The Boss'

In the photo above, Grace is showing off one of our chickens…this one happens to be an Isa Brown. All of the chickens are doing great. We haven’t lost a single one so far (Though I don’t want to jinx it!) I STILL haven’t built their nesting boxes, but it is near the top of my to-do list. I’m still trying to figure out what to do with their outside run. I started putting up some fencing, but at the same time I’ve been letting them run wild around the yard. The free range thing has been working pretty well, so now I’m second guessing the need for fencing. One concern that I have is that in the last few days the chickens have become pretty bold…they’re getting closer and closer to the house. The other day I couldn’t get in the garage as the ladies barred my way. Of course, as the birds get closer to the house, so does their poop. As summer draws near, my kids are wearing shoes less and less, so the idea of chicken poop in the grass and on their feet is not so appealing, so I think some degree of fencing may still be necessary, just not a completely contained area.

Will is six weeks old already, and continues to do very well. He’s eating good, and gaining weight. He’s still up a couple of times at night, but we’re working on that now. Now that we’re past his official due date, it’s time for this little guy to start sleeping through the night.

Here are a couple of videos that I posted recently over on YouTube. Enjoy.

The first one is Gracie riding a two wheeler. She picked up really fast, without a whole lot of encouragement from us. She just decided that she wanted to figure it out, and off she went.

This second video shows the enormous hole that the kids dug under our pine tree. It’s mostly filled in now, for safety reasons, and to help the grand parents sleep better at night.

Is there anything else out at the Boss farm that you’d like to see? Let me know in the comments. I think that they’re working again.

A brief update on the state of affairs out on the farm. The family is doing well. Of course things are hectic with the new little one around, but I think everyone is adjusting pretty well. Will is eating and sleeping pretty much as expected. He made it back to his birth weight before his two week checkup, making him the first of our kids to achieve that milestone. He actually weighed in at 8lbs 4oz after a couple of weeks, so we were pleased with that.

The rest of the kids are doing great adjusting to their new little brother. Anna and Jack have probably been the most work. Anna has begun to develop a little bit of an attitude, which we hadn’t seen before, and Jack is probably the biggest threat to Will’s safety at this point. He’s just a rough little guy. He is happiest if he is ramming around outdoors.

Today is my first day back at work after my two week break for Will’s birth. I really appreciate working for a company that offers that sort of benefit. It was a HUGE blessing to be home for that first couple of weeks. We basically gave the kids a break from their schooling while I was home…we all need time to adjust…and homeschooling gives us that flexibility.

The pigs and the chickens are doing good. The pigs appear to be gaining weight, which is basically their job, so they are right on track. The chickens are growing like crazy, and I need to get going building their nesting boxes. I’ll be sure to snap pictures or video of anything interesting.