our chickens

We are down to just 4 chickens. It's been a sad week in the flock. Either a raccoon or an owl got in and killed 7 of our 11 chickens. We still have Sofia (our yellow Buff Rock that gives the stink eye just like our friend Shane's little girl, thus the name), Hazel a Rhode Island Red, Jess a RIR, and Prunelly (named after my mom) a silver laced winnendote. It was a rough scene on Friday when we came back from running errands. 2 were gone and I was so worried that they had eaten one another due to the stress of heat or that they had gotten sick or something. Chickens can be cannibals if they become over stressed and it is not uncommon for them to peck the weaker chickens (so I have read). I was really worried something was wrong with our flock. Then Saturday morning I got up to let them out and 5 more were dead. Naturally, I was really worried... After some research and posting a question on the Backyard Chicken Forum we decided the problem were predators. We have fixed the coop where hopefully nothing else can get in. We had some areas that folks on the forum pointed out could be places where an owl could squeeze through and there was some chicken wire on one side where we had not yet built the door to get to the nesting boxes which we haven't built yet, so a raccoon could reach in and grab a chicken pretty easily there. So, we have learned our lesson and I have learned to be a little less naive about what a critter will do for easy prey. Now, I have to decide whether to order more baby chicks and pay extra to only get a few or order 25 and hope hope hope someone will take some off my hands... I really love the chickens and what they bring to my life and to the life of our kids... anyone else want to raise chicks? It's a great learning experience and they really are so awesome!

fathers day

A week late, but better late than never, right?

The kids and I bought Jason air chairs for his big day of celebration. We got 2 red ones that now hang on the backporch. We took the couch off the porch and it is now living on top of the ramp temorarily for fun for the boys. There are pictures of them skating on the ramp below. We gave Jason the chairs on Friday because we were going to have a busy weekend and we wanted the time to not be rushed. Unfortunately, we aren't using the chairs a whole lot right now because it is so hot outside, but when the heat breaks (and it will) we will be loving the chairs. I haven't taken any photos of the chairs yet, but I assure you there will be some soon.

On Sunday, we rode up to Duncan Creek in Dacula for Jason to get some skating in. It was HOT HOT HOT, so didn't stay long, but at least he got to go, right? I hated that it was so HOT outside. I know how much Jason and Kalib look forward to skating there. After they got done, we headed over to Jason's aunts house for Fried Chicken and time in the pool with the cousins. It was a gorgeous afternoon and the kids really had a blast playing together. I wish we saw everyone more often and time didn't pass us by so quickly... Anyhow, here are some photos from last weekend...

couch skating...






Duncan Creek


He already got a lecture for not wearing a helmet... he swears he forgot it in our rush to get out the door.







Aunt Debbies








There are lots more photos on my flickr page, feel free to click on any of the pictures to look at more... It's so hard to choose between them all!

off to the lake

I'm not working on Tuesdays except in the mornings to do what absolutely HAS to be done in order to have one full day a week with the kids. Yesterday, a group of our fellow homeschoolers took off to Lake Hartwell to relax in the sun and play in the lake. I am always amazed at how fast time goes when you are at the lake or in the sun for that matter. It seems like before you blink you've been there hours. Thankfully, the lake isn't all that far and with our large caraVAN (because we can't really carpool due to all the kids) we were there by lunch time and heading home around 5:00. I made it home about 6:30. We had such a great time! I'm always amazed at the kids abilities to not only get along the majority of the time, but also the way the older kids really help keep an eye on the younger kids without the adults having to ask. I'm also impressed by the older kids trying to mostly include the younger kids in whatever they play - they deserve some time where they just get to play on their own, but overall they are more than willing to let the younger kids join in whatever they are doing. This is such a great group of kids whom obviously really like each other. For me, the biggest perk is that I LOVE all the moms so much. Every time I'm around them I am reminded to be thankful for such amazing moms that I get to surround myself with. I really do feel so lucky!

abbey rd live

On Saturday afternoon Athens got a rare treat with Abbey Rd Live (a beatles cover band) played at the GA Theatre at 1:00 for kids! It was SO fun! We took a couple of friends and met some friends there! We have seen them a couple of times because who doesn't love the beatles? And they really sound like the beatles and it's just so fun to sing along and dance to the beatles. Our kids LOVE the Beatles, and though they have seen the band before it was a great treat to see them with their friends not really late at night where they were too tired to enjoy it. Not to mention that the GA Theatre is a good place to see live music when it is not jam packed with drunken students! We had such a great time. We did a lot of dancing, some of the kids got on stage, the kids got to order drinks at the bar (India told us it was cheaper to buy a coke than water)! They felt so grown up. When we were going in the guy who took our tickets told Jason and I if we wanted drinks, they would check our id's at the bar, so when India ask if she could have a drink I gave her money and she told me she didn't have an ID and I ask her was she planning on ordering a beer? If not, I felt sure she would be ok. Then, they walked up to the bar and ordered away! The sky was the limit as long as it didn't have alcohol. That was awesome for them. I really can't thank Micheal Wagner enough for putting us all on the guest list (it pays sometimes to have friends who are musicians). The kids really did have a great time and so did their parents! We can't wait to see them again... Maybe somewhere along the way we could talk Cosmic Charlie (the Grateful Dead Cover Band) to do an all ages show in the middle of the day! What fun that would be.



Anyhow, here are some pictures from the show! (they don't look like the Beatles by the way...for those of you who have never heard of them... they just play Beatles tunes)

front side air

Our friend Wes just built a wall ride in his garage and he had a photographer friend, Steven Skelton, over who took so pretty cool pics of them skating. Here's Jason doing a front side air (that's right I'm getting the lingo down) on Wes's wall ride. Very nice. Very proud wife indeed! From what I hear it's fast and fun! I don't skate, but I can fully appreciate how happy it makes Jason to skate and it's a great photo of him!

watsons mill

Last week I rearranged my working schedule so I could have a whole day off each week with the kids. Tuesday is the day I chose. I have to teach at the Y in the mornings, but then the kids and I are footloose and fancy free the rest of the day. It is my intention to TRY to do something fun with them on Tuesdays rather than just stay home, but I feel sure there will be weeks where I just really WANT to stay home and have things that need to be done, but I am going to try hard to use that day for nothing but fun!

Yesterday, we went to Watsons Mill. It's the first time I have been since not long after high school and it is the very first time the kids have ever been. To say they had a blast would be an understatement, though that place is not all that safe and the kids got out of my sight for just a few minutes to slide down a big rock and sure enough one of them fell. Poor Kalib, he fell really hard on the slippery rocks and busted his nose, his mouth, and hit his head. I'm thankful he wasn't hurt badly. It wasn't that I wasn't watching them, I didn't really know where they were heading. I stayed with them the rest of the day making sure they were being safe and taking it slow on the rocks. They had a really grand time. They came home sunburned and exhausted and ready to get out and go again today.

It was an exciting day at the Watson's Mill. Stella, our friend Jennifer's youngest daughter whom I believe is 5, got out on the rocks by herself today with a lot of encouragement from all the adults and kids that came along with us. It took so coercion, but once she realized it was fun, she was all over it. At first I had to slide with her down the rocks, but by the end of the day, she was going on her own, putting her face in the water AND walking barefoot in the river. It was a big step for Stella today to overcome her fear and just DO IT! I wish I had the pictures to prove it, but as I was in the water with her making sure each time she went down there was someone to make sure she got out of the current and it didn't take her under anymore than she was comfortable with, I didn't take any (Sarah C took some, maybe she'll send them to me and I'll post them too). She was so awesome. I think it made everyone's day to see her so independent and so ready to have fun on her own! It was the highlight of my day for sure and it made me even more thankful to have the day off. I not only got to spend the day at the river with my kids having fun, but I had the opportunity to help a friend learn that she has more confidence than she thinks and watch a mom be truly proud of her daughter! What a blessing and a gift to me.

There aren't a lot of pictures from my camera because I was afraid to go into the water with my camera for fear of dropping it, but at least I got some...

daddy went to the pool

We were back at the pool on Sunday and this time Jason went and got in on the diving board action.



This one did turn into a dive not a belly flop

how does your garden grow?

With tomatoes and squash and onions and garlic, broccoli and lettuce, corn and peas. Here are some new updated photos of the garden. The tomatoes are coming along. Almost every plant has a baby tomato on it and Jason pulled the garlic and onions on Wednesday. The squash is covered up in baby squash that we will get to start eating hopefully this weekend and there are baby peas on all the pole beans and bush beans. Now if only the watermelons and cantelopes would take off and start making us some yummy summer fruits we would be set! I can't wait to start putting food away (though I have put some Kale up), but making homemade salsa to store and spaghetti too, not to mention in a few weeks we are going to be covered up in basil and making lots of pesto for homemade pizzas. Next step making my own butter and cheese. Butter is pretty easy, but cheese... I'm a little intimidated by it. Who wants to learn with me?

Here are some recent photos since I haven't posted photos of the garden lately.


Watering the sunflowers - we are putting in drip tape this weekend so no more overhead watering except in a few places!


Look closely and you can see the baby green beans!


the squash plants are covered up in squash. We planted crooked neck squash and patty pan, but it is looking like the patty pan is actually zucchini (which is oh so good cooked on the grill)


garlic - lots of it. It's got to sit out for a few days to start drying before it gets braided and hung up for us to use - not to mention we need it to keep vampires away! (Jason is squinting because I was taking the photo where the sun was directly in his eyes - poor guy, but proud guy!)


The onions from the first onion bed.


a close up of the beautiful onions


all the garlic! There is lots and lots of it! Enough that I won't have to buy it for quite some time! I love having a big garden!


That's enough for today! I get so excited about it all! I promise to share some with you all! We'll have a cook out and everyone can come over and enjoy the food and hopefully take some home!

jason's latest piece

There isn't much for me to say about this except that it's Jason's newest piece of finished art work. I really like it. He cut the board out to make a long board for himself and it didn't work out quite right, so rather than being bummed about it, he made it into art. Chad photographed this when he shot the quilt of Shiva!

we went to the river

We spent a most lovely Sunday swimming on the Broad. We are so crazy hectic all the time and today we just laid around basking in the warmth of the sun and humbling ourselves to the slow flow of the broad river. We are lucky around here to have such beautiful waters to swim in. It's been a long while since we have taken the kids to the river and every time we go I wonder WHY we don't do it more often. There are few places as great as time spent in a natural body of water to me. Now, don't get me wrong, I love to hang out by a pool too, (I don't really LOVE swimming anymore - India says it's an adult woman thing - maybe it is - maybe it is that as soon as I get in the water both my kids want to climb all over me and hang on me while I try to swim) but there is something so beautiful about being on a big rock hearing the flow of the water and getting sand in your bathing suit and finding the deeper places in the water where you can fully submerge or floating down the current. Today was really special because Jason got to go with us. The kids and I do so many fun things together every week and I get to go and do fun stuff without all of them pretty often, so a day when all 4 of us get to go somewhere together and REALLY enjoy our day being with each other makes it so special. As we were leaving I thought to myself how lucky we are that we all enjoy each other so much and what fun we can have together and the lasting memories we make when we take time out to have time together in fun! Anyhow, here's some pics from our day...