The end of an era

 Hetty, our remaining chicken became ill yesterday morning.  By yesterday evening she had passed away.  Not sure what exactly was wrong with her, possibly perotinitis, possibly sour crop, possibly coccidiosis.  She went downhill so fast that I was truly shocked at her death.  The day before I had made a mental note to myself that her wings needed clipping as they were looking full again as she was stretching them out.  She had come running out the hen house like a horse at the starting gate of a race, I had been about 20 minutes late in letting her out and she was raring to go!!  How she is no longer with us is just difficult to fathom. 

 Hetty was such a character.  Whilst the others would follow you around the garden, Hetty would make for the back door, knowing that if it were open there would be scraps on the kitchen floor for the picking.  The time she investigated the rest of the downstairs and got flustered when I tried to shoo her out of the lounge!  She was an escape artist extraordinaire, standing on the top of the eglu, jumping up and launching herself over the netting that was our attempt at keeping the chickens in one part of the garden (seeing a chicken flying up the garden at head height is quite a sight!!).  She always had a bit of a wild look about her, feisty I think the word is!  She was never happy being handled, and could give quite a vicious peck!  In later years, her and Betty were inseperable, she is now laying at rest next to Betty at the bottom of the garden, in their favourite dust bathing spot.

 We have decided to not have any more chickens for now, they need more space than we can happily give them (if we are wanting to use the garden too), but I have truly loved having them in the garden the last 3 years.  I have loved knowing which chicken has given us the egg we are about to eat; I have loved being greeted when I open the back door; I have loved their eagerness when they see the saucepan, knowing there would be porridge; I have loved looking out of the kitchen window and watching their antics (I didn't realise how much I did this until today when I kept catching myself gazing out the window looking for chickens).  An end of an era indeed, a journey I have enjoyed, and hope to repeat again at some point, but not right now.  Rest in Peace Hetty (and Betty and Little).  xxx

Ice

 It has turned cold, eventually!  We've had three days now of hoar frost building up on hoar frost, so it is in places looking a touch like snow.  But what really stirred my curiosity was when going to defrost Hetty's water every morning.  Last year, when we had all that really cold weather the water would be nearly frozen solid, with only the core being liquid,  This year we have little slivers of ice, but they go right through the water container, so it looks web like when you drain the water out. 

So it got me thinking, what is that is different?  Wikipaedia was useless, it just confused me even further!  But guess who came up with a theory?  Luke!  Apparently, the best ice cream is made by rapid freezing, making small ice crystals, but if it is cooled over a longer period then you get larger crystals.  So the theory as it stands now is that last year when it was sooooo cold, really small crystals formed quickly and it became clear solid ice.  This year, with it not quite so cold (but cold enough!) the crystals are growing at a slower rate, making these large slivers. 

Who knew that emptying the chickens water could be so interesting?!

Betty

 Betty slipped away very peacefully last night, despite syringe feeds and antibiotics, whatever was wrong with her was too much.  She was always a seemingly weak chicken, with us not sure whether she would make it through the first few days with us three years ago.  Where we got the chickens from offered to have her back from us and give us a replacement, but she had already found a place in our hearts, and we gave her a chance with us.  For that first year she was blighted with sterile egg peritonitis, so she tended to have two weeks laying, then two weeks off whilst looking sorry for herself.  But things settled down for her, and she would follow me around the garden making these lovely chirruping noises.  She was a shy bird, and never far away from Hetty, they were inseperable. 

 Hetty would lead her into mischief, such as this adventure into the kitchen!  Betty gave us our first egg, and I can remember one time when she had been unwell, and then started laying again, she came strutting out the henhouse throwing bits of straw over her back as if in celebration. 

She is now resting in her favourite dustbathing spot at the bottom of the garden.  Hetty is lost without her, and I've resorted to sitting in the garden to keep her company, as she was getting really agitated earlier.  We will now have to look at rehoming Hetty, she needs to share her life with feathered friends, and we have decided that we will not be getting any more chickens, for the foreseeable future.

Rest in peace Betty.  I hold some very fond memories of you. xx

The New Year

We welcomed in the new year with a new game. Talisman.  Such an excellent game that we missed the moment of midnight, as it was so engrossing!

New Years Day saw us without any transport, as the car tax for the big car had run out, Stuart's Mazda is still sat on the driveway looking very sorry for itself, and the courtesy car is too small for us all to fit in!  So we walked into town to go to the cinema to see "Puss in Boots".  Excellent film, and great to get out of the house and some exercise.  On our way home the heavens opened, we did all have coats, but it wasn't enough to protect us.  Fortunately the weather was mild, so it wasn't too much of a problem, in fact Luke and Ethan embraced their wetness and just had loads of fun!

I can't vouch for anyone else, but my plans for 2012 revolve around being organised.  This does not come naturally to me, and I seem to be stumbling at the first step (eg people running out of clothes as had run out of washing powder, and the shop that was in walking distance only sold bio, which was no good, as some of us have sensitive skin.)  But I am trying, and I am hoping this will extend to the allotment too, with me aiming to get down there at least once a week (yes, I have been "that" bad at getting down there recently, probably pushing a couple of months since my last visit!!)  My organisational skills will have an extra test from tomorrow, as the courtesy car goes back, so Stuart will need the Chrysler for work, leaving me carless for the foreseeable future.  Haven't quite sussed doing a weekly shop for 7 of us on foot yet, but I'm sure there is a way, failing that it will be having to face the shops on a weekend with the rest of the masses!!

Other news, our beloved Betty (chicken) is very poorly.  Being syringe fed, and very weak.  I guess only time will tell, but we are trying our best for her.  And Hetty seems very lost in the backgarden all by herself.  We have had the chickens three years today. 

Hoping everyone is getting into the swing of the new year now.

Not good weather for chickens!

Well, when I awoke this morning there was a light covering of snow, and it was still snowing. It continued to snow all day, leaving us with at least 8 inches by nightfall, when it eventually stopped. I felt so sorry for the chickens, sheltering under the trampoline all day. I threw some food under there, and set up a bowl of water for them. But they did look sorry for themselves. I then had to clear a path back to the eglu as the snow was past their bellies, and even then Betty had to be enticed by raisins the whole way! Stuart got his Christmas present a little early, he was looking everywhere for a hat, and I knew exactly where there was one, the one I knitted for him, to be just like the one I made Ethan last Christmas!

A bit of sledging was had on the sledge I got for Christmas.... oooh.... about 30 years ago!

Followed by a spot of dancing to some Christmas songs from an album Stuart had as a child. In fact, at lunch time, we were sat eating, listening to "Rudolph the red nosed reindeer", when simultaneously Alec and Ethan shouted out "Ho, Ho, Ho" at the appropriate part! It all felt very Christmas-sy and nostalgic.

Wet!

Wetness has definitely been a theme of late. Firstly, the tumble-drier packed up, so I am seeing how we can manage as a family of six, with one in cloth nappies (bamboo of all kinds whic take an age to dry!) without a tumble drier. The weather is not helping (very inconsiderate!), and at this time of year we get no sun in the back garden, so even line drying on a good day is not very effective. I am perservering for now, but I'm not sure I can last all winter like this!!

Sophie spent a bit of her birthday money on a bargain yesterday. A water table, which has kept her occupied all afternoon. An added bonus is that kitchen floor has never been so clean, but I think we are down to our last dry tea towel!! The chickens were looking decidely sorry for themselves. I gave them the run of the garden today (they are confined to the bottom of the garden usually now, so that the rest of the garden can recover!), but they spent most of their time under the shelter of the trampoline.

I do think Hetty (the one at the front) has a certain psychotic look about her when she is wet!

And the dahlias needed rescuing from the front garden, as some had their stems broken off with the force of the rain. Not that I am upset, I can now admire their beauty inside and close up. Does anyone remember how people used to sell Chrysanthemums in buckets outside their house? I haven't seen someone doing that for years. I think I will just have to grow some next year, and I might just get myself a bucket too!

What a difference a day makes!

The chickens are back to normal, with us not having to throw away the eggs.

I have my eye on this patch of lush green nettles (about the only thing the chickens won't devour in the garden!) for nettle soup.

My long awaited parsnip seeds have germinated (I nearly threw them out, thinking I had another thing to add to my list of veggies that won't grow for me, as Mum has always germinated the parsips in the past!)

A choc-abloc mini greenhouse.

Rhubarb in a nappy bucket!

And yet more sowings, all done by Ethan and Alec, of sweetcorn, pumpkin, courgette, leeks, sunflowers, and purple sprouting.

I could get used to this sun and warmth, I hope it stays around for a while. Even though we were housebound today (due to the front door being stubborn, and not closing!) the sun lifted our spirits no-end, as well as getting our hands in the earth. Making us feel as high as a soaring bird, but grounded, all at the same time.

One step forwards, two steps back

After having had a successful weekend in sorting out more "stuff" either redistributing it into relevant rooms, or getting rid of it, and the fluttering of feelings that it really is possible for us to have an ordered house, rather than boxes of things, long forgotten about, sitting around the place. We then got hit by more bugs!

Luke had to come home from school early on Monday. By the evening I was feeling ill, and then by Tuesday morning Stuart had to come from work, soon after arriving there! So any good work was soon undone by nobody feeling up to doing anything, and it's amazing how quickly mess accumulates again! To top it off Sophie seems to have a perpetual snotty nose at the moment, turning her cheeks bright red. So Sophie is trying a dairy free diet, and hopefully it will make some difference. Luke was off school all week, but did muster the strength to take his grade 2 drum exam.

Fortunately, Friday everyone was feeling well, which is a good job, as it was Ethan's 6th birthday. More about that later.

The general feeling though at the moment is rather depressed, as Stuart and I feel so run down at the moment, a kind of apathy has set in.

Oh, and to top it all off, the chickens gave me a scare on Tuesday, after I found them picking over the carcass of a rat. My worry was that if the rat had been poisoned, that they too would succomb. And after speaking to the vet who gave me rather in depth details of how they would die depending on the poison used, I dreaded letting them out the following morning. If they had been poisoned, they would have been dead within 24 hours, it really made you think though about how actions have ripples beyond the intended action. And whilst I never would use anything like poisons, there are many other aspects of our lives where the intended action has far reaching consequences, from how we speak to each other, to the foods we eat.

So with such a realisation, I am going to try and look at things more positively, and pull myself, and the rest of us out of this sickly rutt we have found ourselves in. Sophie has loved having someone to share her passion of books with, with somebody always sitting around feeling sorry for themselves! I have started knitting a cardigan for Sophie with some wool given me by a friend. Ethan was invested at Beavers this week, and was very proud of himself. Luke is feeling confident about the results of his drum exam. And we have 2 weeks to live as fast or as slow as our bodies need. Onwards and upwards!

Feeling a bit flat

Don't now what it is, probably a combination of alot of things. The children have reluctantly returned to school after half term, each with an ailment of some kind. So there has not been as much stuff to do, other than consoling them, and then mediating between the lot of them as they are so cranky at the moment.

The garden is looking awful with the combination of meltwater, chickens and mud. The grass is pretty non-existant now, and whilst I love the chickens dearly, I wish they weren't so destructive. Some fencing may well be in order once I don't slide down the garden in mud! We also still have our resident rat, who is showing no interest whatsoever in the humane rat trap!

The allotment has been out-of-bounds due to the ground either being frozen, or bog like.

Sophie is completely off her food again, how I wish I had a child that enjoyed food. She will not even attempt to eat anything, spits it out and wants a breastfeed. You would have thought out of four children, I would get one that enjoyed food, perhaps it's my cooking! I see pictures of toddlers with food all around their mouths, obviously enjoying themselves, and then there is my lot, who either eat ridiculously fast, so they can get on with what they were doing; push food around their plate and take hours; or just climb down from the table without attempting to eat anything!

And to top it all off. It is Fairtrade Fortnight at the moment, and I can't be bothered to organise anything, how crap am I!

The only thing I am proud of is I cleaned the fish out! So now they can see out, and we can see in. They look alot happier!

I am in desperate need of spring. PLEASE HURRY UP!

What do you do...?

...when you can't get out the house for a week due to the snow? Well, the snow hasn't been that bad, but it is just completely impossible to manage Sophie in the snow, she's too small to walk any distance without getting frozen, I daren't risk the sling, and the pushchair is a non-starter.

The boys have had time off school, and not much of it has been spent in the snow, rather they have been playing with friends in the warm, building things, playing with Christmas presents, and helping strip the wall paper from what will eventually be Sophie's room.

We have decided she needs her own space for her things, and a bed (whether she sleeps in it is yet to be seen, but the option will be there for her). So currently we have a landing full of boxes, book cases, and stuff. We have stripped paint and paper walked all over the house (I've got to the point of wondering whether it is better to just have one massive clear up once the stripping has finished!) Sophie has really enjoyed it too, although I'm glad we are going to paint her walls rather than paper them, as she has developed a liking of stripping wall-paper!

There is something very satisfying about stripping wall-paper, alone with your thoughts, or chatting away to Stuart as we work as a team. Reminiscent of pre-child days, and working on projects together.

I have been feeling very sorry for the chickens in this weather, they have a treat of warm food in the afternoon, and I have been having to break their water every couple of hours on the coldest of days. As soon as the back door is open, they are in. They must be so cold, walking through all that snow. By the way, we have had them for a whole year now, and what a joy they have been. A lovely introduction to keeping your own livestock.

Talking of birds, we have also made some fat/seed feeders for the wild birds. We had some half coconut shells, and some left over bird seed, so mixed with some lard, we have filled the coconuts and left them hanging in some of the trees in the garden.

I must admit though, I am looking forward to a thaw now, and things warming up so I can start some seed sowing in the next month or so.

Rats!

I guess it was bound to happen, what with chickens and an active compost bin. It seems we have some additional garden dwellers at the moment. I noticed something was digging into the bottom of the compost bin, and had in fact tunnelled all the way through it to make a sleeping quarters at the top. I guess it must be rather nice in there for a rat. The warmth of the compost, straw and food being added regularly, and away from the elements.

We were happy to just let it be for the winter, although I was removing the lid of our dalek bin with great trepidation of late, just in case our resident was snoozing! He was doing me a favour too, mixing up the compost, and shovelling out the really well rotted stuff I just coudn't get to through that piddly little hatch of a door at the base of the bin. The chickens were enjoying a bit of a treat too, rummaging through the compost for grubs etc. However, ratty has decided to explore under the hen house now too, and I don't want him (it could be a "her" I haven't investigated that closely!) to interfere with the chickens. So I'm now in search of a humane rat trap, to relocate Mr Ratty to a more suitable place. Although I'm sure he thinks here is quite suitable enough!

There was a fleeting moment where I thought this would be a good excuse to get a cat again, but I know I would be way too anxious having a cat again, where we are. My heart can't take any more losses to that road. Besides, relocating Mr Rat is a far better option, if only I can catch him!

Eurgh!

This week has pretty much been a right-off. Sophie's cough has developed into a chest infection, and after a slight recovery on Wednesday I decided not to give her the antibiotics prescribed by the doctor. However, she is now struggling so decided that breastmilk and cuddles is not enough and she is now on the antibiotics, much to her disgust!!

Ethan has been fighting some bug that gave him a temperature and some sickness. Alec has a tummy upset, and Stuart has had blocked ears!

Luke was rather upset at being the only one going to school, but at least he is healthy for now, if a little exhausted! He went to see Muse with Stuart on Tuesday, which kept him on a high for Wednesday despite the return home at midnight, but he definitely crashed and burned on Thursday!

I've heard alot about juicing recently, and years ago bought a book with various juicing recipes in. This has been brought out again this week in an attempt to stave off the inevitable illnesses, I haven't even offered the children any, as I'm pretty sure they wouldn't go for pepper and onion etc. If anyone has any child friendly immune boosting juice recipes I'd be grateful to hear of them!

I have been trying to sort everyone out and do a few things for myself too. I have finished off the longies for Sophie for Christmas, I just have to tie-dye them now. Doing some little knitted projects as and when I can, and trying to get my head around patterns etc for a big sewing session! Also managed to use some more of the cooking apples up to make 8 jars of apple chutney, in the slow cooker of all things!

However, due to Sophie being ill, she is wanting to be carried much more, and I have really noticed the effect on my pelvis following the SPD during my pregnancy. I guess it will always be a weakness, I just hope, as she is getting bigger now, I can carry on wearing her without too many repercussions.

The chickens are not laying regularly now, I guess with the awful light we have had, so we may get to a point soon where I have to buy eggs! And the poor allotment has not had a look in!

Some introductions

Now that I can do pictures, I thought I should introduce you to a few things and people.

Luke

Alec

Ethan

Sophie

Hetty - our top hen, and most prolific layer

Little is in the background, our friendliest chicken

Betty was being a little shy!

And this is the view of the allotment from my favourite breastfeeding post, sat on top of some pallets!

A good week

What a week! Glorious weather, the boys now have a healthy glow about them after looking so pale for all of winter. Alec has had a school trip to a local farm, which he enjoyed, but I think he would have preferred there to be some animals there. Ethan and Luke were a bit reluctant to return to school, with Luke even suggesting home-schooling. However, a week into it, and they all seem to have enjoyed themselves. We had a trip to a toy shop yesterday as the boys had some money to spend. It was a credit to them that they didn't fall for all the horrid cheap plasticky stuff, and even though they what they did buy was still plastic (lego, and nerf guns) they have not stopped playing with them, to the point that at 11 o'clock last night I had to ask them to go to bed, as I was tired, and they were up at 6.30am to continue playing with them!!

Sophie has achieved things herself this week. She has her first tooth, is now crawling properly, rather than a combination of bunny hops and combat crawling, and she was in the newspaper with her woolly knickers (as Stuart likes to call them) helping to promote real nappy week!

Well, what have I done this week, with the house back to myself (and Sophie, of course!)? I've been down the allotment of course! I alwas find this time of year a bit awkward, as I am torn between being outside, or continue being inside doing all the jobs needed to keep us just about ticking over!

It has to be a strategic visit, timed around Sophie's sleeps, as she doesn't like me bending over whilst she is in the sling, even when on my back, and there aren't that many jobs to be done down on the plot at the moment that can be done stood upright all the time. This week we have finished the raised bed, and planted the carrots (Autumn King), but no space left for my purple carrots :( . We have dug over some of the bottom plot which had been undercover for the last year, after being rotovated last spring and it was clear of everything, so in went the maincrop potatoes (Desiree). We have pruned out bits of "big bud" on the blackcurrant bushes, which are looking like they will provide a bumper crop, despite not being pruned last year...mmm.. more blackcurrant sorbet! We have planted the peas (although I can't remember what type!), and manured trenches for the runner beans. Finally we had our last bonfire before the growing season really starts. There are many more things that need to be done, and I'm not sure I want to list them all, as I would find it rather depressing, but needless to say I am feeling very optimistic about this season, as it is feasible that we could stay on top of it all, and get some good stuff out of it this year. By the way, if anyone wants some purple sprouting, I have plenty of seedlings!!!

To top off the feelings of self-sufficiency, Hetty laid the most enormous egg, it is at least a double yoker, and nearly fills my hand! And I'm hoping Betty will start laying again soon, after a broody spell. Although looking at her earlier, in the rain, she was throwing straw over her back, which was very comical, looking as if she was either attempting to camoflague herself, or protect herself from the rain!!

Much making, socialising, and nursing

I seem to have gone into creative overdrive at the moment. Much to the boys delight, and to be honest, my surprise. I bought a Jean Greenhowe book with animal patterns in, so made a mummy duck to go with my chick made by Michelle. Apparently now I have to make a daddy duck too! In now feel a little more confident in my knitting skills now, so my next thing (after the daddy duck) is this.

Quite a while ago I saw some fabric in a charity shop, which I just had to buy. It has already made a new peg bag, Ethan's book bag and PE bag for school, and is now providing Sophie with a dress. It is very nearly done now, and as my first attempt at making clothes, I can honestly say I am rather impressed with myself. I will post a picture of the finished item hopefully in a couple of days.

Finally, to go with my handmade pledge, I have made some beanbags for a lads birthday tomorrow. 4 bean bags of different colours and shapes, filled with split yellow peas, and a felt letter blanket stitched to each one, spelling out his name. Now I hope it will be well received, as I get the impression he is more into plastic figures etc, but my lot certainly seem to like them! I may well make a stock pile of beanbags, and then all I have to do is the letters for when a childs birthday comes up!

Ethan, bless him, has had an ear infection all this last week. Whilst he is no longer in pain, it has left him rather deaf, which is very frustrating for us, and he seems to be shouting all the time, just so he is heard in his own head. Note to self, remember to tell his teacher he can't hear at the moment! Sophie has also been fighting off a cold, along with teething, so it has been rather difficult to get much done (apart from the crafty bits!)

For Fairtrade fortnight I had a rather successful coffee morning at home. I had handed out lots of invites, and many people turned up, which was wonderful, as some had not been to one of my coffee mornings before. I love promoting fairtrade, and I'm getting some regular orders too now, which is fantastic, as it means people are thinking about what they buy regularly, not just on a whim.

This last week I was due to meet with some GP mums. Unfortunately many were unable to make it, but I did get to meet the lovely Sarah, and her little daughter (with the most fantastic squeaky shoes!) It is very inspiring to meet with people who have similar ideals, and just talk, and talk. I feel as if we could have talked all day, but time was against us. I think we will be meeting up again soon, hopefully with a few more people.

Last but not least, the chooks... We are now getting three eggs a day from our little ladies. And in the space of a week we have had one double yoker, and one teeny egg. The double yoker got eaten, but the little one is going to be blown, decorated and added to the season table. Betty seems fully recovered from another bout of some infection,and hopefully that will be it, as she is proving a very expensive chicken!

When I come to write all this down, it make me realise how much has been going on recently. Fortunately it's all pretty much good at the moment, and I count my blessings for this.

Catching up

My goodness, where does time go? It's nearly a month since my last post, apologies.

Betty has had us all worried, with her moping around the garden all this last week. Took her to the vets, and the vet was also a keeper of chickens, so did a heavily discounted rate (always worth knowing!). He drew up some anti-biotics for us to administer to her by injection. Now I'm only just getting used to handling the chickens, let alone injecting them! He reassured me it was easy, and with Stuarts help it went ok, but I didn't like the idea of wielding a hypodermic needle around! The good news is she seems to be on the mend, there were a few mornings when I opened the hen house and I thought I would find her perished, but she seems to be made of strong stuff. Still don't know what she was fighting off, the vet ruled out egg perotinitis, which is what I was worried about (a broken egg inside of her that gets infected).

Oh, and whilst on the subject of chickens, Hetty is now laying regularly, and the boys are thrilled to be eating "Hetty eggs".

What about the children, all I seem to have posted about recently is chickens. Well, Luke got a head teachers commendation for a mosque that he built for a presentation. Apparently he is the first boy in the school to have got one since Christmas! Sophie is tentatively trying her first solids ( a bit of a mish mash of BLW and spoon fed weaning, which she is definitely getting the hang of, but the faces she pulls are quite hilarious!) She is also beginning to get slightly mobile with a combination of rolling, wiggling and "swimming" across the floor. I am going to have to get sooooo organised to get all the little bits out of her way otherwise we may have some "interesting" nappies!! Alec and Ethan have been their usual happy selves, but found the recent snow a little too cold for their liking!

Stuart has found his firebowl to be a great excuse to buy marshmallows, and toasting them out in the garden, but the chickens straw has dwindled very quickly, as it apparently make very good tinder!!

I am owing some posts regarding being tagged by Jo, and a tree of happiness by Moon Mumma and Joxy. I will address all of these in the next post!

I also realise I owe you all some pictures of many things. I will ask Stuart to give me a tutorial on uploading them, as I've been taking loads of photos in anticipation of getting them blogged, so please be patient.

An Egg!!!!!

Poor Betty, I bet she wondered what was happening to her today. She didn't come out the hen house at all this morning, and I was getting rather worried about her. She seemed perky enough inside, but I was worried about her, and started reading up on lots of nasty things that could be wrong with her (which scared me even more!) By the time I went out to Toddlers she was just poking her head out the door. I thought perhaps the terrorising that Little had been dealing out had got to her, but I was wrong.

When we returned from picking the boys up from school, she was strutting around with Hetty and Little, and I just took one look at her and thought there may have been some developments! Her comb and wattles were no longer pink and droopy, but red. So I went to the hen house, and sure enough there was an egg! Not in the nesting box, but between the roosting bars, and the shell was rather soft, and therefore had broken and spilled its contents. However, it was an egg none-the-less, and I am so proud of her! I just wish I could explain to each of them what is happening to them, although I am sure Mother Nature will step in and guide them.

Chickens

My long awaited ladies have arrived today. I was so excited and nervous all at the same time, I really was like a child at Christmas! They are housed in an eglu, which seems perfect for our garden, though I think we may have to find a permanent site for it as our garden is just way too slopey for me to be able to move it around at will, as was my original plan. So some garden design is now the call if the day!

We have 3 chickens. 2 are known as Miss Pepperpot's which are Rhode Island Red/Maran hybrids, and a gingernut ranger, another hybrid I think. The Miss Pepperpots are very different looking, one being black with irridescent green feathers, and the other black with lots of gold neck feathers. They are known as Betty and Hetty respectively. The other hen seems to have established the pecking order, and is ironically known as Little, as in Chicken Little (courtesy of the boys!) Little is a big brown hen, and certainly seems to be ruling the roost so far! However, when they went to roost this evening, there was gentle coo-ing coming from inside the eglu, so peace for now!

The boys were so excited when I picked them up from school, and raced through the house to the back garden where they spent ages watching them, asking questions, and imitating them. They were particularly intrigued with the pecking order scuffles! Some of the neighbourhood children came to look too, but didn't seem quite so excited, although one did suggest his brother kept one on his bedroom!

I am really looking forward to this new adventure for us as a family, especially as the days stay lighter, and we get to spend more time in the garden with our feathered friends.

Power cuts and surprises

We had a 6 hour powercut today, which we were expecting, so were able to prepare for. The boys were not looking forward to it, but I secretly was hoping they would find new ways of playing, rather than turning to tv when they couldn't think of anything else to do. It worked out really well. They had some friends over this morning,and had the most enormous game of hide and seek for about an hour!

For lunch they had beans on toast, which meant toasting the bread over the gas hob. Not the most energy efficient ways of making toast, but interesting none the less. In fact the boys now want to get rid of the toaster and make toast on the gas hob every time! I on the other hand decided to have soup, which was fine until I came to blend it, and then realised I needed electricity for that. It just wasn't the same mashed with the potato masher!

This afternoon was spent playing chess and draughts by candle-light (as it went VERY dark), and playing outside with friends. I was hoping to get some reading done, but it was not to be.

However, Stuart has made my day, month and year, by asking me if I would like some chickens for Christmas. I am so excited, and am looking forward to this new adventure, and learning all about chickens, as well as teaching the children all about them as well.