Our Biggest Homesteading Fail To Date....

Life on our little hobby farm is generally wonderful.  Really.  It is hard work, but offers many great rewards.  So many that I can't name them all and we are experiencing new ones all the time. 

But.

Matt and Tyler have been raising a new batch of chickens in order to increase their egg business.  They chicks were about two months old and the boys have faithfully taken care of them in this unusually cold weather.  We finally felt they were old enough to stay out in the henhouse/coop area instead of taking them in and out of the workshop each night. 

Well, we were wrong. 

You know that old saying, "She doesn't have sense enough to come in out of the rain?" 

Well, our chicks didn't.

They stood out in the freezing rain Monday night (instead of going into the easily accessable henhouse), and when Matt went out there Tuesday morning eighteen of the twenty were dead. 

Apparently you have to lock them up in the henhouse the first few nights so they can "learn" to get in out of the rain. 

So, in true farm fashion, we will start again. 

I guess we will always be learning something new, and in this case we learned that chickens are very stupid.

Just Sittin....

Just sittin around-on the couch-watching Duck Dynasty-

with a chicken on my shoulder.

Just another normal night at Clark Acres....

A Good Title Eludes Me...

Tyler watering the blackberry and raspberry bushes

George peeking out at us

Sunday, after church and the camping trip, was a pretty restful day at our house. I got in a much-needed nap. These old bones ain't what they used to be and sleeping on the ground is not what I would call "restful." And then I got in some swing time as Mark grilled hamburgers for us. I ignored the mess called Chaos de Clark and like Scarlett, decided to "think about it tomorrow." Of course, tomorrow came and I had to pay the piper, to say the least. I am still paying it with all the laundry that is still piled up. But, Sunday was wonderful.

The Girls

Blackberry Blooms"why swing the right way when the wrong way is so much fun?"

Mark and the boys built a net top for my strawberry bed because the little birds were gobbling them up. Ladies, he's a good one.

So, after the wonderful day Sunday reality hit Monday morning with a trip to the doctor to get Matt a steriod shot because he is covered up in poison oak (again) and then I got to go to the doctor Monday afternoon because I have a suspicious mole. By the way, isn't that a terrible word-mole. Shudder. Anyway, they biopised it and we are waiting on the results. And then this morning James stepped on a wire (left over from the strawberry net building) and it went in the bottom of his foot and then out the side. Lovely.

I was proud of myself though. I remained calm and pulled it out. So, then we had a visit to the doctor to get his tetanus shot. He should have had one at his four year check-up, but his mother had not "quite gotten to that" yet. So, the poor kid had to get four shots all at one time. He got chocolate ice cream for a reward for being brave so he's good to go now.

So, that's three different doctor visits in two days. If anyone gets hurt tomorrow they are on their own. My pen refuses to write anymore co-pays this week.

In the midst of all that we tried to get some schoolwork done. Tomorrow will have to be laundry day for the MamaHen. The doctor said James needed to have on clean socks so his little foot wouldn't get infected. Doctor's orders for me.

Mark Found The Camera!

There has been a lack of pictures here on the ole blog lately. Mainly because we could not find the camera. But Super-Wonder Hubby found it last night. And where it was is a testament to my terrible homemaking skills cause we really should have found it by now.

But, we won't talk about that too much, now will we?

We got our baby chicks yesterday. Adorable. We have them all set up and today if the weather warms up enough today I will put them in the outside brooder. I ended up getting three more than we ordered, but who can resist fluffy baby chicks? And their eggs? James picked out a black one and promptly named it Mystery Solver. He is on a "mystery-solving kick" and I guess he needed a partner. Yesterday I couldn't find one of my earrings and he popped up to help. He called it "The Mystery of the Lost Earring." It is so strange hearing these kinds of things coming out of a four year olds mouth. But he really says things like that.
I also found some random pictures on the memory card.

My oldest and youngest doing silly. They do it very well.

Guess what? I get to stay home today! Except for Matt's guitar lesson and then the GPS class tonight. And then tomorrow night Abbie and I are embarking on an adventure that you won't believe.

Can you guess?

It has come to my attention...

By much yelling and squealing...

that we just got our first two strawberries of the season!

And today I ordered six more chicks which should arrive Monday. I know, I know, I said I was not going to have any more baby chicks unless there was a real MamaHen around. But ya'll, they were so cute and cuddly and they neeeeeeeedddddd me.

Plus, we need more eggs. They are selling like hotcakes and we need a lot just for our personal use. So, as of Monday afternoon I will be checking temperatures and little chicken bottoms and hearing little "peep, peeps" all through the night.

Thank you all so much for the hungry boy advice. I think the bread and jam idea is great! I have a bread maker, I can just start a loaf in the morning. If I can remember. And I have got to get better about a big breakfast. What kind of MamaHen am I??????

Tonight I am having an at-home movie night with Sweet Hubby. This week was super-busy and I am ready to get the kiddos in bed and then begin the movie-watching. Who am I kidding? I am usually asleep 20 minutes into the movie. Do ya'll have any idea how many movies I have NOT seen the end of?

Anyone have any exciting weekend plans?

Ahhhh, The Humanity... (Alternately Titled: The Things We Do For Our Children)

Warning: If you are squeamish, you might just want to skip this post.

The Stage: A beautiful spring-like Saturday. We had no where to go, no where to be, just to be at home preparing for a big night for Matt. Saturday night was the Cub Scout Crossover Ceremony. He was moving from Cub Scout to Boy Scout and our troop really makes a big deal about it. We have a sit-down dinner, an awards ceremony, and then the "crossing over". It is a very sweet time.

The Events Leading Up To The Scene:
1) I left a comment Saturday morning on Kimberly's blog about how I thought we were finally getting better.
2) I talked with Rebekah that morning. Her family is dealing with a terrible stomach virus. I think our minds are so in tune with each other that somehow her germs came across the phone line. Or, it could just be a big fluke since we haven't seen each other in two weeks.
3) I decided to wear my favorite shirt to the ceremony. A loose bohemian-inspired blouse, in a teal color that I love. Remember, the emphasis is on loose.

The Scene: A lovely dinner (that I did not have to prepare or clean up after) is served. Both sets of grandparents are there. Matt is looking exceptionally handsome in his uniform. Mark and Tyler are looking good in their uniforms. I am a proud scouting wife and momma.

The ceremony begins. James begins to get a little antsy and Abbie says she will take him to one of the preschool rooms so he can play. Off they go...

She returns in approximately five minutes to say that James has thrown up. I jumped up and followed her to the room. Yes indeed. It was a mess. I cleaned him up and the floor up. He seems fine, no fever, he is wanting to play with the toys in the room. So I go into denial mode, and declare it must just have been all the food he just ate and the three different pieces of cake he was picking at. I return with him back to the front of the room (all the crossing over families sat up front), and he settles back into my arms.

Within two minutes he gets "the look". The one that says "I am about to throw up big-time." I rush him towards the back and just as we hit the door he proceeds to throw up. And ladies, it was a mess. We rush to the bathroom, I set him down, and then I begin to throw up in the garbage can. It was that bad.

I am not going to go into detail about the condition of my shirt, face, and hair. And the fact that my loose shirt had enabled the vomit to go into places where vomit should never be. After I got over my throwing up episode I began to clean James up. I sent a lady to get Mark and told him I had no choice but to go home. I was covered. And then James started getting sick again. Lovely times.

Well, Mark told Matt and Matt began to get upset because this was his big night and the moms are part of the ceremony. My mom jumped up and took control of the situation. I love my mom.

She had on a jumper and a shirt underneath. She ran to the bathroom, jerked off that shirt, and took care of James while I changed. She and PawPaw took James home to our house so I could stay. Although my heart was torn, cause I wanted to be with sick James, I am so glad I got to see Matt do his thing. By the way, James threw up all the way home, all over their car. I knew he was in good hands though. My Mom is "The Mom."

At the end of the ceremony, all the moms stand up front and the boys present their moms with a little pin and a rose. The dads stand behind the moms as the boys are given their Arrows of Light and a little speech.

In this sweet touching moment, Mark leans forward around my shoulder and tenderly whispers,

"You reek so bad."

And I knew it was a night we would never forget.

I came home as soon as the ceremony was over in dire need of a shower. As I walked in the door my mom was holding James' little head as he threw up again. And then he proceeded to throw up at least 10 more times that night. So not an exaggeration. He fell into a deep sleep at 3:30 am and slept until 7:15. He awoke, got sick a little more, and than has been perfectly fine since then. So now I am waiting to see if it will hit the rest of the kiddos today.

So, today I am grateful for:

1) Banana Pops and Pedialyte for sick little boys.
2) A washing machine
3) Moms who save the day

I'll be back with another post soon with pictures of the cutest new Boy Scout ever!

Human and Animal Updates...

James woke up with no fever this morning! He is doing much better today. James and I stayed home from church (you're welcome) and Mark took the big kids. So I had some cleaning time while he played in the floor with his little farm animals and barn. He also was able to watch all the Blue's Clues he wanted with no interruption. I hope he is on the upswing although he has started coughing. I know the cough lingered for a long time with the oldest ones.

Mark and Abbie will be leaving in awhile for some daddy-daughter time and then they will go on to church. It will just be the boys and I so I am going to tackle the ironing. I don't like to do it, but I love to see it all hanging in the closets.

Melon, the kitty-cat, is growing like a weed. He is still a sweet kitty although he needs to have his little operation STAT. He is getting pretty wild. He likes to attack our other cats (just to get them to play with him) and since Kitty is 16 years old and totally blind, we are having to watch out for him all the time. Hopefully his little operation will cure him of the attacking.


George the rabbit, is huge. He is the most patient and sweet bunny. He likes to come in the house and hop around exploring. He likes to snuggle with Mark on the couch.

( old picture, but I love it!)

The chickens, which had such a rough start, are doing good. They have turned out to be remarkable layers and even with all this cold weather we are getting 4-6 eggs a day. I am trying to cook lots more from scratch now and love having the eggs available. I have also been able to sell some which helps pay for their feed.



Well, off to iron. Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday.

My Hardworking Men

Mark has been off work this week and has been busy with the boys tearing down the barn. Abbie and I have been busy trying to avoid going up there because Mark wants to put us to work as well. We have been busy with "house things". Right Abbie?

James wakes up ready to help Daddy with the barn, but his enthusiasm quickly wears off. Especially when it is 30 degrees outside. What is going on? As I have said before, "I put up with the heat of Alabama so I don't have to put up with coldness."

My hardworking men.

And my hardworking hens. Matt is trying an experiment right now. He is putting red food coloring in their food to see if he can get red yolks. It is supposed to work, so we'll see. I love that kid.

Right now, as I type in my warm and cozy house, Mark and the kids are out in the Back 40 cutting down our Christmas tree. So tonight will be decorating night. I am going to fix potato soup for supper and then we will have hot chocolate or apple cider while we decorate.

That all sounds so sweet, doesn't it? And it will be. But before that can happen I have to go make a place for the tree in our living room, find all the decorations, and test the lights. I also have to make the soup and make up the hot chocolate mix. And before that can happen I have to go clean up the kitchen from where my three men came in and devoured lunch. And I better come up with a snack to make because with them working out in this cold weather they want to eat about every 1/2 hour. You think I'm kidding, don't you?

Well, off to tackle the kitchen...try to stay warm!

Friday Linky-A-Loos and Other Random Stuff

Only one link today, but it is a good one-Mark and I both read it. And yes, it is true. Especially about the teenagers and how much they eat. I don't have teenagers yet, just pre-teens, and the amount of food they can consume in a day is amazing.

In other news...

Abbie has been watching the Duggars on Netflix. She is enthralled and knows all about them. It is Duggar this and Duggar that around here. Here brothers are tormenting her by telling her they are not a real family, that they are just actors. She is fiercely adamant that are real and it makes her furious when they tease her. So of course, they just do it more.

Two more weeks of school and then we are off for about two weeks. My brain is so glad. It would rather think about other things (like reading books for pleasure) than mathematics. Unfortunately I have to do some mathematics later this afternoon as I have to pay the bills.

Abbie and FavCousin, along with Tyler and James when he stopped pouting, performed a Thanksgiving re-enactment for us on Thanksgiving Day. Abbie wrote a script and had fun telling everyone else what to do. James pouted and would not participate until he realized no one was paying any attention to him and decided to perform. Here they are rowing to shore and meeting the Indians. Tyler played a very convincing Indian and I was proud of him for getting into the spirit of things. Matt, my contrary child, would not do it. He prides himself on going against the flow. I am praying he will use this for good and not evil as he grows.

Also, Woody from Toy Story showed up last night.
Oh, our chickens have all grown up and are giving us eggs daily. Its about time. And I wanted to to introduce you to Rosita, aka, The Ugliest Chicken Ever. Mark thinks she is pretty, but not me. But she is our best layer so I am happy we have her. And she lays green eggs which are very pretty. I like to watch her run though. She waddles, just as I did when I was expecting.

Workin For A Living

Saturday the men in my family (well, the men above the age of three) had a big work day. Our garden had gotten a little away from us with all the rain the past two weeks. It looked just like grass with a few plants sticking up out of it. So Mark and the big boys worked hard for a couple of hours getting things back under control.

Later in the afternoon they had time for some fun also. Some of my favorite times is sitting on my swing with Mark and watching our children play. I think we have some of our best talks with them when we are all in the yard together.

I'm not sure where Abbie was when we were taking these pics. But I wanted to show you what she did the other day. She made this arraignment for me to go on our buffet table. We have a beautiful gardenia bush right next to our back door. They smell sooo good.

Our children have lots of time for fun and play. But it is very important for children to work too. I think one of the worst things we can do for our children is to give them an entitlement mentality. They receive a very small allowance for their work in their rooms and the house zones. Sometimes if Mark has a very big outside job he needs help with or wants the boys to do he will pay them a little extra. Sometimes they just do it because it needs to be done. If they are saving up for something they will ask for extra jobs to earn some money.

At our house our children are taught that we are a family and we work together. They are not perfect at this and I have one in particular that complains and whines quite a bit. This child is expected to work anyway and we are working on the "doing everything without complaining and arguing." And this has not happened overnight. I have a 12, 10, 8, and 3 year old. Thursday was the first time I called a Domestic Day and at the end of the day the house looked lots better. We all worked together and it was wonderful to tell a child, " Please go vacuum" and it was done correctly. It is really only in the past two years I have made a concentrated effort to train the children in particular jobs.

Two summers ago a friend from church had to have surgery which required her to be off her feet for about six weeks. I went to her house with a meal and the promise to do any cleaning she needed. I had James with me (he was around one) because the lady had a 12 year old daughter and I thought she would be able to watch him while I cleaned. When I asked the daughter if she would play with him while I cleaned she replied she couldn't because she was playing with her dog and she needed to take care of the dog. It took me back so much I'm sure the shock must have showed on my face. First of all I could not fathom a young lady choosing a dog over a baby, and secondly I could not believe the mom did not make her help me. I cleaned the woman's house for several hours with a baby on my hip or at my feet. I do not begrudge the cleaning at all. People have had to come and clean for me when I had three very littles and I was really having a very hard time. My house is farrrrrrr from perfect and I would "just die" if someone came in now and saw my dirty floors. I want you to understand this lady is one of my friends and I was not resentful about the cleaning. I was just flabbergasted that my friend told me her daughter did not know how to vacuum.

I came home that day determined my children were going to have to learn to do the basics around the house. Not because I want little servants all around me that I can boss around. But because we are a family and we need each other. I really want to turn things around here in my home where it can be a welcoming relaxing place and not just at the end of our domestic days. I know this will not happen quickly and I have much to work on myself. I am the queen of starting, but not finishing. I have great intentions, but not much discipline. We have come a long way, and still have a ways to go, but it is worth it. I saw the fruit of our labors Thursday and it was encouraging.

Wednesday, Wednesday

Today has been one of those days when I look around and say "What did I actually do all day?"


I know I did something because I am tired. We had to go to the feed store to buy chicken feed, to the Piggly Wiggley to buy milk and creamer, and then later to CVS because Tyler has had a headache all day and I needed some Tylenol.


I also helped Abbie deep clean her room. Cooked supper (well, the meatloaf is cooking as I write) and got on to James for coloring on my living room walls. He got over in a corner beside the couch and just had a good ole time with that red crayon. I'm pretty sure he won't do that again. Hopefully. You never know with him.


I also had to take care of the remains of another dead chicken. Charlotte bit the bitter pill sometime last night. I have no idea why. And another has a very unladylike condition that I won't mention for modesty reasons. Really, I am flabbergasted. We are doing the same thing with these chicks as we did we the others and we did not lose one.


I was chatting on the phone with my sister and mentioned to her this day's chicken problems. She told me she never would have dreamed I would be on the phone with her one day talking about going to the feed store and taking care of hen's unladylike problems. Me either. I always wanted a house in the country and chickens and such, but I never really thought about actually doing all the work.


And by the way, my sister Jill, is off work this week and she should be putting up a new hilarious post daily. But she is slacking off. You all should go over and get on to her.


Oh, and I wanted to write this down so I won't forget it. When we start to go somewhere Matt and Abbie start yelling, "Shotgun!" trying to to outdo each other for the front seat. James always yells, "Carseat!" I guess he is afraid someone is going to try to take his car seat from him.

This and That

***I was excited to find out that a site I have been waiting for started this morning. Raising Homemakers is a new site devoted to teaching moms how to share the art of homemaking with their daughters. Now, I love homemaking (don't love the cleaning part, but it is necessary) so I hope I can learn some things myself. Today is their launch and they are having a great giveaway. I though some of you might want to go check it out.


***We signed up for the library's summer reading program last week. Last year Abbie wanted to earn the Giant Toothbrush. This year she wants to read enough to earn a Giant Pixie Stick. I am sensing a trend here.


***We are through with school for three weeks!!!! I have a list of house projects I want to work on and today is cleaning out the pantry. I don't like to do it, but I love the results. I have been doing so much better about keeping the freezer and the fridge decent so maybe there is hope for the pantry.


***Our chicks are growing like weeds. And yesterday we caught the opossum that (might have been the one ) who ate our other chicks. He won't be eating any more of our chicks.


That's all. Now I must get up and get to work. Get up MamaHen.

Edited To Add: I have since cleaned out the pantry and did my 1 mile power walk with Leslie Sansone. I was walking to beat the band and Abbie walks by. She says, "Momma, you look like that old woman on Father of the Bride Part Two. You know, when she was big and pregnant and was trying to exercise."

Thank you dear, thank you.

Summertime...

And the living is easy... especially if you are three and your name is James.

Oh how I love little boys with dirty faces who fall asleep on a hot summer day as I swing with him. I watched as his eyes got heavier and heavier and finally he drifted off. I hope I never forget that day.


I also have some news which pained me today. My only daughter told me she wanted to give her toenails a painting break and see how they would look without them painted. As in all summer long.


I tell you what, if I hadn't been there for the birth and she didn't look so much like me I would have questioned if she was really mine at that moment. Hopefully it is just the heat and she will come to her senses soon.


And I know my posts have been James-heavy lately, but I have some certain children, ahem young men, who have decided they don't like me to take their pictures so much and tell funny stories about them.


Well.

Chicken Intensive Care Undate: All three CICU chicks are now outside where all chickens properly belong. The one with the prolasped oviduct is doing well although I'm pretty sure she won't be able to ever have an egg. This might bode badly later on, but we will just have to see. The others are growing like crazy and it is amazing how they change from day to day.

Whew!

Whew! This weekend just flew by. Saturday I had a teacher's meeting and then it was off to the church to decorate for Abbie's Award Ceremony. Our Heritage Girl troop is growing and we had a really nice time Saturday night. Abbie moved up to another level Saturday night so she received her new AHG vest. Call me partial, but I think she was the cutest one up on that stage.

I thought my boys were pretty handsome also.

James rolled around on the chairs quite a bit during the ceremony. But it kept him occupied and somewhat quiet.

Every once in a while he would crawl up in my lap for some snuggles too.

So we are through with Heritage Girls for the summer. I think James needs a break. He has to come to all the meetings with us and bless his heart, I think he believes he is a Heritage Girl with Abbie.

Chick Update: Another one died Friday night. And Saturday morning one in the CICU had developed a prolasped oviduct. Ladies, just be glad you are not a chicken. I am doing my best with her and I think she might make it. Friday we went out to check on them and found that something (snake, large rat, possum, racoon)? had eaten 7 of them. Somehow in a three hour period something ate that many. And they were shut up in a pen in a workshop! We have a trap set but still haven't caught anything. I told Mark the next time we get baby chicks they are going to have a real MamaHen to take care of them!

And this pic is for Mark. He didn't believe I would really post it. He doesn't realize I am here to make all of you feel better about yourselves.

Me asking Mark if I have anything in my teeth and that stinker took a picture of it! MamaHen keepin it real.

CICU (Chick Intensive Care Unit)

Right now I have three chicks in my CICU. They are all doing well in their special inside incubator. I check on them about every 30 minutes to make sure the incubator temperature is staying steady at 90 degrees and make sure they are eating and drinking. The outside chicks I just check a couple of time a day(well, about 10) to make sure they have clean water and plenty of food. They are high maintenance for about 4 weeks and then there is very little to do for them. I would love to show you some pics but the memory card isn't working quite right. Interpretation: it is a new memory card and I can't figure it out.

Today I have been blah. Don't know why. Just blah. Nothing was interesting. I even have a new Beverly Lewis book and I can't get into it. I know we all have those days though.

We did school and the kids weeded in the garden some. They are supposed to do two rows a day. I am supposed to remind them. Monday it rained and yesterday I forgot to remind them and they "forgot" to do it. James is doing much better with the potty but he is far from "trained".' He truly has no desire to be trained. It is all a big waste of time to him. Only seven more days of school and then we are off for three weeks. One of those weeks is Vacation Bible School and I have the 1st grade girls so you can just go ahead and stick a fork in me cause I will be DONE when it is over. VBS is a great thing, but it is super-tiring. I predict mornings at VBS and naps at home in the afternoon.

Got anything interesting going on?

MamaHen Is Really A MamaHen Now...

Saturday morning was an exciting day here at our house. We got our new baby chicks! Since the Great Chicken Massacre of 2009 we haven't had any chickens (except for Pearl) and we were sitting on ready. But let me tell you, these chickens have been more trouble in three days than the others were in three years. So not exaggerating. But first, meet the girls. And I'm sure there is a boy in there also. We will have to wait till they grow up a little to know for sure.

(Please excuse my lack of makeup and the dark circles under my eyes. Being a new mama is exhausting.)

Meet my chickens Patricia Anne and Mary Alice (the characters from my favorite set of books). Mama and Jill, they are true to their names.

Right now I have two little banty chicks in an rigged-together brooder. I am trying to keep it at the right temperature and make sure they are clean and drinking their water. I was having to pull a Dr. MamaHen this morning with another one because she had a condition called, well, I can't say it out loud. I really did all I knew to do to help her, at one point I even had her in a flannel-wrapped heating pad, but she did not make it. The other 13 are doing great though. They are so cute and fun!

My Initiation into the Hobby Farm Life

I grew up in the suburbs, but my grandparents lived on a real farm about an hour from me. They had chickens and cows and grew their food and I loved going there. We went about every other weekend it seems, and during the summer we would go and stay a week or two at a time. Even when I was in college I would sometimes leave school on Friday afternoon and go spend the night with them. It was the most wonderful place for a child to be. I had two grandparents who thought I was the cat's meow and two great-grandparents who lived within walking distance down the road. My grandmother could cook like nobody's business and there were always yummy things to eat at her house. We could sit and watch TV all day long and no one said a word. My grandmother loved her some General Hospital and she would let us watch it with her, something my mother never would let us do at home. I learned all I needed to know about Luke and Laura at my grandmother's house. We could stay up as late as we wanted and pretty much if we asked for it we got it. Sheer bliss for the grandkids.

There was one rule though: STAY AWAY FROM THE ANIMALS! I realize now this rule was put into place to protect the ANIMALS, but at the time we thought it was to protect us. You see, according to my grandaddy if you looked at a chicken the wrong way it would peck your eyes out. And, if you even got near a cow she would stomp on you and kill you. I being the firstborn had to do everything by the rules (to keep my standing as the only grandchild who never got spanked ~ I'll tell that story sometime Jill!) and there was no way I was going near those animals. Also, my grandmother and mother hated the chickens so I just thought it was best to stay away from them altogether.

Well, fast forward many years and we moved to our little house and begin to turn it into a hobby farm. Mark quickly built the Hotel Marriott of chicken houses and coops and by July we have our first new chickens. Oh, when they are first hatched they are the smallest, fluffiest things ever. I took such good care of those chicks. All 25 of them. I could not believe that at one time I was ever scared of chickens. Usually when you get a batch of 25 you can expect 2 to 3 of them to die. Well, Mark and I prided ourselves in the fact that all 25 of them lived. Including 3 roosters. You see, you don't know they are roosters until they are much older. Our kids loved those chickens and by that time we thought it would be hard to get rid of the other two roosters. So eventually we moved all 25 of them to the big coop. They grew and were beautiful chickens and we were so excited the day we got our first egg.

We soon learned though that, for a variety of reasons, there should only be one rooster to one flock of chickens. Big Daddy Roosters don't like other roosters around their harem. Those three roosters would fight and they got meaner and meaner. And then they got meaner to us and did not want us to come in and get the eggs. They would patrol in front of the nests to try to stop us from getting the eggs. Usually I would timidly just try to push them out of the way with my leg or make a lot of noise and they would leave.

Well, one day they decided to stake their claim. Abbie and I went to get the eggs with my sweet little egg basket Mark had gotten me. I went in shooing and kicking the roosters away. I started to reach over to get the eggs and both roosters started flying at me and I will just tell you with no shame that I went hysterical. All I could hear was my grandaddy saying over and over the chickens would peck my eyes out. I started yelling, "Run Abbie, Run!!" She took off running and I was right behind her. I didn't even stop to close the coop door so those two roosters ran right after us. Abbie had just turned four and she was not very fast. I was yelling for her to run to the house and everyone once in awhile I would turn around and kick at them or swing my egg basket at them. Abbie was screaming like a mad woman. We made it to the back porch and those roosters actually followed us onto the porch. After we got inside and shut the door they stood by the porch and walked back and forth daring us to come out. They could dare all day long, but I wasn't coming out. All the other chickens began to get out because the door was open, but there was no way I was going out there. I called Mark and told him and he laughed and laughed. At the time I DID not think it was funny.

And guess which two suddenly disappeared from the flock the next weekend?

When I told Rebekah this story she also laughed and laughed and for my next birthday she gave me this beautiful bag with a rooster on it. Attached was this poem:

For a friend who is a true'ster

Here is a bag with your favorite rooster!

I know I gave you one last year;

But pretend I didn't and be a dear!

You can use it for a purse,

Or you can use it for a sack!

But, if you use it for you eggs,

Try not to get attacked!

A chicken update: I am no longer scared of the chickens and I'm still pretty sure they are not going to peck my eyes out!