A Rhode Island Red for the Ochoa children and hope for a better next generation...

We brought this hen home on Friday.  She is presently living in a pen by herself, as she is new to the property and should be quarantined.   As many of you know already, I have been mentoring an elementary school in an underpriviliged area with poultry.  They were already doing beautifully with their gardens, where the youth select health ingredients for snacks and lunches and the families take turns helping with caring for the plants.

In the fall, a local farm donated ten hatching eggs for the children, and the school used an incubator (the hard way to begin the first time) and we candled eggs and waitd for some to hatch.  Only one hatched, so the teacher bought a blue cochin at the feed store to be its friend growing up.

The young chicks are now over three months old, and are ready to move into the freshly built coop.  Having seen the little ones throughout their life, the children are anxious to collect eggs. 

In order to see the project all the way through, my friend Mai donated the Rhode Island Red you see above.  Wyatt has selected a Phoenix hen to go along with her to the school as his donation to the project, one who likes to hatch babies.

So as the last touches are going on the coop this weekend, the Rhode Island will remain at our little farm for a couple of days.  Early in the coming week, Bailey and Wyatt will help me take the birds to the class and get everyone settled in together.  What an exciting time!  In a world where nutrition has taken a back seat to convenience and cost, it is a pleasure to be a part of such a special project where youth learn to grow their own food and prepare it healthfully.

When this little Rhode Island Red came home, Wyatt was sad to sit her by herself, though he knows that is the proper way to do things when you raise a lying and meat flock.  So after chores, he sat with her a while.  "Everyone needs a friend, Mama.  Especially when you go to a new place."

Okay, maybe there is hope for this workd after all...

This morning, Wyatt and I worked on weighing baby chickens.  For their meat pens this year, the children are working on three types of meat birds, Cornish Cross Broilers, Red Broilers, and Delawares for a project Wyatt was wanting to compare side by side in terms of quality, overall health appearance and meat with the different meat birds.  Bailey thought it was worth helping him with for their two sets of meat pens this year, especially with their mutual interest in sustainable farming, so today the ones large enough to be banded were banded and weighed.  This little one was posing in the scale bucket!

After chores and today's 4H poultry meeting, where a few of the children developed an affinity for one another's birds, we came home and packed up for a family party.  Vicki has been really developing her cactus gardens and has beautiful cacti and potted gardens throughout their property, and even does shows and sales now!  It is amazing what she and David have been up to!

Wyatt was playing football  with Joey, and Jasmine jumped in!  We have all been really missing our Remington, so it was fun to spend time with her.  She even came to cuddle with me and David promised to bring her by our place for a visit.

Now that we had all that fun, it is time to buckle down for a week of school, doctor appointments, and much more!  Hope you all have a wonderful week!

Life Skills and Chores

Okay, so anyone looking at this photo knows it was set up after the repair was done.  I sent Bailey back out to get a picture.  I admit it, but I thought it was one of those moments I am glad to be raising my children with practical life skills rather than only book skills, and also glad Charlie was in town to help!

Yesterday, while doing chores, this water pipe was broken.  Thankfully, it broke off in a way that made for a simple, above the ground repair.  So this morning, Charlie set about to teach the kids more than just how to isolate the water problem and capture the loose water, as we did last night.  They repaired the line under his direction.  They field tested it a while later, and all looks good, though they will add a length of rebar this afternon to make it less likely to break in the future.

As exhausting as the commute is, and as much as I am dreading the current promise of even higher gas prices, I am thankful for the normalcy and grounding of our life here.  Have a great weekend, everyone!

Adventure for the day: chores and errands, minor catastrophes…

With school out for rodeo break, one of our traditional stops is: the dentist.  Excitement in the extreme, right?  Well, when you spend as much time commuting as we do, and with all of Bailey’s doctor appointments, we have to squeeze the dental appointments into whatever breaks we have.   After that, off to another long overdue stop- pass and ID at Charlie’s unit.  Both Bailey’s and my ID cards were expired, and Wyatt needed to get his first one.

As we left pass and ID, we ran into a young man who recognized me, but I drew a blank.  He and Charlie laughed, and Charlie told me to read the name badge.  It still didn’t go anywhere, and he said “Syvel’s boy.”  Whoa.  They weren’t kidding when they said think young!  He was about Bailey’s age the last time I saw him!  It is so crazy to watch the kids growing up around us.  He has matured and filled out, and with his Dad’s confident smile.  A young man taking well to military life.  His folks must be very proud.

With Bailey still getting over being sick, no makeup allergy shot for her, and we came home.  Wyatt relaxed and Bailey and I took naps.  I slept for two hours; definitely have my work cut out for me getting healthy before the week starts.  Lots of chores left to do, I headed to the greenhouse to water.  Regardless, things out there are doing beautifully.  The cantaloupe seeds I started in the box outside the greenhouse aren’t up yet, but with the freeze last week, I am just hoping they aren’t lost.  I used all of the water in the buckets and was wishing for rain. 

Well, that was quickly taken care of, as the water hose source by the main garden was sheared off.  It broke right below where it froze and ruptured last year, this time with a little help of a certain someone trying to wash down houses in his chicken coops.  But at least when having to shut off the water after 5pm on a Friday, I am glad to be doing it with my husband in town this time!

I need to curl up in bed with the computer to get work done, and also help Wyatt weigh his baby chickens for his broiler experiment.  Life here is full of adventures.  I am looking forward to Charlie fixing the water in the morning!  All told, today’s catastrophes are minor- just a part of life.  Would I prefer life a little less crazy?  Sure, but I also wouldn’t want to miss it!

This morning's story for good

http://www.npr.org/2012/02/22/147186116/when-theres-more-to-winning-than-winning

I teach yoga, so sometimes you hear me call it Karma.  I am also a parent, and at a 4H practice I once listened to a parent and leader discuss her expectations that any of her youth had better help out a fellow competitor who was having issues, with good sportsmanship and a smile on their face.  And I was raised in a family where your work ethic and how you treat others, not your win-loss record are the measure of who you are. 

This morning I managed to get out the door without my cell phone.  So I got to make the long drive home.  Turned out to be a good thing.  Got a few moments in of catching up with Charlie as he was beginning his day, and helped him study for a board he has this afternoon.  He told me a good friend had broken his leg earlier this week.  The first thing I thought was ouch.  To both of us, his is such a dear sweet guy with a smile and a hug for everyone, who manages to have all the dumb luck.  But still a great guy.

Along the road home, I was listening to NPR, catching up on the goings on.  There is a weekly commentator there, Frank Deford who has such wonderful perspective to his thoughts.  He has logged in commentaries about people wanting to remove the national anthem from sporting events because people behave so poorly and his thoughts about athletes as heroes.  Today was a wonderful piece about what makes them famous.  And the role of the coach in making youth into good people.

Well, I hope you check it out, and leave your feedback.  I hope that for you, like it did for me, it is one little lift in the step and reminder of who you want to be and how you want to be remembered.  Have a great day everyone!

Hi Everyone- I am not one for chain emails and the like, but my mom forwarded this to me at a time when I am sitting and thinking about the values of the world we live in, and how to mold Bailey and Wyatt into being people with the values we espouse, and who give to the world around them rather than suck the life from it for their personal gain.  I have watched such bullying and heartbreak and seen burnout in wonderful people, and want to remind the children that we can always make this world better.  So I am sharing this story in the hopes that they - and we all- remember to be the change we wish to see in the world...

AN IRISH BLESSING

His  name was Fleming, and  he  was a poor  Scottish farmer. One day,
while  trying to  make a living for  his family, he  heard  a cry for help
coming from a nearby  bog. He   dropped his tools and  ran to the   bog.

There, mired  to his waist in  black  muck, was a  terrified boy,
screaming and  struggling  to  free himself. Farmer Fleming  saved  the
lad from what could have been  a  slow and  terrifying  death.

The next  day, a  fancy  carriage pulled up to the  Scotsman's sparse
surroundings. An   elegantly  dressed nobleman stepped out and  introduced
 himself as  the father of  the boy Farmer Fleming  had   saved.

'I want to repay   you,' said  the nobleman. 'You saved my  son's   life.'

'No,  I can't accept  payment  for what I  did,' the Scottish farmer
replied waving  off the offer. At  that moment,  the  farmer's own son
came to the door of the family  hovel.

'Is that  your  son?' the  nobleman   asked.

'Yes,' the  farmer  replied   proudly.

'I'll make  you  a deal. Let  me provide him with the level  of  education
my own son will enjoy  If  the lad is  anything like his  father, he'll no
doubt grow to  be a   man we both will be proud of.' And that  he   did.

Farmer Fleming's son  attended  the  very best schools and  in time,
graduated from  St. Mary's   Hospital Medical School in London,  and  went
on to become known  throughout the  world  as the noted Sir Alexander
Fleming,  the discoverer of Penicillin.

Years  afterward,  the same  nobleman's son  who was saved from the  bog
was stricken  with  pneumonia.

What  saved  his life this  time?   Penicillin.

The name of the  nobleman?   Lord Randolph Churchill ..  His son's   name?

Sir  Winston    Churchill.

Someone once said:  What  goes  around comes  around.

Work like  you don't  need the  money.
Love like   you've never been  hurt.
Dance  like  nobody's  watching.
Sing  like nobody's listening.
Live  like it's Heaven on Earth.

AN IRISH FRIENDSHIP WISH:

May  there always be work  for  your hands to  do;
May  your purse always hold a coin  or   two;
May the sun always shine on   your  windowpane;
May a rainbow be  certain to   follow each  rain;
May the hand of a   friend  always be near you;
May God fill  your  heart with  gladness to cheer  you.
and may  you be in heaven  a  half hour before the devil  knows  you're
dead.

Fun new soap shapes and recipes...

Introducing Oatmeal and Honey Soap!

We are excited to unveil another carefully formulated soap for soothing the skin- Oatmeal and Honey.  Made with oatmeal, honey and a blend of natural oils,but no added scents, this soothing cleaser is a wonderful new way to care for your skin.  And a new special mold- smiley faces and peace signs.  Because the smiley faces and peace signs are a but smaller than the hearts and bars we usually make, each package contains one smiley and one peace sign together.

Next up in the soap lab- Wild Irish Rose, and back by popular demand: Coconut Lime.  Got a favorite Spring scent you think we should move up on the list?  Add it to the comments section here or on Facebook.  Have a great day, and Happy Sudsing!