What Have I Done?

I love my chickens. They have a way of making me feel needed. When I walk outside and they get a glimpse of me, they race each other to get to me. They have that funny way of running that makes me laugh every time I see it. When I reach down, they crouch and I can pet them or pick them up without any effort. When I hold them I stroke their necks as they relax in my arms and they cooo calmly. Olive even agreed to help me wake up my niece one morning when she was visiting. (Don't tell my niece that I showed you this picture :)


But, there are a couple things I have done that I am second guessing. Once, I was filling a container with wild bird seed and some of it spilled on the kitchen floor so I let them come in, briefly of course, to help with the clean up. They did a great job and fast too! Then there are the times when I have thrown food scraps to them from the sliding door because I didn't want to go out in the cold. Maybe not a great idea.

Now lately, they have been spending a great deal of time at my sliding door watching me as I work indoors. I know they are hoping that I will feed them a special treat or better yet, let them in. When I want to go out I practically trip on them as they push their way towards the door. But worst of all is that there is always chicken poop on the mat! Argh!

Who Knew?

We have been working on the chicken coop and I wanted to share our progress. We had to put the chicks inside of it already because we had a period of high winds that nearly blew them away. It is very important that we get the roof on this week because there is rain in next week's forecast.


This project is up there with one of the biggest that my husband and I have worked together on in all of the 24 years that we have been married. We do not have a history of working well together. We have completely different work styles so what ends up happening is he usually does his own projects and I do mine. It has just been better for us that way. This time we both wanted to save a couple thousand dollars so we agreed to try again. We needed each others help but we also knew, based on our history, what we were getting ourselves into.


Normally, I get frustrated when he tries to do things quickly without thinking it through and he gets frustrated with me when I stop everything to think about how things should be done. He wants to hurry and get things done even if it sacrifices quality and looks. I have a vision of how I want things to look and I want to take the extra time and energy to do things "just right". This project has been challenging for both of us but surprisingly rewarding too. We have actually learned how to work well together.

Throughout this project we have had many discussions about our differences in work style. That is the difference between back then and now. We both are trying to understand how each other thinks things should be done and why. We agree that neither one of our work styles is right or wrong, they are just different. Building this coop together has turned out to be a good thing for the two of us. We are even talking about the next shed we want to build. Who knew?

November Blossoms?

I was surprised to see that there are blossoms forming on my peach tree. I am guessing that the extreme temperature fluctuations we have had over the last couple months have confused it into thinking it is Spring. I sure hope the tree realizes that it is November 30th and saves the rest of it's blossoms for next year.

Have a wonderful day!

Thanks "Giving"

Three hundred and eighty nine years ago a harsh winter, and a lack of food killed nearly half of the Pilgrims of Plymouth Massachusetts. The survivors of that devastating winter began a relationship with the nearby Wampanoag Indian tribe. The Wampanoags taught the Pilgrims how to plant, fish and hunt. In the Autumn of 1621 there was a bounty of food and the Pilgrims and Wampanoag came together for a 3 day feast. They were thankful for their bounties that would surely help them to survive the coming winter.

When most of us think of the meaning of "Thanksgiving" we think of it as a day of "Giving Thanks" for the wonderful blessings we have in our lives. There is much to be thankful for, but tomorrow, keep in mind the significance of "Giving" and how appropriate it is, all by itself, to this special holiday.

I have a lovely little book called, "Practice Random Acts of Kindness" and I would like to share some exerts from a story, titled "Give Everything" and another one titled "The Levels of Generosity".

"Give Everything" begins with an Indian Proverb - "Everything that is not given is lost".

"Because we are mortal, every talent, skill, ability we possess, every thought and feeling we ever have, every beautiful sight we ever see, every material possession we own, will ultimately be lost. Unless we share it. Unless we give what we have to others- to our spouse, to our children, to our friends and neighbors, to the strangers we encounter on our path- what we know and value will be irrevocably and utterly gone. But if we give freely of our minds and hearts and spirits, who we are and what matters to us will never die, but will live forever in the psyches of not only those who know us, but everyone who encounters those who knew them in an infinite regression of mysteriously unseen effect."

But how can we give without a generous spirit? Generosity is a skill that is learned and nurtured by the act of giving. It all begins with "tentative giving" in which we are not sure that we want to give. It is probably something that we do not really need anyway and after going back and forth with the thought of giving it away or not, we decide that we will. That is when we feel "the first joys of giving". The next level of generosity is ""sisterly or brotherly giving" in which we share our possession or our energy equally with others." With this type of giving, we feel no hesitation like we did with tentative giving. "Friendship, openness, and a spirit of joy prevail". The most developed generosity is "royal giving" in which we take such delight in the welfare and happiness of others that we give the best of what we have, rather than just an equal part." "It is as if we become a natural channel for the happiness of all around us."

"We can't vault to the higher levels of giving by the force of our will. Rather, as we practice tentative giving . . . . the happiness and satisfaction we feel will naturally encourage us to the other levels. The most important thing is to be genuine."

In 1621, The Wampanoag generously gave the Pilgrims their knowledge and skills for surviving in Plymouth. The Pilgrims and Wampanoag came together and gave to each other, generously, the foods that they had hunted and harvested. We, as family and friends will gather tomorrow and we can choose to generously give to others our food, our company, our kindness, our love and our patience. Now, that is something to be truly thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

A Full Week

This past week was a busy one for me. I didn't get the opportunities to blog as much as I have wanted to so I thought I would sum some of it up in one longer than usual post.

Our week started with Gertie laying us our very first egg. I did not expect that she would then lay one each day only skipping Monday. Way to go girl! She is so matter of fact about it too. She realized that she has a nest box in the small coop that I built for them. She did not have to lay her eggs on the floor of the unfinished one. Each morning this week she disappeared for about 15 minutes, laid her egg in the nest box and returned to the group. Today one of the other chickens laid an egg in the nest box too. I have a mystery layer, but I sure was excited to go out this morning and get 2 eggs instead of one. In one of her comments, Farmgirl_DK mentioned that she weighed her chicken's eggs. I thought that was a good idea so I weighed the eggs I have. They weighed between 1 oz and 1 1/4 oz each. Just for perspective, I weighed an extra large egg that I bought and it weighed just shy of 2 oz.

I had planned to sell 1/2 of the chicks that we got in September. I still have all of them and will play it by ear as far as how many I will actually keep. For now, we converted the brooder we made into a small temporary coop for them by putting a drop down door in the side of it and adding corrugated roofing to the lid. I put a few rocks are on top to prevent the wind from blowing the top off. Then I put a couple 2 foot high metal dog pens around the opening as a run.

The chicks were exposed to the sky for a few days and I was worried that they would get eaten by a hawk so I put netting that is used to protect fruit trees from birds, over the top and secured it with cable ties. My timing could not have been better because I was shocked yesterday when I saw a Falcon/Hawk (not sure which), swoop down and retreat to my fence when he hit the netting. It was the same one that visited this summer. (see that post here). I went running outside yelling at him to go away. He just sat on my fence looking at me and I tossed a piece of wood towards him, to scare him away. It was a close call. I think it was a Falcon because he is smaller than the hawks I am familiar with. I was worried about my big girls all day.

Tuesday, it began getting pretty cold at night. My tortoises had not come out of there hides for a couple days and I was worried that they could freeze at night if the temps dropped too much. I brought them in and put them in their boxes for the winter. I had to dig to get to Peanut. She had made a very deep burrow to hibernate in. I do not leave her in the burrow because the dampness of the soil is bad for her shell and if it rains hard she may drown. I put them each in their own cardboard box with shredded newspaper on top of them then I put the boxes in the garage where it is cool. I will check on them every week or so and expect them to sleep until March.

Thursday was a full day. I went to the doctor for my regular visit. I always dread doing it and understand why many women put it off. I can never get it all done in just one visit, one appointment always turns into 2 or 3 and then there is the anticipation/concern of lab results, mammogram results, etc. I am going back in the beginning of December for a couple recommended tests (that I also dread). I am realistic and realize that not knowing about something brewing in one's body, does not make it nonexistent, just harder to treat as time goes by. I left the doctor feeling less healthy than I thought I was before I went in.

Right after my Dr appointment was Hayden's last obedience class (of this series). He got his certificate of completion and has come a long way from the first class. I have also come a long way. I learned quite a bit about proper dog handling in this class. In January, I plan on enrolling him in another series.

Yesterday my niece called me and said that she is off all next week and she wants to come stay with me until Thursday. That is when we are all going to my mom's house for Thanksgiving. I told her she is welcome anytime, so we'll see if she does come or if she makes other plans.

Yesterday my husband took the day off from work. He was burnt out from working so many hours. Even though I promised him he could rest all day, I convinced him to take me on a much needed trip to the recycle center. I also wanted to go to the nearest pumpkin patch that was still selling pumpkins. It was about 40 minutes away from our house. I picked up 4 big pumpkins to feed to the chickens. They were half price and cost $3 each. Funny, it probably cost us about that much in gas to get there and back. It was fun though and Hayden enjoyed gnawing on the pumpkin stems and eating hay.

They don't know it but the chickens are going to share the pumpkin seeds with me. I love roasted pumpkin seeds. I am making the Pumpkin Pies for Thanksgiving but I prefer to use canned Pumpkin for my pies. After we got home I made lunch, took Hayden for his walk then started in the kitchen again on dinner.

Later today I will be roasting pumpkin seeds and baking pumpkin for the chickens. (They prefer it cooked). I will freeze it so that I can give it to them through the winter. But first, this morning is laundry day and I have several loads waiting to be washed, dried and folded. As I write this and as our day to day life passes I am grateful for the simple but full life we have and all of the blessings God has given us. I wish you all a wonderful weekend!

First Bath

Hayden is already 4 1/2 months old and I had not yet given him a bath. He wasn't real dirty but I thought it would be nice to shine him up a bit. Considering he is a Labrador, I thought he would like it. I was almost right. He loved it!

Our First Egg!

Gertie laid an egg!

Yesterday, we were moving all of the sod that we had taken out in the front yard. We were laying it in the back on our slope, dirt side up. The sod was teaming with earthworms and the chickens were right there with us eating worm after worm. We took a little break and when I went back to lay down more sod, there were only 3 chickens eating the worms. I noticed that one was missing but didn't get concerned until abut 15 minutes went by and still no Gertie. I decided I should go look for her so I walked around the property calling her and when I got to the back of the house I was surprised to see her coming out of the chicken coop that is still under construction.

I said out loud, (as if she might answer), "Gertie, What are you doing in there"? She was walking slowly towards me. I met her halfway and I picked her up. I felt her feet for thorns because it looked like she was limping or her feet were sore. I didn't see or feel anything so I carried her over to the sod to eat worms with the others. She acted fine.

When I thought about it, I thought it was strange that she was sitting in the half-built coop among the tools. They aren't using the big coop-to-be yet and it is so far from where we were.

A little later she disappeared again. My husband said, maybe she is laying an egg. This time I went directly to the coop and sure enough she was sitting behind the saw on the floor. She got up right away and there was a beautiful little, light brown egg laying there on a sheet behind some wood! It was an exciting day!

Yogurt Soda

I recently discovered Yogurt Soda. Have you ever heard of it? Have you tasted it? I was introduced to it a few months ago and I love it! Here, it is only available where Middle-Eastern foods are sold. This particular brand (Abali) is made in Los Angeles and I have been told it is the best. My husband has a coworker that is an Iranian-American. He often sends foods home with my husband for me to try because he knows I like to try new things. A few months ago he sent a bottle of Yogurt Soda home with my husband and I have been hooked ever since.

I have to tell you though, everyone that I have offered it to has either refused it or did not like it. But, if you are someone who likes the taste of unsweetened plain yogurt, or you like to drink buttermilk or Kefir, then you probably would think it was good. It has a fizzy, tangy, slightly salty, slightly minty drink (there is one without mint too but the mint one is better). It is not thick or chunky, it is just the opposite, thin and smooth. There is more carbonated water in it than there is yogurt. It is not a sweet drink.

Yogurt Soda is very unusual because the yogurt and the soda water separates when it sits for a while. It must be shaken very well then left to sit again in the frig so that when you open it, it does not fizz out all over. Right before opening it, it should be gently rolled again. It wants to fizz out of the bottle so I open the lid a little to release some pressure and tighten it again really quick. I do it over and over until I can open it. As I'm drinking it I put the lid on and gently shake it to keep it well mixed.

The ingredients in it are: Milk, Carbonated Water, Yogurt Culture, Salt and Mint Extract. There are 163 calories in one 16 oz bottle.

If you run across it sometime, consider giving it a try.

If You Can't Beat It . .

If you can't beat it, then get rid of it! We have a considerably large lawn that requires water all summer long. I do not want to waste water so I set the sprinklers to water the minimum amount to keep it alive. There have been a couple spots in my lawn that no matter how I adjusted the sprinklers they just required more water than I was willing to give them.

To be honest, I like grass. I live near the desert, I want to see something green when I look out of my front window. I am not ready to give it up altogether but I am getting rid of a portion of it.

One of the larger brown patches butted up against the driveway and was often driven over by not-so-careful young men (my boys) as they maneuvered their cars in and out. That definitely added to the grass' demise. Poor sprinkler placement and a slope caused the other patch,near the street, to die.


On almost a daily basis this area has bugged me. Every time we pulled out of the garage, I would tell my husband how much I wanted to get rid of it. I have imagined taking out the grass, connecting the flower/plant beds that are in the front of the yard and along the driveway so I will have more area for flowering plants, putting in a dry river bed where the yard naturally drains and then filling in with some gravel along the driveway and up along the street.

I have what I think is a great plan in my head but I do not have the energy to dig out that much grass myself. It is too much. I thought maybe my sons would help me do it but no luck. My husband kept saying, "I can do it", but he wasn't doing it. I kept trying to think of a way I could get this done and realized that the only way was to hire someone. I told my husband I wanted to hire someone for a couple days and within minutes he had lined someone up for the very next day. I think he thought he better hurry before I changed my mind.

A man that my husband knows from work came to do the job. This man had been recently laid off and needed the money and we needed the help, a perfect match. He worked very hard and did an excellent job. The first day he cleared our hills of all the ugly weeds. He also spread some dirt out where we are going to make a more gradual slope (in the foreground of the picture below). This is where we will be putting in a drive-through gate. I still haven't filled my planter boxes because there is not yet a way that a truck can get in the back to deliver the soil.


Yesterday he took out the grass that has been bugging me for so long. The first step is now completed towards a more practical design while cutting back on some of our future water usage.

Yeah, finally! Next, we have to do something with the sod he removed.


After that we need to remove the sprinklers that we do not need there anymore. A job for hubby who says, "I can do it". As far as the sod goes we will probably use a little of it to patch some dead areas and then put the rest where we are changing the incline of the slope (as a filler).

I will keep you all updated as we progress.

I was Way Off!

My chicken breed guessing ability needs some major improvement. Do you remember how I thought I knew what breed of chicken Gizmo was? Well, I was wrong. He is definitely not a Brown Leghorn. He looks nothing like one. As his feathers grew in, we started thinking a Hawk got in the hen house at the hatchery. He wasn't eating the other chicks so I knew he must really be a chicken.



I pulled out my catalog and looked through it again. This time I am guessing Gizmo is a Silver Spangled Hamburg. There were a couple others in the catalog that are possibilities but I am leaning toward the Silver Spangled Hamburg because of his "leaden-blue shanks and toes". Just what the catalog describes them as having. He is a very handsome bird. I am getting the vibe from him that he is a he and not a she because of the way he struts around, but I may be wrong, it's happened before.

Here is the picture of the Silver Spangled Hamburg from the Murry McMurray catalog. What do you think, am I closer this time?