I haven't posted anything in a few days, and unless something significant happens (it's supposed to rain tomorrow... around here, that may count as significant), I probably won't be posting much anytime soon. It's not that I'm avoiding my blog or anything; I just don't have much worth posting. Ever feel like your life is incredibly boring and is really only useful as a giant time-suck in which all good things go to die?
Yeah. I'm there.
The chickens are... chickens. The mice that have invaded their coop have multiplied to the point of truly gross. I suspect they're gathering forces and plotting a coup and eventually I'll be raising mice instead of birds. I'm going to get in there this weekend, muck everything out, and set some sticky traps underneath the coop itself. I may pull the food out entirely and feed the birds in the yard every few hours. Of course, I'll have to remember to do that, and I'll have to make sure that Speed Bump, the Dog Who Eats Everything, is in the house when I feed, but if it gets rid of the mice, then so be it.
The cats are good. The Old Man Cat's giant cyst has pretty well disappeared. You can see where it was, of course, but it isn't completely disgusting any more. Now he's decided to scratch all the fur off his neck (I gave him flea meds, so I know it's not that). He may be due for another trip back to the vet here soon. The rest of the cats are fine. Insane, but fine. Demanding, but fine.
M1 is doing well. He has problems focusing, but they're intermittent. Wednesdays and Fridays are the worst, but I think I've worked out why: He gets worn out swimming on Tuesdays and Thursdays but refuses to go to sleep when he goes to bed, so then he's tired and sore the next day. It makes for some long school days. He's done really well this week, and it's been nice.
M2 is another story. Two days after our last therapy visit, she flipped. She'd been doing really well since mid-November, and before that her stint as a complete butt monkey hadn't lasted very long, so I had thought she was making progress and that maybe her moodiness was just a phase and it was all in my mind. But no... she was just in between cycles. Or something. Ironically, since she'd been doing so well, we'd more or less decided to stop going to therapy. Now? Well, I can't get her to use the therapy tools she already has, so I still don't see the point in going back, but it's very tempting to make the appointment, dump her in the chair, rant to the therapist, throw my hands up and walk out. I won't, of course, but the idea has mental merit. She stomps, screams, refuses to budge, and is otherwise completely obtuse every time something doesn't go her way or messes with her plans. She's never been the boss of the household in her life, and I'm not about to start letting her have that role now, but good grief. Last night she managed to dunk her hair into her bowl of soup, so I told her she needed to wash her hair. Forty-five minutes later, I literally dragged her to the bathroom. After that, she refused to let me tuck her into bed (fine by me) before bursting into tears and self-imploding about how horrible a person she was. She's decided she doesn't want Oz to take her to school any more. She doesn't want to practice violin very often. She doesn't want to do X, Y or Z, and all the begging and bribery in the world won't make her budge. I have to admit I hope she can channel this persistence into adulthood, because if she could use it in a positive way it'd be incredibly effective, but for now it's a real pain in the rear.
The gerbil still lives.
The dogs are currently asleep on the floor.
Oz is at work, doing what he does and bringing home the bacon. His birthday was this last weekend. I got him the new Zelda game and hope to take him on a trip sometime this year.
And as for me? Well, I'm just hanging in there, trying to keep it all together, get it all done, and occasionally learn something new in the process. One day at a time...
Showing posts with label chickens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chickens. Show all posts
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Monday, June 20, 2011
One Step Forward...
We're missing a chicken. I suspect it jumped the fence and was caught by a dog, though that's only a theory. Anyway, now we're down to 10. I guess natural selection is one way of culling the herd before it happens deliberately next year, but yeesh. I'm praying that the kids don't find remnants somewhere.
M2 is in a mixed manic state, and I think both of us are about to come unhinged. One minute she's bouncing off the walls and singing and dancing and repeating herself 20 times in 10 minutes... and the next she's begging for validation and telling me that she's not really my child and I don't love her and she should just go off and die somewhere. I'm doing the best I can to work with her, but I'm not ashamed to admit that there's a glass of wine next to me right now. M1 is trying to be patient with her, too, but he's also at his limit. He gratefully escaped to his room today.
The lawn mower is on the fritz. Oz thought that the blades were the problem, so he replaced them, but it's still shaking like crazy and making about twice as much noise as usual. This is especially troublesome since apparently our back yard is infested with chiggers and hasn't had a proper mowing in more than two weeks thanks to our hectic travel schedule.
-----
The good news:
M1 and M2 both started summer swimming lessons today. M1 scored the swim team coach as his teacher. He has had this man as a sub previously and just thinks he's the best, so he's thrilled to have him again as a real teacher. I like him, too, and it'll be good for M1 to see how he likes working with a real coach if he's serious about joining the swim team next year. M2 surprised me. She was initially placed in advanced level 1 and was almost instantly moved up to advanced level 2. She's extremely proud of herself, and I'm proud of her, too.
I made a roast chicken for dinner tonight, complete with veggies and rolls and cappuccino chunky chocolate frozen yogurt cones for dessert. I successfully deboned the chicken after dinner was over, gave the wishbone to Oz and M1 (M2 wanted nothing to do with touching chicken bones and even insisted that I remove the meat from her drumstick before she'd eat it), and now have homemade stock simmering on the stove. The best part is that it's flavored with herbs from the garden.
And speaking of the garden, now that I've put down the newspaper and straw around all the plants (thanks so much for the idea, Elisabeth!), it's growing great guns. I pulled the first bush tomato off a plant tonight along with two yellow grape tomatoes. Cucumbers are coming up like crazy, there are a few butternut squash already coming along, and there's a watermelon bigger than Oz's fist - huge compared to the half-dollar-size melon that I left on Thursday!
It's about to storm now, so I'm going to go cross-stitch while we have power and satellite reception. Hope your weeks are going well!
M2 is in a mixed manic state, and I think both of us are about to come unhinged. One minute she's bouncing off the walls and singing and dancing and repeating herself 20 times in 10 minutes... and the next she's begging for validation and telling me that she's not really my child and I don't love her and she should just go off and die somewhere. I'm doing the best I can to work with her, but I'm not ashamed to admit that there's a glass of wine next to me right now. M1 is trying to be patient with her, too, but he's also at his limit. He gratefully escaped to his room today.
The lawn mower is on the fritz. Oz thought that the blades were the problem, so he replaced them, but it's still shaking like crazy and making about twice as much noise as usual. This is especially troublesome since apparently our back yard is infested with chiggers and hasn't had a proper mowing in more than two weeks thanks to our hectic travel schedule.
-----
The good news:
M1 and M2 both started summer swimming lessons today. M1 scored the swim team coach as his teacher. He has had this man as a sub previously and just thinks he's the best, so he's thrilled to have him again as a real teacher. I like him, too, and it'll be good for M1 to see how he likes working with a real coach if he's serious about joining the swim team next year. M2 surprised me. She was initially placed in advanced level 1 and was almost instantly moved up to advanced level 2. She's extremely proud of herself, and I'm proud of her, too.
I made a roast chicken for dinner tonight, complete with veggies and rolls and cappuccino chunky chocolate frozen yogurt cones for dessert. I successfully deboned the chicken after dinner was over, gave the wishbone to Oz and M1 (M2 wanted nothing to do with touching chicken bones and even insisted that I remove the meat from her drumstick before she'd eat it), and now have homemade stock simmering on the stove. The best part is that it's flavored with herbs from the garden.
And speaking of the garden, now that I've put down the newspaper and straw around all the plants (thanks so much for the idea, Elisabeth!), it's growing great guns. I pulled the first bush tomato off a plant tonight along with two yellow grape tomatoes. Cucumbers are coming up like crazy, there are a few butternut squash already coming along, and there's a watermelon bigger than Oz's fist - huge compared to the half-dollar-size melon that I left on Thursday!
It's about to storm now, so I'm going to go cross-stitch while we have power and satellite reception. Hope your weeks are going well!
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Timing is Everything
Timing is everything: There's a cricket in my living room right now. Dorian Gray found it first. I don't think it's a particularly bright cricket. My first thought was that it was suicidal, but I think that's a projection from all the writing I've been doing, and I think it's actually got a seriously masochistic streak instead. It hopped all around the living room and is now hibernating in a rolled-up piece of paper that's been stuck behind M1's desk all week. All of Dorian's action, which is odd for him, drew the others in, and now the cats are driving me nuts trying to get at the cricket. I may or may not have chunked a blue highlighter, a red ink pen, and my iPhone cord in their general direction to try to get them to stop without actually A) getting up or B) hurting the cats. I'm running out of painless, lazy options on my end table, though, so eventually I'm going to have to move. Either that or the cricket is going to have to get an actual suicidal streak and come out to be eaten. Which means I'll clean up cricket remains in cat urp later. Decisions, decisions. Mostly I'm just happy for the laugh.
Timing is everything: I woke up with a migraine this morning. I hadn't had one in a long time, over a month, but since my migraines are related to a negative drop in air pressure and we haven't had a good low move through in over a month, and when I woke up this morning it was also drizzly and rainy... it all makes sense. The part that sucked was that I also used up my last migraine fixer last time I had a migraine and hadn't refilled the prescription. Thankfully Oz was here. He also had volunteered to take M1 to his swimming lesson today, so I went to bed, zonked out, woke up, took some Aleve, and then called the doctor and pleaded my case with the nurse. I swing by the pharmacy tomorrow. A Boy Scout I am not.
Timing is everything: I made a pumpkin streusel pie today. Pie. Singular. There were supposed to be two of them. I made two pie crusts. I made a big honkin' recipe of pumpkin pie filling. I filled two pies. I even started cooking them like the recipe said - 15 minutes at 450 - and then took them out to cover the crusts with foil. I went to put the first one back in, and in total slow motion horror movie close-up shot, it tilted. The silicone potholders slipped. And 2/3 of the pie wound up splattered over the inside of the oven door. I stopped. I stared. And I chunked the rest of the pie in the trash can. It's just pie, right? Then I had to work out a way to clean most of the mess off the door so I could continue cooking the other pie. For the record, LOTS and LOTS of paper towels will keep you from burning yourself and will get most of the stuff cleaned up, except for the brownish residue you find later, cooked to the inside of the door like a bad spray tan. The other pie came out beautifully. I want to see the glass half full here.
Timing is everything: I might have committed murder today. It wasn't entirely my fault. The thing DID play dead for two days. It was the last fish in M1's tank, and when a fish spends one day stuck to the back of the filter and one day lying motionless and visible on the bottom of the tank, I tend to think it's dead. It is a fish, after all, and I'm not prone to giving a fish the ol' poke-'n'-prod to make sure it is actually dead and cold and infused with rigor mortis. Since it was the last fish, I told M1 that I would empty out the tank for him while he was at his swimming lesson. I got the siphon. I got the bucket. I started draining the water. I got the tank 3/4 empty when I realized that I hadn't yet removed the fish and that it would be easier to remove if I siphoned it up as opposed to trying to grab it with my bare hands, something my son will happily do right before feeding it to bugs or dissecting it but something I don't find nearly as fun. I aimed the siphon at the fish and watched it schloop up the siphon. Halfway. Then, at the last possible second (I'm trying to work up drama here), the fish jerked around and flew back out the bottom of the siphon and parked itself in the only remaining corner with more than an inch of water. I had to pause for thought before realizing that even if I filled the tank back up and put in a new filter and got the whole thing going again, the whole water cycle was going to be completely out of whack and it was going to actually die anyway, and M1 wasn't home, and nobody would ever know, and HEY! We have chickens!
They appreciated the odd little treat.
If the stupid fish hadn't waited till the very last second, it would still be alive.
Timing is, indeed, everything.
Timing is everything: I woke up with a migraine this morning. I hadn't had one in a long time, over a month, but since my migraines are related to a negative drop in air pressure and we haven't had a good low move through in over a month, and when I woke up this morning it was also drizzly and rainy... it all makes sense. The part that sucked was that I also used up my last migraine fixer last time I had a migraine and hadn't refilled the prescription. Thankfully Oz was here. He also had volunteered to take M1 to his swimming lesson today, so I went to bed, zonked out, woke up, took some Aleve, and then called the doctor and pleaded my case with the nurse. I swing by the pharmacy tomorrow. A Boy Scout I am not.
Timing is everything: I made a pumpkin streusel pie today. Pie. Singular. There were supposed to be two of them. I made two pie crusts. I made a big honkin' recipe of pumpkin pie filling. I filled two pies. I even started cooking them like the recipe said - 15 minutes at 450 - and then took them out to cover the crusts with foil. I went to put the first one back in, and in total slow motion horror movie close-up shot, it tilted. The silicone potholders slipped. And 2/3 of the pie wound up splattered over the inside of the oven door. I stopped. I stared. And I chunked the rest of the pie in the trash can. It's just pie, right? Then I had to work out a way to clean most of the mess off the door so I could continue cooking the other pie. For the record, LOTS and LOTS of paper towels will keep you from burning yourself and will get most of the stuff cleaned up, except for the brownish residue you find later, cooked to the inside of the door like a bad spray tan. The other pie came out beautifully. I want to see the glass half full here.
Timing is everything: I might have committed murder today. It wasn't entirely my fault. The thing DID play dead for two days. It was the last fish in M1's tank, and when a fish spends one day stuck to the back of the filter and one day lying motionless and visible on the bottom of the tank, I tend to think it's dead. It is a fish, after all, and I'm not prone to giving a fish the ol' poke-'n'-prod to make sure it is actually dead and cold and infused with rigor mortis. Since it was the last fish, I told M1 that I would empty out the tank for him while he was at his swimming lesson. I got the siphon. I got the bucket. I started draining the water. I got the tank 3/4 empty when I realized that I hadn't yet removed the fish and that it would be easier to remove if I siphoned it up as opposed to trying to grab it with my bare hands, something my son will happily do right before feeding it to bugs or dissecting it but something I don't find nearly as fun. I aimed the siphon at the fish and watched it schloop up the siphon. Halfway. Then, at the last possible second (I'm trying to work up drama here), the fish jerked around and flew back out the bottom of the siphon and parked itself in the only remaining corner with more than an inch of water. I had to pause for thought before realizing that even if I filled the tank back up and put in a new filter and got the whole thing going again, the whole water cycle was going to be completely out of whack and it was going to actually die anyway, and M1 wasn't home, and nobody would ever know, and HEY! We have chickens!
They appreciated the odd little treat.
If the stupid fish hadn't waited till the very last second, it would still be alive.
Timing is, indeed, everything.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Thanks and Other Stuff
I hope you all had a lovely weekend. I did, except for the part at the end where the time change screwed with my head and made me feel like I was coming down with something. At least, I'm blaming the time change because I'm still a bit off today and refuse to believe that I might be coming down with a cold, and it makes perfect sense to me that setting my actual clock back an hour could mess with my internal clock as well.
The chickens, of course, know no difference between now and two days ago, because for them bedtime is sundown, but it's highly inconvenient for me because LAST week I could take out dinner scraps - carrot and potato peelings, random bits of veggies, eggshells, etc. - but this week, they're in bed by the time I get around to making supper, and there's nothing that'll attract members of the rodent family to my house like food scraps lying around the yard saying, "Eeeeeeat meeeeee."
And I've already stepped on mouse entrails in my house once this year. I do not need a repeat experience.
Ever.
(By the way, anyone local need/want eggs? Locally grown! Free range, if you consider my back yard free range. They're not technically organic, but heck, it's $2/dozen + a carton... any takers, let me know. I have almost five dozen eggs in my fridge.)
OK, didn't mean to digress down the chicken trail.
What I really wanted to say was thank you all who read and responded to the weird little post about my NaNoWriMo excerpt. I appreciate the feedback. You guys are wonderful.
And that is all. Keeping it short tonight. My brain is in a fog.
Stupid time change.
G'night!
The chickens, of course, know no difference between now and two days ago, because for them bedtime is sundown, but it's highly inconvenient for me because LAST week I could take out dinner scraps - carrot and potato peelings, random bits of veggies, eggshells, etc. - but this week, they're in bed by the time I get around to making supper, and there's nothing that'll attract members of the rodent family to my house like food scraps lying around the yard saying, "Eeeeeeat meeeeee."
And I've already stepped on mouse entrails in my house once this year. I do not need a repeat experience.
Ever.
(By the way, anyone local need/want eggs? Locally grown! Free range, if you consider my back yard free range. They're not technically organic, but heck, it's $2/dozen + a carton... any takers, let me know. I have almost five dozen eggs in my fridge.)
OK, didn't mean to digress down the chicken trail.
What I really wanted to say was thank you all who read and responded to the weird little post about my NaNoWriMo excerpt. I appreciate the feedback. You guys are wonderful.
And that is all. Keeping it short tonight. My brain is in a fog.
Stupid time change.
G'night!
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
AAAAARRRRRGH!!!
Thank you. I needed to get that out of my system. November has not been kind to me so far.
First of all, we have NaNoWriMo. I think I'm doing well! I have written about 8,500 words in my projected-to-be 50,000+ word novel. I had more written this morning until the Blue Screen of Death appeared on my laptop and ate my work with relish. I hadn't seen the Blue Screen of Death in a long time. I haven't missed it.
Then we have M2. She's back to the girl she was before all the poo hit the fan back in March or April or whenever it started; I've blocked the date conveniently from my memory. We went to see the psychiatrist yesterday, and when I told him that she was back to baseline, we chatted a bit about the nastiness of the Lexapro and then he said, "So... if she'd been like this all along, you'd never have come in?" "Right." That answer pleased him, apparently, because the invisible wall that had been up before, the one that basically said he was taking me at face value and didn't really BELIEVE me, disappeared. He said we're left looking at three options to explain her behavior:
1. It was all a phase and we'll never see it again.
2. It's all anxiety, but she's one of the odd kids who just react negatively to SSRIs due to age, and if we have to try it again in a few years, she might have a different reaction.
3. This is the upswing in a roller coaster that will eventually include the rages again.
He thinks we're looking at option #3, though he'd like to see #1 or #2. We go back in three months or sooner if the symptoms return.
So there's that. Which is good. Never mind that I still feel like I'm on pins and needles around her waiting for the other behavioral shoe to drop, and when she's at home, she's like a leech stuck to my leg that can somehow make its thoughts heard in my head and doesn't SHUT UP. Today, after violin, we got home and she insisted on coming out to the chicken coop with me to collect eggs, add straw, clean out and refill water containers, get mail, etc. Leech. I love her dearly, but sometimes I need five minutes of silence. Five minutes. An eternity of silence in a mom's world.
M1... M1, M1, M1... he's the one that caused all the anguish today. The boy has. no. self-control. NONE! I don't understand it. I can tell my 5-year-old to go do a simple chore like picking up the toys in her room, and she will go, and she will do it, and it will be done, and more often than not, it will be done well. I mean, she's five, she ain't perfect, but she FOCUSES and she TRIES. That's what counts. The boy... the boy would honestly and truly lose his head if it wasn't attached. I think I've mentioned that next year I'm going to have him dress up as the Headless Horseman for Halloween just so I can watch him lose his head.
And he's sneaky.
And he lies.
And he doesn't CARE, because if it doesn't affect him or he doesn't think he'll get caught, it must not be wrong. I thought kids with Asperger's were supposed to be rule-followers. Where on earth did MY kid come from?? Oh, right... rule-followers as long as the rules make sense to them.
Today, he lost a library book. Not a big deal in and of itself. I thought I'd help him look for it, and in the process I found Halloween candy wrappers hidden in a drawer. He tried to lie and say they'd been there a long time, but it's only been a few days since I've opened that drawer, and they weren't there then. He finally owned up, but he lost the rest of his candy. I told him he needed to clean up his room in an effort to find the book, and when I went to check on him, he was playing his sister's Didj. I confiscated that and gave it back to her AND took his Didj as well. Anyone want it? Now that he has a DS (which lives in my room permanently because of this exact issue), he doesn't need the Didj. It comes with a blue plastic 'case.' I'd be happy to sell it to ya. And ship it. The process went like that for the rest of the evening. I gave him a 20-minute warning before it was time for supper, warned him that he needed to get to work on *something,* because he hadn't done squat, but it wasn't motivation enough. Twenty minutes came (with warnings) and went and he was no closer to being done than before. I told him he had thirty minutes to be at the table, gave him multiple warnings in between, and still nothing. I told him that he had 15 minutes if he wanted leftovers; nil. I started yanking allowance bucks, and that finally motivated him a little bit, but he still lost $5 before all was said and done.
The book is still nowhere to be found. Since it's not due till next Wednesday and I can recheck it online up to three times, I figure it'll turn up somewhere between now and then. No worries. My beef is that I do not have the time to stand over an 8-year-old boy and monitor his every move. When I say don't play the electronics, it means DON'T PLAY THE ELECTRONICS. When I say clean your room to look for a book, I mean that, too! I know he hears me; he can repeat verbatim what I tell him to do. But somehow the words don't make it from the ears to the brain. The brain is simply bypassed for the mouth.
Someone tell me that eventually a synapse somewhere will fire and he'll be able to monitor his own actions. Just humor me if you have to. I just need to know that at some point my son is going to quit stealing and ignoring and lying and will actually be able to complete a string of commands or own electronic devices (including flashlights) without a 24-hour monitor. Because if he can't start following rules and laws and commands, that 24-hour monitor is going to be attached to his ankle.
First of all, we have NaNoWriMo. I think I'm doing well! I have written about 8,500 words in my projected-to-be 50,000+ word novel. I had more written this morning until the Blue Screen of Death appeared on my laptop and ate my work with relish. I hadn't seen the Blue Screen of Death in a long time. I haven't missed it.
Then we have M2. She's back to the girl she was before all the poo hit the fan back in March or April or whenever it started; I've blocked the date conveniently from my memory. We went to see the psychiatrist yesterday, and when I told him that she was back to baseline, we chatted a bit about the nastiness of the Lexapro and then he said, "So... if she'd been like this all along, you'd never have come in?" "Right." That answer pleased him, apparently, because the invisible wall that had been up before, the one that basically said he was taking me at face value and didn't really BELIEVE me, disappeared. He said we're left looking at three options to explain her behavior:
1. It was all a phase and we'll never see it again.
2. It's all anxiety, but she's one of the odd kids who just react negatively to SSRIs due to age, and if we have to try it again in a few years, she might have a different reaction.
3. This is the upswing in a roller coaster that will eventually include the rages again.
He thinks we're looking at option #3, though he'd like to see #1 or #2. We go back in three months or sooner if the symptoms return.
So there's that. Which is good. Never mind that I still feel like I'm on pins and needles around her waiting for the other behavioral shoe to drop, and when she's at home, she's like a leech stuck to my leg that can somehow make its thoughts heard in my head and doesn't SHUT UP. Today, after violin, we got home and she insisted on coming out to the chicken coop with me to collect eggs, add straw, clean out and refill water containers, get mail, etc. Leech. I love her dearly, but sometimes I need five minutes of silence. Five minutes. An eternity of silence in a mom's world.
M1... M1, M1, M1... he's the one that caused all the anguish today. The boy has. no. self-control. NONE! I don't understand it. I can tell my 5-year-old to go do a simple chore like picking up the toys in her room, and she will go, and she will do it, and it will be done, and more often than not, it will be done well. I mean, she's five, she ain't perfect, but she FOCUSES and she TRIES. That's what counts. The boy... the boy would honestly and truly lose his head if it wasn't attached. I think I've mentioned that next year I'm going to have him dress up as the Headless Horseman for Halloween just so I can watch him lose his head.
And he's sneaky.
And he lies.
And he doesn't CARE, because if it doesn't affect him or he doesn't think he'll get caught, it must not be wrong. I thought kids with Asperger's were supposed to be rule-followers. Where on earth did MY kid come from?? Oh, right... rule-followers as long as the rules make sense to them.
Today, he lost a library book. Not a big deal in and of itself. I thought I'd help him look for it, and in the process I found Halloween candy wrappers hidden in a drawer. He tried to lie and say they'd been there a long time, but it's only been a few days since I've opened that drawer, and they weren't there then. He finally owned up, but he lost the rest of his candy. I told him he needed to clean up his room in an effort to find the book, and when I went to check on him, he was playing his sister's Didj. I confiscated that and gave it back to her AND took his Didj as well. Anyone want it? Now that he has a DS (which lives in my room permanently because of this exact issue), he doesn't need the Didj. It comes with a blue plastic 'case.' I'd be happy to sell it to ya. And ship it. The process went like that for the rest of the evening. I gave him a 20-minute warning before it was time for supper, warned him that he needed to get to work on *something,* because he hadn't done squat, but it wasn't motivation enough. Twenty minutes came (with warnings) and went and he was no closer to being done than before. I told him he had thirty minutes to be at the table, gave him multiple warnings in between, and still nothing. I told him that he had 15 minutes if he wanted leftovers; nil. I started yanking allowance bucks, and that finally motivated him a little bit, but he still lost $5 before all was said and done.
The book is still nowhere to be found. Since it's not due till next Wednesday and I can recheck it online up to three times, I figure it'll turn up somewhere between now and then. No worries. My beef is that I do not have the time to stand over an 8-year-old boy and monitor his every move. When I say don't play the electronics, it means DON'T PLAY THE ELECTRONICS. When I say clean your room to look for a book, I mean that, too! I know he hears me; he can repeat verbatim what I tell him to do. But somehow the words don't make it from the ears to the brain. The brain is simply bypassed for the mouth.
Someone tell me that eventually a synapse somewhere will fire and he'll be able to monitor his own actions. Just humor me if you have to. I just need to know that at some point my son is going to quit stealing and ignoring and lying and will actually be able to complete a string of commands or own electronic devices (including flashlights) without a 24-hour monitor. Because if he can't start following rules and laws and commands, that 24-hour monitor is going to be attached to his ankle.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Sunday Randomness
1. Scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page. Check out the blue box. I've set up a Twitter account for this blog. If you tweet, you can find me at @oursunnyview. It contains a lot of the randomness that doesn't make it on here. Right now I have two followers. One of them is Bill Engvall. I feel special.
2. Oz is home, but he's working again. He's also going to be out of town all week. Weekend? What weekend?
3. The kids and I are going to go to a Halloween party this afternoon. I look forward to taking pictures.
4. M1 is no longer vegetarian. I know he did this on purpose because I now have more cans of beans in my pantry than any living person should ever have. Thankfully, those keep. I've also made him swear to finish up all vegetarian soups (and the tofu) that I had already bought and to give me at least a week's notice if he ever decides to become vegetarian again.
5. We had biscuits and sausage gravy for breakfast.
6. The horse lady has put a scarecrow in my pasture. It's bright orange and is stuck in a matching bright orange traffic cone to stand up. Every time I look out there, it startles me.
7. The light in my bedroom kept flickering after I went to bed last night. This wouldn't be an issue except that the light was turned off at the switch. After I went to sleep in the living room, it apparently stopped. No, THAT doesn't make me paranoid at all.
8. We're now getting 5-6 eggs per day out of our chicky-girls. I know they're taunting me, because when the weather finally takes a turn for the cold, they'll (more or less) quit laying.
9. I discovered the other day that if I scratch my 25-pound black cat in just the right spot, he involuntary starts gnawing on things. Like me. Or whatever is in front of his mouth. It's hilarious, and it tickles.
10. I watched "Full Metal Jacket" and "When Harry Met Sally" last night. I'd never seen either of those movies. I thought they were both awesome, and now I understand why they hired Adam Baldwin to be John Casey on "Chuck." Last week I watched the original "Ocean's 11" with the Rat Pack. Now I feel the need to see "Breakfast at Tiffany's," "Casablanca," "2001: A Space Odyssey," and "Gone With the Wind." I'm sure that list will grow, and I'm happy to take suggestions of good movies.
Have a happy Sunday, everyone!
2. Oz is home, but he's working again. He's also going to be out of town all week. Weekend? What weekend?
3. The kids and I are going to go to a Halloween party this afternoon. I look forward to taking pictures.
4. M1 is no longer vegetarian. I know he did this on purpose because I now have more cans of beans in my pantry than any living person should ever have. Thankfully, those keep. I've also made him swear to finish up all vegetarian soups (and the tofu) that I had already bought and to give me at least a week's notice if he ever decides to become vegetarian again.
5. We had biscuits and sausage gravy for breakfast.
6. The horse lady has put a scarecrow in my pasture. It's bright orange and is stuck in a matching bright orange traffic cone to stand up. Every time I look out there, it startles me.
7. The light in my bedroom kept flickering after I went to bed last night. This wouldn't be an issue except that the light was turned off at the switch. After I went to sleep in the living room, it apparently stopped. No, THAT doesn't make me paranoid at all.
8. We're now getting 5-6 eggs per day out of our chicky-girls. I know they're taunting me, because when the weather finally takes a turn for the cold, they'll (more or less) quit laying.
9. I discovered the other day that if I scratch my 25-pound black cat in just the right spot, he involuntary starts gnawing on things. Like me. Or whatever is in front of his mouth. It's hilarious, and it tickles.
10. I watched "Full Metal Jacket" and "When Harry Met Sally" last night. I'd never seen either of those movies. I thought they were both awesome, and now I understand why they hired Adam Baldwin to be John Casey on "Chuck." Last week I watched the original "Ocean's 11" with the Rat Pack. Now I feel the need to see "Breakfast at Tiffany's," "Casablanca," "2001: A Space Odyssey," and "Gone With the Wind." I'm sure that list will grow, and I'm happy to take suggestions of good movies.
Have a happy Sunday, everyone!
Monday, September 27, 2010
Conclusions
I have come to the conclusion that...
... I am going to lose my mind in November. I signed up for NaNoWriMo. For those of you who aren't familiar with it (and I wasn't until a couple years ago when I saw people talking about it on a forum), it's National Novel Writing Month. The idea is to put out 50,000 words. Quantity over quality, baby. Production I can do.
... Chickens do not like dirty nests. Oz and I discovered this when they kicked all the hay out of all three nest boxes yesterday. Why? Because an egg got broken in ONE of them. We also discovered that when you put new, dusty hay in the boxes and the chickens are in the coop inspecting the work while you do it, they will sneeze. Chicken sneezes are funny. Chicken sneezes also make me paranoid because I've read over and over about how susceptible chickens are to respiratory illness. Thankfully nobody looks ill and nobody was sneezing today, so I'm 99% sure it was the dust causing it.
... I do not like the fact that I am out of friends and relations who have bigger children than mine. I miss hand-me-downs. I'm having to buy fall and winter wardrobes for both the boy AND the girl this fall. Be still, my shrinking budget. If you know anyone who has a girl size 7/8 or a boy size 10/12, let me know. I'd love to hit them up. Oh, and I did find navy slacks at Target today. I bought six pairs. Overkill maybe, but I don't want to go back and she has a tendency to rip clothes.
... Work may be slow forever. And I'm okay with this. When the work is caught up, nobody gets hounded to work extra. Less stress is a good thing.
... I may always be close to the weight I am now. I may always a size 12 when it comes to pants. I may always have a bit of a gut. But if I can continue to buy the jeans I bought at Kohl's over the weekend and if I can continue to snack at night and eat things like Braum's sundaes and/or Sonic blasts, I might actually be content with this. Maybe.
... I have a Depression mentality when it comes to food. I have a side-by-side fridge/freezer, a deep freeze, and a fairly decent-sized pantry. All are stuffed, and there's overflow on the counter. I keep telling myself I need to make a giant list of everything I have and work on cleaning things out a bit, but then I freak out about all of us getting sick simultaneously, or what if the swine flu comes back with a vengeance and we're all quarantined for a week or two? What I *should* be thinking is what if we have another ice storm and the power is out for a week again??? I would actually puke at throwing all that food out. That's the sort of motivation I need...
I think I'll go work on that. Have a great day, everyone!
... I am going to lose my mind in November. I signed up for NaNoWriMo. For those of you who aren't familiar with it (and I wasn't until a couple years ago when I saw people talking about it on a forum), it's National Novel Writing Month. The idea is to put out 50,000 words. Quantity over quality, baby. Production I can do.
... Chickens do not like dirty nests. Oz and I discovered this when they kicked all the hay out of all three nest boxes yesterday. Why? Because an egg got broken in ONE of them. We also discovered that when you put new, dusty hay in the boxes and the chickens are in the coop inspecting the work while you do it, they will sneeze. Chicken sneezes are funny. Chicken sneezes also make me paranoid because I've read over and over about how susceptible chickens are to respiratory illness. Thankfully nobody looks ill and nobody was sneezing today, so I'm 99% sure it was the dust causing it.
... I do not like the fact that I am out of friends and relations who have bigger children than mine. I miss hand-me-downs. I'm having to buy fall and winter wardrobes for both the boy AND the girl this fall. Be still, my shrinking budget. If you know anyone who has a girl size 7/8 or a boy size 10/12, let me know. I'd love to hit them up. Oh, and I did find navy slacks at Target today. I bought six pairs. Overkill maybe, but I don't want to go back and she has a tendency to rip clothes.
... Work may be slow forever. And I'm okay with this. When the work is caught up, nobody gets hounded to work extra. Less stress is a good thing.
... I may always be close to the weight I am now. I may always a size 12 when it comes to pants. I may always have a bit of a gut. But if I can continue to buy the jeans I bought at Kohl's over the weekend and if I can continue to snack at night and eat things like Braum's sundaes and/or Sonic blasts, I might actually be content with this. Maybe.
... I have a Depression mentality when it comes to food. I have a side-by-side fridge/freezer, a deep freeze, and a fairly decent-sized pantry. All are stuffed, and there's overflow on the counter. I keep telling myself I need to make a giant list of everything I have and work on cleaning things out a bit, but then I freak out about all of us getting sick simultaneously, or what if the swine flu comes back with a vengeance and we're all quarantined for a week or two? What I *should* be thinking is what if we have another ice storm and the power is out for a week again??? I would actually puke at throwing all that food out. That's the sort of motivation I need...
I think I'll go work on that. Have a great day, everyone!
Friday, September 24, 2010
Notes from a Fried Brain
1. Having a vegetarian in the house is both good and bad. It is making me take a closer look at my weekly menu to make sure I can tweak each recipe or provide a quick, feasible vegetarian alternative for the boy, which is a good thing. On the other hand, NOBODY EATS THE LEFTOVERS. Before, all leftovers disappeared within a day or two. Now they are sitting in the fridge because the girl is at school, Oz is at work, and I can only eat so much in one day. It's perplexing, and I haven't yet worked out a solution.
2. Navy slacks for girls are a $@&#% to find. I have shopped at Kohl's, Walmart, and Stage. Nada. OK, so Walmart had some blue *leggings,* but I somehow suspect that will not pass muster. After fall break is over in mid-October, the dress code at M2's school changes, and she will only be allowed to wear navy slacks or her jumper. And I'm not paying for mass quantities of jumpers. They're pricey and can't be handed down to folks outside the school, so phththththth. Slacks it will be... if I can find them. Target, Kmart, and Old Navy are on the list to check next. Unless I say screw it all and find some online, which is a distinct possibility. I can only handle so much time shopping before imminent meltdown, and I am dangerously close to that line. Oh, and I need to find some navy sweatshirts/sweaters, too... maybe Land's End will have a sale....
3. I have stayed up till 1 a.m. or later every night this week. And every morning I wake up wondering why on earth I did it again. It's a vicious cycle that involves a lot of coffee each morning before I'm human again.
4. My mother is coming to visit for her birthday tomorrow. I'm looking forward to the photos. I'm paying to have her hair done as her birthday gift, and there *will* be 'before' and 'after' pics.
5. My children are developing diverse tastes in music. This morning I was in a funk because I'd been up till nearly 2 and the caffeine in my coffee hadn't kicked in yet, so I set Pandora to the Rammstein station and let the kids rock out in the back seat. Two days ago, I had a discussion about J.S. Bach with M2, and M1 constantly listens to country on his own radio. Music is life. I love it.
6. I need a massage. OK, I *want* a massage. No, I've changed my mind again. The massage is a need, but getting to go to an actual spa/hotel/luxury package for an entire weekend with a girlfriend or two is a want. Let's phrase it like that.
7. I hate laundry.
8. I got an e-mail from my boss this morning saying I had passed my quarterly audit. First *I'D* heard about any audit, but whatever. It's not like I go out there and do a crappy job, so it's not too surprising I passed. I was happy that all five random reports that they pulled were at or above the 98% accuracy required by the account, and I suspected by the tone of the e-mail that there were some who did not reach that point, and I wondered what happens if you don't. I'm not going to dwell on that thought. It makes me nervous.
9. We're up to half a dozen eggs out of the chickens. I suspect only a couple are laying, given the fact that three are one shade of brown and three are another shade of brown. Or I could just be hypothesizing wrong. It's entirely possible.
10. Oz's dad and stepmother are in town this week. I've seen them twice so far. The first time, Oz had taken the day off of work to hang out with his dad, and then they picked up his stepmom and we all went out to dinner. Then the kids went to bed (school night) and the rest of us watched TV and chatted. Then Oz took them back to their hotel. And then he came home and informed me that his stepmom had missed the step from our sidewalk to the driveway and wiped out entirely. She's got hurt wrists, a massive leg bruise, and a sprained ankle. And one crutch. Oops. It's a good thing she loves us ;)
Hope you all have a great Friday!
2. Navy slacks for girls are a $@&#% to find. I have shopped at Kohl's, Walmart, and Stage. Nada. OK, so Walmart had some blue *leggings,* but I somehow suspect that will not pass muster. After fall break is over in mid-October, the dress code at M2's school changes, and she will only be allowed to wear navy slacks or her jumper. And I'm not paying for mass quantities of jumpers. They're pricey and can't be handed down to folks outside the school, so phththththth. Slacks it will be... if I can find them. Target, Kmart, and Old Navy are on the list to check next. Unless I say screw it all and find some online, which is a distinct possibility. I can only handle so much time shopping before imminent meltdown, and I am dangerously close to that line. Oh, and I need to find some navy sweatshirts/sweaters, too... maybe Land's End will have a sale....
3. I have stayed up till 1 a.m. or later every night this week. And every morning I wake up wondering why on earth I did it again. It's a vicious cycle that involves a lot of coffee each morning before I'm human again.
4. My mother is coming to visit for her birthday tomorrow. I'm looking forward to the photos. I'm paying to have her hair done as her birthday gift, and there *will* be 'before' and 'after' pics.
5. My children are developing diverse tastes in music. This morning I was in a funk because I'd been up till nearly 2 and the caffeine in my coffee hadn't kicked in yet, so I set Pandora to the Rammstein station and let the kids rock out in the back seat. Two days ago, I had a discussion about J.S. Bach with M2, and M1 constantly listens to country on his own radio. Music is life. I love it.
6. I need a massage. OK, I *want* a massage. No, I've changed my mind again. The massage is a need, but getting to go to an actual spa/hotel/luxury package for an entire weekend with a girlfriend or two is a want. Let's phrase it like that.
7. I hate laundry.
8. I got an e-mail from my boss this morning saying I had passed my quarterly audit. First *I'D* heard about any audit, but whatever. It's not like I go out there and do a crappy job, so it's not too surprising I passed. I was happy that all five random reports that they pulled were at or above the 98% accuracy required by the account, and I suspected by the tone of the e-mail that there were some who did not reach that point, and I wondered what happens if you don't. I'm not going to dwell on that thought. It makes me nervous.
9. We're up to half a dozen eggs out of the chickens. I suspect only a couple are laying, given the fact that three are one shade of brown and three are another shade of brown. Or I could just be hypothesizing wrong. It's entirely possible.
10. Oz's dad and stepmother are in town this week. I've seen them twice so far. The first time, Oz had taken the day off of work to hang out with his dad, and then they picked up his stepmom and we all went out to dinner. Then the kids went to bed (school night) and the rest of us watched TV and chatted. Then Oz took them back to their hotel. And then he came home and informed me that his stepmom had missed the step from our sidewalk to the driveway and wiped out entirely. She's got hurt wrists, a massive leg bruise, and a sprained ankle. And one crutch. Oops. It's a good thing she loves us ;)
Hope you all have a great Friday!
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Guess what?
CHICKEN BUTT!
OK, not quite...
CHICKEN BUTT LAID AN EGG TODAY!!!
Our first egg!
We put straw in the nest boxes two nights ago. M1 happened to look in them this evening after we got back from eating dinner at a restaurant and found an egg!! It's as long as a storebought egg, just narrower. The kids were incredibly excited and promptly searched the doghouse and a couple of other favorite chicken sitting spots to make sure no more were hiding around the yard.
Didn't find any this time, but...
LET THE EGG HUNT BEGIN!!!
OK, not quite...
CHICKEN BUTT LAID AN EGG TODAY!!!
Our first egg!
We put straw in the nest boxes two nights ago. M1 happened to look in them this evening after we got back from eating dinner at a restaurant and found an egg!! It's as long as a storebought egg, just narrower. The kids were incredibly excited and promptly searched the doghouse and a couple of other favorite chicken sitting spots to make sure no more were hiding around the yard.
Didn't find any this time, but...
LET THE EGG HUNT BEGIN!!!
Monday, August 23, 2010
Flying the Coop
The chickens have discovered Freedom. A month or so ago, it was really, really hot, and there was little shade in their run, so I thought, in my infinite wisdom, that I'd leave the gate open and see what transpired.
The first day, they barely ventured out.
The second day, the more daring of the group rounded the side of the run and made it to the big tree that provides them with all their shade in the first place.
By the third day, however, they had made a Very Important Discovery and declared their Independence from the Confines of The Run.
They found the crape myrtles.
They *love* the crape myrtles.
These days when I open the gate (because I don't dare keep them cooped up in their run now. They might mutiny. The instant one of them sees me coming each morning, she sounds the alarm so that all the girls are crowded by the door by the time I arrive), they expect it to stay open all day. They dash straight for the crape myrtles to see what's arrived there overnight because you never know - SOMETHING might be new. Oz is quite happy that they like it under there, because they keep the grass trampled so he doesn't have to mow it. I'm happy that they like it under there, because their poop ensures that the kids don't climb the shrubs nearly as often, which is something I had been *trying* to discourage anyway, but the chickens are having more luck in the discipline department there. I find great amusement in this.
When the horses' owner comes to feed, they follow her around because she will feed them oats or animal crackers while she's feeding the horses. I'll sometimes send the kids out with vegetable scraps to distribute as well. So they really, really like the crape myrtles.
But something they've discovered even more recently and which I find somewhat amusing and also somewhat annoying is...
"Whachu lookin' at, punk??"
The doghouse.
They love it in there, and I'm not sure whether I'm quite as happy about this one. For one thing, the dogs DO hide or sleep in there when it rains. Sure, we haven't had many (ok, ok, ANY) storms for a while, but still. They DO use it. And while I'm resigned to the fact that I'll probably be playing Great Egg Hunt among the shrubbery of the crape myrtles, I have no desire to peer into a dark, slightly stinky, definitely musty doghouse to see what gems I might find. No, thank you. Not on my bucket list at all. Anywhere.
Still. It IS humorous to come home and have a dozen chickens bounce out of a doghouse to greet you.
They're good girls, very good, and quite tame as far as chickens go. They'll eat politely from your hand and let you pet their backs if they're calm. I haven't seen a mosquito in the yard since they started sojourning out each day. I just need to see if there's a way I can win this war before the egg-laying begins, because while they may have declared their Independence from the run, I will *not* be relegated to the doghouse!
I am Queen of My Domain!
The first day, they barely ventured out.
The second day, the more daring of the group rounded the side of the run and made it to the big tree that provides them with all their shade in the first place.
By the third day, however, they had made a Very Important Discovery and declared their Independence from the Confines of The Run.
They found the crape myrtles.They *love* the crape myrtles.
These days when I open the gate (because I don't dare keep them cooped up in their run now. They might mutiny. The instant one of them sees me coming each morning, she sounds the alarm so that all the girls are crowded by the door by the time I arrive), they expect it to stay open all day. They dash straight for the crape myrtles to see what's arrived there overnight because you never know - SOMETHING might be new. Oz is quite happy that they like it under there, because they keep the grass trampled so he doesn't have to mow it. I'm happy that they like it under there, because their poop ensures that the kids don't climb the shrubs nearly as often, which is something I had been *trying* to discourage anyway, but the chickens are having more luck in the discipline department there. I find great amusement in this.
When the horses' owner comes to feed, they follow her around because she will feed them oats or animal crackers while she's feeding the horses. I'll sometimes send the kids out with vegetable scraps to distribute as well. So they really, really like the crape myrtles.
But something they've discovered even more recently and which I find somewhat amusing and also somewhat annoying is...
"Whachu lookin' at, punk??"The doghouse.
They love it in there, and I'm not sure whether I'm quite as happy about this one. For one thing, the dogs DO hide or sleep in there when it rains. Sure, we haven't had many (ok, ok, ANY) storms for a while, but still. They DO use it. And while I'm resigned to the fact that I'll probably be playing Great Egg Hunt among the shrubbery of the crape myrtles, I have no desire to peer into a dark, slightly stinky, definitely musty doghouse to see what gems I might find. No, thank you. Not on my bucket list at all. Anywhere.
Still. It IS humorous to come home and have a dozen chickens bounce out of a doghouse to greet you.They're good girls, very good, and quite tame as far as chickens go. They'll eat politely from your hand and let you pet their backs if they're calm. I haven't seen a mosquito in the yard since they started sojourning out each day. I just need to see if there's a way I can win this war before the egg-laying begins, because while they may have declared their Independence from the run, I will *not* be relegated to the doghouse!
I am Queen of My Domain!
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Guess what??
CHICKEN BUTT!
(Never let me ask questions when I'm feeling immature. It gets bad. Very bad.)
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Garden update and Father's Day
So I have been *told* that there are folks out there who are missing Chicky Cam. Since we moved the chicks out to the outdoor coop, which isn't wired, it's been offline. Oz is working on that. He got an indoor/outdoor camera and is trying to get it set up, but he wants to bury an electrical conduit out to the coop. It wouldn't just be for the camera, though. It'd also be used to run a heater in the winter. Since the horses also have a water trough heater that runs during the winter, the electrical thing has been needed for some time. We just haven't done it.
But here's what the chicks look like.
They're big girls now! They're about a month old, weigh between 2 and 3 pounds (some may weigh a little more), and are just the most well-behaved birds a new chicken person could ask for. They even let me catch them for the most part.
OK, so they're also a bit sassy.
They'll eat out of your hand, though, so I can't object too much.
So long as they quit thinking my toes are edible.
The garden's not doing too badly, either. I've gotten probably five pounds of green beans out of it, four whole pieces of okra, half a dozen small yellow sweet peppers, and half a dozen bush tomatoes. And 9 pounds of cucumbers. Pickling time is getting close, and I picked the stuff up for that process today. I'm going to try to get myself down to Porter for peaches and make peach preserves and canned peaches the same day so that I don't have to overheat the house too often. Running the dishwasher, cooking the jam, and heating up and boiling the canning crock all day long takes a toll on the electric bill. The blackberries are almost in, too, so I'm hoping the tomatoes come in about the same time they do so I can do blackberry jam, canned tomatoes, and salsa simultaneously.
I might have a food preservation fetish. I still have frozen pumpkin from fall and last week's applesauce in my freezer.
Anyway, here's a shot of most of the garden.
The cucumbers have taken over their corner and are threatening to spill into the grass. There are hundreds and hundreds of flowers in there. I may wind up with more than I bargained for in terms of cucumbers, which is fine cause I'll just sell the extras. One can only use so many jars of pickles before getting a little overloaded with sodium. Mmmmmm high blood pressure in a jar....
My green bean plants still haven't started putting out climbers yet. I'm starting to wonder if they ever will. There are still flowers on the plants and I'm pulling out about 1-1/2 lbs. of green beans per week (so far), so I'm not terribly worried. They seem happy.
The tomatoes are happy, too. They've created their own little jungle. I am really, really liking the square cages that I got. I'll definitely replace all the round ones next year and am contemplating getting a few more now to use for stacking. These plants have already outgrown them! Yay! I hope to be completely inundated with tomatoes soon. I'm getting annoyed at having to buy tomato products (other than paste) at the store.
This is sort of an 'everything' shot. From the front, we have strawberries, rhubarb (that'd be the thing with the humongous leaves), herbs (basil growing wild everywhere which is fine cause I'll just make pesto and freeze it, rosemary, oregano, parsley), and then the lettuce that's starting to bolt and get bitter. Since I've never grown lettuce before, I'm just happy it's lasted this long. Here in a week or two I'll pull it out and let the ground rest before planting more lettuce in the fall. It did very well and I'm happy with it. We'll have to see about spinach. It didn't make it to the edible stage this time, but I suspect the heat had a lot to do with that. It was doing fine till the daily temps hit the mid-80s.
The huge thing in front here is the butternut squash plant. I've heard tell that I'm only now supposed to be planting this buuuut... oops?? It doesn't seem to be doing badly. There are about two dozen little squash on it, and we do love eating them, so I'm excited. I found a document on how to preserve it, too. I've also killed all the beetles I've seen on the plant this year, which might help matters a bit, and apparently butternut squash are more beetle-resistant than typical summer squash. I'll let you know.
Behind the squash are the peppers, peas, and okra. Peppers and okra are doing just fine, same as last year, but I have learned that peas don't like Oklahoma heat very much. They scorch pretty easily. I picked all the peas we got and yanked the plants out today and will try them again late August or early September along with more lettuce, spinach, peas, and radishes. They didn't take long to grow, so we'll see if I can manage to get a second crop. Can't hurt to try, right? If they don't make it, I'll try putting them in a shadier spot next year.
So that's the garden now!
The kids were down at Granny's (my mom's) house this weekend, so Oz got to have a nice, lazy, quiet day. I got some English banger sausage from the local farmer's market to see if he liked it (he did but said it still wasn't like 'home') and fed him that and mashed potatoes and the homegrown peas for dinner. Between that, the Jimmie Johnson NASCAR T-shirt from M1, the Chicago Bears NFL hoodie sweatshirt from M2, and Super Mario Galaxy 2 for Wii... I think he had a pretty good Father's Day. I hope all the other fathers out there did, too. What did you get for good old Dad? Do anything special? I'm always on the lookout for ideas, so I'd love to hear them!
But here's what the chicks look like.
They're big girls now! They're about a month old, weigh between 2 and 3 pounds (some may weigh a little more), and are just the most well-behaved birds a new chicken person could ask for. They even let me catch them for the most part.
OK, so they're also a bit sassy.
They'll eat out of your hand, though, so I can't object too much.
So long as they quit thinking my toes are edible.The garden's not doing too badly, either. I've gotten probably five pounds of green beans out of it, four whole pieces of okra, half a dozen small yellow sweet peppers, and half a dozen bush tomatoes. And 9 pounds of cucumbers. Pickling time is getting close, and I picked the stuff up for that process today. I'm going to try to get myself down to Porter for peaches and make peach preserves and canned peaches the same day so that I don't have to overheat the house too often. Running the dishwasher, cooking the jam, and heating up and boiling the canning crock all day long takes a toll on the electric bill. The blackberries are almost in, too, so I'm hoping the tomatoes come in about the same time they do so I can do blackberry jam, canned tomatoes, and salsa simultaneously.
I might have a food preservation fetish. I still have frozen pumpkin from fall and last week's applesauce in my freezer.
Anyway, here's a shot of most of the garden.
The cucumbers have taken over their corner and are threatening to spill into the grass. There are hundreds and hundreds of flowers in there. I may wind up with more than I bargained for in terms of cucumbers, which is fine cause I'll just sell the extras. One can only use so many jars of pickles before getting a little overloaded with sodium. Mmmmmm high blood pressure in a jar....
My green bean plants still haven't started putting out climbers yet. I'm starting to wonder if they ever will. There are still flowers on the plants and I'm pulling out about 1-1/2 lbs. of green beans per week (so far), so I'm not terribly worried. They seem happy.
The tomatoes are happy, too. They've created their own little jungle. I am really, really liking the square cages that I got. I'll definitely replace all the round ones next year and am contemplating getting a few more now to use for stacking. These plants have already outgrown them! Yay! I hope to be completely inundated with tomatoes soon. I'm getting annoyed at having to buy tomato products (other than paste) at the store.
This is sort of an 'everything' shot. From the front, we have strawberries, rhubarb (that'd be the thing with the humongous leaves), herbs (basil growing wild everywhere which is fine cause I'll just make pesto and freeze it, rosemary, oregano, parsley), and then the lettuce that's starting to bolt and get bitter. Since I've never grown lettuce before, I'm just happy it's lasted this long. Here in a week or two I'll pull it out and let the ground rest before planting more lettuce in the fall. It did very well and I'm happy with it. We'll have to see about spinach. It didn't make it to the edible stage this time, but I suspect the heat had a lot to do with that. It was doing fine till the daily temps hit the mid-80s.
The huge thing in front here is the butternut squash plant. I've heard tell that I'm only now supposed to be planting this buuuut... oops?? It doesn't seem to be doing badly. There are about two dozen little squash on it, and we do love eating them, so I'm excited. I found a document on how to preserve it, too. I've also killed all the beetles I've seen on the plant this year, which might help matters a bit, and apparently butternut squash are more beetle-resistant than typical summer squash. I'll let you know.Behind the squash are the peppers, peas, and okra. Peppers and okra are doing just fine, same as last year, but I have learned that peas don't like Oklahoma heat very much. They scorch pretty easily. I picked all the peas we got and yanked the plants out today and will try them again late August or early September along with more lettuce, spinach, peas, and radishes. They didn't take long to grow, so we'll see if I can manage to get a second crop. Can't hurt to try, right? If they don't make it, I'll try putting them in a shadier spot next year.
So that's the garden now!
The kids were down at Granny's (my mom's) house this weekend, so Oz got to have a nice, lazy, quiet day. I got some English banger sausage from the local farmer's market to see if he liked it (he did but said it still wasn't like 'home') and fed him that and mashed potatoes and the homegrown peas for dinner. Between that, the Jimmie Johnson NASCAR T-shirt from M1, the Chicago Bears NFL hoodie sweatshirt from M2, and Super Mario Galaxy 2 for Wii... I think he had a pretty good Father's Day. I hope all the other fathers out there did, too. What did you get for good old Dad? Do anything special? I'm always on the lookout for ideas, so I'd love to hear them!
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Snapshots of summer
Summer vacation may only be a week in, but already our to-do list is overflowing. There is just no way we're getting it all done in two months. Of course, we're going to TRY.
Meet Jo. Named for Josephine from "Little Women," this bird is my baby. I had thought that Sophia and all the other Rhode Island Reds were going to be the queens of the coop, but boy, was I wrong. The Plymouths have outdone everyone else. Last night when Oz went out to close up the coop (I was off performing evil deeds and hanging out with the girls), the Plymouths were all parked on the top perch while everyone else was still huddled up in the bedding below.These girls are go-getters, and Jo is the leader of the pack. She runs to me every time she sees me (she's a bit of a greedy girl) and lets me pick her up and hold her without the slightest fuss. When someone else finds a bug, she's right there to steal it. She's stolen my heart, too, and I can't wait to see how big she gets. They're all getting huge!
My garden is getting big and full already, too. Here are a few images:
We went down the back of the pasture the other day to check and see how they were doing since I've seen a few farms about that are starting to advertise blackberries already. Traditionally mine aren't ready till about July 4, and that seems to be holding true again, but I had to check. So many baby berries!
And speaking of babies, look what mine can do! He learned to ride a bicycle today, too. It's been a big week. :)
They both enjoyed a good evening catching fireflies, too. I helped M2, but M1 caught a few on his own. Oz can't see very well in the twilight, but he caught a couple, too.
They loved watching their catches. I put some bug-food gel into the jars and let the kids keep them overnight, though M2 got herself worked into a tizzy about how they weren't free and could we please let them go so they wouldn't die, and so we DID, and then she cried because she didn't have them anymore. She's a walking catch-22.
We've also hit up the splash pad and the pool this last week. Didn't take pictures in the pool for obvious reasons, but watching them splash in the water on the first *real* day of summer vacation was a huge treat.
Let the good times roll!!!!
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
The chicks have flown the... tank
*sniff sniff* Mah baybees is growin' up!
OK, so it's not all that sad, really. It means I get my freezer back, which good Lord, I missed being able to get into that thing! I couldn't get to my pesto! That's a tragedy when there are good pizza ideas calling my name.
The chicks are two weeks old now and still growing fast. They look a little funny right now because they're starting to get their back feathers in, which means all the downy bits that were so soft on their back are standing straight up because the new feathers are pushing it out of the way.
It makes them look like they're wearing little popped collars. I guess that explains all the attitude. I have teenage chicks. Geesh.
So Oz and I got out the Big Girl Feeder and the Big Girl Waterer and put them in the coop with some bedding. I don't want my babies to freeze. Technically I'm supposed to keep them at a certain temperature until they're about a month old, but it was either this or find a bigger container with a cat-proof lid. This was way cheaper and easier. It's warm enough outside during the day, and the inside of the coop stays warm at night, too, after the windows are shut, so while I was worried, it was more for form than anything else. SOMEbody has to worry about everything.
We hauled the girls out after everything was set up, accompanied by a dog who either loves the chicks because his Corgi herding instinct is starting to emerge from the fat rolls or loves the chicks because he thinks his fat rolls need refilling with fresh chicken. I'm not sure. I really don't want to test either theory, if I'm honest.
The girls settled right into their new home. When I checked on them this morning, they were happily running around and talking and gossiping and nibbling food here and there. A few of them were even testing their wings and fluttering around a bit, something they couldn't do in the cramped confines of the tank.
OK, so it's not all that sad, really. It means I get my freezer back, which good Lord, I missed being able to get into that thing! I couldn't get to my pesto! That's a tragedy when there are good pizza ideas calling my name.
The chicks are two weeks old now and still growing fast. They look a little funny right now because they're starting to get their back feathers in, which means all the downy bits that were so soft on their back are standing straight up because the new feathers are pushing it out of the way.
It makes them look like they're wearing little popped collars. I guess that explains all the attitude. I have teenage chicks. Geesh.Honestly, though, we were about to have some serious issues if I had kept them in the tank. Battle lines were being drawn. They had divided themselves into two little colonies and were sleeping down opposite ends of the tank at night, which told me that not only were roosting quarters getting tight, I was very likely going to have territory battles on my hands for scratching room. And I was having to fill the food and water containers up once (or twice, and sometimes three times) a day. AND even with my best efforts, they were kicking bedding into the food and water all the time trying to scratch, which meant I was constantly cleaning something out.
We were all getting tired of it.
It was time to move.
So Oz and I got out the Big Girl Feeder and the Big Girl Waterer and put them in the coop with some bedding. I don't want my babies to freeze. Technically I'm supposed to keep them at a certain temperature until they're about a month old, but it was either this or find a bigger container with a cat-proof lid. This was way cheaper and easier. It's warm enough outside during the day, and the inside of the coop stays warm at night, too, after the windows are shut, so while I was worried, it was more for form than anything else. SOMEbody has to worry about everything.
We hauled the girls out after everything was set up, accompanied by a dog who either loves the chicks because his Corgi herding instinct is starting to emerge from the fat rolls or loves the chicks because he thinks his fat rolls need refilling with fresh chicken. I'm not sure. I really don't want to test either theory, if I'm honest.
The girls settled right into their new home. When I checked on them this morning, they were happily running around and talking and gossiping and nibbling food here and there. A few of them were even testing their wings and fluttering around a bit, something they couldn't do in the cramped confines of the tank.Mah baybees is growin' up! And it's exciting for everyone.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Other things 'they' don't tell you about chicks
I've learned a few more things about chicks over the past week. Things that 'they' don't tell you on the lovely education sites that are run by people who have been raising chicks for years and have forgotten what newbies *really* want to know.
1. The darn things grow FAST. Remember how teeny-tiny they were originally? This is four days later.
FOUR days later, and they've got half their wing feathers in.
This is day 9. They can already fly up and sit on a perch. Or the top of the feeder. Or the top of the watering container. And sit there. And poop in the water. Or the food. They are also learning to take catnaps (chicknaps?) standing up, which is hilarious because they look like little bobbleheads and one day I swear I'm going to walk out and watch one plop headfirst into the bedding, and I might laugh, just a little. And then I'll feel compelled to make sure it's still alive.
2. Moving on, nobody tells you how much they EAT and DRINK, either, to grow this fast (still day 9, by the way). They go through about 1-2 quarts of food and water per day. Which isn't a lot divided among 12 chicks, I suppose, but still. It seems like all I do is provide refills.
3. Baby chickens learn to scratch very quickly, and it's a HUGE mess. I have to clean out the water and food containers several times a day because they fill them up with bedding. The scratching can be a whole lot of fun, though, especially if you're like me and see them doing it and are inspired to help them along.
M1 has a lizard. Specifically, it's an anole. Even more specifically, it's a picky eater of an anole who likes to leave the mealworms in the bottom of its cage and eat the crickets and other occasional bugs M1 finds before going back to mealworms as a last resort. So we have a thriving mealworm colony that I just have left alone because it saves me the effort and money of buying new ones that it likely won't eat, anyway.
Adult mealworm beetles make great chick treats. I advise you to watch the video. Even if you aren't amused by the chick running around with a beetle in its beak trying to find a place to eat it in peace, you might enjoy the dialogue between M2 and her daddy in the background. He's sitting on a giant Sam's Club container of cat litter and, well... you'll just have to listen for yourself.
1. The darn things grow FAST. Remember how teeny-tiny they were originally? This is four days later.
FOUR days later, and they've got half their wing feathers in.
This is day 9. They can already fly up and sit on a perch. Or the top of the feeder. Or the top of the watering container. And sit there. And poop in the water. Or the food. They are also learning to take catnaps (chicknaps?) standing up, which is hilarious because they look like little bobbleheads and one day I swear I'm going to walk out and watch one plop headfirst into the bedding, and I might laugh, just a little. And then I'll feel compelled to make sure it's still alive.
2. Moving on, nobody tells you how much they EAT and DRINK, either, to grow this fast (still day 9, by the way). They go through about 1-2 quarts of food and water per day. Which isn't a lot divided among 12 chicks, I suppose, but still. It seems like all I do is provide refills.
3. Baby chickens learn to scratch very quickly, and it's a HUGE mess. I have to clean out the water and food containers several times a day because they fill them up with bedding. The scratching can be a whole lot of fun, though, especially if you're like me and see them doing it and are inspired to help them along.
M1 has a lizard. Specifically, it's an anole. Even more specifically, it's a picky eater of an anole who likes to leave the mealworms in the bottom of its cage and eat the crickets and other occasional bugs M1 finds before going back to mealworms as a last resort. So we have a thriving mealworm colony that I just have left alone because it saves me the effort and money of buying new ones that it likely won't eat, anyway.
Adult mealworm beetles make great chick treats. I advise you to watch the video. Even if you aren't amused by the chick running around with a beetle in its beak trying to find a place to eat it in peace, you might enjoy the dialogue between M2 and her daddy in the background. He's sitting on a giant Sam's Club container of cat litter and, well... you'll just have to listen for yourself.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Pet cemetery
I am a night owl. I am always up till at least midnight, and it's usually closer to 1 a.m. before I finally crawl into bed, and I don't like to get up before 8 if I can hack it. Ideally, this would be another reason to homeschool both children except that I'm reasonably sure that if I brought M2 home, I'd kill her before she was able to actually learn anything. She and I have conflicts of personality. And she likes to get up at 6:45 a.m., no matter what day it is, which works for school, I guess, even if it doesn't agree with my circadian rhythm. One day she will understand my fond regard for the 2-10 a.m. sleep schedule that my body would really like to have.
I'm denying myself for her sake. She should thank me.
Anyway, so the other night, I realized that by 9:30 at night, I am the only 'living' thing in the house. Everything/everyone else is dead to the world. By 10:30 or 11, even Oz is usually snoozing. But since he was out running errands at the time I realized that the house was completely silent, he's not in these images. One day I'll throw a few Sleeping Oz images out here. I'm sure he'll love that. :)
Three of the cats took over the couch. Dead couch cats. Usually Oz would be where Kuro (the black one) and Dorian (on the ottoman) are, but... as I said... he wasn't home. Pepe always sleeps on the arm of the couch like that. When he wakes up, he pulls his fur out, throws it on me, and snots all over me repeatedly. He's 18, so I guess he figures it's a prerogative of age. Which would be true if I didn't have the ability to toss his fluffy butt on the floor. Which I do, but he climbs back up and repeats the process.
It took *FOREVER* to find Hermes. The flash woke him up. The reason it took so darn long to find him is that he was under M2's bed. Where she ripped the bottom fabric off her box springs a week or two ago. It makes a great cat hidey-hole that is typically covered by M2's bedspread. Brats, both of them. Good thing I love 'em.
Here's a great image of Speed Bump's rump. He likes to sleep regardless of time of day. Vixen is the gray lump in the pink chair in the background. She furs that up, I clean it, repeat. A place for everyone and everyone in their place.
That applies to Gizmo, too. He likes the cold floor.
Tempest was lurking under *my* bed. On my green shag carpet that I'm pretty sure is original to my 1965 house. It doesn't have so much the 'shag' thing going on any more. Time compacts even the craziest fiber.
Finally, let's up the cuteness factor a little. They *were* all sleeping except for Miss Sophia, who was standing guard, but apparently a flash wakes chickens up, too. They aren't this little any more. I'll have to get some new pics up soon. They're hilarious.
I'm denying myself for her sake. She should thank me.
Anyway, so the other night, I realized that by 9:30 at night, I am the only 'living' thing in the house. Everything/everyone else is dead to the world. By 10:30 or 11, even Oz is usually snoozing. But since he was out running errands at the time I realized that the house was completely silent, he's not in these images. One day I'll throw a few Sleeping Oz images out here. I'm sure he'll love that. :)
Three of the cats took over the couch. Dead couch cats. Usually Oz would be where Kuro (the black one) and Dorian (on the ottoman) are, but... as I said... he wasn't home. Pepe always sleeps on the arm of the couch like that. When he wakes up, he pulls his fur out, throws it on me, and snots all over me repeatedly. He's 18, so I guess he figures it's a prerogative of age. Which would be true if I didn't have the ability to toss his fluffy butt on the floor. Which I do, but he climbs back up and repeats the process.
It took *FOREVER* to find Hermes. The flash woke him up. The reason it took so darn long to find him is that he was under M2's bed. Where she ripped the bottom fabric off her box springs a week or two ago. It makes a great cat hidey-hole that is typically covered by M2's bedspread. Brats, both of them. Good thing I love 'em.
Here's a great image of Speed Bump's rump. He likes to sleep regardless of time of day. Vixen is the gray lump in the pink chair in the background. She furs that up, I clean it, repeat. A place for everyone and everyone in their place.
That applies to Gizmo, too. He likes the cold floor.
Tempest was lurking under *my* bed. On my green shag carpet that I'm pretty sure is original to my 1965 house. It doesn't have so much the 'shag' thing going on any more. Time compacts even the craziest fiber.
Finally, let's up the cuteness factor a little. They *were* all sleeping except for Miss Sophia, who was standing guard, but apparently a flash wakes chickens up, too. They aren't this little any more. I'll have to get some new pics up soon. They're hilarious. And now, on this lovely rainy day, I'm going to see if I can bribe M1 into watching TV (hahahaha bribe a kid to watch TV... as if!) so I can take a short catnap of my own. Happy dreams, everyone!
Thursday, May 13, 2010
A few random things
Just a few things to share tonight. No pictures, just... stuff. Random stuff.
I'm good at random! :D
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M2 is a cling monster lately. I'm referring to her as my Kling-On. If only there was a Bounce-like spray to remove her.
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There was an EF-2 tornado about 4 miles from my home around 5 o'clock this morning. M1 had gotten up to snuggle in bed with me because he heard the wind and rain and thunder. I checked the radar, determined it was nothing to be worried about especially since there were no warnings whatsoever, answered the text from my friend asking if I had heard the tornado sirens going off in the city (I can barely hear the sirens on a clear day if I'm in the house, so... no, not so much), and went back to sleep. In other words, if that tornado had been 4 miles closer, that would have been one NASTY surprise. I'm trying not to dwell on it, but that's a bit too close for comfort.
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Wolfgang Puck Bistro is going to open here soon. I'm a tad excited about that one because he likes to use local ingredients. And I'm a foodie.
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Chickies are doing great and growing like... well, growing like the garden. Pictures of both to be up soon. Tomorrow is 'open house' for people to come see the chicks. I'm excited.
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And finally!
M1 made himself laugh so hard he nearly choked this evening. He and I were sitting at M2's school waiting on her end-of-year program to start, and he pointed out a boy sitting up in the choir area.
"Taylor's always up there," he stated. "He's in the choir. He likes singing. I'll never be up there."
"Well, maybe not, hun, but he likes to sing, and you don't, so you're both doing things you like." That was me trying to make sure the boy feels good about himself. It's a mom's job.
"Yeah but he's really good. And I'm not good."
"No, but I bet he's not as good at science as you are, either. I bet he couldn't name three types of ants."
That one got a grin.
"That's easy! Fire ants, leafcutter ants... and... velvet ants."
"Good job!" I praised him.
And then he started giggling uncontrollably.
Lest you are as confused as I was and haven't clicked on the link to the corresponding Wikipedia article, he then went on to explain that velvet ants are not, in fact, ants. They are wasps that look like ants. And the little turd knew it.
Gotta love it when my 7-year-old is showing off his mom's ignorance already. God help me during the teen years.
I'm good at random! :D
-----
M2 is a cling monster lately. I'm referring to her as my Kling-On. If only there was a Bounce-like spray to remove her.
-----
There was an EF-2 tornado about 4 miles from my home around 5 o'clock this morning. M1 had gotten up to snuggle in bed with me because he heard the wind and rain and thunder. I checked the radar, determined it was nothing to be worried about especially since there were no warnings whatsoever, answered the text from my friend asking if I had heard the tornado sirens going off in the city (I can barely hear the sirens on a clear day if I'm in the house, so... no, not so much), and went back to sleep. In other words, if that tornado had been 4 miles closer, that would have been one NASTY surprise. I'm trying not to dwell on it, but that's a bit too close for comfort.
-----
Wolfgang Puck Bistro is going to open here soon. I'm a tad excited about that one because he likes to use local ingredients. And I'm a foodie.
-----
Chickies are doing great and growing like... well, growing like the garden. Pictures of both to be up soon. Tomorrow is 'open house' for people to come see the chicks. I'm excited.
-----
And finally!
M1 made himself laugh so hard he nearly choked this evening. He and I were sitting at M2's school waiting on her end-of-year program to start, and he pointed out a boy sitting up in the choir area.
"Taylor's always up there," he stated. "He's in the choir. He likes singing. I'll never be up there."
"Well, maybe not, hun, but he likes to sing, and you don't, so you're both doing things you like." That was me trying to make sure the boy feels good about himself. It's a mom's job.
"Yeah but he's really good. And I'm not good."
"No, but I bet he's not as good at science as you are, either. I bet he couldn't name three types of ants."
That one got a grin.
"That's easy! Fire ants, leafcutter ants... and... velvet ants."
"Good job!" I praised him.
And then he started giggling uncontrollably.
Lest you are as confused as I was and haven't clicked on the link to the corresponding Wikipedia article, he then went on to explain that velvet ants are not, in fact, ants. They are wasps that look like ants. And the little turd knew it.
Gotta love it when my 7-year-old is showing off his mom's ignorance already. God help me during the teen years.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
They're heeeeere!
CHICKS!!!!!
I'm a tad excited. But let me get you the whoooole story.
It was a bizarre morning - mostly good, but weird. The phone rang at 7:15 a.m. with a message from M2's school saying that the power was out at the school and that while they were hoping to have it restored by 8:30, there was no guarantee. I took her up there hoping that it'd be fixed by the time we made it, but not only was the power still out, I have no idea where the teachers were hiding. The preschool was locked and dark.
So, joy of joys, I got to take two children with me (instead of the presumed one who had come armed with an atlas and an art book) to a dentist's appointment. Have you ever done that? I don't recommend it. Ever.
By the way, we skipped school today, even after we found out the power was back on and school was still in session. Yay truancy! ;)
On the way to the dentist's office I got a call.
It was the post office, but I thought it might have been the preschool since they have the same first three numbers.
"Sarah?" (They knew my name.)
"Yes?" (I assumed I knew who this was.)
"This is the West Side Post Office. We have some chicks for you."
"Oh... already???"
This was me, exiting the highway on the way to a dentist appointment with two kids instead of one, trying to mentally calculate not only brake times and how to corral two children in a tiny room while my mouth is stuffed full of suction tube and tooth cleaner and dental hygienist fingers but ALSO... do I *really* have everything for the chicks? Thank heaven I picked up the food 'early.' I thought I had till Thursday!
This was me discovering I was wrong.
So we all survived the dentist and then went and picked up the chickies. And got the aquarium turned chicken brooder set up.
I got exactly what I wished for in terms of breeds.
There are four of these (Barred Plymouth Rocks) which will be black and white striped as adults.
Four of these (Rhode Island Reds) which will be your typical 'rojo' type of chicken.Megan, you better be laughing.
And four of these (Australorps). They'll be pretty much all black.
The cats thought that they looked like a very lovely dinner initially, but they've already lost interest for the most part. Except for Dorian Gray, who took one look at the "wildlife" in the house and scurried away as fast as his chubby self could go.
They're awfully nice little birds. This is the matriarch. I'm calling her Sophia, after the Golden Girls. Michael loves that show, and quite frankly I think that those names make great chicken names. The other Reds will be Rose, Dorothy, and Blanche. Yes, I'm naming the chickens. But as I told some friends today, if Dorothy turns out to be Danny, he'll very quickly find himself being Dinner. Names do not a pet make.
And no, I did not get pooped on in the making of these photos. They're well-behaved ladies.
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And now, come with me as I make another step away from being a "city" girl with no chicken experience to a "country" girl who fears nothing.
Except tornados, but they're gone now, thank heaven.
Chicks are cute when they sleep, aren't they?
No, it's not dead. THIS is how chickens sleep. Well, not always. But apparently how this one does.Until I woke it up because some of the chickens were getting a condition called 'pasting up.'
Wanna know what that means?
It means they're constipated. And their... um... holes... are clogged.
Guess who gets to clean that?
That's right. I cleaned chicken butt tonight. And applied olive oil to try to prevent it from happening again.They don't teach you about THAT in school, do they??
What a shame...
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