Already Growing

We hadn't even had the chicks a week when I took these pictures (2/19/13). They are growing so fast! They went from little fluff balls to having tiny feathered wings!

They seem to be pretty happy in their little home in the garage. Everyone is warm and well fed and no one has escaped. I still count every time I walk by though... just in case. They don't particularly like us. When we walk up they all run away to the farthest corner but if you just stand there a minute they give up and go back to their chickie business.

I stuck a branch in there for them to stand on. Jerry laughed at me. So far they don't seem to be wanting to "roost". When they get tired they just plop down right where they are and fall asleep.

Here a few photos of the girls...

The view from above

 

 

Zzzzzzz.

Blast from the Past

We have a few toys and books that have been around for a long time. The past few weeks Annabeth has enjoyed reading a particular book with Grandma Linda. It is an old Teletubbies book where each of the TT's is hiding behind a flap waiting to say "peek-a-boo"! (Look you can still get one on Amazon for only a penny!)

Annabeth had no clue who the Teletubbies were she just liked the book. Of course, after reading it so many times she started to learn all their names so we dug out a few of our old TT toys and stuffed animals for her. She seemed to enjoy them but she still had no clue what they really were. So just for fun we pulled up an old clip on YouTube for her. Let's just say I'm really glad they aren't on TV anymore. First, because they are still annoying and, second, because she would be their number one fan! :)

Snow Beautiful

I know my Wisconsin friends will laugh at this but we've had a pretty chilly winter her in AZ. We broke all kinds of low temperature records - mostly while Roz was here to enjoy the "warmer" weather. Looking around our yard you can see most of our bushes and several of our trees did not appreciate those colder temperatures.

This week we had another cold snap but unlike the other one there was a little moisture associated with it and that meant... snow! Some parts of the Phoenix area actually had white stuff on the ground. Unfortunately, we didn't get any at our house. The next day after the clouds cleared a bit I looked out the window and gasped. The boys all came running to see what was going on. We've seen snow on the distant mountains a few times, but never the closer Superstitions. It was so beautiful! I just wish it would have lasted longer.

Cheep Cheep Cheep

I have wanted chickens for a VERY long time. When we moved we decided we would do our best to buy a house somewhere we could have chickens. No homeowners associations for us! We have absolutely no chicken know-how, but didn't let that stop us. We decided "on the job" training was the best way to learn and last Friday became the long awaited day!

It's "spring" here in Arizona and the feed store is selling chicks. We called and found out Friday they would have a new batch to sell. That meant it was time to get a temporary home (aka brooder) ready! We decided to just use what we have and modify the dog crate. It's plenty big enough. I just had to add some cardboard sides to keep the heat (and chicks) in!

After Jerry got off work we ran over to the feed store right by our house and picked up 8 chicks, a heat lamp, bedding, and some food. Grandma Linda babysat the chicks for a minute while I put the finishing touches on their new home in the garage. They found their food and water right away and settled in.

As you can see, they had an immediate fan club! Annabeth calls them "cheep cheeps".

 

 

We got four Rhode Island Reds and four Buff Orpingtons. Grandma Linda noticed one (Buff Orpington) right away that seemed to be a bit weaker than the others. She apparently knows her chickens because that chick, unfortunately, didn't make it. That was quite an introduction to "farm life" for the kids. We decided to get three more chicks to make up for the one we lost (just in case we lose any more). So our current flock consists of 3 Buffs and 7 RI Reds.

None have been named. We can't really tell them apart except for one little gal who Eli has claimed for his own. I always joked we'd name them things like Nugget, Cacciatore, and Cordon Bleu but now that we have them I think I just might have to name one Mrs. Patmore. :)

We are keeping them well supplied with water, food, and heat. The heat lamp is keeping them at 95 degrees until next week when we'll bump it down to 90. We put Eli's digital weather station thermometer out in the brooder so we can keep an eye on the temp without even going out to the garage! Apparently, you're supposed to decrease the temp 5 degrees each week. Since we're in AZ, the temp will eventually be going back up! Hope they can handle the heat.

Now we have a deadline to get the coop built! I've been searching the internet for the perfect combo: decent sized and inexpensive. Once they are out in the coop we'll be counting down to the first egg. I'm guessing we'll see it sometime around the 4th of July!

Hayden's Frenectomy

This is a catch up post from 2/16/13

Warning: Medical Post ahead. If you are squeamish feel free to skip this one!

At his last dentist appointment, the dentist recommended we have an oral surgeon look at Hayden's mouth to determine if he needed an upper lip (aka Maxillary Labial) frenectomy. Hayden has always had a gap between his two front teeth. We thought that extra space might come in handy when his big teeth came in, but it turns out that wasn't the case. Apparently, that band of tissue can affect big teeth too. So we took him to the oral surgeon.

The oral surgeon said this was similar to being tongue tied and that he needed to have that tissue cut. We had two choices: 1) do it now and hope his front big front teeth come in nicely or 2) wait and do it later when he gets braces. Since there is a chance that it will help his teeth come in nice and straight we decided to just go ahead and do it. 

The bummer thing was they wanted to put him under to do it. We decided to go with IV sedation over gas which made Hayden a little nervous. He wasn't too fond of the idea of an IV. He did great though! They let me sit with him until he was under sedation. He, of course, doesn't remember anything which was the whole point. The doc said he did great and expected him to up and running around like normal within a few hours and... he was! 

After he was done the doctor carried him from the procedure room to the little recovery area. I would guess he doesn't do that for his adult patients! When they brought me back Hayden was a little disoriented. He kept asking what time it was since he felt like he hadn't been there very long and he was already finished. He said his lips were dry so they gave him his very own fruity chapstick. When it was time to go home, he got to ride in a wheelchair out to the van. He thought that was so funny. I think it was the highlight of his trip.

He was groggy for a bit afterwards. Not too groggy to remember I promised him a shake from Sonic on the way home though. I gave him some ibuprofen just in case but didn't even bother to fill the prescription for the stronger pain reliever they gave us. There were, thankfully, no dietary restrictions. He was tender so he didn't eat anything that made it hurt for a few days.

On the upper lip where they could stretch the tissue he got two dissolvable stitches. Down on the gum area where it was tight they cauterized it. He goes back next week for a quick check to make sure it is all healing nicely.

Here are a few before and after pictures (look away now if you're squeamish):

Before

Before

After

After

Finger Lickin' Good

Annabeth really enjoyed some ribs that Pa Denny made on the grill. We had cut her off some tiny bits of meat but she wanted a bone like everyone else!

Sick Day

After Hayden, Justus, and JD were sick we thought we were in the clear. Turned out it was just an incubation time. We got another wake up call Saturday night. This time Eli had gotten sick. We got him settled in our room and got to work cleaning up the mess. Jerry started the washing machine with the bedding while I scrubbed the wall and the bed.

It was a long night for all of us. Unlike the others, Eli didn't just throw up once or twice. He was up several times. Poor kid. By morning he was feeling much better and was disappointed to hear he wouldn't be able to eat the same breakfast as the others or go outside to play.

The rest of the week was uneventful and, once again, we thought it was over. One of the boys asked if we would finally be able to go to church since we have missed several weeks because of this and I joked and said, "Yes, unless Wesley gets sick." Famous last words! Late Friday night we got yet another call from the boys room. Wesley had his turn. What a difference a few years makes as far as being able to get to the bathroom. No mess to clean up this time.

Wesley had a long night similar to Eli's. While the rest of the gang started their day, Wesley took it easy in our room. Since he is a bit older I felt comfortable letting him rest without staying right in the room. My mom (who is here visiting) took on a little project outside (cleaning the outdoor lights that surround our whole house) so I went out to assist. Both Jerry and I were in and out checking on him.

By the time lunch rolled around I didn't feel so good. Jerry fed the boys and the baby. I decided to skip lunch. I continued to help my mom and started to feel worse and worse. I put the baby down for her nap a little before 2pm and laid down on the couch. That is pretty much the last thing I remember until Monday morning.

At some point I moved to my bed. I know various people came in to our room to check on me. I hate throwing up and will do anything I possibly can to avoid it. The best way for me to avoid it is to sleep. That's why I take lots of naps when I have morning sickness. Noises also bother me when I am nauseous. Thankfully, I only threw up once Saturday night. Since the boys seemed to recover so quickly I was hoping I would wake up Sunday morning feeling better. Unfortunately, that was NOT the case. I stayed in bed and slept most of the day. No Super Bowl fun for me.

Jerry made a few of the game day snacks we had planned and my parents joined him and the boys for a bit too. I did not watch one minute of the game or see one commercial. I did manage to drag myself to Annabeth's room to nurse her before bed. She only nurses twice a day now and I had skipped two. I didn't want my illness to be the reason she weaned. I'm not sure she got anything. Since at that point I am sure I was pretty dehydrated having not had anything to eat or drink since Saturday at breakfast. She is still nursing so it worked out fine.

Having slept all day, I wasn't sure I would be able to sleep Sunday night. But, thankfully, I slept great. It was slow going Monday when Jerry went back to work. It took me a long to time to get breakfast ready and I worked up a sweat cleaning up afterward. Thankfully, my mom was here to help a bit.

Tuesday I was finally feeling a little more myself. It was a speedy recovery from then on. It's been a week now and no one else has gotten sick or had a relapse. Only Jerry and Annabeth were spared. I am so glad the baby didn't get it. It is so hard for little ones since you can't really explain what is going on.

I don't want to do that again for at least a couple years!