December Begins

With the cooler weather and lately, the rain, I am spending less time with the chicks than I would like. They are letting me know that they do not appreciate it either. Oh I take them extra treats but still Turkey girl follows me around talking to me in a voice that almost sounds like a cry. She is a mess! She tattles on her sisters constantly.

I had started the deep litter method in the hen house but we have had to add a twist. Because of all the wet weather lately the run is muddier than any of us are happy with. We have started raking some of the inside litter out into the run, under the covered area just outside the house, to give them something other than mud to run around on. Then I just replace the missing litter with new pine chips. We tried the straw and it would have been good but the wet conditions kind of made it hold moisture, which I was not happy with. I spread DE into all of it to try and help get it a bit more dry and it seems to have helped some. Silly me, I was worried about how they would dust bathe with all the mud. They are just finding a spot in the hen house to bathe, they enjoy that the litter is deeper and they burrow out a hole and go to town, throwing litter every where. The bad part is that the favorite place to take a bath seems to be just inside the door and when I want in, they do not necessarily want to move to oblige me.

I am already dreaming of next spring and the garden we will have. The seed catalogs call to me but there is so much else to be done. That and everytime I stuff some money aside for my endeavors, the kids need something. For some reason they seem to think shoes are important, and a band trip in the spring has sprung up also. Oh and the birthdays are coming on, starting with Miss Sarah in a couple of weeks. Oh well, I can dream and make my plans anyway.

The dogs are loving the cooler weather, Sunshine wants to play frisbee or with a soda bottle every time we go out there. Their whole bodies wiggle when they see us, it is cool. I think I can relate on some level to how happy they get, I felt that way as I watched my husband and kids leave my house yesterday after five days home for everyone. lol I love having them home but there are things to be done and not much gets done other than playing keep up when they are here.

Well time for morning chores so stay warm and have a beautiful day.