, and he is "the master", except at feeding time.  Whenever I give him something special, sure enough, one of the girls will come running and take it right out of his beak.  And he let's them, hence the term "hen pecked".

 This is Spot.  She lays green eggs.  Really.  But only whenever she feels like it.  She's getting to the age where she will soon stop laying altogether.

In case you are wondering about my ducks, here they are...

the one with the curl in the tail is our male, Daffy.  And he really is daffy.  I think he's the reason behind the phrase "dumb duck".  The other is our female Quakers.  She spends most of her time following Daffy yelling at him.  He is really hen pecked. lol

Believe it or not, Quakers climbs up into this old chicken coop to lay her eggs.  Surprisingly they are not that much bigger then the chicken eggs.  I was hoping for big eggs that I can use for Psanky Eggs.  Maybe as she matures and gets bigger.  If the eggs do get bigger, I'll get a few more female ducks.

No these are not my eggs.  I forgot to take pictures of the eggs I did make before I sold them (or broke them) in a move.

Until tomorrow....

Be blessed,

Debbi

I now have a poop deck!

My baby hens are growing by leaps and bounds every day.  And for the past week, they have decided that they like my back porch more then their own coop.  In fact, one day I was at the kitchen sink washing dishes, and I looked up, and there was a chicken looking at me through the window.
Scared me half to death! hahaha.  So I went out and took some pictures.

Now every night, after dusk, I pick up one of the hens, and walk to their coop, and the rest follow me.  Chuck says it's time to put chicken wire around railing, or we will have a "poop deck". LOL

Be blessed,

Debbi

My babies are getting big

I sat, staring at my computer screen this morning, trying to figure out something to blog about, and I couldn't think of a thing. So I got up and went outside to let the chickens out. Then it hit me just how big they have gotten, so I grabbed my phone to take some pictures. Tonight I'm going to try and take a video of my ducks ( who thinks they are chickens) as they follow the chicks and climb into the coop and try to sit on the perch. They keep falling off and it is too funny.

The photos aren't the best, I used my phone, and they kept moving. lol  But the are cute. :0)

Be blessed,

Debbi

The Garden Is In

Well, we all pulled together and got all 10 flats of veggies in the ground. Good work troops. Now it's off to church. And forgive the finger in the photo, but I wanted y'all to see our supervisor hard at work. LOL

the day after Easter

Yesterday I shared with you the fun we had at Amanda's house for Easter dinner.  

Today I'll show you the day after....lol

Owen asked to come home with us after Easter dinner and of course, we said YES!  He hasn't slept over in months, he's been in a "I have to sleep in my bed" funk lately and after having to take him home at 10 pm in my pajamas, we dropped the subject.  Well, on Easter he decided that he wanted to sleep over again.  And this time he waited till 9 to cry to go home, but by the time Amanda got to my house to get him, he had fallen asleep, so he did finally get to spend the night...again.  On Monday, Amanda and D met us at the local greenhouse as we plotted and planned our vegetable garden.

 Owen loved running from greenhouse to greenhouse looking at all the little plants.  He liked the colorful flowers best, but this trip was all about our future dinners.

When I wasn't looking, he got a hold of my camera, and took this picture.  Not bad, for a 4 year old.

We filled the back of the truck with 10 flats of the basic vegetables.  And we're still looking for more.  

Owen was pretty tired by the time we were back in the truck and on our way home.  He sill had a busy day ahead of him, meeting his other Gramma Debbie who came in from Washington State for a visit, and a birthday party in the park for his cousin.  What a social butterfly.  This is him with his Aunt Hannah.

The weather turned cold and wet, so our garden is in our enclosed back deck for now.  Chuck and Hannah manged to put in 3 rows of corn, but I want more.  So, who else is planting this summer?

Be blessed,

Debbi

YBC Storytime - Time for a New Life - chapter 3

Last week we saw John and Sara finally come together again in their time of trouble instead of blaming and fighting.  Since then, they have finished packing up their most important belongings and sold everything else.  Furniture, vehicles, fine china, designer suits and shoes, electronics.  All that is left is some clothes, photo albums, and a few other items.  The money they received from the sale, while it couldn't pay their debt, it did give them some thing to live on, for now....

Chapter 3 - Where do we go from here?

"John, come quick!" I yelled for John as I came running into the house holding the mail.  Another pile of bills and letters from collection agencies, but one envelope held my attention.  The return address was a lawyers office, one I had never heard of before.  One from our old home town.  I had already read the letter on the walk into the house, and now I'm walking with a lighter step.  "What is it?  Is the house on fire?  We should be so lucky."  John jokes as he comes out of the bathroom.  He frowns when he sees the pile of bills, and starts to turn away until I hand him the letter.  He looks at it, then he starts to read it.  I see his face go from confused to surprised, and then a smile spreads across his face.  "Kids!  Kids, come in here, quick."  In runs Janie, followed by her big sister Anna, and then slowly, sullenly, in comes our oldest, Jacob.  "What is it Dad?  I was busy." Jacob growls.  Seems like that is all he does now, growl and sit in his room, alone.

John just tells everyone to have a seat, we have great news for everyone.  To my surprise, he hands me the letter and sits down with the kids.  "Well, Mom?  What is it?  Is that an important letter?  Do we get to keep the house?  Did we win the lottery?"  Janie is full of questions and starts to giggle.  "Don't be stupid, just shut up."  Janie's eyes fill with tears at Jacob's comment, but John just picks her up and holds her on his lap.  So I  read the letter...for the family.

"Dear Mrs. Wright,

barn photo

      First let me extend to you my condolences on the loss of your grandmother last year.  While you and I have never met, I visited your grandmother often while I was enrolled in the local university, and she was the most loving and amazing woman.  After I graduated, I left town to start my law firm.  Imagine my surprise when she contacted me two years ago and asked me to handle her estate.  I assumed that she would have used your family lawyer, but she wanted the matter of the family farm handled separately from the rest of her estate.  As per her request, I have sold off most of the farmland, but kept the homestead and the surrounding 3 acres, for you.  She used to regal me with stories of the summers you would spend with her when you were just a child, picking berries and making pies, feeding the chickens, and learning to drive a tractor from your grandfather.  She also shared with me the time you knocked down the barn door with that very same tractor.  She wanted you to have this property.  It has taken me all of this past year to clear up this part of her estate, but it is now ready for you.  The house and barn and property is debt free and repaired and ready for you.  The only requirement of this inheritance is that you live in this house for one year, after which you may sell it if you wish.  You can contact me at this number at any time.

Sincerely,

Matthew James Smithe, Esq."

barn yard quilt

"WHAT???  A FARM???  YOU WANT ME TO LIVE ON A FARM?  YOU MUST BE NUTS.  I WON'T GO!!!"  Jacob jumps up from his seat and screams at us as he runs from the room.  We can hear his bedroom door slam.  John and I just look at each other and I try not to cry.  Janie is quietly sobbing in her daddy's chest, then I feel a small hand in mine.  Anna, quiet little Anna takes my hand and looks up at me.  "Don't cry Mom, it's going to be ok.  Jacob didn't really mean that.  Once we move, he'll realize that God answered our prayers.  We now have a place to live.  We now have another home."

I kneel down and squeeze her tight.  "You're right Anna.  God has answered our prayers."  I look up and find John just looking at me, and then he smiles.  Janie smiles.  And then I can feel a smile sneak up on me.  And it feels good.

It seems that life is changing for the Wright family.  A farm?  How exciting.  And so are the handmade items I found to compliment my story.  You can click on the links below the pictures to visit the shops where you will find these items, and many others also.  And check in with us next week for moving day!

Be blessed,

Debbi

ok, who put miracle grow in the chicken feed???

It was just 2 weeks ago that we got ourselves some more baby chicks, and 2 ducks.  And in those 2 weeks they have finished off a 20 pound bag of feed and almost doubled in size, the ducks more then double.  I used to be able to grab and hold them with one hand, now I need both.  But they are sooo cute!

Now let's see what I can find to satisfy my chicken need...
at Handmade Artsits I found these cute chicken related items.

This pottery spoon rest is hand thrown, then drawn and carved with an original design by VirginiaRoseStudio.  So this is a unique one of a kind gift to beautify your kitchen.  It will make cooking more fun also. :0)

This wooden sign for farm fresh eggs is wonderfully country!  A lovely way to add a rustic touch to your kitchen decor.  You can find this 8.5" x 5.5" sign in the shop of WestWindDreams.

Over on Etsy I found these adorable crochet egg warmers by Marta Carlin.  This is a brand new shop, so keep a look out for more items in the future.

And Etsy can always be counted on for the unusual, and in the shop of PartyFowl I found this duck diaper harness gizmo.  I love it!!!  I showed it to Chuck so we can bring Daffy and Quakers into the house and for walks.  He just looked at me and laughed, so I think that's a no. hahaha.

So, what do you think of my big babies?



Be blessed,
Debbi

Look what we got today!!!

Well, spring is just around the corner, the sun is shining, the air is warm(er), so Chuck and I went out for lunch (a date!!!) and then off to Tractor Supply (one of our top 10 favorite stores),
 and picked up these...

NEW BABY CHICKS!  Blogger is being freaky lately and not letting me load pictures normally, or placing them where I want them...I have been working on this post since yesterday...so aggravating.  But here they are, the newest additions to the family

farm.  These bring the total to 1 rooster, 8 adult hens, 9 chicks (hopefully all hens), and 2 ducks.  There will be no walking barefoot in our yard this summer. lol.
We also stopped at the post office today and picked up hubbys birthday gift surprise...this absolutely beautiful mosaic dove is from MyEuropeanTouch.  It is hugh!  I have it laying on the arm of my Adirondack chair (trying to hide from Chuck during the photo shoot) and it took up the whole arm.  And the colors are great, blues and pearls and oh so pretty.  And for me, she sent this lovely hand quilted stocking ornament, and this flower pin/hairbow with a vintage rhinestone center.  AND she included 2 wonderful letters, one of her history (very interesting) and one of her technique. I love this!  So if you love this too, pop on over to Monika's shop and get some for yourself.

 

Until next time...

Be blessed,

Debbi

feeding the chickens

Hey! You want to see something funny?  My chickens eat dog food from a spoon.

Yeppers...for someone with poor time management skills...I have too much time on my hands. LOL

Be blessed,

Debbi

my chickens today

My wonderful husband is so good to try and meet my whims...and you'll remember that Amanda and I told him we wanted to raise some chickens for fresh eggs.  Well, you can read here when we got our 6 chicks this past spring.  Chuck worked so hard building the coop.  And you can read here how much they've grown in just 3 months.



Well, as it turned out, 3 of the chickens were actually ROOSTERS, so there goes my dreams of lots of eggs, lol.  We allow our chickens to free range during the day, and I love how it has cut down on the bugs in the yard.  But we have to keep the roosters penned up separate because while my black one looks amazing, he is a mean little sucker.  He had my Hannah running full tilt one day, it was actually kind of funny.  We've learned to not turn our backs on him.  LOL.  In this picture you will only see 2 roosters because one stayed out and didn't come home to roost at night, and while we found his feathers, he hasn't been seen since.

 

A few weekends ago, we went out and purchased 3 more hens, and added them to our hens.  I figured they were just chickens, so no problem.  Well, they fought over everything for the first week.  The 3 new hens versus the 3 old hens.  It was like watching teens girls in high school. hahaha.  And they all tried to lay their eggs in the same spot.  So if there was a hen in the nest, Pearl would stand at the bottom of the ladder and fuss like crazy.  We were getting 2-3 eggs a day before we got the new hens, but while we were still getting 2-3 eggs, we should have been getting 6 since each hen will lay 1 egg per day.  Chuck figured they just didn't have enough room so...



Chuck revamped our horse stable.  So much room!  While Chuck was building this coop, the hens would scratch around his feet.  They are very calm and will come right up to you when you're outside.  Owen loves to try and feed them.
 

 

Come and meet my girls.  These are the 3 we've raised from chicks.  The black one is named Blackie and the other 2 are Whitey and Pearl.  Yeah, I know, real original.  But it's not like they come when called anyway.  The white ones are Leghorns.  They are the most prolific layers and lay white eggs.  They have been laying a lot of double yokes too.  Blackie is a Plymouth Rock and she lays brown eggs.  Her's are usually smaller than the white ones.

 

These are the "new" girls.  They are actually older then my original girls, but we wanted eggs NOW, hahaha.  They are all Americana's.  The roosters of this breed are absolutely gorgeous and colorful, but Chuck said no more roosters.  Oh well.  From left to right we have Coco, Chuckie (Owen named her), and Spot.  They lay large GREEN eggs.  They look really cool.  Now hopefully with all the ladies having this much elbow room they will all lay every day.  I have noticed that while the shells are much thicker then store bought eggs, the yolk is more yellow, the the taste is better.

 

So, what's going on at your place???

Be blessed.

Debbi

how our gardens grow

Lately my friends and I over at the Handmade Artists Forum have been comparing our gardening stories.  So last night I took a few pics to share with you.

This is my herb garden.  I love fresh herbs when I cook.  I had to cut back a lot last week because the weather here has been just perfect lately and everything was going crazy!  Starting in the back left corner I have, parsley, lemon balm, rosemary, sage, oregano, basil, mint, marjoram, and chives.  I didn't read the fine print when I planted the mint...and it doesn't just spread above ground, it spreads underground, and mixing in with my other herbs.  Frustrating.

This is our vegetable garden, almost a full 1/4 acre.  That's a lot for a family of 5.  We have 5 rows of corn, 3 rows of peas, 1 row of butternut squash, 1 row of potatoes, 2 rows of peppers, 1 row of pickling cucumbers, 3 rows of regular cucumbers, and tons of tomatoes....I love tomatoes.  What did not come up was the spinach, very little carrots, and eggplant.  Last week I harvested 3 bushels of cucumbers....and last night I tried my hand at making pickles again.  They don't look right!  hahaha

Now my fun gardens.  I love butterflies, and my butterfly garden is blooming large and the Swallowtails are returning.  Yeah!  I have flowers ranging in colors from white to pink to purple.  When my butterflies get bigger and more numerous...I'll share some more pictures of them with you.

These small plants are also in my butterfly garden.  I love the red color of the zinnia on the left, and they are another butterfly favorite.  And on the right is clover.  I had an envelope of seeds and when I planted the bushes, I just threw in the seeds to see what would come up.  They don't get very big, and I'm still waiting for the flowers to open.

A few years ago I planted this hydrangea to hide my air conditioner unit.  It didn't bloom for the first 2 years, and it only got a few blooms last summer.  So this year I did not cut it back at all...(actually I forgot), and now it is amazing!  I love the color.

And along the side of our house I planted some day lilies...I originally wanted the bright orange ones you find growing wild on the sides of the road, but the nursery only had these colored ones.  I have 2 of this very nice red/rust and 2 of a light yellow/beige.  But some night, when no-one is looking, I may go find myself some of those wild bright orange ones.  :~D  I find gardening to be so stress free and relaxing, and I recommend it to everyone.  There is a perfect garden for every size home and every personality.

Be blessed,

Debbi