5-3-2-1-0, Now 8 & a Baby

It's been a very busy 5 weeks.  Sorry it's taken me so long to post.  We've had some very sad, and very happy things happening around our home.  First the sad - one by one, our five chicks died over the course of about 2 weeks.  First, Bertha was seemingly suffocated by the rest overnight.  She was fine the night before, though she still hadn't really been growing and was under the pile of chicks the next morning dead.  Then that same day, Ruthie died.  She'd been sick for a few days and I thought she probably wasn't going to make it.  So we were down to 3.  Then a few days later, I came home after being gone for about three hours to find Molly with her head stuck in the feeder.  I got her out and she was still alive but she seemed to have messed up her neck and she died the next day.  A few days after that, Ruthie came down with similar symptoms to Ruby and died in about two days.  Bob was the last remaining bird and she was doing great - until I came down one morning to find that she seemed to have hurt one of her legs and couldn't put weight on her right leg.  We worked with her, hand fed her and watered her but within just a few days, she also died.  I was sad, frustrated and determined to figure out what was causing my chicks to die.

I quickly ordered new birds, 8 this time, and Cathie was kind enough to pick them up for me.  It's convenient having Meyer Hatchery just a couple hours from Toledo.  I also decided to start them on organic chick starter feed just in case there was a food issue.  I'm now pretty sure that at least Ruthie & Ruby had coccidiosis.  In hindsight, they were exhibiting those symptoms.  It's possible other had it as well but they weren't acting like these two when they died.  I purchased some Corid so that I would have it on hand if the new birds showed any sign of  problems.  I'll talk more about the 8 new birds in a moment.

In addition to the 8 new chicks that we brought home two weeks ago this past Tuesday, we also have another new addition to our home.  5 weeks ago Thursday we received a call from Children's Services for our county letting us know that our boys' mother had a new baby, a girl, and wanted to know if we would take her to foster and possibly adopt.  We spent a difficult 4 hours talking on the phone from our workplaces and talking to our supervisors, family and friends before deciding to say yes.  That Friday, we brought our 8 day old foster daughter home from the hospital.  She was born 6 weeks early and only weighed 5 pounds, 3 ounces.  In the last 5 weeks she's gained almost 3 pounds and will weigh just over 8 pounds today for her six week birthday.  Even though she was born with substances in her system, she's doing great with no physical issues or concerns.  Time will tell if there will be other developmental issues.  We have been very lucky that our youngest son, also born positive for substances, has shown no real impact from the drugs.  We just hope that she fares as well.

It's been raising a newborn, along with our two boys, that's kept me from writing these last 5 week.  Since I'm staying home with the baby, we decided to pull our boys from daycare to save money so I've been taking care of all three, which has been an adjustment for me.  As with most babies, she was only sleeping for around 3 hours at a time before needing fed, which greatly impacted our sleep, and my ability to write.  We've found a routine now and she's starting to sleep closer to five hours between bottles at night which has helped greatly.  We'll know in the next few months if her parents are going to lose custody of her or not & whether we'll have the opportunity to adopt her.  Hopefully we will be able to make her a permanent family member.  The boys are wonderful with her and are so excited to have her in our home.

The 8 new chicks have also been a blessing, and are growing much quicker than the last batch of birds.  I was able to get another Light Brahma and a Dominique, but the other's are different breeds than the first ones.  Our oldest son decided that he wanted to use the names from the recently deceased chicks for the new ones.  Here's the new flock - at about 3 days and two weeks old:

Our new Light Brahma - Bertha

Speckled Sussex - Ruby

Speckled Sussex - Ruthie

Golden Cuckoo Maran - Dolly

Dominique - Molly

Buff Orpington - Bob

Salmon Faverolles - Patsy

Delaware - Viney

All these birds seem to be doing great.  I got concerned that they may have had coccidiosis because I thought I saw some reddish tinted stool in their brooder.  I treated with Corid for 6 days and changed their brooder.  I'm no longer seeing irregular droppings and they are very energetic.  None of us can believe that these chicks are only two weeks old because they seem more like our old chicks did at three and four weeks.  We're not sure why but I'm guessing it's the change in feed.  Though all my research showed that they should have done fine on my ground grains, I'm wondering if these are faring better because of the organic chick starter.  By the time their fully grown I'll have them on grains.  Currently, I provide sprouts, ground grains, and hard boiled egg in addition to their starter feed.  They get egg every day and either sprouts or ground grain daily.

These girls are more curious and have more energy and are more active than the last bunch as well.  We're holding our breath to get past 5 weeks since none of our last set made it that far.  If things hold as they are currently, we should make it.  I'll keep you posted!

It's been a very busy 5 weeks.  Sorry it's taken me so long to post.  We've had some very sad, and very happy things happening around our home.  First the sad - one by one, our five chicks died over the course of about 2 weeks.  First, Bertha was seemingly suffocated by the rest overnight.  She was fine the night before, though she still hadn't really been growing and was under the pile of chicks the next morning dead.  Then that same day, Ruthie died.  She'd been sick for a few days and I thought she probably wasn't going to make it.  So we were down to 3.  Then a few days later, I came home after being gone for about three hours to find Molly with her head stuck in the feeder.  I got her out and she was still alive but she seemed to have messed up her neck and she died the next day.  A few days after that, Ruthie came down with similar symptoms to Ruby and died in about two days.  Bob was the last remaining bird and she was doing great - until I came down one morning to find that she seemed to have hurt one of her legs and couldn't put weight on her right leg.  We worked with her, hand fed her and watered her but within just a few days, she also died.  I was sad, frustrated and determined to figure out what was causing my chicks to die.

I quickly ordered new birds, 8 this time, and Cathie was kind enough to pick them up for me.  It's convenient having Meyer Hatchery just a couple hours from Toledo.  I also decided to start them on organic chick starter feed just in case there was a food issue.  I'm now pretty sure that at least Ruthie & Ruby had coccidiosis.  In hindsight, they were exhibiting those symptoms.  It's possible other had it as well but they weren't acting like these two when they died.  I purchased some Corid so that I would have it on hand if the new birds showed any sign of  problems.  I'll talk more about the 8 new birds in a moment.

In addition to the 8 new chicks that we brought home two weeks ago this past Tuesday, we also have another new addition to our home.  5 weeks ago Thursday we received a call from Children's Services for our county letting us know that our boys' mother had a new baby, a girl, and wanted to know if we would take her to foster and possibly adopt.  We spent a difficult 4 hours talking on the phone from our workplaces and talking to our supervisors, family and friends before deciding to say yes.  That Friday, we brought our 8 day old foster daughter home from the hospital.  She was born 6 weeks early and only weighed 5 pounds, 3 ounces.  In the last 5 weeks she's gained almost 3 pounds and will weigh just over 8 pounds today for her six week birthday.  Even though she was born with substances in her system, she's doing great with no physical issues or concerns.  Time will tell if there will be other developmental issues.  We have been very lucky that our youngest son, also born positive for substances, has shown no real impact from the drugs.  We just hope that she fares as well.

It's been raising a newborn, along with our two boys, that's kept me from writing these last 5 week.  Since I'm staying home with the baby, we decided to pull our boys from daycare to save money so I've been taking care of all three, which has been an adjustment for me.  As with most babies, she was only sleeping for around 3 hours at a time before needing fed, which greatly impacted our sleep, and my ability to write.  We've found a routine now and she's starting to sleep closer to five hours between bottles at night which has helped greatly.  We'll know in the next few months if her parents are going to lose custody of her or not & whether we'll have the opportunity to adopt her.  Hopefully we will be able to make her a permanent family member.  The boys are wonderful with her and are so excited to have her in our home.

The 8 new chicks have also been a blessing, and are growing much quicker than the last batch of birds.  I was able to get another Light Brahma and a Dominique, but the other's are different breeds than the first ones.  Our oldest son decided that he wanted to use the names from the recently deceased chicks for the new ones.  Here's the new flock - at about 3 days and two weeks old:

Our new Light Brahma - Bertha

Speckled Sussex - Ruby

Speckled Sussex - Ruthie

Golden Cuckoo Maran - Dolly

Dominique - Molly

Buff Orpington - Bob

Salmon Faverolles - Patsy

Delaware - Viney

All these birds seem to be doing great.  I got concerned that they may have had coccidiosis because I thought I saw some reddish tinted stool in their brooder.  I treated with Corid for 6 days and changed their brooder.  I'm no longer seeing irregular droppings and they are very energetic.  None of us can believe that these chicks are only two weeks old because they seem more like our old chicks did at three and four weeks.  We're not sure why but I'm guessing it's the change in feed.  Though all my research showed that they should have done fine on my ground grains, I'm wondering if these are faring better because of the organic chick starter.  By the time their fully grown I'll have them on grains.  Currently, I provide sprouts, ground grains, and hard boiled egg in addition to their starter feed.  They get egg every day and either sprouts or ground grain daily.

These girls are more curious and have more energy and are more active than the last bunch as well.  We're holding our breath to get past 5 weeks since none of our last set made it that far.  If things hold as they are currently, we should make it.  I'll keep you posted!

It's been a very busy 5 weeks.  Sorry it's taken me so long to post.  We've had some very sad, and very happy things happening around our home.  First the sad - one by one, our five chicks died over the course of about 2 weeks.  First, Bertha was seemingly suffocated by the rest overnight.  She was fine the night before, though she still hadn't really been growing and was under the pile of chicks the next morning dead.  Then that same day, Ruthie died.  She'd been sick for a few days and I thought she probably wasn't going to make it.  So we were down to 3.  Then a few days later, I came home after being gone for about three hours to find Molly with her head stuck in the feeder.  I got her out and she was still alive but she seemed to have messed up her neck and she died the next day.  A few days after that, Ruthie came down with similar symptoms to Ruby and died in about two days.  Bob was the last remaining bird and she was doing great - until I came down one morning to find that she seemed to have hurt one of her legs and couldn't put weight on her right leg.  We worked with her, hand fed her and watered her but within just a few days, she also died.  I was sad, frustrated and determined to figure out what was causing my chicks to die.

I quickly ordered new birds, 8 this time, and Cathie was kind enough to pick them up for me.  It's convenient having Meyer Hatchery just a couple hours from Toledo.  I also decided to start them on organic chick starter feed just in case there was a food issue.  I'm now pretty sure that at least Ruthie & Ruby had coccidiosis.  In hindsight, they were exhibiting those symptoms.  It's possible other had it as well but they weren't acting like these two when they died.  I purchased some Corid so that I would have it on hand if the new birds showed any sign of  problems.  I'll talk more about the 8 new birds in a moment.

In addition to the 8 new chicks that we brought home two weeks ago this past Tuesday, we also have another new addition to our home.  5 weeks ago Thursday we received a call from Children's Services for our county letting us know that our boys' mother had a new baby, a girl, and wanted to know if we would take her to foster and possibly adopt.  We spent a difficult 4 hours talking on the phone from our workplaces and talking to our supervisors, family and friends before deciding to say yes.  That Friday, we brought our 8 day old foster daughter home from the hospital.  She was born 6 weeks early and only weighed 5 pounds, 3 ounces.  In the last 5 weeks she's gained almost 3 pounds and will weigh just over 8 pounds today for her six week birthday.  Even though she was born with substances in her system, she's doing great with no physical issues or concerns.  Time will tell if there will be other developmental issues.  We have been very lucky that our youngest son, also born positive for substances, has shown no real impact from the drugs.  We just hope that she fares as well.

It's been raising a newborn, along with our two boys, that's kept me from writing these last 5 week.  Since I'm staying home with the baby, we decided to pull our boys from daycare to save money so I've been taking care of all three, which has been an adjustment for me.  As with most babies, she was only sleeping for around 3 hours at a time before needing fed, which greatly impacted our sleep, and my ability to write.  We've found a routine now and she's starting to sleep closer to five hours between bottles at night which has helped greatly.  We'll know in the next few months if her parents are going to lose custody of her or not & whether we'll have the opportunity to adopt her.  Hopefully we will be able to make her a permanent family member.  The boys are wonderful with her and are so excited to have her in our home.

The 8 new chicks have also been a blessing, and are growing much quicker than the last batch of birds.  I was able to get another Light Brahma and a Dominique, but the other's are different breeds than the first ones.  Our oldest son decided that he wanted to use the names from the recently deceased chicks for the new ones.  Here's the new flock - at about 3 days and two weeks old:

Our new Light Brahma - Bertha

Speckled Sussex - Ruby

Speckled Sussex - Ruthie

Golden Cuckoo Maran - Dolly

Dominique - Molly

Buff Orpington - Bob

Salmon Faverolles - Patsy

Delaware - Viney

All these birds seem to be doing great.  I got concerned that they may have had coccidiosis because I thought I saw some reddish tinted stool in their brooder.  I treated with Corid for 6 days and changed their brooder.  I'm no longer seeing irregular droppings and they are very energetic.  None of us can believe that these chicks are only two weeks old because they seem more like our old chicks did at three and four weeks.  We're not sure why but I'm guessing it's the change in feed.  Though all my research showed that they should have done fine on my ground grains, I'm wondering if these are faring better because of the organic chick starter.  By the time their fully grown I'll have them on grains.  Currently, I provide sprouts, ground grains, and hard boiled egg in addition to their starter feed.  They get egg every day and either sprouts or ground grain daily.

These girls are more curious and have more energy and are more active than the last bunch as well.  We're holding our breath to get past 5 weeks since none of our last set made it that far.  If things hold as they are currently, we should make it.  I'll keep you posted!

Getting Ready to Plant Tomatoes & More

Our tomato plants are growing great and we're about ready to put them in the ground.  We started them several weeks ago and they're getting pretty tall now:

We've been starting to harden them by putting them outside every evening when we get home so the get used to the sunlight.  We have a two tiered indoor greenhouse where we start our seeds.  We also have eggplant starting to grow.  We haven't gotten as much planted indoors as we usually do.  The chicks, and especially the time building their coop, have slowed down our planting.  We'll be sowing more seed directly into the ground this year than normal.  The lettuce, kohlrabi, and some other vegetables that we sowed a few weeks ago outside in the beds have started to come up.

I hope to turn over our Spring cover crop in most of the beds this weekend and start sowing seeds.  The clover didn't grow as tall as I would have liked but we definitely have some green to work back into the soil and clover improves the nitrogen content in the soil as it grows so the soil will definitely be better off with its small amount of growth than if we hadn't planted anything at all.  Our last frost date is May 15 but the weather for the next 10 days looks good to go ahead and plant.  Also, even if it frosts, most of the seeds we plant this week will not be coming up by then anyway and if they are, we can cover them for a night with plastic.  Better to get a head start since we weren't able to start as many plants indoors as usual.

Our tomato plants are growing great and we're about ready to put them in the ground.  We started them several weeks ago and they're getting pretty tall now:

We've been starting to harden them by putting them outside every evening when we get home so the get used to the sunlight.  We have a two tiered indoor greenhouse where we start our seeds.  We also have eggplant starting to grow.  We haven't gotten as much planted indoors as we usually do.  The chicks, and especially the time building their coop, have slowed down our planting.  We'll be sowing more seed directly into the ground this year than normal.  The lettuce, kohlrabi, and some other vegetables that we sowed a few weeks ago outside in the beds have started to come up.

I hope to turn over our Spring cover crop in most of the beds this weekend and start sowing seeds.  The clover didn't grow as tall as I would have liked but we definitely have some green to work back into the soil and clover improves the nitrogen content in the soil as it grows so the soil will definitely be better off with its small amount of growth than if we hadn't planted anything at all.  Our last frost date is May 15 but the weather for the next 10 days looks good to go ahead and plant.  Also, even if it frosts, most of the seeds we plant this week will not be coming up by then anyway and if they are, we can cover them for a night with plastic.  Better to get a head start since we weren't able to start as many plants indoors as usual.

Our tomato plants are growing great and we're about ready to put them in the ground.  We started them several weeks ago and they're getting pretty tall now:

We've been starting to harden them by putting them outside every evening when we get home so the get used to the sunlight.  We have a two tiered indoor greenhouse where we start our seeds.  We also have eggplant starting to grow.  We haven't gotten as much planted indoors as we usually do.  The chicks, and especially the time building their coop, have slowed down our planting.  We'll be sowing more seed directly into the ground this year than normal.  The lettuce, kohlrabi, and some other vegetables that we sowed a few weeks ago outside in the beds have started to come up.

I hope to turn over our Spring cover crop in most of the beds this weekend and start sowing seeds.  The clover didn't grow as tall as I would have liked but we definitely have some green to work back into the soil and clover improves the nitrogen content in the soil as it grows so the soil will definitely be better off with its small amount of growth than if we hadn't planted anything at all.  Our last frost date is May 15 but the weather for the next 10 days looks good to go ahead and plant.  Also, even if it frosts, most of the seeds we plant this week will not be coming up by then anyway and if they are, we can cover them for a night with plastic.  Better to get a head start since we weren't able to start as many plants indoors as usual.

Progress on the Chicken Coop

This past weekend we made significant progress on the chicken coop.  I'd debated how to treat the wood so it would last longer but be safe for the birds.  I decided on barn paint because it said that it was safe for animals.  We chose red over white and on Saturday morning, the boys and I started painting.

Karson really wanted to do a good job.

Pretty soon after my four year old started painting, the almost two year old decided that he had to help.

The boys helping paint the coop.

However, it took about 30 seconds before he'd painted both hands and was rubbing the paint in his hair.  Thankfully I chose paint that cleaned up with water.  After about 3 different trips to the water hose, I decided that my little one had helped enough and was done painting.  Shortly after that, my oldest realized that his brother was playing and decided that he would rather join him than continue to work.  that meant that I got the rest of the painting to myself.  It went much faster after that.  

My friend Cathie came over and she created the air vents at the top of the coop and covered them with wire while I continued to paint.  By the end of Saturday the entire coop was painted, the door frame painted and assembled, and we placed the roof brackets and laid on the roof to check the fit.

Sunday, in between the rain, I dried off the seam of the two roof panels, caulked them, put them in place and then, with Cathie's help, got the roof attached to the coop.  I also reattached most of the floor tiles we'd installed in the house because we accidentally used adhesive that wasn't suitable for the outdoors.  Here's the completed work up to now:

We really love the red paint.  This weekend we'll make sure that the interior door in the floor of the coop is working smooth to let the chickens in and out of their house, paint and install the ramp for the girls to get in and out of the house, start stapling wire to the coop and door, and hang the door.  I've also got to make a handle for the house doors so their easier to open.  I'm happy with the progress but I'll be even happier when it's done.

This past weekend we made significant progress on the chicken coop.  I'd debated how to treat the wood so it would last longer but be safe for the birds.  I decided on barn paint because it said that it was safe for animals.  We chose red over white and on Saturday morning, the boys and I started painting.

Karson really wanted to do a good job.

Pretty soon after my four year old started painting, the almost two year old decided that he had to help.

The boys helping paint the coop.

However, it took about 30 seconds before he'd painted both hands and was rubbing the paint in his hair.  Thankfully I chose paint that cleaned up with water.  After about 3 different trips to the water hose, I decided that my little one had helped enough and was done painting.  Shortly after that, my oldest realized that his brother was playing and decided that he would rather join him than continue to work.  that meant that I got the rest of the painting to myself.  It went much faster after that.  

My friend Cathie came over and she created the air vents at the top of the coop and covered them with wire while I continued to paint.  By the end of Saturday the entire coop was painted, the door frame painted and assembled, and we placed the roof brackets and laid on the roof to check the fit.

Sunday, in between the rain, I dried off the seam of the two roof panels, caulked them, put them in place and then, with Cathie's help, got the roof attached to the coop.  I also reattached most of the floor tiles we'd installed in the house because we accidentally used adhesive that wasn't suitable for the outdoors.  Here's the completed work up to now:

We really love the red paint.  This weekend we'll make sure that the interior door in the floor of the coop is working smooth to let the chickens in and out of their house, paint and install the ramp for the girls to get in and out of the house, start stapling wire to the coop and door, and hang the door.  I've also got to make a handle for the house doors so their easier to open.  I'm happy with the progress but I'll be even happier when it's done.

This past weekend we made significant progress on the chicken coop.  I'd debated how to treat the wood so it would last longer but be safe for the birds.  I decided on barn paint because it said that it was safe for animals.  We chose red over white and on Saturday morning, the boys and I started painting.

Karson really wanted to do a good job.

Pretty soon after my four year old started painting, the almost two year old decided that he had to help.

The boys helping paint the coop.

However, it took about 30 seconds before he'd painted both hands and was rubbing the paint in his hair.  Thankfully I chose paint that cleaned up with water.  After about 3 different trips to the water hose, I decided that my little one had helped enough and was done painting.  Shortly after that, my oldest realized that his brother was playing and decided that he would rather join him than continue to work.  that meant that I got the rest of the painting to myself.  It went much faster after that.  

My friend Cathie came over and she created the air vents at the top of the coop and covered them with wire while I continued to paint.  By the end of Saturday the entire coop was painted, the door frame painted and assembled, and we placed the roof brackets and laid on the roof to check the fit.

Sunday, in between the rain, I dried off the seam of the two roof panels, caulked them, put them in place and then, with Cathie's help, got the roof attached to the coop.  I also reattached most of the floor tiles we'd installed in the house because we accidentally used adhesive that wasn't suitable for the outdoors.  Here's the completed work up to now:

We really love the red paint.  This weekend we'll make sure that the interior door in the floor of the coop is working smooth to let the chickens in and out of their house, paint and install the ramp for the girls to get in and out of the house, start stapling wire to the coop and door, and hang the door.  I've also got to make a handle for the house doors so their easier to open.  I'm happy with the progress but I'll be even happier when it's done.

Day 16 - They Just Keep Growing

The chickens are doing well and growing fast.  They're eating more of the sprouts than they were before and are all eating the grain mash that I mix for them much better.  They still love the hard boiled eggs but I only give it to them a few times a week.  I thought I'd show some pictures to show how much they've changed in the past two weeks.  They almost have all their wing feathers and all but Bertha have started to see their tail feathers arrive.  I put in a small roost for them on Sunday and they've started to sit on it from time to time.  They're not actually roosting yet but they're learning.

Saturday (Day 13) I took some new pictures.  I've put them below with to their Day 2 photos.

Molly's gotten much bigger!

Ruthie's really developing fast.

Bertha's still growing the slowest but her wing feathers are coming in nicely.
Her wings are much smaller than the other birds.

For some reason, Ruby refused to wake up during here photo shoot.
Don't worry, she's still running around like crazy.

Bob's definitely continued to grow the fastest.

While we were shooting pictures, my almost 2 year old was watching.  He loves the chicks and loves to pet them and look at them when they're out.  My biggest joy of having the chicks has been watching the boys connect with nature and learn more about animals and growing their own food.

Here he is giving Molly a hug.  He's so gentle with the girls.

Bertha is Kaisyn's favorite!

The chickens are doing well and growing fast.  They're eating more of the sprouts than they were before and are all eating the grain mash that I mix for them much better.  They still love the hard boiled eggs but I only give it to them a few times a week.  I thought I'd show some pictures to show how much they've changed in the past two weeks.  They almost have all their wing feathers and all but Bertha have started to see their tail feathers arrive.  I put in a small roost for them on Sunday and they've started to sit on it from time to time.  They're not actually roosting yet but they're learning.

Saturday (Day 13) I took some new pictures.  I've put them below with to their Day 2 photos.

Molly's gotten much bigger!

Ruthie's really developing fast.

Bertha's still growing the slowest but her wing feathers are coming in nicely.
Her wings are much smaller than the other birds.

For some reason, Ruby refused to wake up during here photo shoot.
Don't worry, she's still running around like crazy.

Bob's definitely continued to grow the fastest.

While we were shooting pictures, my almost 2 year old was watching.  He loves the chicks and loves to pet them and look at them when they're out.  My biggest joy of having the chicks has been watching the boys connect with nature and learn more about animals and growing their own food.

Here he is giving Molly a hug.  He's so gentle with the girls.

Bertha is Kaisyn's favorite!

The chickens are doing well and growing fast.  They're eating more of the sprouts than they were before and are all eating the grain mash that I mix for them much better.  They still love the hard boiled eggs but I only give it to them a few times a week.  I thought I'd show some pictures to show how much they've changed in the past two weeks.  They almost have all their wing feathers and all but Bertha have started to see their tail feathers arrive.  I put in a small roost for them on Sunday and they've started to sit on it from time to time.  They're not actually roosting yet but they're learning.

Saturday (Day 13) I took some new pictures.  I've put them below with to their Day 2 photos.

Molly's gotten much bigger!

Ruthie's really developing fast.

Bertha's still growing the slowest but her wing feathers are coming in nicely.
Her wings are much smaller than the other birds.

For some reason, Ruby refused to wake up during here photo shoot.
Don't worry, she's still running around like crazy.

Bob's definitely continued to grow the fastest.

While we were shooting pictures, my almost 2 year old was watching.  He loves the chicks and loves to pet them and look at them when they're out.  My biggest joy of having the chicks has been watching the boys connect with nature and learn more about animals and growing their own food.

Here he is giving Molly a hug.  He's so gentle with the girls.

Bertha is Kaisyn's favorite!

Where's Your Abundance?

Why do we always fool ourselves into thinking that we never have enough?  The culture we're in reinforces every day that we are never thin, rich, smart, accomplished, and good enough.  We're taught to always want more, which in some ways isn't a bad thing.  However, we're not just taught to strive, the world we live in teaches us daily not just to want more, but that we're not good enough until we get or accomplish more.  This creates an impossible paradigm in which many people push themselves throughout their lives to accomplish the next thing, hoping that it will bring happiness, only to get there and identify something new that they must make happen in order for happiness to be in there grasp.

I have fallen in this trap often, as I'm sure many have.  I've come to realize that if you don't force yourself to make very intentional choices of how to want to live your life, you end up going with the flow and not realizing often that the values you're living out aren't really consistent with the values you hold.

I, today, can say that I live a live of abundance and am grateful for all (or at least most) of ways that my life is abundant.  The days I see something on the internet or in a store and think "I want that," or the times that I feel like there's never enough time to get everything done, I try to feel the coin above (and below) that I carry in my pocket.  Remembering how abundant my life is reminds me that I need very little in my life and helps me to remember to really intentionally spend some time every day thinking about the things in my life I'm grateful for.

The ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus wrote, "Not what we have, but what we enjoy constitutes our abundance."  I think that is so true.  I think the problem for our world today is that many people don't even stop to think about or realize what they enjoy.  We're always too busy going on to the next thing.

Bryant McGill wrote "Abundance is a process of letting go; that which is empty can receive."  When I let go of the 'should's' and realize that I really am enough, today the way I am, I free myself up to be open to realizing the abundance around me.

I choose to recognize the beauty and abundance that is everywhere - the joy I get from spending time with my family, growing things, playing and listening to music, driving on a country road on a sunny day, helping people struggle to find their truth and make changes in their life, watching the chicks scratch and eat, playing with the dogs, cooking great food, taking photographs, building things, looking at a starry sky, reading a great book, sitting in my backyard, and walking across the campus of the college where I work, just to name a few.  The truth is there really is abundance in everything under the sun.

Challenge yourself to spend time everyday recognizing the abundance in your life.  Where is your life abundant?

Why do we always fool ourselves into thinking that we never have enough?  The culture we're in reinforces every day that we are never thin, rich, smart, accomplished, and good enough.  We're taught to always want more, which in some ways isn't a bad thing.  However, we're not just taught to strive, the world we live in teaches us daily not just to want more, but that we're not good enough until we get or accomplish more.  This creates an impossible paradigm in which many people push themselves throughout their lives to accomplish the next thing, hoping that it will bring happiness, only to get there and identify something new that they must make happen in order for happiness to be in there grasp.

I have fallen in this trap often, as I'm sure many have.  I've come to realize that if you don't force yourself to make very intentional choices of how to want to live your life, you end up going with the flow and not realizing often that the values you're living out aren't really consistent with the values you hold.

I, today, can say that I live a live of abundance and am grateful for all (or at least most) of ways that my life is abundant.  The days I see something on the internet or in a store and think "I want that," or the times that I feel like there's never enough time to get everything done, I try to feel the coin above (and below) that I carry in my pocket.  Remembering how abundant my life is reminds me that I need very little in my life and helps me to remember to really intentionally spend some time every day thinking about the things in my life I'm grateful for.

The ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus wrote, "Not what we have, but what we enjoy constitutes our abundance."  I think that is so true.  I think the problem for our world today is that many people don't even stop to think about or realize what they enjoy.  We're always too busy going on to the next thing.

Bryant McGill wrote "Abundance is a process of letting go; that which is empty can receive."  When I let go of the 'should's' and realize that I really am enough, today the way I am, I free myself up to be open to realizing the abundance around me.

I choose to recognize the beauty and abundance that is everywhere - the joy I get from spending time with my family, growing things, playing and listening to music, driving on a country road on a sunny day, helping people struggle to find their truth and make changes in their life, watching the chicks scratch and eat, playing with the dogs, cooking great food, taking photographs, building things, looking at a starry sky, reading a great book, sitting in my backyard, and walking across the campus of the college where I work, just to name a few.  The truth is there really is abundance in everything under the sun.

Challenge yourself to spend time everyday recognizing the abundance in your life.  Where is your life abundant?

Why do we always fool ourselves into thinking that we never have enough?  The culture we're in reinforces every day that we are never thin, rich, smart, accomplished, and good enough.  We're taught to always want more, which in some ways isn't a bad thing.  However, we're not just taught to strive, the world we live in teaches us daily not just to want more, but that we're not good enough until we get or accomplish more.  This creates an impossible paradigm in which many people push themselves throughout their lives to accomplish the next thing, hoping that it will bring happiness, only to get there and identify something new that they must make happen in order for happiness to be in there grasp.

I have fallen in this trap often, as I'm sure many have.  I've come to realize that if you don't force yourself to make very intentional choices of how to want to live your life, you end up going with the flow and not realizing often that the values you're living out aren't really consistent with the values you hold.

I, today, can say that I live a live of abundance and am grateful for all (or at least most) of ways that my life is abundant.  The days I see something on the internet or in a store and think "I want that," or the times that I feel like there's never enough time to get everything done, I try to feel the coin above (and below) that I carry in my pocket.  Remembering how abundant my life is reminds me that I need very little in my life and helps me to remember to really intentionally spend some time every day thinking about the things in my life I'm grateful for.

The ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus wrote, "Not what we have, but what we enjoy constitutes our abundance."  I think that is so true.  I think the problem for our world today is that many people don't even stop to think about or realize what they enjoy.  We're always too busy going on to the next thing.

Bryant McGill wrote "Abundance is a process of letting go; that which is empty can receive."  When I let go of the 'should's' and realize that I really am enough, today the way I am, I free myself up to be open to realizing the abundance around me.

I choose to recognize the beauty and abundance that is everywhere - the joy I get from spending time with my family, growing things, playing and listening to music, driving on a country road on a sunny day, helping people struggle to find their truth and make changes in their life, watching the chicks scratch and eat, playing with the dogs, cooking great food, taking photographs, building things, looking at a starry sky, reading a great book, sitting in my backyard, and walking across the campus of the college where I work, just to name a few.  The truth is there really is abundance in everything under the sun.

Challenge yourself to spend time everyday recognizing the abundance in your life.  Where is your life abundant?

Working on the Chicken Coop

This weekend I was able to make some headway on the chicken coop.  The girls are one week old and continuing to grow fast.  I think that by next week they'll have outgrown their brooder and I'll have to make them a bigger one.  They won't be ready to be outside, but I'm hoping that somewhere between four and six weeks they'll be big enough and the weather will be warm enough that they can go in the coop.

I was able to work for about five hours and made good progress.  Our friend Cathie was able to come and help some for a few hours.

The last two walls are up and the doors and windows are finished and installed.

Door & window inside the coop

A closer view of the window

The Side Door

We also installed inexpensive floor tiles in the inside to make it easier to clean and cut the hole in the floor for the flip up door.

The interior of the coop.

The main entrance and exit for the girls.

The door in its open position.  

The wood around the opening will keep the deep litter that I'm putting in the coop from getting pushed down the hole.  I'm in the process of building a ramp for them to use, as well as rigging the door to be opened and closed from the outside.  The next part of the project is to start weatherproofing and get the roof on.  Hopefully those tasks will be completed next week.  I'll keep you updated.

This weekend I was able to make some headway on the chicken coop.  The girls are one week old and continuing to grow fast.  I think that by next week they'll have outgrown their brooder and I'll have to make them a bigger one.  They won't be ready to be outside, but I'm hoping that somewhere between four and six weeks they'll be big enough and the weather will be warm enough that they can go in the coop.

I was able to work for about five hours and made good progress.  Our friend Cathie was able to come and help some for a few hours.

The last two walls are up and the doors and windows are finished and installed.

Door & window inside the coop

A closer view of the window

The Side Door

We also installed inexpensive floor tiles in the inside to make it easier to clean and cut the hole in the floor for the flip up door.

The interior of the coop.

The main entrance and exit for the girls.

The door in its open position.  

The wood around the opening will keep the deep litter that I'm putting in the coop from getting pushed down the hole.  I'm in the process of building a ramp for them to use, as well as rigging the door to be opened and closed from the outside.  The next part of the project is to start weatherproofing and get the roof on.  Hopefully those tasks will be completed next week.  I'll keep you updated.

This weekend I was able to make some headway on the chicken coop.  The girls are one week old and continuing to grow fast.  I think that by next week they'll have outgrown their brooder and I'll have to make them a bigger one.  They won't be ready to be outside, but I'm hoping that somewhere between four and six weeks they'll be big enough and the weather will be warm enough that they can go in the coop.

I was able to work for about five hours and made good progress.  Our friend Cathie was able to come and help some for a few hours.

The last two walls are up and the doors and windows are finished and installed.

Door & window inside the coop

A closer view of the window

The Side Door

We also installed inexpensive floor tiles in the inside to make it easier to clean and cut the hole in the floor for the flip up door.

The interior of the coop.

The main entrance and exit for the girls.

The door in its open position.  

The wood around the opening will keep the deep litter that I'm putting in the coop from getting pushed down the hole.  I'm in the process of building a ramp for them to use, as well as rigging the door to be opened and closed from the outside.  The next part of the project is to start weatherproofing and get the roof on.  Hopefully those tasks will be completed next week.  I'll keep you updated.

Day 7 - Here Come the Tail Feathers

The chicks keep noticeably growing every day.  Their wing feather are filling in and Ruth & Ruby have easily visible tail feathers.

I decided to make a change in the way I gave them their feed.  Even when softened with yogurt & water, the girls were still having difficulty sometimes eating all the items in their mash.  So, I took the dry mash and chopped it up more finally in a food processor.  I then still moistened some of it in yogurt & water but I also started putting some in for them dry.  They loved it.  I left the top off their feeder for about thirty minutes and they had a blast.  They jumped in the feeder and ate and ate.  They had a great time scratching and flipping food everywhere.  Their chicken-ness is definitely coming out.  They're spending a lot of time scratching in their bedding and are doing a good job turning it over.

I'd stopped giving them hard boiled eggs for a few days, but tonight I gave them some again.  I've realized that hard boiled eggs are their absolute favorite.  They rush to the feeder when they realize I've put some in and one will take out a piece and start running around the brooder, often with multiple chicken chasing her to try to get the piece out of her mouth.  I don't understand why since there's plenty more but they definitely think that if one of them has something, it must be better than what's in the feeder and start squabbling for whatever it is.

They all seem to be doing well - no more pasty bottom - but Bertha was red under her right wing.  It looked crusty and I think that somehow she got some droppings from one of the other girls under her wing.  I used warm water and cleaned under her wing, which she loudly let me know she didn't appreciate.  I'm hoping that tomorrow she's starting to get less red.

Here's the newest photos of the girls feather development:

Bertha's little wings.  She definitely developing feathers
but overall, her wings are so much smaller than the others.

Molly's wing - it's fascinating how different the look of their feathers is from breed to breed.

Ruthie's beautiful wingspan

Ruth's new tail-feathers!

Ruby's wing

Bob's beautiful wingspan.  She's definitely developed her wing
feathers the fastest and is the most beautiful chick so far.  My 4 year old is thrilled that she's his. 

The chicks keep noticeably growing every day.  Their wing feather are filling in and Ruth & Ruby have easily visible tail feathers.

I decided to make a change in the way I gave them their feed.  Even when softened with yogurt & water, the girls were still having difficulty sometimes eating all the items in their mash.  So, I took the dry mash and chopped it up more finally in a food processor.  I then still moistened some of it in yogurt & water but I also started putting some in for them dry.  They loved it.  I left the top off their feeder for about thirty minutes and they had a blast.  They jumped in the feeder and ate and ate.  They had a great time scratching and flipping food everywhere.  Their chicken-ness is definitely coming out.  They're spending a lot of time scratching in their bedding and are doing a good job turning it over.

I'd stopped giving them hard boiled eggs for a few days, but tonight I gave them some again.  I've realized that hard boiled eggs are their absolute favorite.  They rush to the feeder when they realize I've put some in and one will take out a piece and start running around the brooder, often with multiple chicken chasing her to try to get the piece out of her mouth.  I don't understand why since there's plenty more but they definitely think that if one of them has something, it must be better than what's in the feeder and start squabbling for whatever it is.

They all seem to be doing well - no more pasty bottom - but Bertha was red under her right wing.  It looked crusty and I think that somehow she got some droppings from one of the other girls under her wing.  I used warm water and cleaned under her wing, which she loudly let me know she didn't appreciate.  I'm hoping that tomorrow she's starting to get less red.

Here's the newest photos of the girls feather development:

Bertha's little wings.  She definitely developing feathers
but overall, her wings are so much smaller than the others.

Molly's wing - it's fascinating how different the look of their feathers is from breed to breed.

Ruthie's beautiful wingspan

Ruth's new tail-feathers!

Ruby's wing

Bob's beautiful wingspan.  She's definitely developed her wing
feathers the fastest and is the most beautiful chick so far.  My 4 year old is thrilled that she's his. 

The chicks keep noticeably growing every day.  Their wing feather are filling in and Ruth & Ruby have easily visible tail feathers.

I decided to make a change in the way I gave them their feed.  Even when softened with yogurt & water, the girls were still having difficulty sometimes eating all the items in their mash.  So, I took the dry mash and chopped it up more finally in a food processor.  I then still moistened some of it in yogurt & water but I also started putting some in for them dry.  They loved it.  I left the top off their feeder for about thirty minutes and they had a blast.  They jumped in the feeder and ate and ate.  They had a great time scratching and flipping food everywhere.  Their chicken-ness is definitely coming out.  They're spending a lot of time scratching in their bedding and are doing a good job turning it over.

I'd stopped giving them hard boiled eggs for a few days, but tonight I gave them some again.  I've realized that hard boiled eggs are their absolute favorite.  They rush to the feeder when they realize I've put some in and one will take out a piece and start running around the brooder, often with multiple chicken chasing her to try to get the piece out of her mouth.  I don't understand why since there's plenty more but they definitely think that if one of them has something, it must be better than what's in the feeder and start squabbling for whatever it is.

They all seem to be doing well - no more pasty bottom - but Bertha was red under her right wing.  It looked crusty and I think that somehow she got some droppings from one of the other girls under her wing.  I used warm water and cleaned under her wing, which she loudly let me know she didn't appreciate.  I'm hoping that tomorrow she's starting to get less red.

Here's the newest photos of the girls feather development:

Bertha's little wings.  She definitely developing feathers
but overall, her wings are so much smaller than the others.

Molly's wing - it's fascinating how different the look of their feathers is from breed to breed.

Ruthie's beautiful wingspan

Ruth's new tail-feathers!

Ruby's wing

Bob's beautiful wingspan.  She's definitely developed her wing
feathers the fastest and is the most beautiful chick so far.  My 4 year old is thrilled that she's his. 

Day 4 - Growing Fast

The girls are still doing well.  Tonight's the first night I'm not giving them hard boiled egg to eat.  They're eating the mash better every day and though I'll probably put it in tomorrow, I wanted to see what they'd eat of their other food.  This morning when I came down almost all the egg was gone but during the day, they didn't seem that interested in it but ate the mash well.

It's amazing how much fast these girls are growing their feathers.  It's changed noticeably since yesterday.  I'm going to have to put the lid on their brooder Saturday because with their feathers coming in so quicily, they'll be flying in no time.  I'm waiting until Saturday so that I can be here to monitor the temperature in the brooder since I haven't had the lid on since they arrived.  Here are some comparisons of their wing growth from yesterday to today:

Ruth yesterday...

and today.

Her wing was a little wet tonight when I took the photo but I can't believe how fast her second set of feathers is coming in.

Bertha's are the hardest to see a difference but she has more down on her wings than the others which makes it harder to see her wing.

Ruby's are opening up nicely.

Molly's are filling out wonderfully.

The feathers closer to Bob's body really came in today.  She's also starting to lose some of the fuzz on her wing.

The girls are still doing well.  Tonight's the first night I'm not giving them hard boiled egg to eat.  They're eating the mash better every day and though I'll probably put it in tomorrow, I wanted to see what they'd eat of their other food.  This morning when I came down almost all the egg was gone but during the day, they didn't seem that interested in it but ate the mash well.

It's amazing how much fast these girls are growing their feathers.  It's changed noticeably since yesterday.  I'm going to have to put the lid on their brooder Saturday because with their feathers coming in so quicily, they'll be flying in no time.  I'm waiting until Saturday so that I can be here to monitor the temperature in the brooder since I haven't had the lid on since they arrived.  Here are some comparisons of their wing growth from yesterday to today:

Ruth yesterday...

and today.

Her wing was a little wet tonight when I took the photo but I can't believe how fast her second set of feathers is coming in.

Bertha's are the hardest to see a difference but she has more down on her wings than the others which makes it harder to see her wing.

Ruby's are opening up nicely.

Molly's are filling out wonderfully.

The feathers closer to Bob's body really came in today.  She's also starting to lose some of the fuzz on her wing.

The girls are still doing well.  Tonight's the first night I'm not giving them hard boiled egg to eat.  They're eating the mash better every day and though I'll probably put it in tomorrow, I wanted to see what they'd eat of their other food.  This morning when I came down almost all the egg was gone but during the day, they didn't seem that interested in it but ate the mash well.

It's amazing how much fast these girls are growing their feathers.  It's changed noticeably since yesterday.  I'm going to have to put the lid on their brooder Saturday because with their feathers coming in so quicily, they'll be flying in no time.  I'm waiting until Saturday so that I can be here to monitor the temperature in the brooder since I haven't had the lid on since they arrived.  Here are some comparisons of their wing growth from yesterday to today:

Ruth yesterday...

and today.

Her wing was a little wet tonight when I took the photo but I can't believe how fast her second set of feathers is coming in.

Bertha's are the hardest to see a difference but she has more down on her wings than the others which makes it harder to see her wing.

Ruby's are opening up nicely.

Molly's are filling out wonderfully.

The feathers closer to Bob's body really came in today.  She's also starting to lose some of the fuzz on her wing.