Promised photos

 Here are our "free range babies".

 Farmer J and his chicks!

Magnolia shining in the sun!

Woodcocks and Pecker-Heads

Don't worry.  This is still my G-rated blog.  We have discovered we have Woodcocks (birds) and Pecker-Heads (variant of the Morel mushrooms) in our woods.

J said the woodcock was acting very funny around him and then he realized why- baby woodcocks nearby! He also said the bird looks like a very large flying mosquito because of it's odd beak.

And not too much of a stretch to see how this mushroom got it's name. I'll just stop there.

The other exciting news is that we (meaning J) have moved the chickens (I just can't call them chicks anymore) into the chicken coop.  They are very happy and warm! I'll post some pictures of them in their new home in a few days.  They are no longer fluffy as all of them have their big boy and big girl feathers now.  Magnolia continues to be the most tame of them all- probably because we hold her the most as she is only one of two that have a real name.  I'm hoping to name the rest once we officially have the hens and the meat birds separated.  Currently, they are all together as the "chicken tractor" has yet to be constructed.

We are sick of the rain and hoping for some sunny weather.  Unfortunately, the forecast is full of rain and thunderstorms (but at least a little warmer.)

The house is coming along.  My goal this week is to hang some pictures and start to organize the basement. Then the task that all mother's dread-- putting away/sorting the small and out of season clothes and bringing in the warm weather outfits.  I was planning on doing this a month ago when we had our warm streak...I'm happy I didn't as it's been pretty chilly outside.

On the work front, I have two weeks under my belt.  Still loving the commute but hoping to continue to feel less like a freshman and more like at least a sophomore or junior.  And the good news-- a definite friendship is blooming!  J recently got great news that he will be able to teach a summer class this year!

Tomorrow we are trying to decide if we are going to try another new church.  The boys and J think we should stick with the first one that we tried...and loved.  We also will have a visit from my brother and his family!  We are very blessed that our farm is bringing many loved ones to our doorstep (via the mudroom, of course!)

First pictures... now video

So by "video" I really mean an 11 second clip.  This is a link to Youtube.  J did a time-lapse photo session of one of our morel mushrooms.  He thought he would catch it slowing growing... but instead, it is slowly shrinking.    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsVKW3YvCo8&feature=youtu.be

I don't have too much time today as I've been working every day this week- ughh!  But... farming isn't cheap so it's good to have work! 

Here are our updates:

-Chicken coop needs to be finished in 24-48 hours- the chicks are no longer chicks but small birds.  One flew out of the box today and J found him on the floor.  

-J told me to put Magnolia on my shoulder (she is getting pretty tame).  A second after I moved her, she pooped all over the floor.  That was a close call!

-For those of you who know me well, you know that I am fascinated by Amish culture.  J and I watched the PBS special "The Amish" online.  Amazing program.  I highly recommend it.  A lot of what we saw validated our decision to try and live closer to the land and attempt to lead a more simplistic life.  

-I'm thankful for the mother who lived here before me.  You may ask, "How do I know a mama lived here before me?"  Because there are high door latches on all the original doors/screen doors to outside-- which I had to use tonight to keep my littlest inside when all he wants to do is sneak out to help "Dada" with the coop!

-We are woken up most mornings by a male robin that keeps flying into the window (outside our bedroom). J thinks he is trying to scare away his male competition (i.e., himself).  I could make a comment here about men but that would be too easy!

-Lastly, suppertime is really distracting when you are a little boy and there is a dumptruck outside dumping organic dirt into the garden!

Eureka- Pictures posted!

I have done it!  It took having my children away at their grandparents to allow me to have a few minutes to figure this blogging thing out.  And here it is... my first picture posted.

Here are some of the morels Farmer J found on the land.  Every day for the last week or so, he and the children have been outside "morel hunting."  He was able to pick quite a few to give to his parents as a little fungal thank you for watching the boys.

Here is the chicken coop.  J added the fenced in area to the right and painted the door red.  Ever since traveling in Ireland, we have loved brightly colored front doors.  The girls will have this as their new home in a few weeks.

Here is Farmer J with Magnolia.  This was the very first day the chicks arrived to their new home.

Here is me!  Mama chick.  I literally had only been awake for about two minutes before this picture was taken. Horrible shot but my adoration of my new baby birds is all over my face!

This is what we found when we opened the box from the post-office.  28 baby chicks arrived the day after Easter!  They were all huddled in the corner and I was worried I would find one died from suffocation.  Luckily not.

The chicks first home!

Squeaky floor... squeaky ceiling

Last night I was too lazy to make our bed (the sheets just came out of the dryer) so I decided to sleep in the guest bedroom.  The bed in there was so inviting as it was our old bed and had on it one of my favorite set of sheets.  Also, we just realized our guest room has a roller shade-- which means for sleeping in a little longer (if not woken up by Pick-Pick) as our room still has no window treatment yet.  Relatively quickly, I realized I wasn't alone.  I heard lots of scrapping and squeaking from above.  Just some thin wooden floors separated me from what I though was many bats. I grabbed J and he assured me that the noises we heard were not from bats but from a mouse or mice.  We also found some mice droppings by our built-in bookcase outside the guestroom.  It's official-- we have a mouse situation.  So, we should get a cat?  Heck no.  JJ is very allergic to cats and I just despise cat hair all over the house and on our clothes.  Off to Fleet Farm.  Farmer J picked up some mouse traps and some more "Chick Starter" (the chick feed) for our 28, every so quickly growing, chicks.

Our "babies" are enjoying their new home in our basement.  And I'm enjoying them being down there.  I loved hearing all the peeping but I think this is a win-win for all.  A win for me because I don't have to worry about the rather large mess they made in the house and Pick Pick is less likely to go over to the chicks without me knowing and play around in their poopy mess and/or pick one up by it's little neck.  A win for the chicks because of the previous mentioned possibility of a neck wringing and they are much calmer in this quiet environment (far from the noises that previous made them quite crazy- i.e., children, sneezes, my "Words with Friends" entries).

This weekend J is working more on the garden and on mowing the lawn (as it's been quite rainy lately.)  He and the children have also successful hunted for many more morels.  We had sauteed morels (in butter and garlic) on our cheese pizza last night; it was quite delicious.

Tonight the children are staying with my in-laws.  Mima and Papa.  Yeah!!!! Good for all of us involved.  J and I are going to try a local restaurant tonight to celebrate our 9 year anniversary.  Tomorrow we can SLEEP IN and then we are off to try one more church.

Busy, busy, busy...

Lots of changes over the last few days.  Farmer J returned to work.  I started my new job today.  And the children started school yesterday.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.

There was a great storm on Sunday night.  I LOVED falling asleep to the sound of the wind ripping through the trees.  I've forgotten what it sounds like to sleep in an upstairs bedroom.  And the view from my bed is quite nice- looking into the middle and tops of trees.  Our bed only fit in one place in our room given the very low ceilings and slanted walls.  We have to sleep with our heads at the baseboard and feet at the headboard because of the sloped floors.  It's quite ridiculous!

There were a few branches down in our yard Monday morning but no major wind damage.  J returned to work but not until dropping off the boys at school.  They did great.  No tears and no real separation anxiety.  I think it helped that we had made numerous pre-visits to the school and that they were going to the same place- just different classrooms. I knew that if I dropped them off, both my youngest and I would be crying.  I picked them up at noon to let them ease into the transition of being in "school" and away from home.  When I picked them up, both were smiling and happy.  Both said they wanted to go back.  I was one happy mama! Later that day, we also hit the jackpot by being able to become new patients at a sought after dentist office with a long wait.  Very lucky.  No cavities for JJ but Pickle already has one.  Ugghh.  At least the dental office is known for being very gentle and great with kids.  And they certainly did great with JJ so we'll hope Pick Pick does well there too.

Today, I started my new job.  I'm somewhat brain dead from all the form filling out and new employee orientation.  I think I will like it there.  It's very busy and I know my time will fly by.  No real "friend" at work leads yet.  The great news.  It takes me TWO minutes to get to work.  4 minutes round-trip-- compared to my previous commute of close to 120 minutes round trip.  Very cool.

J and the children did more moral hunting today and moved the chicks (all 28 of them) from two, small brooder boxes to one very large corral (that is currently in my living room.)  Looks like the boys also thought the chicks needed some toys as I see a barn and some plastic toy food items in there as well.  Not sure how the toys mix with the poop infested wood chips.  Guess those will be hitting the trash!  You just never know what you will walk into when you return from work to your life as a farmwife/mama!

Better go-- the children will soon wake up from their nap and we have to go into town and get their new vitamins (with fluoride--since we have well water now.)

Tomorrow my parents will be visiting and bringing the children twin size beds.  Not sure how they will fit in their room but it will be nice to have bigger beds for them.

Bye for now!

Back to life, back to reality...soon!

We got a little lost finding a new church to try out... but we made it there just in time.  The church was quite nice but we all (even the children) agreed that the first church we went to (on Easter Sunday) fit our family better.  We are going to try one more church next Sunday and then hopefully settle in! On the way home, we found a garage sale.  The kids got a few toys and I found a great spring jacket for JJ for next year.  A nice little surprise- our old town never had garage sales on Sundays.  

The chicks are still doing great.  They still get quite startled when J changes their water dish or refills their food. There is definitely no science behind this but it seems like the meat bird flock seems to sleep more than the egg laying hens.  

Our youngest took a nice nap on the couch during a rain/thunderstorm while J and JJ found morals in the woods. We are having them for dinner.

Today is kind of a sad day.  We have to return to reality tomorrow.  This week, J and I go back to work (with me starting a new job.)  JJ and Pickle are heading to a new school! I hope it all goes well.  I wish this little hiatus could last a bit longer...but, we are all creatures of habit and figuring out our new routine will surely decrease some of the anxiety that has been brewing within us all.  I'm praying for easy transitions, no tears for the children when I drop them off tomorrow, a smooth return for J and that I will find at least one friend at my new job.  

A little getaway from farmlife

I spent the last 24 hours hanging out with my 'besties' (i.e., best friends since grade school.)  It was fun to be in a much more urban setting. A nice change of pace.  Lots of good food, laughs and shopping at chic recycled (i.e., used) clothing boutiques.  Farmer J stayed home with the children and seemed to have quite a good time but the state of our house once I had returned!  A few hours of picking up and cleaning are definitely worth some girl time away.  

Today Farmer J and the boys planted seeds in the garden and transplanted some of our plants from last year's garden (that survived the move) into our new garden.  J said the project is taking longer than expected.  His muscles are sore but he is quite in his element and very happy. They also had a lot of fun searching for edible mushrooms in the woods!  The kids cooled off with a run threw the sprinkler (in APRIL!)

Our chicks are doing great.  Farmer J transferred them into a bigger home (i.e., box.) I missed the sounds of my baby chicks when I was away and am glad to be back home and hearing their "peep peep peeps" in the background.

We still feel we have won some kind of happiness lottery and cannot believe we live along side all this beauty. God has surely blessed us.  Tomorrow we are going to try another church in town, hoping to find a nice fit for our family.  The church we tried last week on Easter Sunday was very lovely and I could easily stop searching---- but those that know me, know that is just not my style!

Gotta go, I hear the munchkins approaching the house.  They always find their way back home when their belly's start growling!

Old Farmhouse

Living in an old farmhouse is very interesting.  The floors are quiet creaky and there are numerous odd noises the house makes. Once, when home alone, I swear I heard knocking within a wall.  I was freaked.  Later, when J was home alone, he heard the noise too.  He said it was the shutters hitting the house.  Another fun thing about living in a very old house is how uneven the floors are.  Most of our furniture wobbles or is set at an angle. We need to get lots of shims to level out dressers, bed, and the like.  Our dining room is so slanted, you can roll from the kitchen to the living room.

Chicks are doing great. Still all accounted for.  Even though they really don't like the sound my Kindle makes when I get a word on "Words with Friends."

Better go.  Jay took the children to Menards to get a new rake.  He's been busy working in the garden most of the day.  He also decided to move part of the garden to allow for more hours of sun and keep our nice few of the barn/pasture un-obstructed.  More work tomorrow... for J!

Over 48 hrs and still chirping!

Day 3 for our chicks.  28 going strong.  We (and I mean, Farmer J) are still helping 2-3 chicks with their "sticky butt" but all appear healthy and happy.  I give morale support.  Our youngest even wants to help ("I check their no poop?!")  We assure him that Dada can handle the job all by himself.  The chicks are still divided in two boxes, 14 per box.  They are much bigger than when they first arrived.  Most, to all, now have their flight feathers and a few (mainly the bigger meat bird breeds) are flapping their wings and taking flight (which is more like a slight hop).  Chicks are very messy.  They are always pecking away and flicking wood chips into their food and water dish.  And they poop everywhere.  Thank goodness for wood chips. These chicks get lots of love- many kisses and enduring words 

Today was fun because my parents came for a visit. J worked hard (with the help of my dad and "helper" children) today building the nesting boxes.  My parents, my children and I also went on "a nature walk" (i.e., walking the path through the woods on the property.) On an earlier nature walk with my dad, JJ found a very old deer skull near the grass by one of the farm's back gardens.  Another farmwife/mama observation: never be surprised what your children will bring in from outside to show you (i.e., deer skull).  I stayed busy with unpacking/organizing the mud room.  JJ and pickle have 6 pairs of mud boots between the two of them.  Plenty for visiting friends and family!  My mom helped out by mending this last season's hats, mittens and pants.  All ready for next winter :) My parents also treated us to a lunch out.  We went to a very fun restaurant downtown.  Our first sit down restaurant dining experience since we moved here.  The place was very charming and had a healthy children's menu.  And an amazing veggie burger! We will definitely go back.  On the way home we hit our first garage sale of the season.  My big score- an old rocking chair for our front porch.  Only $10 dollars!!!! Thank goodness for the mini van for those last minute rocking chair buying situations! 

Tomorrow will be our first day on the farm without any anticipated visitors.  Another farmwife observation: When you live in the country, expect many "stop ins" by random people (i.e., people interested in hunting on the farm, people interesting in conservation of the land, people interested in saying "hi" or welcoming you to the area.) 

Cold tonight- Farmer J bringing most of the plants in for a sleepover! 

God speed-sweet dreams!

24 hours later!

24 hours later and all 28 chicks are still going strong.

We learned a few things about baby chicks.
1.) Do not tip them upside down (i.e., to check for "sticky butt") because they puke all over you (it looks like clear saliva). At first we thought it was poop, but then realized different.
2.) Do not keep all 28 chicks in one box (the bigger ones pick on the little ones and it's pure chaos).  All the chicks settled down once we separated them.  Much more peaceful living environments!
3.) Do not think you will get much sleep if you keep the chicks in your bedroom (they did quiet down but the glow of the heat lamp and the here and there "chirp" kept us up most of the night.
4.) Do not let them walk on your bed (a very close call with having chick poop on my duvet cover)
5.) Do not let them walk around in a low box top- they can jump out and almost fall off the bed and onto the floor!!

So far, it is very fun having the "babies" in our house.  They are chirping away as I write this.  We now have 14 chicks in each brooder box.  We tried to separate them by males versus females (i.e., meat birds versus egg laying hens.)  We've already told the children they can't name the meat birds.  We have named two of the egg laying hens.  So far, we have Primrose and Magnolia.  I'm hoping to give all my "girls" beautiful, flower based names but JJ thinks otherwise.  He has fallen in love with the two, little Bantam chicks and wants to name them himself.  Currently, they look so similar we have to wait until they get a little bigger to name them.

Yesterday was a very productive day.  We got the chicks and their happy/growing.  Farmer J worked on constructing the boxes the hens will lay their eggs in within the chicken coop.  I went to Fleet/Farm (for the first time as a Farmer's wife) and got J and I some shit kicking boots (mine were only $20!!!) Finally, we got our garbage set up (first pick-up next Monday!!!)

Today, Mima (Farmer J's mama), J's sister and two of our nieces are coming over to see the farm and the baby chicks.  J may have to go buy another lawn mower as he ran over a rock with our current lawn mower (he has a history of bad luck with small motor machines.) I'm going to work on unpacking the mud room and maybe hanging a few pictures here and there to make the house feel more like our home.  Lastly.... I need to figure out how to post pictures on this blog! I have one last week before I have to go back to work so I need to make the most of my time.

Happy Tuesday!

28 new babies!!!

Farmer J got an email on Easter Sunday saying that our chicks should arrive on Monday.  J got a call this morning at 6:30 AM from our local post office saying- "Come and get this very noisy package!"

Around 7:30 this morning, J and Pickle (my youngest son) woke me up with a box of peeping chicks! A very sweet way to be woken up.  We then took the box of peepers to our oldest son's room (JJ).  He was in a deep sleep (luckily- one of my children is a good morning sleeper). Once he woke up and realized what was in the box- a huge smile came over his face.

We got the chicks to a larger box than the one they shipped in and put them under the heat lamp. We spent many minutes holding baby chicks.  They all liked to huddle together and step on top of each other! We got them some sugar water and organic chicken feed.  Farmer J said the sugar water helps "perk them up" and increase their blood sugar after their long journey (All the way from Iowa!)   Finally, we decided to count the chicks.  We ordered 25 and we have TWENTY EIGHT chicks.  And- we have no idea which chicks are baby girls or baby boys.  We ordered specific breeds and ordered ones that were pretty and cute.  I guess we made a rookie mistake and ordered our hens and meat birds at the same time.  Next time, Farmer J said he will make two separate orders.

Next on the agenda is checking for "Sticky butt" (per Farmer J).  He has been reading numerous books on raising chickens so he was well prepared for this journey.  Thank goodness.  3/28 chicks had "sticky butt" or a "dehydrated vent" per Farmer J (i.e., poo poo hole stuck shut so they cannot go poo poo- can you tell I'm a mama).  "Sticky butt" can lead to death within 24 hours.  Hopefully, all our chicks will make it.

Some farmer's housewife observations:
-I need to add Purell to the grocery list to try and keep all our hands clean around the chicks
-I need to get more Tubberware.  Farmer J wanted to clean the chicks "sticky butt" in one of my nice bowls we got from our wedding.
-I might need ear plugs tonight (the chicks are going to sleep in our bedroom so Farmer J can keep an eye on them).
-My husband is full of love- he is a great caregivers to these chicks- very gentle and talks to them so sweetly!

Pictures to come! Once I figure out how to get pictures up on the blog.

Gotta go- Trip to the store to get milk (was suppose to get it last night but got lost on my way home-- one problem with living in the country where I swear there are numerous country roads labeled the same!) and Purell.

-The Wary Farmwife

Back from a quick trip to the South (Charleston/Savannah).  Turns out I love southern food and hospitality. I already miss the sweet tea and the 80 degree weather.  But it does feel like home to be back in the Midwest (and it didn't hurt that it was beautiful and sunny today.)

Jay was quite busy at home on the farm while I (and the children) were gone.  He painted and added to the chicken coop (Thanks also to Ben S.)  The coop now has a bright, red door and a little fenced in area where the chickens can roam free without fear of being someone's lunch.  We are quite ready for the chicks arrival.  They will stay in our mud room until they are old enough to go into the coop.

Jay also started the garden.  He chose a sunny spot on the land and is starting a lasagna garden there. Lots of fresh, organic dirt is now in a large rectangle on a spot that was previously lawn.  As I'm not pretending to be a farmer or a gardener, I'll stop there.

Hopefully the chicks arrive by Tuesday, when some family members are coming over to continue to help with unpacking and getting the garden ready!

We also hope to figure out how to get garbage pick-up figured out this week, now that we live out of city limits. We decided we are definitely not interested in hauling our garbage (via mini-van and children) to the dump so we are going to pay a private garbage contractor.  

We are moved in! Thank you to ALL our movers and helpers! Besides a little rain and some mud on Friday, the weather was great for the move.  We had a little debacle with the moving truck (i.e., reserved a 26' truck and at one time, ended up with THREE 14' trucks) but it worked out in the end- and added a little humor to the situation.

We LOVE our new home.  We keep thinking a camera crew will run in and tell us we've been punked and this is all a big joke! So far, so good.  Los ninos are very happy with their new surroundings and have been outside more than in- so that allowed Mama to unpack more!  

Overall, a very successful move-only a few bulldog teeth shared between Jay and I- so that was good too!

A few early observations/comments on country living:
Watch out for the bats that fly at night
I'm already losing the battle of trying to transport all living Japanese Beetles out of my house
We love the taste of our well water
I already miss our garbage disposal
Jay and I need some shit kicker boots from Farm and Fleet
It's very quiet, especially at night
The smoke alarm goes off if the fire isn't just right in fireplace

The chicks come next week... stay tuned!