Monday, July 6, 2015
Chick hatching
Thursday, July 2, 2015
Survival
Trying to survive infancy as a chick is tough! The odds are not in your favor. We have now lost 6 chicks with only 3 surviving so far. Last night, one of the 4 babies died (I'm assuming it was merely squished through the night under her mama). One of the chicks that was hatching died as well. So we have had 3 newborns die, and 3 die while hatching. Mama hen is still sitting on a good 10-15 eggs or so, but we may have to move those indoors soon. Those eggs are a week behind the already-hatched chicks, so Mama hen may stop setting soon to nurture her 3 babies that are already starting to get curious about their surroundings.
Hubby is working on the new chicken coop for all our egg laying chickens (as opposed to our fertilized mixed group of hens/rooster) Hubby is currently working on the nesting boxes right now. We need to get the chicken run all fenced in. Our Top Hats/Guinea/Easter Egg chickens are now moved into a bigger area. They are enjoying that much better!! Yesterday, we saw that one of the comets was running around with a baby snake in its mouth!! Yikes. Ohhhh how I hate snakes! But I am glad they like to eat them :)
All the other animals are doing well. The ducks, geese and goats coming running up to the fence whenever anyone is outside. They love interaction with people (especially if you bring food).
We've had a lot of rain lately, so our garden is really growing! Our pumpkins are starting to form and we see some tomatoes. The green beans are cucumbers are coming along well.
That's it for now.....
Monday, June 29, 2015
Sad chicken lesson
We learned the hard way NOT to let the comet chickens hatch eggs!! We had 2 suddenly want to start setting several weeks ago which we thought was odd. They are a hybrid chicken for fast egg production and we didn't think they had that 'nesting' instinct in them. They are not around a rooster so none of their eggs are fertilized. Well, 2 of them decided to start setting, so we took some of our fertilized eggs from the Maran group of chickens and put them under our expectant mothers. Yesterday we discovered that one of the hens had a baby but it was dead in the yard. We figured all the other comets got jealous or something and trampled it. So later yesterday evening, another egg hatched but oddly the mother pecked at it when it would peek out from under her. I thought that was rather odd for a mother to do that so we kept an eye on her. The kids came in before bed from their finally round of checking on the animals, and one of them said "That mom is mean. I saw her peck at her baby". So today I decided to go out and get some food and water ready for the baby and see how it was doing. I took her out from under the mama hen and what an awful site. She had pecked at the head and the eyes were bulging out and I think part of the brain.....it was so gross but the poor thing was still alive. We immediately removed all the eggs from under both comets (7 of which are in the process of hatching) and put them all under our Maran chicken that is setting. Hopefully she will take to them without any issues (or else I'm bringing them all in the house to hatch myself!!!)
Thursday, June 25, 2015
Farm update
I can't get out to take pictures as there is a monsoon outside right now!!! But I sure do love the rain we are getting, especially for our garden! Our pumpkins and cucumbers are starting to flower now.....yay!!! We have weeded several more rows. The rows always look so nice after all the grass and vines have been picked out. There are quite a few rows that we really can't weed because we can't find any produce growing....ugh. We don't see any peppers or strawberries, can't find any garlic or carrots (bummer!!!) and our cantaloup look pitiful. Still need to weed the corn and green beans. Next year we will definitely need to take a different route to help with the weeding issue. Sitting in 90 degree heat picking weeds has not been fun. It will be worth it and I think we will definitely appreciate the food a whole lot more as we eat it, knowing the work that went into growing and maintaining it! I have found the canner/pressure cooker I want. It has excellent reviews so I'm excited about getting it. Now to find some good recipes.
We have 3 hens that are setting right now. I think we should be getting close to hatching pretty soon. Our baby comets are getting within several weeks of starting to lay eggs. We are going to have an explosion of eggs pretty soon. Hubby has been starting to build the new chicken coop/area for all our eggs layers. The guinea are getting close to being let loose (they are caged right now). I have a feeling we are going to lose quite a few once this happens. They do fly and wander far away so we will see how many stick close by. The ducks, geese and goats and so much fun to play with. They love attention! We did notice a big problem with our pond the other day. We found about 50 dead fish floating all around the perimeter of the pond. We did some reading and found that during a heat way the balance of the oxygen in the water changes and then when a thunderstorm comes along and mixes up the water it can cause oxygen depletion. That is exactly what happened last week. Right after a big thunderstorm is when we found all the dead fish. I didn't realize how many bass we had in the pond!!! Sad to see, but hopefully there are some left in there to replenish the stock. So many new things you learn living on a farm!!!
The kids are still doing their end-of-year testing trying to finish up their grades. It will be such a great feeling to be done and ready to start the new year! We are heading into grades 7, 5 and 3 with a kindergarten/grade 1 ready to start full time. I'll have to do a post about our curriculum for the new year. Always exciting starting new books!
That's about it.
We have 3 hens that are setting right now. I think we should be getting close to hatching pretty soon. Our baby comets are getting within several weeks of starting to lay eggs. We are going to have an explosion of eggs pretty soon. Hubby has been starting to build the new chicken coop/area for all our eggs layers. The guinea are getting close to being let loose (they are caged right now). I have a feeling we are going to lose quite a few once this happens. They do fly and wander far away so we will see how many stick close by. The ducks, geese and goats and so much fun to play with. They love attention! We did notice a big problem with our pond the other day. We found about 50 dead fish floating all around the perimeter of the pond. We did some reading and found that during a heat way the balance of the oxygen in the water changes and then when a thunderstorm comes along and mixes up the water it can cause oxygen depletion. That is exactly what happened last week. Right after a big thunderstorm is when we found all the dead fish. I didn't realize how many bass we had in the pond!!! Sad to see, but hopefully there are some left in there to replenish the stock. So many new things you learn living on a farm!!!
The kids are still doing their end-of-year testing trying to finish up their grades. It will be such a great feeling to be done and ready to start the new year! We are heading into grades 7, 5 and 3 with a kindergarten/grade 1 ready to start full time. I'll have to do a post about our curriculum for the new year. Always exciting starting new books!
That's about it.
Monday, June 22, 2015
A Biblical Alternative To The Sinner's Prayer by Paul Washer
We need to hear this over and over!!! Such truth!
Thursday, June 18, 2015
Garden pics
Here are some pics of the garden. You can see that some of the rows still need weeding!!! We've done several already, but there are more that need to be done. Vines and grass are really growing around the plants.
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| first row pumpkin, second row green beans |
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| 3 rows of green beans |
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| corn, potatoes and tomatoes |
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| cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, and hopefully peppers |
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| our rows that need weeding!!!! |
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
Updates
We have been quite busy around here trying to finish up our end of year school testing and getting our report cards all completed. We have finished up every subject but English, so hopefully over the next 2 weeks we will get everything done!
Farm life is going well. Our garden is blooming which is nice to see. We have had to weed quite a bit lately as the grass have overtaken most of the garden. Hubby tilled all the 'walking' areas between the rows which really helped, and now we are weeding each individual row. With it being so hot outside, we don't stay out for long periods of time. Needless to say, the pool has been getting alot of use of the past couple weeks!!
The animals are doing well. We lost one of our laying chickens last week (to the dog) and this morning we lost a guinea (to the dog!!!) If she wasn't such a good watch dog, I think we'd get rid of her! This hunting-for-sport is costing us money!!! We have 2 more hens that are setting....one of our comets and one of our marans. Baby chicks are so much fun to see!!
We had a nice time with company a week or so ago. The kids had a blast with the other kids.
Every one is doing well! That's about it......
Farm life is going well. Our garden is blooming which is nice to see. We have had to weed quite a bit lately as the grass have overtaken most of the garden. Hubby tilled all the 'walking' areas between the rows which really helped, and now we are weeding each individual row. With it being so hot outside, we don't stay out for long periods of time. Needless to say, the pool has been getting alot of use of the past couple weeks!!
The animals are doing well. We lost one of our laying chickens last week (to the dog) and this morning we lost a guinea (to the dog!!!) If she wasn't such a good watch dog, I think we'd get rid of her! This hunting-for-sport is costing us money!!! We have 2 more hens that are setting....one of our comets and one of our marans. Baby chicks are so much fun to see!!
We had a nice time with company a week or so ago. The kids had a blast with the other kids.
Every one is doing well! That's about it......
Sunday, May 31, 2015
Farm livin'
Life on the farm....lovin' it!
So far, the goats have been named Molly and Dolly and the rabbits are Thumper and Bugs......
So far, the goats have been named Molly and Dolly and the rabbits are Thumper and Bugs......
Saturday, May 30, 2015
Thursday, May 28, 2015
Monday, May 25, 2015
Updates
Mama Hen ended up with 4 chicks. They are so cute with one being entirely black and the other 3 with grays and blacks mixed together. The past couple of days she has ventured down on the ground with them.
Our ducks have taken nicely to the water. They are so much fun to watch! They have completely cleaned up the pond of all the algae that had grown over the past year. The geese now stay down by the pond as well, but do not venture into the water too much. We unfortunately lost one goose. It had been bleeding from the mouth on and off for awhile and eventually got very weak to where it couldn't walk anymore (and died that night). Not sure what was wrong with it but it had always been the weaker and slower one of the bunch.
The top hat chickens are getting bigger (as well as the easter egg chickens and guinea) They are still kept in the garage.
Our garden is starting to bloom! The beans, pumpkins and cucumber are starting to grow. This year we planted 2 types of tomatoes, cucumber and pickling cucumber, bush beans, pumpkin, cantaloupe, 2 types of onion, chives, garlic, potatoes, lettuce, carrots, okra, broccoli, strawberry, 3 types of peppers....I think that's it. Looking forward to seeing what it will produce!!!
Our ducks have taken nicely to the water. They are so much fun to watch! They have completely cleaned up the pond of all the algae that had grown over the past year. The geese now stay down by the pond as well, but do not venture into the water too much. We unfortunately lost one goose. It had been bleeding from the mouth on and off for awhile and eventually got very weak to where it couldn't walk anymore (and died that night). Not sure what was wrong with it but it had always been the weaker and slower one of the bunch.
The top hat chickens are getting bigger (as well as the easter egg chickens and guinea) They are still kept in the garage.
Our garden is starting to bloom! The beans, pumpkins and cucumber are starting to grow. This year we planted 2 types of tomatoes, cucumber and pickling cucumber, bush beans, pumpkin, cantaloupe, 2 types of onion, chives, garlic, potatoes, lettuce, carrots, okra, broccoli, strawberry, 3 types of peppers....I think that's it. Looking forward to seeing what it will produce!!!
Friday, May 22, 2015
Friday, May 15, 2015
First baby
We found our first 'homegrown' baby of the season today! Mama hen is sitting on nearly 30 eggs, poor gal. Hubby heard some faint peeps tonight so we took a peek and found one! So exciting. Over the next few days, I'm pretty sure we will get quite a few more. Fun on the farm!!
Sunday, May 10, 2015
Mother's Day on the farm
Today is Mother's Day and I am such a blessed mama!! God has given me 6 wonderful blessings. What a joy each of them are to me! Hubby and I wish both of our Mom's a very Happy Mother's Day as well. We thank the Lord for both of you!!
We have had quit the busy month (thus not blogging very often). We had hubby's Mom (and another lady) come visit for a couple days. Then we had all of my side of the family here for a weekend. We enjoyed such a nice visit with my parents for 3 weeks and also enjoyed a quick overnight visit with some dear friends from our old church. It's always fun showing people around the 'farm' here with all our little feather babies (that are growing into BIG feather babies!!) Our ducks and geese are almost at full maturity. We have our Comet chickens moved outside now with only the Guinea/Top Hat chickens/ and Easter Egg chickens left in the garage. It will be several weeks before they can be moved outside. We look forward to our goats and rabbits next month!
Our garden is finally in the works! What a time we had trying to get it plowed and ready for planting. After several failed attempts at it, we called in reinforcement (our well trained neighbor) to come and till up the ground. What a lifesaver he was! In 30 mins, he had that ground looking like a garden!! As of today we have 6 rows planted and will hopefully get the rest done tomorrow. Now to learn about canning/preserving. Anyone with helpful info is welcome to drop me a note :)
Here are a few pics from the 'farm'....
We have had quit the busy month (thus not blogging very often). We had hubby's Mom (and another lady) come visit for a couple days. Then we had all of my side of the family here for a weekend. We enjoyed such a nice visit with my parents for 3 weeks and also enjoyed a quick overnight visit with some dear friends from our old church. It's always fun showing people around the 'farm' here with all our little feather babies (that are growing into BIG feather babies!!) Our ducks and geese are almost at full maturity. We have our Comet chickens moved outside now with only the Guinea/Top Hat chickens/ and Easter Egg chickens left in the garage. It will be several weeks before they can be moved outside. We look forward to our goats and rabbits next month!
Our garden is finally in the works! What a time we had trying to get it plowed and ready for planting. After several failed attempts at it, we called in reinforcement (our well trained neighbor) to come and till up the ground. What a lifesaver he was! In 30 mins, he had that ground looking like a garden!! As of today we have 6 rows planted and will hopefully get the rest done tomorrow. Now to learn about canning/preserving. Anyone with helpful info is welcome to drop me a note :)
Here are a few pics from the 'farm'....
Monday, April 27, 2015
Family Photos
I can't believe a month has gone by without posting something here. Well, actually I can....we have been so busy around here! Lots of feather babies being added to the farm. We have 2 more batches due this week. We have also been having lots of company. We have enjoyed having all of my side of the family here and took the opportunity to update our family photo. Here are some pics from the weekend.
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Updates
Busy morning already. More babies arrived today!! First, a picture of the chicks....they are already getting wing feathers and tail feathers. But man are they still tiny compared to the geese that arrived today!! The small ones are Sweet Emily ducks (white layers - haven't had a duck egg before!!!) and the larger ones are White Embdem geese (from Germany). They are so soft and I love their bills....big nostrils!!
And finally....a pic of my little troublemaker :) She thought she needed a little lotion!
And finally....a pic of my little troublemaker :) She thought she needed a little lotion!
Saturday, March 21, 2015
Look mom - 2 hands
She didn't quite know if she liked it or not.....they were cute when they were sitting still, but once they moved, their sharp little nails didn't feel so good on the hands :)
Cute little sleeping babies.....Do you see their feathers growing on their wings already!
Cute little sleeping babies.....Do you see their feathers growing on their wings already!
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Chicks
Our babies are here! We have added 26 Comets to our chicken family today (all pullets - females). The kids just love watching them! They are only a day old (born yesterday) and fit right in the palm of your hand. Oh so cute!! Now we wait for our next batch next week - ducks and geese. We have put in our order for 2 goats and 4 rabbits. The goats were just born so we have to wait 3 months before we can bring them home and we will be getting one month old rabbits in the next several weeks. Our farm is growing!!
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
One Year
It is so hard to believe that it has been one year since Dad's passing (hubby's father). How quickly this year has gone by, but on the other hand it has felt like forever since we've seen him or talked to him. We think of him often and talk about him often with the kids. It's sad the little ones will not have memories of him. The kids miss their weekly video chat with him. He was always willing to Skype with them despite his pain/tiredness. How much he is missed by all! We love you!
Sunday, March 15, 2015
Exciting week ahead
We finally got to hold church service in our basement again! Since the snow has finally melted, we are able to get in and out of our driveway, so we welcomed 5 total families today for service. It was a great time together with great preaching!! One family is overdue now for their 4th baby to arrive, so hopefully this week we will hear of news of his safe arrival!
We also have some "babies" arriving this week too!! Twenty five chicks will be coming this Wednesday....all Comets (the egg layers). They will be a day old. The following week we will welcome our baby ducks and geese. The Easter egg chickens and Guinea are not coming till the end of April which will give us time to get things set up around here.
The weather has been so beautiful the past few days. The kids are out without jackets on and love that they can get their bikes out again. Now for it to dry up a bit so they don't come in all muddy!! Thank goodness for rubber boots :)
We've been using our bread maker lately to make pizza dough. The kids are LOVING homemade pizza. The last one was really good. I made an olive oil/oregano/basil base and brushed it on the dough and covered it with different meats and cheese. The best part is that our flour is GMO free and is made of only a few natural ingredients. Yummy!!!
I think that's about it around here. We are looking forward to the busier days ahead!
We also have some "babies" arriving this week too!! Twenty five chicks will be coming this Wednesday....all Comets (the egg layers). They will be a day old. The following week we will welcome our baby ducks and geese. The Easter egg chickens and Guinea are not coming till the end of April which will give us time to get things set up around here.
The weather has been so beautiful the past few days. The kids are out without jackets on and love that they can get their bikes out again. Now for it to dry up a bit so they don't come in all muddy!! Thank goodness for rubber boots :)
We've been using our bread maker lately to make pizza dough. The kids are LOVING homemade pizza. The last one was really good. I made an olive oil/oregano/basil base and brushed it on the dough and covered it with different meats and cheese. The best part is that our flour is GMO free and is made of only a few natural ingredients. Yummy!!!
I think that's about it around here. We are looking forward to the busier days ahead!
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Fun day
Today was a fun, relaxed day. We headed out this morning for some errands, went to lunch at the Creation Museum and walked around (inside and out), ran a few more errands then came home to play in mud puddles and finish up chores around the house. We went to a farm that sells GMO free chicken feed which we are excited about!!
We have placed our order for chickens, ducks and geese which should be arriving over the next 2 weeks. We have much to do to get ready for their arrival (setting up heat lamps, pens for them, etc) We are first picking up 25 comets (good egg layers)....but we are also hoping towards April to get some Top Hats (chickens with afros on the heads!!) and some Easter egg chickens (they lay blue, green, pink eggs!) The ducks and geese are coming the end of March. We are hoping to convert the big empty shed towards the back of the property (near the pond) into a big chicken house. Anyone interested in coming for a visit to help with the remodeling/ building project....*hint* *hint*.
Here are a few pics from today. Here are all the background the museum now uses....pretty cool!
We have placed our order for chickens, ducks and geese which should be arriving over the next 2 weeks. We have much to do to get ready for their arrival (setting up heat lamps, pens for them, etc) We are first picking up 25 comets (good egg layers)....but we are also hoping towards April to get some Top Hats (chickens with afros on the heads!!) and some Easter egg chickens (they lay blue, green, pink eggs!) The ducks and geese are coming the end of March. We are hoping to convert the big empty shed towards the back of the property (near the pond) into a big chicken house. Anyone interested in coming for a visit to help with the remodeling/ building project....*hint* *hint*.
Here are a few pics from today. Here are all the background the museum now uses....pretty cool!
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