What December Does

I'm allowing myself five minutes to check in and remember what blogging is like. I try not to stress out over all of the missed days of online notetaking that are passing by. It happens at the end of every year in a giant crescendo. First the back to back birthdays, then Thanksgiving where family swings in town, the endless Christmas shopping, Christmas parties, the inevitable flus and sicknesses that begin to rack the family, and we can't forget getting the school schedules and ordering taken care of before January.

Right now I am knee deep in Faithy poo goo. It is AWFUL, rancid, stomach churning stuff. Going on Day 5. Ugh. I feel so bad for her. She hasn't been able to eat anything but milk for days. The first two days we dealt with the puke, now we've moved on to the poo goo. And even SHE can't stand her own stench, letting me know immediately after her stomach explosions that she is ready to be so out of her diaper. I think we're dealing with the lovely rotavirus. I really hope so, as that will hopefully mean that things won't pass on to other members of the family.

We are also knee deep in something much more pleasant. EGGS. The chickens are performing wonderfully with a recent record high of six eggs in one day. Today we had a record high of egg losses...one Jack dropped, one Faith broke tapping two eggs together, and another Faith threw after I caught her discovering some eggs I thought I had hidden from her. Me Mom? Playing with eggs? What eggs...?? (quick toss)

Hope is doing so well. She is such a sweet spot in our lives. She coos and sings to anyone who smiles at her. And she is now, sleeping through the night.

Jack and Grace are loving the recent surge in air temperature and can be found outside with rubber boots, rakes and roaming chickens, as they have decided to create a miniature haven for wildlife.

Time is up...and I have chosen to revisit my pillow rather than take a much needed shower. Pillows always beat showers. I hope all of you out there are having a delightful December.

Quips from Hatchlings

Jack: Mom? Did God build this house?

Me: No hun. Man built this house.

Jack: Well, where are the six houses that God built?

Me: Huh? What do you mean six houses? I don't think God built any houses in the Bible sweetie.

Jack: Yes He did. The Bible says he built six houses and on the seventh day He rested.


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(after overhearing a little Rush Limbaugh during a car ride home)

Grace: Mom? What is global warming?

Me: (A small shpeel on global warming, and both sides of the argument.)

Jack: Woah. I wonder what global colding is like?

Whoopee! Our First Farm Produce.

This frosty morning after breakfast, Sir Bugga-Lot decided that he was going to check the chicken coop for an egg. Lately the chickens have been squatting when we approach which is a sign that they are maturing nicely. For some reason, I decided to give him a pre-egg hunting pep talk, telling him that more than likely the chickens will not lay their first eggs in the nest boxes, and to look carefully on the floor of the coop.

Tom Builder and I watched amused as he came running back with an excited look on his face talking very animated to Grace who had gone out to the coop after him. They started running back up to the house with giant smiles on their faces. And then I realized, Jack was holding something in his fist as he ran back up the hill. And I got very Egg-cited! Our first beautiful brown egg, found on the floor of the coop, more than likely courtesy of our Speckled Sussex "Sugar" or our giant Plymouth Rock "Mother Goose". It is a valiant first effort from whomever, since it is not too much smaller than a large egg from the grocery store.


Now the hard part...I can't get Sir Bugga-Lot to let me, as he puts in his words, "roast it".

Update! This just in from Knucker Hatch Farms. Another egg has been laid to make our first collection a two egger! This time, Grace spotted the layer hanging out between the two nest boxes, a favorite chicken from the beginning, our ever curious super flier "Ginger". Folks, we have an official breath taking Ameraucana blue-green egg.

I know it's going to probably sound silly to the rest of you, but I don't care, these eggs are gorgeous. The shells are works of art. There is something about holding an egg that is still warm from the chicken you've raised since Day 1. What I used to look at simply as a means to an end in my cooking, is now a real object of beauty.

What A Bulletin Board Is Good For

About three weeks ago, I was in a homeschooling slump. Its not that I was tired of homeschooling or that the kids were complaining of boredom. Perhaps it was the onset of fall. Maybe it was the Hungarian video I saw for teaching children math (don't ask). Maybe it was that simply couldn't fit one more piece of artwork onto our fridge. Whatever the case, I decided that I needed a bulletin board. A big bulletin board like schools have, where the teachers decorate it and display the children's work. With themes that work around the calendar and fun little doo-dads.

I hadn't bought a thing all year for school that was "fun", so I thought "Why not?". I know that Tom Builder when he saw the box it was in was thinking, "WHY??".


But you know what? This bulletin board has been terrific. It has added a bit of interaction this month that has been lacking. For the last two weeks we've been adding leaves to the board (parents and children), with each leaf describing something we are thankful for. It has been a neat process to see what everyone finds themselves thankful for that day. Everything from "Food", to "The Troops", to "Modern Medicine" to "Schoole" (love the irony on the last one).


This board is gigantic, which makes for a gargantuan box. What do kids love to play with? Boxes. And so, during our Thanksgiving Break, the children have used the box to sleep under as a tent. Because, that is simply the natural order of children and boxes.