So yesterday I went to the feed store to get scratch grain and black sunflower seeds and came home with two Muscovy ducklings.
So now we have 16 chickens (2 roosters that are buddies), loads of eggs, 2 geese, and baby poultry in the house. It must be spring time.
But good news Mom, I am not pregnant again!
Skyler keeps eating dirt and leaves and grass and anything that he can get his hands on, so the gardening at home is taking a back burner in favor of going to the park or other outings (today we went to Trees of Mystery with friends and tomorrow is the first Farmers Market, YES!)
Some day soon Sky will stop eating gross things and we can go outside again. Either that or I break down and buy a cage to put him in while I work outside. I am getting real close to that. He has until the ground dries out to decide his fate.
North and I planted tomato seeds and pumpkin seeds today. They will join the watermelon sprouts that sit on the window sill. I am not certain the little plants will live long enough to produce their fruit, our weather is a little fickle, but the gardening experience is fun for North and I.
I am waiting patiently for Eddy's farm to start distributing veggies again. I feel like we are eating so much more protein and sugars lately, the natural production for fresh things must surely be warming up soon. Let go winter! Bring us some fresh vitamins.
Recently, I asked Reed to kill a chicken that I suspected was eating eggs. He went about the task quickly and now we have a chicken in our meat drawer awaiting roasting. I asked Reed what he thought about as he killed an animal. (The discussion started because he was laughing about our dog, Bruin. That dog hates when things die and will slink away anytime he sees a gun, or machete or even a shovel. I think he fears that he will be the next victim.) Anyway, Reed says he doesn't think, he just goes about the business. So I asked if that was a learned skill or if he had thought about the process differently when he was a child. I wondered out-loud if he ever looked the animal in the eye as he killed it. "You never look them in the eye!", he replied.
Ah, the secret to successful animal processing. I will remember that if my family is ever starving. Until then, I will focus my energy on creating an living environment for the healthy, happy animal protein.
Happy Spring!