Merge of the Blogs

In order to simplify my blog world (at least the ones I write, not necessarily the ones I read. . .) I decided to merge two of my blogs.

So, if you normally just read this one, surprise! There is now even more info on here mostly related to decorating, sewing, and general homemaking stuff.

If you normally read the other one and are now finding yourself lost in unfamiliar territory, no worries. There are now tabs found at the top of the blog that contain the blog posts that fall under each category. You can also use the search engine at the top right hand side of the blog.  All the posts from the old blog are still here, and there are new ones to explore, mainly ones related to gardening and homesteading.

One blog for all your home-creating needs!

Enjoy!  :)

A Phenomenon Called "Chicken Math"

Before I got my "Asiatic Ground Fowl", I had often heard of the term "chicken math". In case you are unaware of this phenomenon, I will present an example:

Susie goes to the store to buy 10 chickens. She comes home with 15. The next week she sees a breed she has been wanting to acquire for forever - she comes home with 5. Flock is now too big for her, so she sells 4 of them. But then she sees an ad on craigslist and can not resist and comes home with 8. Total = 24

Do you follow?

I thought this concept was utterly ridiculous until it happened to me. Let me explain. . .

So when we originally wanted to get chicks, I was going to drive up to Ideal Poultry (which is a major national hatchery that happens to be only a couple of hours away from where we live) and get 4 Silkies and 2 Easter Eggers (these are a type of mutt chicken that can lay blue, green, or even sometimes pink eggs and on top of this, they often times have a beard which puts it on the must have list for me.)

(Photo courtesy of backyardchickens.com)

(Example of their possible egg colors)

Anyways, I ended up deciding to get just Silkies from a local breeder instead of driving all the way over there. I planned to come home with no more than 6. I came home with 7. Then, last Friday I saw that a local feed store would be getting in a shipment of chicks that included my easter eggers (often incorrectly called Ameraucana), so I decided to reduce my Silkie flock and get 2 easter eggers. I sold 'Angry Bird' and two of the other Silkies and went to the feed store and got their last two easter eggers. So, to recap the chicken math: 7 - 3 + 2 = 6 which was the original number I wanted anyways - I just went a roundabout way of getting there. . .

So here are the new babies:

Baby #1: is a little darker in color than the other - it will be interesting to see what their feather color and pattern will be as they get older - with easter eggers, it's a surprise!

Baby #2: close up of the fuzzy beard

The two of them together and their slight difference in color:

Don't want to leave the silkies out! Here are pics from today of the ones I kept - two really seem unchanged, but the two biggest ones are entering the awkward teenage phase. . . you'll see what I mean. . .

The oldest ones are I think somewhere around 4 weeks old and their feathers are definitely coming in, while the other two may be closer to 3 weeks or runts. Only time will tell. All I know is no more chicken math. . .for now. . .

Guess What??

Chicken butt.

No, someone has not hijacked my blog - we actually got chickens. Really. They are upstairs in our spare bedroom.

We are going to try this. From this point forward, these are not chickens, but they are my exotic Asian ground fowl. That are my pets. That are normal household pets. . .

Township covenant states: "Only customary household pets are allowed on properties . . ." Whether chicken or Asian ground fowl, I think small pet birds are pretty customary, right? I mean, it's not like I have an emu out there or something. The only difference between these and a parrot is that these guys (I mean girls. . . please be girls. . .) make me breakfast. Although because they are Silkies, it is more of a when they feel like it sort of thing rather than an every day like clockwork sort of thing. Which makes them even more like a parrot. I rest my case.

So anyways, we adopted 7 Silkie chicks a week and a half ago. They were older chicks when I adopted them - somewhere between 2-3 weeks old. I've been going back and forth about whether or not we should keep them. I think I have finally decided to keep them and give it a try. I know that if I gave them away now, I would always wonder if it would have worked.

The major stress factor at the moment - we kind of haven't built the coop or run yet. But I think we're going to try to build it this weekend. But I guess that's what we said last weekend. . .

So here are the chicks, so far unnamed (with the exception of the tiny reddish brown one that I keep calling Rosita for some reason, and the yellowish one I have nicknamed 'Angry Bird') when I got them a week ago and now:

Chick #1: I love it's white eyebrows and chin. It's feathers are coming in all scraggly - I wonder if it has the frizzle gene.

 Chick #2: Has cute black markings on it's back and wings

 Chick #3: Will end up being partridge colored I am guessing??

Chick #4: I must admit this one is my favorite, though I am worried about it being a boy (all boys will be given away since we can't have crowing or other such nonsense in my suburban backyard). I love this one's coif - maybe part polish? (Did I mention these silkies are kind of mutts? :)

Chick #5: aka Rosita. I don't know why I started calling it Rosita - it is just so small and cute and gentle.

 Chick #6: In just one week this one has almost doubled in size and is sporting some very fancy foot feathers.

Chick #7: aka 'Angry Bird'. I mean, seriously - just look at it's face in the second picture. It is the most ornery bird and it absolutely hates me with a passion. When I am in the room with them, it is constantly eyeing me suspiciously as the others sleep. I kind of hope you are a rooster. :) This one has also doubled in size over the past week and is certainly at the top of the pecking order. I must say it is very protective of the other chicks (another reason I'm thinking roo?) We'll see. . .

That's all for now, but more will be coming soon as we build the coop and run (it's gonna have to happen soon at this point!)