Papa caught in the act!!!

Ha, I'm not the only one that spoils the chickens. Vince (known to the animals as Papa), went out to let the chickies peck around a bit and guess what I caught him doing. He was sitting and holding and scratching the chickies. That's not all he does. He lets the chickies out of their coop in the mornings. Well it started with a couple that would "wait" till he got there so he could take them off the roost and place them on the floor. Then it was a few more now the entire lot of them "wait" to be lifted off. One of them, we call her Ms. Henny, will climb back up the ladder and waddle all the way to the other end for a second ride. They are amazingly funny sometimes. We decided to buy an old camper and convert it into a "Mobile Chickie Town." There will be many pictures of that in the future as we customize it. They will be impressed with their new accommodations. And it will be very spacious. We plan to build a covered run that can be moved daily so they have new ground every day. That way I don't have to sit out for two hours a day and protect them from the hawks, which are constantly checking them out. They are getting pretty good at running for cover though. I scream really loud and they all run under the nearest tree. I'm thinking when they move into their new house would be a good time to introduce a rooster. Yes I said rooster. I think it's time to allow them to mingle with the opposite sex, however should he be too aggressive he might be sent packing.

Ducks at Bearpond

We spent this weekend working at one of the rentals Vince manages. We call it Bearpond cause that's the road name. The last tenant left in June of last year and it needed major renovations so it has been empty since. We noticed mama duck last June sitting on some eggs. A few weeks later we saw little fuzzies. Since the weather has been warmer we've started working there and now the babies are all grown up. They seemed to have done pretty good through the winter on their own. They all seem healthy. They aren't real tame but they don't run off until you get real close so I just watch from a distance. They are so much fun to watch too. They seem to have a routine. An early morning swim then looking for food, an afternoon nap time then an evening swim. They seem to enjoy the water so much. They wag their tails, dunk their heads and flap their wings. They chase each other and then just take it easy for awhile. From what I can tell they are a breed called Muscovy. I've read they eat lots of insects and mosquitoes which is very good. I'm looking forward to seeing more duck antics in the coming weeks.

Rory pouts :-(

Poor Rory. She hates waiting on the deck for me to let the chickens scratch around. I don't know if it's because I'm out there or because she just hates being outside in general. She's managed to find her a perch up high so she can see us. She climbs in the chair and turns around and puts on the biggest pout ever. There she sits until she sees me coming up to the deck. The chickens meanwhile are enjoying this beautiful weather. They love getting out and scratching around. Although, there are about 5 of them that would rather be held. A couple even try to take a little nap in my lap but I make them get down. They are getting a little "plump." The eggs are coming though. I'm getting a steady 15 a day now. They're getting bigger too. So far I sell about 5 dozen a week and we are eating the rest. Go go chickies go. I always thank them for the eggs. Some of them come in a look at the empty nest like they aren't really too happy I took them. I'm thinking they might get a rooster if we move to a farm. I don't know if I'm ready to give them up to a rooster just yet though.

Broch recovering at Nana's

Poor Broch, no wait poor me. Matt and Jenny had to go to Kentucky for a long weekend so we get to keep our grand dog. Well since he needed to go to the vet they made it an all in one trip. Guess what, Broch needed surgery the next day to remove a couple of tumors. That means Nana and Papa get to take him to the vet and keep him a week while he recovers. Poor Matt and Jenny couldn't smooch and hug and snuggle with him so I had to make up for it. Actually he did pretty good. He was pretty sore the first day but the next day he seemed a lot better. I had to lay a sheet over his places so he wouldn't lick them. By the end of the week he would look at me as if to say "I am so tired of you telling me to stop licking, you do understand I am a dog and that's what dog's do, right???" Well he's back home now and I'm sure the spoiling continues.

Spring Fever in the Garden

The warm weather has just made staying out of the garden impossible. I wanted to try my hand at starting some seeds this year so I got all the stuff and place orders everywhere for seed. As the orders started to arrive I realized I had ordered a lot more than I thought I did but hey they had a coupon!!!! I started some "Red" Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, parsley and couple other things. I watered them with warm water and put the dome on for humidity. Vince installed a grow light over my dryer so they would have light once they sprouted. Well they sprouted nicely and it's been nice and sunny so I've been setting them out in a semi-sunny spot everyday. They are looking good. Yes I even talk to them a little, hey you never know!!!! We put a little fresh compost in the garden to freshen that up for the spring. The compost looks like black gold thanks to the chickens and Vince turning it. I put in a few lettuce, mixed greens, oriental greens, onion, carrots and peas. Some of those have sprouted already too. I have plastic for covering them if it gets too cold at night. I think it's going to be a good year for the garden!!!

Daisy and the water bucket

So what does a cat do when you buy her pretty bowls to drink her water from...she decides she wants to drink out of the dog's water bucket. That crazy cat. I think she's getting senile. Seriously, she'll walk into the living room and just yowl at the top of her lungs for no apparent reason. She's limping quite noticeably on her front legs. They seem to be arthritic. She's beginning to look down before jumping off of things and look around for someone to help her down. Other than that she's still just as demanding as ever. There's just no telling what "that cat" will do next.

Getting organized in '09

Well evidently my wonderful thoughtful daughter thinks I need to get organized. I'm not sure she realizes I've been trying to "get" organized for the last 30 years. However, now that she is doing most of the research and leg work it's getting much easier for me. That's really nice. Recently she introduced me to the Household Notebook she read about on one of the sites she loves. She also created a document that looks like the checkbook register which will be helpful for me in a couple of areas. Maybe I can get her to find the error in my checkbook that I've just carried over for about 9 months. I know it's there somewhere??? :-) She sent me calendars for planning my meals for the month and other forms for tracking stuff. Anyway, it's always fun to learn new ways and with this household notebook it should eliminate quite a few files that I really don't need. Everything I need will be filed monthly and it's almost automatically done as I pay my bills. These young people can really be quite useful!!!! All kidding aside she's really a jewel and I am so grateful to be blessed with a daughter that's so helpful and she let's me know when I need to "update" and get with the program. Now if I could just find that notebook, I know it's around here somewhere. hehehe shhhh don't tell Jenny.