Are you lookin' at me!?

I never thought I'd be a chicken girl.


Never.


But I have to admit, they are one rowdy, interesting bunch.


Really.


Never thought I would have this in my yard, either.




Really.



It's currently residing on top of my garden, hence all the MUD! That chicken poop is like liquid gold for my sweet corn.



Really.


Never thought I would ask my kids how many eggs they collected every day. EVERY DAY.


It's like a contest. Every day. We have 15 hens. Not all the hens lay an egg everyday. (We might have some lazy ones in the bunch....but we don't know which ones they are.)



On good days we get 12. On bad days, maybe 6. Someone is SLACKIN' on those days!


Never thought I'd smile every time I say "Hey girls" and get a chorus of cackles.



They definitely know who feeds them! They like all the goodies like bread and lettuce, and strawberry tops from the garden. And they can strip a watermelon rind clean in about 30 seconds!



Never thought I'd get a kick out of an Araucana chicken who lays the lightest color of seafoam green eggs.


(She's the prettily colored one up front.)

(Can you tell which one is the "green" egg?)

Never thought I could watch an animal for what seems like hours as they just go about their business. (They really ARE interesting to watch).

We give our hens wonderful accommodations. Each little box has it's own little privacy cover on one side, and is enclosed in the back with a hinged cover the kids lift up to get the eggs. Doesn't my "old" Hawaiian material make you feel like you're in the islands? Think the hens feel the same?

They get all the grass they want in the summer, and grain in the winter, along with anything they can find in the garden.

My best reference about raising them has come from this book. It taught me alot when we were new to all of this.

Now it's just old hat!

Today I'm liking up to Verde Farm's Farm Friend Friday. Run on over here to check them out, or click on the link below.

Just be careful what you say to a hen...you might get a look like this...

I'd run if I were you!

A New Madness!

I'm convinced we go through school twice.

Once when we're actually in it, and once when our kids are.

Don't get me wrong. The preschool/kindergarten part is easy.

You teach them their letters, sounds, shapes, colors, and basic reading if possible. Learning to write their name, while sometimes frustrating is NOTHING compared to 4th or 5th grade math, 25 years AFTER you were in 4th or 5th grade!

The older they get, the harder it is for the both of you!

My days (after school hours) mostly consist of chores around the house (supper, laundry, packing lunches, cleaning) as well as homework. Homework for both the kids and I. (And on really frustrating days, we ask Brent to help.) (This doesn't happen often, his way of explaining a problem has ALL of us confused!) (sorry honey, it's true.)



4th and 5th grade homework is killing me!

This is an easy timed test Ev brought home today. He can fly through this in less than 2 min.



8x7 ALWAYS = 56, 5x2 ALWAYS = 10. This IS used in real life.


Math that involves 6n+1/2+p + q= 78 DOES NOT occur on a daily basis. (I don't even know if this is a real problem, I just made it up!)


Reading logs I can handle.


Quotients I cannot.

What is a quotient anyway? I haven't used this word in a sentence for years!

Because the state standards per grade change all the time, and more and more is expected out of our kids, they are now doing about 7th grade math in 4th grade! Really? That's ridiculous!

I can pretty much handle the social studies questions, or spelling (sometimes...not the definitions, though), but the other is kicking my butt.

For those parents who are not helpful, I don't know how their kids are making it. Truly.

All I know for sure is...I AM NOT smarter than a 5th grader! Are you?

My way to relax

I've been busy readin' these past few months.


I'm a reader. Sure I am. I get it honest from my dad's side of the family.


Just so happens most of us were together last night, and of course we were discussin' books.


What, you mean this is not a normal family discussion?

It IS on the Sommers side!


So, let me just enlighten you with some of my reads from Jan. and Feb.


This selection of books is NOTHING if not eclectic. It runs the gamut of beach read to suspense, to historical fiction.


Nothing is too good for me to read...well except for biographies. I just CAN'T get into biographies for some reason.


So, since Jan. is such a boring month is this area of the U.S. what with snow a foot outside your door, or slush....this is what I started with.


It was what I had gotten my dad for his birthday last August. Let me just tell you about my dad. Fastest reader I know. Sometimes finishes books in a day. What dedication. I wish I could do that!


So, he passed this on to me, and I read it. I have to say, it was a great disappointment, and I didn't get it finished. I ALWAYS finish books. This one just didn't have a great lead in. Too much work!


So, next I read this

Michael Connelly is a standard for my dad and I. He has many if not all of his books, and we've read every single one. Good suspense.


Then, knowing it was my turn to lead book club in February, I picked this. It called to me one day from the book aisle at the store. I have read this author before, and her stories are easy to read, and this was no exception. Very interesting book. Good twist at the end.



Next was another pick from my dad. Another author we've read before, and a great book if you like suspense.



A couple days after I read the Lee Child book we were at the library. Yes, I've trained my kids to LOVE the library as much as I do. We go weekly. Unfortunately in our small town there is no library, so we have to pay to go to the one in the next town. It's worth it, though. We get enough books and movies every week to make it worth what I pay in a year.


Anyway, where was I going with this....I picked up this book because, and I'm embarrassed to say it, the cover was pretty.


It happened to be one of my favorite books to date. Vintage clothes shop, romance, suspense...it was great.


This next book came on the recommendation of a STRANGER at goodwill. I put off reading it for a couple of weeks, but once I did, I was hooked. It was a fast, fun read. Much like a book you'd read at the beach or vacation. I loved it. Who wouldn't love a "junk picker", antiques lover who falls in love with an old love. (well, probably men wouldn't like it...but...)



I'm also a BIG/HUGE fan of thepioneerwoman.com, and so when her romance story came out, I got it, and read it in a day. It was good too.



I often watch movies too, and picked up the mini series Pillars of the Earth. It was fantastic. Historical fiction, intrigue, deceit, etc. I loved it so much, I got the next one written by the author. I haven't started reading it yet, but it's in the basket ready to go. It's VERY thick, though, so I'm getting my smaller books out of the way first.



Since I loved Savannah blues so much, I'm now reading the sequel...


AND my friend's pick for book club next month, which, needless to say, she said SHE picked because of the cover.

I hate reading two books at a time. I feel very two-time-ish, but I'm doin' it anyway.

I realize this seems like a lot of books for a month and a half, and it's not like I'm just sittin' around reading and leaving my kids all to themselves....I only read 1/2 hour each morning over breakfast, and sometimes at night if I'm not too tired.

I DO love to read, though. It transports me to another world. I just hope my kids grow up loving it as much as I do.