Pretty soon...

We will have eggs.  I might need to bronze the first one because it will be worth more than an egg should be.  For now though, we are just waiting.
In 5 short months... these girls

have turned into this...

Penny

Eleanor

Yoko

I am amazed at how fast they have grown and how their personalities have really come through.  There is definately a pecking order and they make sure everyone abides by it.   The new little ones have fit in quite well and they have even challenged the older ones some.  I cannot believe they have been here a whole month already.  Here is their debut..

Martha

Maggie

I really enjoy sitting outside with them in the evenings, having a cup of coffee and watching them interact with each other.  Since I work most evenings, I usually only do this on the weekends but I look forward to it each night I am off.  Brent and the kids are having fun catching grasshoppers and throwing it to them, they love scraps and greet all of us when we go to their pen.  I like to think they are saying hello, when in reality they just want to be fed.

I knew the time would come, but this morning after my run, Brent noticed Willow had roosted on the top of her pen.  I know I will need to clip her wings soon.  Her breed is a flighty one and one of the better flying chickens and I knew this when I got her.  I just hope clipping her wings will deter her from escaping.

Willow

Chestnut

I really had no idea how fun the chicken would be when I got them and they really aren't a whole lot of work.  I love all of their personalities and how different they are from each other.  It's pretty funny but at night when its time to go roost, they have to go up in a certain order.  If any of the 4 little ones try to go inside first, Yoko will go inside and kick them out, then she lets Eleanor and Penny in.  Next the middle 2 little ones will go in and lastly the newest 2.  The three older ones use the roost at night while the others huddle on the floor.  I'm sure there is enough for them all to roost I just don't think they allow the little ones up there.  I wish I had room for another roost but the coop isn't large enough.

For now to try and persuade them to lay their eggs in the nest we have put golf balls in the nesting boxes.  I check them every day.  I feel it will be Penny or Eleanor first since the are the reddest and most mature.  I really can't wait for the first egg!

 

Quick check-in

Today was my weigh in and I wasn't really nervous.  In fact it isn't something I dread even when I know I might have water gain or what-not. Anyways, heres the "skinny"  I have officially lost 20 lbs!  I hit my second goal that I made for myself.  I was really excited.  Another great thing is a co-worker of mine (actually a support manager) asked me last week if I had lost some weight.  It put me on cloud nine!  This person had no idea I was attempting to lose weight as it is something I don't really discuss with anyone.  When I first began blogging about weight loss I had mentioned how this was my journey and I was going to keep it away from the social media and my work peers.  I continue to feel that way and would rather relish in all the compliments that will hopefully start coming my way.

I don't really think I look much thinner.  I mean 20 lbs is a lot, but really on my frame and my size, it isnt't going to be as noticible as it would be on a thinner person.  BUT, I can say that my clothes are looser.  When I bought clothes for our 4th of July vacation, I had bought many shirts a size smaller and my pants that were starting to get snug, now can be yanked down without being unbuttoned. I haven't really lost a pant size yet, but the ones I was wearing before were obviously too tight.

I am very proud of myself.  I have been able to make good choices and if I want to have something I have it.  I just control my portions.  Losing weight is such a hard thing to do but it is such a simple concept really. Eat less, move more and you will lose weight.  I think about how losing 20 lbs is only 1/4 th of what I want to lose, and that its taken me 78 days to lose it but I am happy, and I know that it is much more than losing weight, Its about becoming stronger and gaining confidence I didn't have before.

Worth the risk

Last year, after watching Food, Inc.  I had blogged about purchasing a CSA from a local farm.  Well that didn't really pan out like I had anticipated.  It was a new farm, they had just opened up their shares to the public and I was not that impressed.  At the time it was hectic, we were moving and the drive to Boise was a little too long and we eventually stopped picking up our share.  Unfortunately we had already invested too much money into it, so we suffered a monetary loss.

This spring I approached Brent about buying another CSA share.  He was very hesitant and even said it was a bad idea based on the previous years experience.  We are approximately 6 weeks into the "season" and I am not regretting the risk we took.  I did my research and after reading testimonials and corresponding to some local farmers, I picked Spyglass Gardens as the farm we wanted to purchase from. 

In May, they had an open house so the members could go check out exactly where their produce was going to come from.  It was a lovely farm and Steve and Wendy were so friendly and inviting as we visited their property.  The diversity of produce they were growing and the practices they withheld were impressive and I was convinced we had made the right decision.  Since we didn't want to risk too much, we decided to only purchase a half share this time.  It was a trial run.  Still a sizeable upfront expense, it has proven to be a wise one.

So far we have recieved more than enough produce to feed our family, even at half a share.  Among the things we have recieved are: scallions, lettuce, spinach, beets, radishes, carrots, basil, cherries (every week), bok choy, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower, apricots, and cabbage.  Also we have recieved a basil plant, chive plant, and cilantro plant.  And to think, we aren't even a thrid of the way into the season!

When we visited the farm in May, we also bought a rhubarb plant.  This has quadrupled in size already and Brent decided he wanted another one.  I simply emailed Wendy and asked her to bring us another and sure enough with our delivery she brought us another plant.  They also have given us notifications that they work with other farmers that grow spray-free and organic produce so they can provide a more diverse variety of items to their customers.  So last week it was announced that raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries would be available by the flat, so I also ordered a flat of Raspberries.

When Wendy brought us our delivery, she informed that our berries were picked that morning so they couldn't be any more fresh.  I just don't think you can beat that for service or quality.  I now have 2 fully packed gallon bags of frozen raspberries in the freezer to last all year. 

I am so happy that we took the risk after a bad experience and purchased a share at Spyglass.  I look forward to every Wednesday and the surprises that each bag holds.   I never knew my kids love radishes, they ask for salad, and enjoy the fruit we recieve each week.  I can forsee this becoming something I will continue to do each and every year and who knows, maybe one day we will splurge on a whole share.

A little lesson in Chicken Math

So these little biddies have caused a bit of drama.  Theres a thing called chicken math in the poultry world that occurs when one becomes an owner of a chicken.. it goes a little like this..

See a chick, buy 1, but can't have one because they are a flock animal, so grab 3 more.  One dies, replace with 2.  These were from the straight run bin so 3 of the 5 are roosters.  No roosters allowed, so the three go, replace with 2 more per roo.  Now we have 8.  Coon gets in, kills a chicken.  Replace with 2 Bantam (mini) chickens because 2 Bantams=1 standard sized chicken.  Coop becomes too small for 9 chickens.  Coop addition is 3 times as big so that means.. 3 times the chickens........

See where Im going with this???

Chicken Math at our house goes like this:
He said 3, I said 5, bought 4. Wanted a fancy chicken so bought one more.  One chicken was not what it was supposed to be so it was gone, and to replace it I got 2 more.  Another turned to be a roo and off the the farm he went as well.  Stop in to look at some chicks, and, well we got rid of 2, need 2 more.  so now we are at 7 once again (unless anyone asks and then we only have 3..shhhh).

Yep, Lucy the Roo had to go to the farm, he was a little too manly to stay around here.  His crow would give him away.  Brent has a wonderful bartering technique called.."sure! go ahead and get more!" all with the sinister tone in the background, knowing fully that I cannot say a peep when its his turn to aquire something.  It all evens out in the end.

So on the way home from vacation, we stopped and picked up 2 more hens.  These are a little smaller and younger than the ones we have already and I knew there might be some problems.  And problems there were.  After I let the girls out of the coop this morning everyone looked great.  Bridget checked on them and came in saying she thought the little one was dead.  I rush out there and sure enough.. her head was all bloodied, but she was walking around when I got to her and I could tell it was an ugly situation.

I isolated her and seeked information on the great www and doctored her up quickly.  After giving her food and water she perked up a lot and I felt hopeful she would make it.  I set up the playpen and brought her friend in to be with her and she was a lot more content and her head was looking so much better by late afternoon.  Poor thing had gotten pecked so hard they pulled feathers out and pierced a hole in her head and pecked at her earlobe.

Tonight, after work I moved her and sister to the dog kennel outside as it is so hot and they dont tolerate heat too well.  It was much better outside where there was at least a breeze. So I think our chicken little is going to make it.  Once she heals up I will integrate them back into the flock.  As for now.. a fence is in the planning phase.  The girls are going to need more space so more space is what they are going to get.  I am at terms with the fact that we have more than enough chickens now.  I think the Chicken Math will stop here.

Thinner Thursday!

Well, it was weigh in time again.  I like to weigh on the same scale and since we were out of town I missed my Monday weigh-in so I did it Wednesday morning instead.  I would be lying if I said I was excited.  In fact, I almost didn't do it til next Monday so I would be more likely to see a loss.

We had been up in Whitebird/Grangeville since Saturday and had eaten our share of Lions burgers, Long Dogs, Rhubarb crisp (homemade by moi), tamales, pizza (twice) and salt water taffy, so I was a bit nervous.  On Sunday I decided to go for a walk and ended up doing more like a hike.  But it was great.  I managed to work in some exercise and get away from the craziness that comes with 5 kids being out of their normal territory for a few days.

So it was the moment of truth and I stepped up on the scale and lo and behold, Miracles do happen.  I managed to lose weight on vacation.  In fact, I met my goal I had set for myself to be at a certain weight by July 4th.  I have officially lost 16.2 lbs.  I am lighter now than I have been in 5 years when Gavin was born. 

I thought back to how I ate this weekend and really I made some good choices.  I passed up a hamburger late one night after the rodeo, and a Soft Pretzel.  We passed up the Strawberry Shortcake tent, and when I was hungry, I snacked on almonds or fruit.  I drank most of my water each day and have continued to survive on my 2 small cups of coffee also.  It would be safe to say that before I was drinking the equalivant of 5-6 cups of coffee, with tons of sugar and cream.  So to say its a diet is not true, this is a lifestyle change.  Im in it for the long haul and feel like this will be the real deal.  I hit 60 days following Myfitnesspal and intend on logging in every day to remind myself to be accountible. 

Who said you have to eat tofu and lettuce to lose weight?  Its all about moderation.