Not all of our chickens have names. Lili, however, is special. She is the only D’Uccle, or dusseldorfer as I call her, in the flock. I must confess, she is my favorite.
She is much smaller than the other chickens and has wonderful long feathers on her feet.
Lately she has taken to hanging out on the roost in the coop in the mornings. She runs back and forth as though she is afraid to get down.
So I gently pick her up and set her on the ground. Actually I give her a little hug first.
I’m not sure how she feels about this but these morning snuggles get my day off to a nice start.
Especially now that I have no children left at home.
One thing I enjoy over the Christmas break was having the time to breathe and notice my surroundings. When I am teaching classes and private students, I find myself in survival mode only thinking of the next thing that needs to be done.
I seldom stop long enough to see what is around me.
For example, one morning, as I was coming in from feeding the chickens, I noticed a bird’s nest above the garage door.
There was no sign of occupants and I wondered what type of bird had lived there, whether it laid eggs and how many, where it went, etc. It would have been fun to watch the whole process if only I had taken the time to look up above the door.
So as I head into a new year I am planning to look up more often. Hopefully I will have another chance to see something wonderful right in my own back yard.
Today we’re starting a 3-2-1 countdown reveal to Chicken Wrangler Sara’s most viewed blog this year.
December is a tough month if you’re a schoolteacher. Corralling students and getting ready for your own family Christmas preparations — it’s exhausting. Finding time to write is hard. Trust me I know.
This little diversion will provide Chicken Wrangler Sara with a holiday break from blog writing. But never fear, she’ll be back January 10 with fun stories from the farm and classroom.
I think you might be surprised which blogs, you the reader, viewed the most. I was.
A fellow teacher at my school shares our love of dachshunds. Not quite as much as we do – she only has one. Her dog’s name is Elvis and he is not fond of being put in a kennel. His mom asked if he could possibly stay with us when they went out of town. He came for a play date and everyone seemed to get along so it was settled.
Elvis came to stay over the Thanksgiving Holiday. He arrived on Tuesday and seemed to be excited to join our 6 pack at Miller Farm.
Then Beekeeper Brian got a text from Miller’s mom. He needed a place to hang out also. Had Brian not said anything, I might not have noticed. After all what’s one more dachshund.
Miller arrived on Wednesday bringing our total to 8 dachshunds. It went remarkably well.
I decided to do an intermittent mop of the kitchen floor and put everyone in the back yard but they began to bark so I brought them back in. A neighbor who works nights has asked us to try to keep them quiet during the day. That seems reasonable even if it is difficult.
So I put them all in the living room so I could mop the kitchen without help. They didn’t mind that at all. In fact, they all climbed on the couch for a nap. Elvis and Miller, the two black and tans, nearly blend into the sofa in the top right corner.Rachel missed out on all the fun. She was pet sitting for a couple who have 3 Great Danes. She sent this picture with the largest who weighs in at 180 pounds. I think I’ll stick to large numbers of small dogs rather than small numbers of large dogs.
We have in my family what is known as the “obligatory bag.” It was started by my mom after I got married and moved out. She has a bag full of random things for us to take home each time we visit.
Sometimes it has clothes, empty mason jars, magazines or maybe even my favorite candy. Recently there was a set of chicken wind chimes in the obligatory bag. I was very excited.
I thought we could hang them outside the kitchen window where I could see them as I work in the kitchen. Beekeeper Brian hung them on the front porch where I can hear them as I teach piano.
This was a much better plan.
Now when I get out of the car at the end of a long day, I can hear my wind chimes and it makes me smile.
Besides being an accomplished chicken catcher, Bella is also quite adept at playing hide and seek. I’m not sure that is her intention however, I frequently find only parts of her sticking out from under various objects.
Most recently I found her under a couch cushion.She is particularly fond of the blanket on the couch and can get herself completely under it. (That’s Tucker’s tail. He was looking for her.)Sometimes she gets completely under the sheet.Other times she leaves her head out.She also likes to be under the table – especially when we are trying to eat.Most of the time she just lays in the middle of the floor – tongue out. Being Bella is very tiring.
The chicks that were hatched at my school last spring have grown into full sized birds now. The hens are even laying eggs so we are finally getting a return for all our investment.
One of the boys at my school was telling me that their hen was also laying eggs. He was very excited. He said they saved the first egg that was laid. That is a sweet thought but not very practical.
I didn’t tell him this.
I remember the first egg laid by our hens. It was a green egg and appeared shortly after a chemical fire near our house that required us to evacuate for the evening. At first I wasn’t sure if the green egg was a result of the fumes from the fire. Then I remembered that some breeds of hens lay green eggs. I was very relieved.
Anyway, the birds from the school are quite adventurous. Beekeeper Brian looked out the kitchen window to see them on top of the coop.
This is would not be a big problem except that several times I have found one of them in the yard next door. Fortunately they always manage to find their way back.
During the past five months of living in our house with only Beekeeper Brian, I have noticed several things.
Two adults cannot finish a gallon of milk before it goes bad. In fact, some weeks we barely finish a half gallon.
Cooking dinner every night creates too many leftovers for two people.
Some nights we just want to eat cold cereal. And we do.
It is no longer necessary to do laundry on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I can do laundry twice a week and still do small loads.
The large grocery cart is really too big. I can use the smaller one for my weekly shopping.
I have considered only shopping once a week. I’m not sure I’m ready for that change.
I recently found an old pacifier in my lingerie drawer. It belonged to our oldest daughter who is now 26 years old and married. It reminded me of times past when the house was filled with noise and messes. It is quieter now and a little neater.
I’m not sure I’d say it was better – just different. A kind of different I can get used to.
Not all of our chickens have names. Lili, however, is special. She is the only D’Uccle, or dusseldorfer as I call her, in the flock. I must confess, she is my favorite.
So I gently pick her up and set her on the ground. Actually I give her a little hug first.
I’m not sure how she feels about this but these morning snuggles get my day off to a nice start.
