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project hatch 3 - update!

today we observed  lots of rocking (chicks getting into position) and heard a little in-egg peeping! we are waiting & watching for the first pip!

we should have our first hatch sometime tomorrow and by the results of my candling I believe our hatch rate will be very high this year!

check facebook (if i know you) for updates

or twitter (if i don't know you)

btw we've all but cleaned out the library's supply of chicken books. sorry.

Easter 2011

Easter was lovely with lovely weather! here are  my two big kids on Easter morning...more pictures are here!

Mayden's eye: kidding

our goat birth adventure through Mayden's eye!

May-May figured out how to film video on her camera and she's been doing it A LOT.

here's a little video she took while waiting for the birth.

kidding

a couple days ago the kids and i were invited to attend a birth! our good friends, the Dohner Family's goat was in labor and if we hurried we might make it in time.... Mayden has voiced her desire to see a human birth. She seems very interested in birth so i thought if we could get through some animal births then maybe a human birth might be doable years down the road (any volunteers?!)

so we arrived around 10:30am & we didn't miss it!

 we waited in the barn for a good while. hours really. 

5 hours later and we are all still waiting. poor girl! 

so we decided to give her some space and...

played with the cat.... 

 and the dog.

made some time for hammering dirt...

checking out the bees...

and even visiting with some of the other goats on the farm!

of course by the time we reached the barn again.... we were just a tad late (about 30 seconds!)

everyone was thrilled!

such a good mama, Liza! thanks for letting us watch :o)

 a little video of May helping to dry off the new kid after her birth!

why we keep our sons alive...

I don't know if it's all sons or just mine but multiple times a day since around age 18 months he's made me want to ring his little neck.  he's always on the go, always into something, always a challenge... and when he's quiet you'd better find him fast because he's up to no good! Cam has a bit of a temper and hitting has become part of his repertoire so he's been spending a good part of his day in time-out.

recently however, he's been bringing me flowers and saying "you beeful" as he hands them to me. just enough to melt my heart and save his life for one more day of chaos. 

Mayden's eye: spring!

a few weeks ago I did my photo journal of Spring... here is May's version!

setting the eggs

our very beautiful eggs were set yesterday. in 21 days we should have a chick or 12!! 

Cam & his favorite egg (the only brown one)

X marks the spot. May puts an X on the eggs so we know which way to turn them each day.

after we set them May promptly went an made her own incubator for our wooden eggs!

click here for more pictures

project hatch - 3rd times a charm, right?

our play has become very "hatch centric" recently

our books too

must be that time of year again...

the chicks are coming....

Mayden's eye: morning shots

Mayden caught these moments of Cameron right after he woke up one morning last week. interesting for sure. 

 ummm..... excuse me?

May informed me that these next three pictures were of Cameron imitating the face of his wrestling guys (a thing i find Hilarius!)