The chickens caught a snake, the kids chased the chickens to try to save it. Chickens won. Kids cried. Thank goodness for chocolate chip cookies at the picnic table to bring some cheer back. I was laughing the whole time. If it had been in black and white it would have been perfect old time humor.

Catch up

Neglect of blog...not the first time, surely won't be the last. I have added to other blogs I read and I really do want to update at least every few days. There is a much greater sense of connectedness.
Today was busy. Lol, what's new though,right? We are up to 32 chickens and have 2 guinea keets now too.That breaks down to 19 adult hens, 3 adult roosters, 7 teenage hens and 1 teenage rooster(who was banded as a pullet), 2 chicks(both banded as pullets, we will see.) The teenagers are otside now, in a special coop/run. The young ones(including the keets) are in the parrot cage in the playroom. We also got Bella. She is a 19 year old buckskin quarterhorse. Trinity and Christian got her as a joint birthday gift. She is sweet and perfect for these beginners! We also aqquired Zelda, a rose island boa. She is almost a foot longer than Copper and makes me very nervous. I have not held her yet, and am not entirely sure that I will. The kids do though, and Brian really likes her. She is beautiful. Maybe I will warm to her.
Haircut day for the boys, they look so clean and ready for summer. We went to the playground in town for homeschool pe day and everyone got filthy on the equipment. It was a fun dirty...the kind where they are all grimy and tired and satisfied. Then we dropped some dressers off at a church friends house, came home and started decluttering . I have reduced our "stuff" by at least 300 items this year. None of it is missed. It blows my mind how easy it is to end up cluttered and overwhelmed. I also have not been replacing it, so the house looks huge and empty and I LOVE it. The closets used to be overflowing...they are now half empty, but everyone still wears the same clothes. I got rid of the extras I always felt the need to have.
The broken down house next to us sold. The lady(I think her name is Donna) came by to tell me they moved in. We do not drive that way, so I had no idea anyone had bought it. She had her 9 year old son in the car...he did not get out but seemed really interested in all my boys :D . The boys were very excited at the prospect of a neighbor with a kid...we have never had anyone who could drop by, or walk over. I definately need to find out more, will be bringing some kind of baked yummy over soon. I hope this can be a friend for the kids.
The sun is going down...time to finish chores and get some more clothes sorted to donate.

We went hiking at Mohawk Park today after church. I was wearing Pip in the sling and fell down a flight of wooden trail stairs. My ankle cracked, I am 75% that I fractured it. The sling was our saving grace, Pip was fine. I will go to the VA tomorrow to get an xray...the guy on the nurseline was really rude which discouraged me alot.We could have driven to Muskogee but I would rather wait a day and go to Tulsa for kinder people. I think it is stupid to have to wait to find out if you have a broken bone, but that is the system. :P
The kids (and Brian and I) had a great time on our walk other than the fall. Trinity found the prettiest reddish orange mushroom, Logan spotted some animal holes, and we just had a peaceful day.

Another beautiful springy day...that is kicking my butt due to allergies. It isn't going to prevent me from rejoicing though...this weather is magnificiant and I will spend my day outdoors enjoying it.
I made Mickey Mouse pancakes for breakfast, haven't decided on lunch yet. I should hurry up and decide since it is pretty much lunch time ;) .
The wee chicks are growing wonderfully, and are feathered nicely now. I can't get over how big they got. I don't know why but the chicken dust is not nearly so bad this time around.That is nice. I need to gather eggs from the outside chickens...every time I go out there is a layer in the box. I can see the mound of eggs under her, but I hate to disturb them. I think I will get 30 eggs when I get them.
It is almost piglet time too. I have the pen set up, though Brian is talking about switching the setup a bit. I don't care, as long as we get them soon. I love piglets!

I found a second nest in the horse trailor. There were 20 eggs there, plus the 8 I got from the coop. The ones from the trailor were exceptionally clean already too.Bonus!
Yesterday we went to the statuary and got two birdbaths. One is tall and thin, with a celtic base and square celtic bowl. I am going to paint it green. The second is an ocean scene, with boats in the bowl. It is shorter, one piece and very sturdy. I will paint the base brown and leave the top natural. They are beautiful, and we look forward to birds, butterflies and bees having water.
Brian got to try some homemade mead this weekend and it seems to have clinched the desire to start with bees. We may be ordering our first hive kit today! We are very much enamoured by the top bar hives, but are going to start with a Langstroth this time. I am beyond thrilled that we are undertaking this!
Last night was rough, as my fever spiked and I hurt all over. It is carrying into today, but there is no rest for the mama lol. I hope my kids grow up strong and resiliant, but I also hope they have someone to love them through it. Brian was sweet, turning up the heat and covering me with extra blankets in the wee hours of the morn.
I got a cast iron sauce pan at the thrift store yesterday. I reseasoned it as soon as we got homne and am thrilled to have picked it up for a mere 5 dollars! Bargain hunting is such a thrill!

My blog list grows steadily larger. I love reading the stories of other people, and seeing ways I can better myself and our household. It ties in so nicely with Proverbs. We are reading Proverbs at my Tuesday night ladies group and it is great to go over every word like that. Monday night is couples group here, we are doing "Laugh Your Way to A Better Marriage" and it is Hilarious!!! Brian and I are both getting much out of it, and are happy to see that alot is stuff we have done for the last 16 years anyhow.
It is drizzly again, and supposed to be icy/snowy for a few more days. I am itching for Spring! I want to do more gardens, I want flowers and green and outdoor adventures. I Need to slow down and enjoy winter. I am trying to teach this to the kids, and showing them is of course the best way to teach them. We are drinking hot cocoa, eating soups and stews, sitting by the fire.
The 3 boys in gymnastics shared a class today as their coach was absent. I think he is at a meet out of state, but he forgot to tell anyone. We had a sub who was good at form over function. It was a good change of pace, though we will be glad when Richard is back. We practiced a bit more at home afterwards and they are doing well. Christian did some handstands with us, and wants so badly to go back. His break was too severe and he won't ever get to go back but he can do some things at home so he does. I love his strong spirit.
I am off to bake some bread and who knows whereelse the day will emander.

Brian stayed home from work today. I highly doubt there would have been many customers looking to get pierced during our worst storm of the season, but you never know. It would not have been worthwhile to drive to Tulsa and back for just 1 or 2 people though. Thanks to papertoys.com we had alot of fun. 6/9ths of us played outside for a bit. Even with near whiteout conditions it was awesome. Brian and I walked together to take care of the neighbors beautiful Gypsy Vanner horses. They are a sweet bunch, albeit rather intimadating in a herd like that. It was so peaceful...walking in the snow, hearing our boots crunching, just he and I. He is such a gem, still makes me feel so lucky to have him as mine.
The cinnamon rolls in the bread machine were a HUGE hit. They were easily better than store bought, and really were not difficult to make. It did take almost 2 hrs, but that was 1.5 hrs in the bread machine on the dough cycle.Really not bad, and a great treat that the kids will get once a week. The blueberries on the side made it better for all of us though!
I am thrilled that Logan is truly reading now.He didn't even stumble...once he got it he just ran! Still working with Gavin, he is getting eager which is what I have been watching for. Christian got eager to read and then took off, same with Logan. Oh, how spoiled I was with Trinity. She just read starting at age 4. That's how I did it too. I never expected I would have late readers, never thought I would deal with the disapproval that (especially) homeschoolers face when their child is not ahead of the game. Griffon should read this year also, and Jubilee is showing pre reading skills already, so hopefully the struggling will have been confined to Christian, Gavin, and Logan.I am so proud of them though, that even as non readers they have always had a zest for books.
The guineas are locked up with the chickens tonight. We tried shooing them out so they would go home to Bill( a convicted child molester who lives two houses away, who free ranges his birds but comes knocking to ask where they are if they stay here) but they kept perching in the trees by the hen house. I really don't want them to get eaten, and with this weather and the knowledge that they would just perch in the trees, we let them stay. And will from now on. They are still his, we just feed them and enjoy seeing them around. I think the female has been laying in the laying box, but really...how am I going to know what egg is hers from 16 eggs? I get stuck in regards to my feelings about Bill. He is crazy...literally not all there. He is at least 75, probably more like 85. He comes on our property often, in a skulking kind of way. He reminds me of Gollum...I am horrified by the thought of what he has done, but I pity him for his current state also.Not enough to invite him near my children, but I have often thought of taking some baked goods to him. I do NOT want him to feel like he is welcome near the kids though, and it seems a hard line to see.
My nose is so runny, and my nostril piercing is getting agravated. I have a small bump(scar tissue building up) that bugs me to see. I did sea salt soaks to no avail, and emu oil made no noticable difference, but peroxide has helped alot. The congestion going away would be a good thing though.
Time to tend the fire.