Legbars and Bielefelders

Not a Legbar or Bielefelder, just a Golden-Laced Wyandotte checking out the new girls while laying an egg for me...

3 Cream Legbars with fancy hairdos

The Husband convinced me to buy 5 more laying hens last night rather than be tempted by all the new chicks coming to nearby hardware stores and Tractor Supply...not to mention how easy it is to purchase them online and have them shipped to the Post Office.

The problem with buying the chicks locally is that they only ever have the same breeds available, and we always end up with a rooster in the mix even though they are supposed to be "sexed".

1 of the 2 German Bielefelders

The problem with buying them online, where they have all the interesting chicken breeds available, is that you have to buy a minimum of 15 if you buy now, with a $15 shipping charge. Or you can buy a minimum of 3 after April 1, but then the shipping is $35. The more interesting breeds are $3 - 8 each, and sometimes over $20.

So $20 each for hens that are already laying is a pretty good deal. We chose 3 Cream Legbars that lay blue/green eggs, and 2 German Bielefelders that lay brown ones.

We picked them up last night from a nice guy in Mt. Vision, which is only about 20 minutes from here.

Now we just have to somehow convince the ladies that this is their home, and more importantly, that Rte 28 which is only about 50 ft from the coop, is to be avoided. Also, the big black chicken-killing dog named Cyrus must be avoided at all costs! So far they are hiding out in the coop even though they have access to the outside. And that's a good thing as Martha Stewart would say!

Even more beautifuller! :)

I posted yesterday about going from snow to green and back to snow. It was a really wet snow which came down pretty quickly, and looked lovely even though it was covering the green. This first pic is from when I was walking my beagle friend Emma around noon.

The Husband came home early and we decided to walk over to the horse farm across from us and take some more photos as the sun was going down, but at least it was shining again. Although the eagles were not in their nest, we got some beautiful photos, and Woody had a great time being a kook after he pulled out of his collar...again...

Seeing green again…

…but not for long!

I think it hit 70° yesterday morning. Sun was shining, ice and snow melting, able to see the grass again!

But by mid-afternoon the skies turned gray, it rained some, and the temperature dropped to 48°. To make up for all that melted snow, we are getting more this morning. The first big pic is from about 10 am, the second from 2 pm.

It is still February, so not a real surprise.

I think the nice weather was more shocking to everyone and everything yesterday. What looked like honey bees, not wasps but not sure, were in all of the feed bowls. In the pig pen and the chicken yard, nowhere near each other at either end of our driveway, all of the feed bowls were covered in bees. I guess the normal bee food is not available this time of year.

Poor Johnny Be Good had to make his way through the mud to fight off the bees to get to his food.

I don't know which is worse, the mud or the ice which preceded it. I had to buy ice cleats for both of us just to get from the garage to the house. Now the ice is almost all gone, but the mud is deep (look at Johnny up to his knees!) and covered in snow. But at least it's a sign that spring is almost here. Yay for that!

Taste of Spring

My car, Emma's house

The Herkimer Creek goes past Dr Pam's
as well as our house. Finally the ice has melted
off the top and you can see water again.

I noticed while walking my friend's beagle Emma yesterday, that the birds are returning from their winter retreat, wherever that may have been. It was in the 50°s and sunny, so they picked a good time to come back.

All winter we have had a pair of cardinals, plenty of crows, chickadees and phoebes, and a couple of hawks around, but the eagles were sadly missing from their nest across the street. I think that ugly March snowstorm caused them to lose their babies last year, and we have not seen very much of them since. There is a second nest now, quite close to the other one, but I haven't really seen the eagles in there either—until about 2 weeks ago—they're back in both nests!

When I walk Emma on our normal route to Dr. Pam's, I am starting to see and hear more birds. Yesterday I saw a Downy Woodpecker, and heard some other birds singing that I did not recognize.

We still have several inches of melting snow on the ground, but at least most of the ice is gone. Just a taste of spring before it gets cold again...

Dr. Pam is selling her vet practice, house, and horse farm. It all comes with this beautiful piece of property and plenty of birds. She has eagle visitors often, and has a bird cam set up to capture them in action. She has some fantastic photos that I will have to get her to send me sometime soon.

No Eagles parade here...but we do have turkeys on parade!

I know there are plenty of wild turkeys up here, but I have only seen them once on our property in the 10 years or so we have been up here.

So earlier today, the boys are sleeping soundly on the sofa (and looking awfully cute together I might add) and I am goofing off on the computer when I should be working, and out of the corner of my eye I catch these guys strutting on by!

They move fast! No chance of getting outside to take a real photo!

Super Bowl Sunday!

We spent this Super Bowl Sunday as we do most—home alone with no TV. Little Sis has been great about keeping us up-to-date on the score, and as of this minute (8:55 pm) Eagles are winning 22-19. Not sure if that will last, but happy for Dad's favorite team if they can make it to the end!

Mom and Dad would watch the game together, and Mom and I would comment on the players. My favorite comment of hers: "he's a fatty, fatty boom-a-latty". Don't remember the player's name, but they called him "The Fridge" as in as large as a refrigerator.

We had some unpredicted snow up here today. I think they were calling for a couple of inches, but it is still snowing and I think we have about 10". First pic is me going out to close up chickens in the coop at about 5 pm, after the driveway had already been cleared once. Other pics are me letting the dogs in at about 6:30 on our covered porch in the back. Covered with a roof, but still covered in snow.

They don't care about the snow or the game...

But Sis does: 29-19 Eagles at 9 pm.

Think Sis is sleeping. 38-33 Eagles at 10 pm.