Blogfodder

Matt & Jill on the couch. Mom tickles matt on the back. He gets goosbumps & says to mom, "You gave me the poka-dots!"--now when someone is excited we ask if they have the poka-dots.

Birds, Feathers, and Molting

I've caught the Avian Flu (No, no not the real thing!). I've decided to get some chickens for our home...I'm just nervous about having not just one furry friend, but a whole flock of fickle feathered fiends. all the kids want birds, they just love auntie Tara's. I'll admit I've taken a wait and see approach for a while and I'm impressed with the work Tara's done.

anyway, i went to the feed barn the other day and looked at what I thought were large striped chickens. i was informed that they were turkeys. I was amazed at how much bigger the baby turkeys are that the chickens. i played with them for a little while and watched some of them just fall asleep in mid step and fall on their beaks.

I just couldn't buy any at the time or I think I'd have went home with a few of them. thank goodness i didn't because when i got home, i realized I'm just not ready for any more kids, nor am i ready to add on a room to the house (AKA make a chicken coop).

From Obedience Gardens to the real thing

Well here we are again. Us vs. the 3 C's of AZ dirt (i.e. caliche, concrete, clay) Now I know we've all broken our shovels, hoes and (husband's) backs on this dirt, but we're nothing if not consistent. Well, I was in the Ace Hardware the other day looking for a new hoe to do some weeding with and got Ye Olde generic style hoe for around $10. I went home and promptly hurt myself trying to scratch the surface of my dirt patch.
Enough of this I said. I got out my grinder and noisly put a mean edge on the hoe (Q: Why don't they ship them sharpened? A: Lawyers). I went out and hurt myself again. By this time, I was hot and sweaty and I had 2 scratches in the dirt to show for it.
Now I was righteously indignant. For my $10 I should have SOMETHING to show for it. So, I cut the hoe handle in half and presented the shortened tool to my 5-year-old son. "Here son, a new hoe for you to dig in the dirt with!" Eeks of glee erupted and he beelined for the dirt patch. All is solved I said to myself, I get a tilled up garden and a nice tired 5-year old who will sleep tonight. Alas, the youngster came in all breathless and said, "Dad, the dirt is too old, it won't dig well."