Hoppy

Hoppy Easter!

from my Peeps 

to yours. 

(Even though technically these are no longer my peeps.)

Follow up Friday: Truth in Chickens...

Follow Up Friday: Truth in Chickens 
and Veggie Failure (maybe) (probably)



This afternoon I happened to visit our local Murdoch's which is the home of baby chicks and baby ducklings.
Of course I had to say hello to all the peep peeps and quack quacks.
And then I noticed something.

Rhode Island Red baby chicks are rust colored.

Bunny had New Hampshire Reds.

Wrong state.

They are related, the New Hampshire Reds were bred from Rhode Island stock.

But I hate that I misled everyone.

This is what Bunny's chickens will actually grow up to look like:

*

A little lighter in color than the Rhode Island Reds.

Glad I could clear that up.

Also….

It has been ten days since I planted my seeds for tomatoes and bell peppers. 

(No. 39: Grow a vegetable)

Maybe I should have listened to the nice man at Wal- Mart regarding planting days. 

Or followed the lunar cycle for planting seeds according to their Zodiac signs. (Huh?)

Or something.

Anyway, this is what the seedlings look like:

 Very nice pots of damp potting soil.

And nothing else. 

Yup.  Nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch.

Not even a hint of a seedling peeping out.

I think I need to go back to Kindergarten and try the lima bean trick.

You know- a jar, a paper towel and a lima bean. 

Certainly I could get THAT to sprout.

*

If a 6 year old can do this, certainly I can, too.

But I'm giving this batch a few more days. 

Maybe it has just been too cool.
Sure.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.


On the positive side, I am heading to Breckenridge for the day to see the Ice Castle.
That's not really on the original list but is part of my "explore the castles of Colorado" experience.

And I will be heading back to Texas for the girls' Spring Break and while there will take a side trip to New Orleans.  No. 21: Go to brunch  is on the schedule for that trip.

Everyone have a great weekend. That's my plan.

Adios Juan, Pablo. Goodbye, Steve and Franklin.

Adiós to the chicks.

True to her word (and probably a first in this household) Bunny sent the chicks on to a new home this evening.

They have been great fun and I have learned more about chickens than I ever thought I would know, but it was time.

Juan, Pablo, Franklin and Steve were almost to that lovely "chicken dinosaur" stage. They were definitely beyond cute hatchling stage.

Most of their feathers were coming in.  The cute fuzz was gone.

More scruffy than cute.

Typical pre-teens.

Carlos was probably the happiest to see them go. He has pretty much been banned from the upstairs while the chicks were in Bunny's room.

Noisy peep peeps. 

Good riddance.

Bunny has a friend at school whose family raises chickens.   They had just gotten their flock of babies and were happy to add our four to the group.

Franklin in the foreground checking out the new digs

while one of the resident chicks checks out Franklin.

This family also has full grown chickens and a lovely chicken coop.

Bunny's babies will be very happy.

The grown ups in the pen next door to the baby chick house.

And best of all this family was really happy to get four more chicks. 

In exchange they offered us a cat that had followed their boys home. 

We declined. 

Then they offered us some fresh eggs. 

Aren't these pretty?

We accepted.

Somehow I think we got the better end of the deal.

Now.   If I can just convince Belle we don't need ducklings.
Because ducklings are the next live thing on sale at the local feed store.
EEK!

Follow Up Friday…on a Saturday

Follow Up Friday … on a Saturday because I forgot to hit "publish"


Haven't done a Follow Up Friday in a while. Obviously it's been too long since I forgot to actually publish this one.

Anyhooo….

We are still in Colorado.
It occurred to me that I may not have actually addressed this point.   The plan was originally to come to Colorado for the fall semester of school.  (No. 20 Lite: Move)
Bunny and Belle had such great time and adjusted so well (State Champion Cheerleaders!) that they campaigned to stay through the end of the school year. 
Belle will graduate from Salida High School in May.  
I'm not sure they realized that the fall was the "lovely weather" time of year and by staying they signed on for  the "cold, snow, ice, more cold and lots of mud" time of year.   But Spring will come and in the meantime we are managing.

Speaking of Spring, the seeds got planted (No. 39) and I have been told by more than one person that growing tomatoes from seeds is not an easy task. We shall see.  
Here are the pots on the sunny (but not today) windowsill waiting to sprout. 

We still have chicks and they are trying to learn to fly.   
EEK!

Top to bottom: Juan, Steve, Franklin and Right: Pablo

Two of the chicks are Buff Orpingtons (Steve and Franklin) and two are Rhode Island Reds (Juan and Pablo).

*

Juan and Pablo will look like these 

Rhode Island Red HENS eventually.

From the beginning it was obvious that the Reds were going to be true to their breed as they have been a little bit bossier.  "Rhode Island Red chickens can be feisty and independent, and their seemingly endless curiosity can get them into trouble." That would explain why they occasionally peck at the Orpingtons and why when startled yesterday one of them FLEW to the top of the box they are in.   Apparently full grown chickens aren't much for flying but the youngsters can get quite good at it. I keep telling Bunny she is going to walk into her room one day soon and there will be four chickens pecking around her carpet and not in their box.

Steve on the left and Juan on the right.

Juan is a Rhode Island Red…note his darker feathers. 

*

This is a full grown Buff Orpington.

They get these lovely fluffy butts. 

Almost wish we could keep them that long.

Pablo (bottom) and Steve (top)

It's really hard to get baby chicks to sit still for photos.

The Buff Orpingtons are winter hardy (as are the Rhode Island Reds) and have sweet personalities (unlike the Reds).  The breed originated in Orpington, Kent, United Kingdom in the late 1800's which explains the silly name.    I love that they get fluffy butts when they are grown….pretty sure Bunny was not aware of that when she purchased them.

Anyway, the chicks are fun and we have enjoyed watching them.  I don't think Bunny will have any problem sending them on to their new home once they start to escape as she can't sleep in the same room with them now. They peep peep peep all night and she has nightmares that they are going to take over her/the house/ the world.  They should be gone by next week.

And…

I took care of my own little personal energy crisis by spending yesterday outside at the Hot Springs.

Mt. Princeton Hot Springs- we just plopped ourselves in the river.

Water temp is about 102º depending on where you sit. 

We have a new neighbor (No. 49: make a new friend) and her daughter was visiting so we all decamped to Mt. Princeton Hot Springs for an afternoon of sun and Vitamin D followed by a yummy dinner in town at The Fritz. 

I came home with a bit of a tan and very relaxed, ready to tackle the rest of winter. 

Happy weekend. 

No. 39: Grow a Vegetable

No. 39: Grow a Vegetable.

Ok. This one sounds easy enough.

I was looking through the list trying to find a challenge I could get started on.

Some are seasonal, some are specific to different locales, some require the opportunity to present itself.

But growing a vegetable just requires a window sill. At least for now.

Yep, this is what I'm going to grow.

At the local Wal Mart today I made the mistake of asking a nice gentleman when was a good time to plant things in this area.

Note to self: Next time you think about speaking to strangers, do a sniff test to see if you can discern the alcohol on their breath before you jump in with questions.

My adviser's lunch apparently.

I did manage to find someone knowledgable who did explain quite a bit about planting.
More than I really wanted to know, in fact.
I learned about Soil Block Makers and specifically how many of these delightful items this gentleman owned. And I learned about the 4" press that is coming in the mail next month to his house.  And I met his wife. And I learned what he was going to be planting. And that I should plant by the moon. (Moon phases, not moon light.)
And I deduced that he had maybe 2 or 12 beers for lunch before heading out to Wal Mart.

A soil blocker for seedlings. 

I do not have one.

Nor do I plan to get one.

But I have been schooled on what to do with one. 

Once I managed to escape his clutches informative monologue I skedaddled down to the seed aisle and buried my head deep into the seed packets.

Growing some of these, too.

On the next aisle over I heard the nice man giving an unsuspecting couple a long winded oration over Diatomaceous earth. Lucky them.

Anyway, I picked up some seed packets for tomatoes and peppers. Certainly these are veggies I can handle.

Cross your fingers.

They need to be started indoors for six to eight weeks before they can go outside.

Rather than make my own soil blocks I went with Wal Mart's Seed Starter kit and some starting soil.
Sorry, sir, your speech was inspiring but I'm just not that into this project yet.
Baby steps.

Let's see how I do….

………….and………...

If you read last week's post, then you know we have baby chicks.

I am happy to report they are all four still alive and growing. 

Carlos is still afraid of them.

Proof:

Franklin, Juan, Pablo, and Steve.

I did not name them.

And they are supposed to be all girls. 

This really is turning into Green Acres.
(Some of our other Green Acres moments here and here.)

NOT ON THE LIST.

Nope, this one was NOT on the list.

I double checked twice.
There is absolutely no mention of  No. 62: Raise baby chicks.
None.
(Click here for the real list.)

Peep peep peep.

There is a mention of entering something into the county fair.  That's No. 41.  But I really had jalapeño jelly in mind. Or maybe a quilt. Not laying hens. 

A quilt with Baby Clara wrapped inside: Yes.

Chickens: No.

And No. 39 is Grow a vegetable from scratch.
Not Grow a chicken from scratch.

But yesterday Bunny came home late from school with a big bucket, a waterer, a warming lamp, feed, fluff and not one but FOUR baby chicks.
Four of them.

Adorable. Peep.

Peep peep peep.

They are adorable.
They are upstairs in Bunny's room.
They are not my responsibility.
I keep repeating that to myself.

Adorable. Peep peep.

Peep peep peep.

There is some precedent for chicks in the house, I hate to say.
When I was little my brothers and I got baby chicks at Easter.
One of the chicks got eaten by the dog next door.
One followed my mother into the garage and she shut the door, not realizing he was behind her.
But mine….mine grew up!
And he was a rooster.
A rooster that crowed every morning on the backyard fence.
This was in Alamo Heights in San Antonio.
Not out in the country.
After the neighbors complained my father found "Chickie" a new home at the "chicken farm".
For a solid year after that ( maybe longer) my brothers delighted in exclaiming "O! It's Chickie" every time we had chicken for dinner.
Talk about traumatic.

Peep peep peep.

Anyway, there are chicks in the house.
Bunny assures me that she has some friends that will take them when they get to be teenagers.
She just wanted to enjoy the baby stage.
(Isn't that how everyone ends up with babies???)

Adorable.

And I'm trying to keep a sense of humor.
While I traumatize her.

Peep peep peep.