At least, that's what I think they are since my little miss gotta-touch-everything messed with my seed starting greenhouse (aka: plastic tray with clear lid). Oh well, it's all a learning process. I suppose I might be more upset if I had spent 2 or 3 dollars a plant vs. 2 or 3 dollars for a pack of 100 seeds. Of course this is my first year starting from seeds so we'll have to see how that goes anyway.
On another note the chickens are growing but the ducks are growing FASTER! Holy cow are they big!!
I think I may need to separate them soon! And the bigger they get the more mess they make. Right before I took this picture the duck took a 'squat'. Luckily you can't see it. Lol I have the 5 chickens and 3 ducks in one 45 gallon tupperware with a feeder and HUGE water container. I have to change that thing twice a day and probably could do with 3 times a day. We are constantly changing the water to make sure they have clean fresh water to drink. Its funny, every time we take it out to change and bring it back they act like they're dying of thirst! I wouldn't change any of this for the world (tho I really think hubby is tired of the smell); I think it's been a great learning experience for the kids AND me. We really have to get out and get our chicken/duck coop built soon. Now if the weather would cooperate juuuust a little.
Here's a picture of our largest chicken: Lilly (a Buff Orpington) and our smallest chicken Little Red (cause she's a Rode Island Red).
Besides that things have been busy and crazy. What is it about death that brings out the best in some people and the worst in others. I won't bore...or shock you with the details but sufficed to say it's been one craaaazy couple of weeks around here. I am lucky... very lucky to have gained some new family in this experience. Great people I should have been blessed with a long time ago if I hadn't been fooled into believing lies. It's a lesson learned.
On a lighter note my wonderful hubby blessed me with two 6' by 3' raised garden beds. I want about 10 dozen more, but it's a start. Actually I'd love 2 more but I won't complain. I know he's got to build the chicken house; and for that I'm extremely grateful. We are thinking about tilling up part of the front yard to plant a bunch of potatoes and corn. I went crazy with the seed catalog and bought about 5 different varieties of corn.
Red strawberry corn:
Blue Hopi:
Butchers Blood Corn:
We also got a traditional yellow corn and a Japanese hulless corn which is also yellow. There is lots more than that of course. I actually got like 5 or 6 varieties of tomatoes and of cucumber. Several different lettuces. Just a huge variety. I even ended up with asparagus - which I'm not real keen to try yet. According to directions it takes 3 years of tending them in pots in a green house and you can't harvest any of it but a few in the third year. We've now committed to staying in this rental property we're in for another year, but who knows after that.
We've put up a couple of things, but it doesn't seem like much. That's probably typical for mid/late winter. I'm sure I'm going to crazy busy with putting stuff up come summer. My hubby did add another rifle to his collection. A Mosin Nagant circa 1942. He picked out a nice dark wood one. Not one of the more collectable ones, but it's nice none the less.
It came with these leather ammo pouches and a spike bayonet. Pretty good deal from our local sports store of all places. I guess they're still finding large warehouses of WWII guns and such overseas. Weird if you ask me. How can you just misplace a couple million rifles. I guess the government has such excess it doesn't really need to keep track of such things. Kind of like when at the end of WWII they just crated up unassembled jeeps and WLA Harley's and left them in shipping containers cause we had produced so many.
We had a 4H meeting this last Sunday, but I didn't think to take any pictures. My oldest daughter has decided she doesn't want to show a rabbit but enter her instead in a Agility course. The little rabbits run up and down a little course. So far our little Netherland Dwarf is too scared to run (or hop) up and down the course. I think we started her a bit late with the harness. Maybe lots of work will bring her around. Maybe this year we'll just we watching in the 4H Fair competition instead of participating. I guess we'll have to wait and see.
Our California doe is almost old enough to breed with our buck. More to come on that. And pictures too. ~OF the BABIES~ =)
Have a good week all. Keep the sunscreen and snow boots handy.
God Bless~
