WEEKEND RUNNING

We had a very productive weekend, despite neglecting our big projects. ^ We even fit in fifty or so belly rubs for sweet Rosie.

We started the weekend plant shopping. We loaded our car up with all kinds of beauties. I’m someone who wants the inside to look as much like the outside as possible.We have enough for the inside, porch and  deck. Friday night was better than Christmas for me!

We killed our first two chickens. They were our two biggest, and the bullies of the bunch. They were destroying (and in some cases, killing) our other hens. Hopefully now, the other hens can flourish, and live a happy, stress free life.

We may also have a rooster in the mix. We don’t want a rooster, so if we do keep him, he may have to roam free from the ladies. We don’t want our chicken population to get out of hand. We may end up giving him away (unless his papa is already attached…he has his daddy’s appreciation for all things birds).

^  Amelia tried to steal Daddy’s broom. She’s kind of a job thief.  ^

Penelope was a mama’s girl big time!  I am blessed with two snuggle bugs, and Miss Penelope delivered big time this weekend.

The girls found some canvas boxes and had races & train rides for days. 

Every year we find new plants popping up around the yard. ^  This bush is one of them. We also have several patches of pink flowers, and some orange wild flowers (so far).

Rosie has been getting a lot of time with us, and even gets to come in for a bit most days. She lays just like ^ this ^  in the kitchen the whole time. I guess she just likes being closer to us…or she likes the cold floor.

We also went grocery shopping!!! Since we cook three full meals from as-close-to-scratch as we can, we run short of stuff quicker than we’d like. Noodles, rice, and beans are pretty much the only things we get that keep a while.

Zack has four and half days left of school! By lunch time Friday we plan to be celebrating by camping and enjoying the river! The rain can stay away for a day or two, right? It hasn’t shown any evidence that it is capable of staying away, but if it does, we’ll be camping!

SNAPSHOTS: : 54

Mother hen watching over her flock. She is officially a big girl. She talks all  the time, and knows the words for everything. She is officially potty trained (she wears night-time pull-ups, but they’re usually dry)! Finally!

Penelope is teaching Amelia different tasks, such as shredding cheese, hand washing dishes, her ABCs, sweeping, getting dressed independently, and how to make the perfect splash in the bathtub. I just stay out of the way and watch from the corner of the room (with a HUGE grin on my face). Now, if only I could remember to turn on the video camera…

It has been warm (in the 60s!) lately, which means more time outside and more belly rubs for Rosie. Its all she wants all day long.

We moved the chicks into the coop with the older hens. We had to divide the coop with wire, so the chicks didn’t get pecked. We’re desperately hoping the weather stays warm, so we can construct the large coop for the hens.

The girls have requested oatmeal every morning since October.

Blueberry and brown sugar.

Strawberries & cream (Daddy’s coffee creamer).

Honey, cinnamon banana.

Cinnamon peaches.

Cinnamon baked (steamed) apples.

Brown sugar & white raisins.

Maple syrup & peanut butter.

All with flax seed mixed in. They help me make it each morning (sometimes we have eggs, grits, or pancakes). They enjoy making their own food, and I try to let them help with all meals as much as possible. If I am in a bad mood, I have them color or play instead, so that cooking remains fun for them.

I haven’t been taking a lot of pictures lately. Hopefully I can change that soon. :)

GETTING STARTED

We have so many projects ahead of us this year. Build more garden boxes, paint the house, take apart and rebuild the porch, get a clothes line, clear out the last bit of the wooded area in the backyard, put up a fence and purchase some goats, and relocate our shed and turn it into a coop for the chickens.

We’re starting with the shed / coop project. It is now just a standing frame, and we’ll move it closer to the house as soon as we can and reassemble it. Zack wanted a house that required work, and boy oh boy did he get it!

The girls nearly convinced us to make the shed a dance studio. Just think of all the wonderful shows they could perform for us! :)

AN AFTERNOON WITH MAE

The other day Amelia was napping and I decided to keep Penelope up to spend one on one time with me. It was the last warm[ish] day for a while, so we spent that time outside.

Our chickens haven’t laid any eggs in over a week, possibly two! I have no idea why, but we have tried just about everything to get them to lay again. Our next step will be putting a heat lamp in early. Any suggestions?

A week ago Zack took the girls outside to jump in a fresh pile of crunchy leaves. Later, Penelope and I went out so she could show me the pile – and of course jump in it again. She asked me to bring my camera so she could have some pictures of her in the pile!

What a cutie!!

It has been rainy here for a couple days, so the leaves are no longer crunchy. I hope we get one more good leaf pile before fall is over!

SNAPSHOTS: : 43

Before our trip to the south, we stopped by a friend’s house to work on camera stuff and let the kids play. It is SO nice to have friends with kids the same age!

(Smirking while she pretends to be sad)

While we were on vacation, Penelope had a visit to the doctor. She was super silly while we waited. (These were all taken about a second apart from one another!)

Our flower bed behind the deck is growing like crazy. Aside from it needing to be weeded, I am really excited! It hasn’t really done much since we moved it.

We visited Uncle Greg last week and Penelope mastered the zip line. She also came home, and said, “Oh. my. lands.” – Aunt Teresa is the only person I know who says that. Funny how words sink into the minds of kids.

Penelope got a doll house! – she has been asking for one for months  now.

Black Beauty is obsessed with ‘cleaning’ the dishes, attacking stuffed animals, and napping.

We look forward to our time with the chickens. They are getting HUGE! We feed them up to three times a day now.

Penelope helped me pot some plants. Our house was lacking in greenery. I am so grateful for daughters who enjoy dirt as much as they enjoy sparkly dresses. Girls are great!

Happy Monday!