He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has.
~Epictetus
1. I am thankful for the one chicken who finally started doing what the good Lord intended.
WE HAVE EGGS!!!!!
She managed to lay three eggs this week. The others better follow suit, or one of these days I'll be writing, "I'm thankful for lots of chicken and noodles."
2. Speaking of chickens, I am thankful for our redneck fence. I will not call it impenetrable anymore, seeing as how each and every day I have to catch at least one chicken and put her back inside. Yesterday, I heard a chicken commotion. I looked outside and saw one chicken on the roof of the coop, another in the west side "holding area", and another in the garden. I simply had to go out to the back of the coop, and the one on the roof simply flew back into the pen. I next went to get the one out of the garden. I was a tad worried about how I was going to actually catch her before she ran into a dog, but I worried for nothing. As soon as I got out there, she simply ran around the coop, into the east side holding area, and hopped up onto the net.
She eventually hopped her way back into the pen. In the background you can see the other chicken in the west side holding pen. I climbed in there,
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Why am I grateful for this??? Because in the past, the chickens would all be getting out and immediately going into the yard with the dogs/coyotes. With the redneck fence, only a few can, and they are almost always stuck in the holding area, safe and sound until we put them back in. We haven't lost one yet. (Please be so kind as to knock on something wood right now. Thank you.)
3. I am thankful for funny videos and the people who introduce them to us. This week, we discovered Water Wars, which we will be doing and posting a video of our own soon, and "What Does the Farmer Say?" (Huge thanks to Our Adventures with Riley for posting this on my Facebook wall.) This Kansas farm family has made all sorts of parodies of famous songs. Each one is funnier than the last. I am especially thankful, because it has finally gotten the kids to stop singing "What does the Fox Say?". They are all over this version.
If you like it, there are plenty more. I like them so much, I started following them on Facebook.
4. I am thankful for COW. This week he brought me flowers just to make me smile. Plus, he massages my legs for me. He hates to massage my legs. No, it's not because of my hairy legs. When I have Lupusy flares, my legs and joints really, really hurt. While a massage hurts so badly it usually causes my eyes to tear up, I feel a bit better afterwards. COW hates to be the one making me cry, but he does it anyway, because I ask him to.
5. I am thankful for sunshine. The temperatures have dropped into the shivering numbers (It even snowed one day!), but the sun has been out most of the week. Our house faces south, and right at about naptime, the sun shines right through the window and lands on the spot on the couch where I sit to work on the computer. It is the one time of day I am perfectly toasty warm.
6. I am thankful for our ability to stumble upon funny shows. I don't know how we found it, but this spoof of "The Bachelorette" cracked us up. (I can't believe I just admitted that.)
7. I am thankful for the end of soccer season. Basketball has started, so our weeknights can be a bit busy, but the weekends?? Oh, the weekends. So much easier without soccer tournaments eating up every waking (and some non-waking) hour.
8. I am over the moon thankful for Buttercup. She has stepped up and been a big help this week. I received a call from someone on Monday afternoon asking if I could make some cookies for the teachers for the following morning. I would have had to do make them at 9:30 that night, after Star's practice. Buttercup made them for me while I was gone. And another night, I underestimated how long it would take to get the meal in the oven. 3/4 of the way through the prep work, I had to leave the house to get Giant to practice. I called Buttercup in, gave her instructions, and left. She did a fabulous job getting everything put together and in the oven for me.
9. While I am good at making the kids' appointments, I have been extremely negligent in having my own check-ups. The last time I saw my OB/GYN was the day I gave birth to Cuckoo. I haven't seen a doctor of any kind in over two years. This is especially bad since I am over 40, my mom has had cervical cancer, my grandma died of colon cancer, and I'm supposed to get my blood checked every year. (I told you I was extremely negligent.) I finally called yesterday to make an appointment. Since I haven't been in so long, I was considered a new patient. New patients get in much sooner than existing patient. I am thankful for my appointment date of Dec. 4, at which I will receive my first mammogram and see the doctor.
10. I am thankful for my friends and family who have been pestering me to get this done. I did not make it a priority, but they did. So it is done.
Ya'll can get off my back now.
What are you thankful for this week?
Have a lovely day!
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Glad you made that doctor's appointment- its so important! Your husband is so sweet with the flowers and massage. Sounds like you are loved A LOT and hope you ate some of the cookies.
ReplyDeleteI know it is, especially with my family's history.
DeleteHe is the best, and he is forever letting me know how loved I am.
Sadly, I did not eat a single cookie. I did, however, eat some cake I had made earlier in the week.
Hooray for eggs! LOVE the chicken stories. And good for you for getting those doctor appointments taken care of. I understand the desire to not think about them. In the last fifteen days, I have had 8 doctor appointments, at least seven phone calls to schedule, reschedule, or discuss said appointments, and one session of bloodwork that yielded seven vials. Irritating as anything. But. Over forty with RA and allergies/asthma means doc visits. And it's so much better to stay on top of them. Whatever you hear, the mammogram is really not the most awful thing on the planet. Make sure they give you your pink candy afterwards! :)
ReplyDeleteHooray!! I'm glad you like the stories. I sometimes think I'm giving way too much detail. :)
DeleteOh, that appt. schedule just sounds miserable. That same type of deal is why I gave them up for so long. I was getting blood taken every month, seeing three different types of doctors, plus all my kids' check-ups. I just had enough.
I get candy!?!?! I would have done this long ago if I would have known! :)
Well, at my last mammo, they had lovely little candies with pink wrappers. Maybe I just went to a swanky mammo center?
DeleteA swanky mammo center? That phrase made me smile.
DeleteHad I known you were so negligent, I would have been on you too. And now that I know your pattern, I will make it a priority to hound you about it. Arne't you so glad you admitted this character trait in your blog? ;)
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the eye-laying chicken. It's about time, girls! :) I don't even have chickens (yet) and I know they're past due!
Oh, I know you would have. And now, with you on the job, I doubt I'll ever have the chance to stall again.
DeleteIt is most certainly past time!
I loved reading your hilarious post- thanks for a morning laugh!
ReplyDeleteSo glad you're starting to get eggs. My girls have been laying well since coming out of molt, and even had one of our young pullets start to lay as well :D It's like a treasure hunt every time I go out to the coop ;)!
Have a great weekend!
Erin
http://yellowbirchhobbyfarm.blogspot.com
Thank you! I'm glad you liked it.
DeleteYou and me both. Every time I go to the store and have to put eggs in my cart, I grumble. I have really missed getting eggs right out of our backyard.
Thank you!
With a blog name like that, I'll be sure to be over!
How I love your chicken tales, Christine! Ahh the life of a farmwife, you so make me miss the years of growing up I the Midwest! Truly COW and your kids ARE the best, family members that care about each other and pitch in when help is needed, that's as good as it gets! And yes, YAY for you making that very important appointment, err, now I need to get on the ball and do the same!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you like them. I sometimes wonder if I go overboard with them.
DeleteThank you. I think they are pretty wonderful.
Yes! Monday morning, be on the phone making that appointment!
I'm glad that, despite the pain at he time, your hubsy will do the leg massages - I know how it can ease the pain a little, despite the initial pain of doing it! Lupus is horrible, isn't it? :/
ReplyDeleteI loved the chicken pictures, and laughed at the Foxy vid :)
Hope your weekend has been great so far! :)
It is horrible. I'm so grateful to have a husband who is willing to help me get through the bad spots.
DeleteI'm glad you liked them.
It has. Thanks. Hope you are having a lovely one as well.
Good for you for making an appointment. It's so easy to remember the kids' appointments and let our own slip.
ReplyDeleteAnd the time goes so fast. I was actually shocked to realize it had been that long.
DeleteSoccer is over here tomorrow and finally can relax on Sundays mornings for a few weeks at the very least. Don't get me wrong, I will miss it, but still the break will be nice. And I have been ok with going to my Ob-Gyn, but the dentist not so much. So, I will be hopefully making an appointment after the holidays for me on that one for sure. Another wonderful week and hoping the weekend is treating you well now, too!! :)
ReplyDeleteThe break is very nice, especially when so many of our kids are playing.
DeleteAh, I don't miss dentist appointments. I go to the same one as the kids, so those appointments get made when I make the kids'.
The weekend is going well, thanks. Hope you are having a lovely one.
Now get that appointment made!
I hope your appointment goes well, Christine! If I'm negligent in man ways, I make sure to keep up health appointments, knowing that I won't be any help to my family dead or battling a serious disease (my family is cancer-ridden through and through).
ReplyDeleteHaving a help is so important. Lily's been great last week as well, helping her little sister to get dressed to I could finish other things before heading out.
Yay for eggs, and more fun with your chickens! It's always fun to hear about your various critters ;-)
Have a great weekend, Christine!!
Thanks! That is a great way to look at it, and a point which was made to me be more than one friend.
DeleteWhile I'm not exactly happy to see my kids get older, it is nice to see them mature and do things they couldn't do just a year ago.
Yay for eggs! Glad you like to hear the tales.
Thank you!
how about leashes? would they work with chickens? I mean, it's not like they have a whole north 40 to wander around in… you could do one of those leashes that run along like a clothes line overhead so they don't get tangled up and all… (I can hear you shaking your head… no, huh?)
ReplyDeleteNot the farm type, no skills there.
Item 5 we had a bit of that… snowing enough that it wasn't deniable…nothing sticking and all but it was frozen water falling from the sky. We got lucky and the weather moderated for the rest of the week.
Have a good remainder of the weekend.
Ha! Don't think I haven't thought about it. More of the shock collar like the dogs wear, though. :)
DeleteIt's 60 and threats of severe storms, including tornadoes today. I think Mother Nature is mad at us for complaining about snow in November.
Thanks!
DId you decide not to clip the girls? Chickens... Or are they just that dexterous? How many do you have? Its exciting when they start laying eggs... chicken noodle is good too I guess... sigh...with bacon?
ReplyDeleteI will not climb up on your back with the family but lets just say I am happy to hear you made an appt. When you say lupusy (was that it?) flare up it stands to reason this person is under some medical care... doesn't it? Well done getting the appt...I know its a freaking drag!
Your daughter is a star! as is the hubs! Now I wanna make cookies... hmmmmmm.
We were waiting to see how many were actually getting out. If we could pinpoint just a certain few, we'd clip them. If it was a free for all, with everyone getting out, we're going to do something about the fence. Looks like it is the fence. We're going to get more net and cover the whole area.
DeleteI was under lots and lots of medical care for two years, with my GP, rheumatologist, and hematologist. Blood tests every month. Different meds here and there. I was given the OK to only get my blood tested once a year, then my GP left to specialize, blah, blah, I took a break from all medical people. Time to get back in.
They are wonderful! Go make some. What will you make?
Your chicken story had me laughing out loud. I am confused as a newby, though; who is COW? Yay for you, making an appt. I hope it goes well!
ReplyDeleteGood! I love to hear that people laugh. Sorry. I really need to fix my about page and probably put him in the sidebar. COW is my husband. When I told him to pick his blog name out of the catalogue like the kids did, he said, "I don't need a catalogue. Just call me Cock of the Walk". That was too long, so I went with COW for short. :)
DeleteEGGS!!!!!!! How cool is that!!! Who got to eat them or did you put them in the cookies so everybody could enjoy them. ;)
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you all enjoyed the video. I couldn't wait to post it on your FB page. Just had to make sure it was rated "G".
COW is so thoughtful and Buttercup is AWESOME!!!
COW used them in the waffle batter and Phoenix had an omelet.
DeleteI am so glad you did!
I have some good people in this family of mine. :)
You know, if I hadn't seen you in videos I might actually start to think you really were a neon coloured stick figure ;P
ReplyDeleteHAHAHAHAHA!!!!
DeleteI love reading your stories of life on a farm. I would love to live somewhere that we could try some farming ourselves but for now I can continue to dream and enjoy reading about your adventures.
ReplyDeleteWell, it's much cheaper and less stressful to do farm vicariously. :)
DeleteI'm glad you like reading the stories. Each time I post, I wonder if people will enjoy it.
Yeah! Eggs! Bring on the scrambled eggs!
ReplyDeleteSo happy you made that doctor's appointment!
Your husband sounds wonderful. (I don't want him- have my own thanks- but just saying!)
And fried, and boiled, and omeleted.
DeleteThanks. Me, too.
He is wonderful for me. And your husband is wonderful for you. :)
No, not weather related. Just a normal flare. Thank you for your concern and willingness to swap weather. I know how much your warm weather means to you. :)
ReplyDeleteI just heard about bored chickens from a new reader. Being outside, they shouldn't be too bored, but perhaps. I think sometimes they get up there accidentally. When two get to fussing, they all start flying like they've gone mad. I will be putting some anti-boredom devices out there, though. Plus, COW ordered more net so we can completely cover the area.
She really does have a caring heart.
Hilarious! Have you watched the others??
What if the chicken that keeps escaping is the one who also produces eggs? That's quite a dilemma.
ReplyDeleteIF I HAD KNOWN YOU HADN'T GOTTEN A MAMMOGRAM YET, I WOULD HAVE DRIVEN UP THERE AND TAKEN YOU MYSELF!
Buttercup is a doll! Okay, she's a 13 year old girl and maybe not one ALL the time, but you know what I mean.
I LOVE that video of "What Does The Farmer Say"! Diane made a great find!
And you said you would never hold a chicken....
A conundrum indeed.
DeleteWhy do you think I kept it mostly to myself??
She is a doll most of the time, thankfully. Just had to get through 7th grade. Crossing my fingers that was the worst and high school will be a breeze. Stop laughing.
Cuckoo was just asking this morning if we could watch it again.
I didn't hold it. I grabbed it and threw it over the fence. Big difference.
Haha love reading about your chickens. we got three chooks over here too and they took their sweet time in remembering what their purpose was in our family! One of them still refused to produce the goods. Love the pic of you jumping over the fence too :) How wonderful that you got flowers and leg massage. I'm going to have to admit to being just a little bit jealous! But then again, maybe you deserve them and I don't!. LOL. Hope you and your beautiful family have a wonderful week. xx
ReplyDeleteHow old is that one who won't lay eggs??? With this many chickens, I should be rolling in eggs by now. I really should have one of the kids take one of me actually going over the fence. That tree sags down so far, I'm scared to death it's going to break off one of these days.
DeleteAck, no deserving. Just lucky. :)
Thanks. Hope your week goes well, too.
OMG I need a Buttercup daughter here, in my house. Also? I have never had a mammogram and am older than you. I swore to my son's teacher (who is out right now for a double mastectomy) that I'd have one before she gets back. Thanks for the reminder! I'm SOOO negligent too. Your chicken stories crack me up. A friend of mine in Alaska has a chicken coop and has had major problems but does get eggs - I hope your eggs come soon! Because they do NOT want to end up like the pigs did. I'm sure of it. Also, can I record your next message on your answering machine???
ReplyDeleteShe is a peach. Oh, KRISTI! IF DYANNE HEARS YOU SAY THAT, YOU WILL BE IN SUPER BIG, VERY BAD TROUBLE!!!! GET THEE TO A DOCTOR!!!!
DeleteI don't know if I'm strong enough to have chickens in Alaska. Shoot, I could never live in Alaska, period. It is way too cold for my blood.
Please do come and record a message for me. Perhaps a song? :)
Oh, fresh eggs! I remember holding a couple of fresh eggs when I was a kid (not sure where in our grandfather's farm we found them) but they were warm because they've just been laid by the hen.
ReplyDeleteHave you heard of this news from Sri Lanka about a hen giving birth to an "eggless" chick? Weird but true. :) News about the "eggless" chick.
Nothing like a freshly laid egg.
DeleteI have not. And now I'm afraid. but I shall read it, only because you told me to.
Oh, that poor hen!!! Talk about a bad case of constipation!! I want more info, though. I'm assuming the hen wasn't laying eggs for 21 days. Not that I'd notice if one of our hens didn't, but I'm not a real farmer.
DeleteSwamped with blogging? How so? ;)
ReplyDeleteI haven't been to a doctor in...*gulp* years either. Turn 43 in a couple weeks and haven't had a smash-o-gram either. I know I need to but... (money/insurance is a huge factor)... I keep putting it off as well.
ReplyDeleteWhat a blessing Buttercup is! It's so nice when they get old enough and can help you out more. I have called home and asked one of the kids to help get supper started too.
and YAY! for eggs!!
Um, I don't know for sure, but I do believe there are free/reduced price ones. I know you live in a tiny town, but you should look into it before Dyanne comes to get you.
DeleteShe truly is. Considering I'm busy taking one of them somewhere or other, it's only right that they help get dinner going.
Yay!
Hi Christine, we found your beautiful blog by way of mutual blogging friend, Beth Teliho. On your comment on her site, you mentioned how much you had in common with her & we've made that same statement to Beth. So we felt our blogs would be a great match; or something like that....it sounded better in our head. lol. Loved the post. I remember gathering eggs as a child. I grew up on a farm, although more gardening than animals, (pigs, chickens) only. Yours sounds as if she's all personality! Luv it. Your profile, "About Me" had our head swimming. It's plain to see your a busy lady who wears many hats & does it well. Six children must keep you busy, but how beautiful they are!! We are a mother daughter writing duo & we look forward to stopping by & reading more of your great posts!
ReplyDeleteAll I have are pigs, chickens, and a garden!
DeleteThis farm is filled with personality, to be sure.
Thanks for stopping by!
Woohooo!! Eggs! That is so exciting! And yay for chickens who escape, but don't really want to get eaten by coyotes, so they let themselves get caught and returned to safety!
ReplyDeleteWhat a sweetie your COW is!! I am glad he takes good care of you, even though it makes you cry.
My Emma has become such a good helper to me as well. Especially on the nights I am trying to get dinner done in time to get Jacob and me out the door by 5 to get him to his 6 pm class. She has really stepped in to help in spite of her heavy load of school work.
I have to confess my negligence as well...I am 44 and have never had a mammogram. I have not had a PAP (AKA Poke and Prod) since before we moved to South Carolina 6 1/2 years ago. I know it is wrong. But I feel like I am just busy doing the next thing and it just isn't the next fire that gets put out. SO, after my sister-in-law's recent breast cancer scare, I have promised to make the appointment. I have been asking some folks what they love about their doctors so I can avoid just closing my eyes and picking one out of the yellow pages. People have been nagging me too. I am grateful for the naggers in my life too.
I saw the "What does the farmer say?" video last week!! It is so funny!
Hope you have a great week!
Yes, very glad the chickens are keen on not getting eaten. :)
DeleteHe is the best. I constantly feel cared for.
I'm grateful Buttercup enjoys doing such things, too. She's happy to help, and I'm happy to let her.
Pick one now and fulfill that promise. Let those who care about you relax a bit. (Easy for me to say, seeing as how I just got my appointment made.)
Hilarious!
Thanks!
I think you should look at chicken wrangling as exercise. You get fresh air, sprint, duck, do squats all without a gym fee. Bonus you get to cook the suckers in revenge for making your thighs burn.
ReplyDeleteAnd if you are renting Buttercup out my kids would love to get dinner on time!
Hahaha!!! I was thinking the same thing as I climbed over the fence this afternoon! Unfortunately, it's not quite enough to battle the pounds of M&Ms I inhale in a week.
DeleteShe would love to help, no doubt, but she's needed right where she is. :)
Okay, I 'm really glad you made that doctor appointment because I was scrolling on down here to give you a good talking to! Glad to hear I won't have to do that! Now I can tell you that I literally laughed out loud at the "chicken and noodles" comment....that chicken better get busy. My son brought me two flowers over the weekend. Just came in from the yard or the pond down the road and brought me a little flower, just because...so I get it. Isn't that the best? I've seen the farmer video a couple of times now and it makes me smile...
ReplyDeleteI'm glad, too. Between you and Dyanne, I'd be pulp.
DeleteThose chickens! Plural! Way too many chickens thinking they are getting a free ride around here.
Aww, isn't he the sweetest? I love flowers from my boys.
I laugh every time I see it.
I knocked on wood, just for you! I finally had a checkup about a month ago. I was the same as you, it had been since the birth of my youngest that I last saw a Dr. Just not top priority. I am grateful for the end of Football season. Sports for Moms is more like survival of the fittest. She who makes it to the last game with her sanity intact wins.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteGood for you, getting that check-up done. I think the more kids we have, the less we want to make that appointment. It's just one more thing we have to do/place to go, and I try to minimize those, not add more.
Sometimes it really feels that way. I barely made it with my sanity this year. :)
Love the redneck fence reference! Cracks me up. And I'm so glad you've made a Dr. Appt. We need to do this for us, for our kids, for our families. I'll be thinking of you on the 4th because that is the day I receive my developmental edits on my manuscript. Now not only will I be occupied with reading what needs to be done with any problematic areas, I'll be thinking at least I won't be in the stirrups like you. No, really. I'm proud of you for making the appt and getting a check up.
ReplyDeleteI too knocked on wood for you. Your chickens seem really scrappy. But you sure seem like the woman to handle them.
And finally, could you please send Buttercup over to my house to take care of things? I think she is ready to be hired out. Great list. I'm still smiling.
P.s. Hate that What does the fox say song too! What a stupid song!
Glad you liked it. I sometimes wonder if I'm going overboard.
DeleteWe do need to make these appointments, and not because it's good for us. Our families need us to. Part of me thinks getting edits might be worse than stirrups. :) Hope the edits aren't too bad.
Thank you. It must be something in the air around here. The pigs were a scrappy lot this year, and now the chickens. They are wearing me out.
She would be ready to hire her out, but I'm not quite done with her yet. :)
It is a stupid song, but the kids love it. Watching Cuckoo sing it does make me smile, though, so I don't hate it as much as I did when I first heard it.
I see there are still shenanigans going on down on the farm, even with nets and fences and oh my... At least the chickens aren't being gobbled up I suppose, even if they are falling behind on their appointed egg laying duties!
ReplyDeleteIt's sweet C.O.W. (Certified Overzealous Wrangler?) rubs your legs, I can imagine it isn't easy considering it seems like he is hurting you in the process :(
Glad to hear you are getting a bit of free time in on the weekends now with soccer season being over. Still, your family is constantly on the move with all your sports and events and such. I'm amazed you can even find time to blog at all! It's also great Buttercup has been helping out a lot. I seem to recall this being a trend of sorts with her, so I assume she is being more helpful than a hellion these past few months :-) Has she ever been a hellion?!
I can totally relate to the avoidance of DRs. Glad you finally got set up for a check-up, though. I definitely wouldn't be one to pass judgment if you pushed it off another 2 years heh Hope the results are positive! I mean... negative? You know what I mean...
I have no freakin idea why I watched that entire video lol It was funny, even though I am not completely familiar with the source material (which I avoid like the plague). I imagine it's a tad better when being familiar with what is being mocked/parodied.
Hope you are having a great week!
The Cryton Chronicles & Dreams in the Shade of Ink