I Have A Baby Chick!

Look what I found yesterday! A baby chick! And it was born on my Uncle Williams birthday!

These two amaze me......this is a little over the second year that I've had these girls and they've gone broody on me both years. It's funny how they have this worked out. They are both bantams, the one on the right always goes broody first. A week later the one on the left goes and they each will have their own brood box, THEN about a week before hatch time the one on the left (that went broody a week later) will switch over to her sisters box....isn't that a hoot! I just take and put the eggs in with both of them. They are such wonderful little moms. If you look close you can see they have a little egg on them due to the egg fight ;o) I guess they figure they'll help each other out with the big bullies and raising the peeps.

I tried to get a picture of the top of it's head, it has two spots one yellow and one white, curious to see what "she'll" look like. She's pretty big to be less than 24 hours old.

I completed my pond in my front yard. I thought I had already posted pictures but I guess not. Everything here I grew, had laying around or it was given to me. I can't help myself, if I think someone doesn't want something anymore and they might throw it out, my mind goes in high gear trying to dream up a way I can use it. The elephant ear leaf, frog and lily pad stepping stones I made. Those tennis shoes were mine, one had a hole in the bottom so I made planters out of them.




I hope you have a wonderful day.

TTFN!

Julie

Taking The Plunge and The Egg Fight

I have a hen....a white australorp, her sister's name was "Red". I have never named this hen, most of my hens I don't name unless they are unusually friendly or have a certain personality. Their name has to just come to me when I'm near them, if they respond that's what I call them by. This girl here, I've never felt a name......Anyway....she has character. When Red was alive (a bizarre accident) they would literally fight over a nest box! I mean pulling feathers out, squawking, pecking, the whole nine yards! I would have to break them up, then both of them would leave the box without laying an egg until one saw the other go back in.....well, she hasn't stopped. Apparently she's found someone else to fight with, this time I think she's met her match...a little bantam hen that's broody! Talk about a "wet settin' hen"! Take a look! She's got egg all over her!

This blog is about nature....so I'm going to show you something I found sunning itself the other day. It's a brown skink.....and it is huge! I really enjoy seeing these around our place. They eat so many crawly critters that would other wise infest my home. I have "natural pest control" free of charge :o) I leave them alone to do their job and they leave me alone to enjoy my yard and home, pretty good trade off if you ask me!
Well, the tadpoles finally grew into baby frogs! They still have a lot of growing to do. I'm curious though, are they bullfrogs or toad frogs? How can you tell?
I made this lily pad from a real one imprinted in concrete, I also made giant elephant ear birdbaths, it's really fun and easy if you like yard art/crafts. Let me know and I'll post the instructions, and/or the site.


As I was watching them an old song came to mind...."I'm a little green frog, sittin' in the water, little green frog doin' what he otter, took a plunge from the lily pad, looked around and he said "I'm glad.....I'm a little green frog".....does any body remember THAT song????

Just chillin'

Until next time!

TTFN!

Julie

As I Walk Through My Garden I'm Not Alone....

I Love to see these beautiful birds arrive! Golden Finches.....just beautiful!
My yard smells "Heavenly". In the pic above is one of my banana shrub scented flowers. I have a variety of scented plants/shrubs in my yard. I can't help but think about what Heaven smells like if it's supposed to be better than here on earth.

I have a lot of "old fashioned" shrubs and my gardens are my most favorite places to be. I can't help but think of and sing (in my head)lol the hymn "As I walk through the garden alone". It's one of my most favorite hymns. I've told my husband that when I pass I want it sang at my funeral. I requested it to be played at my Grandmothers, it just seems fitting somehow.

A garden in the morning when the dew is still on the roses.....a time to meditate and reflect on the joys of life, love, happiness and sorrow...but the feeling......that knowing all the while that HE is there walking, sitting, listening, understanding and loving you......the feeling is so comforting, so joyful. My Creator, the Creator of all the beauty that surrounds me in my garden.....and my life, HE is truly Awesome!
This is one of two of my little Bantam hens, she and her sister went broody on me last year and raised five chicks together in "The joy of having a sister" post. Last year she started in mid May, this year she started April 1st. Her sister seems to join in behind her a week later. Last year they shared the same nest box and shared the duty of incubating and raising the chicks.

But this year I guess they decided to go separately....again the one on the left is a week behind. They only have a couple of their own eggs, the rest belong to the large hens. They are such sweet moms.......I love my bannies.
Remember the tadpoles in my "March" post? Here's one of the babies, I still have some bigger tadpoles that are just getting their back legs but I can't get a good picture of them. I will release these around my new little pond that I've been working on all week.
This is my "old" pond we've done a little renovation on it...added some dirt around it and cleared out a little bit of the plants so I could get up to it better.
And here are a couple of the inhabitants.......bull frogs....they are so neat to watch.
FROG......do you know what the letters stand for?

Fully Rely On God......it's something I work on constantly because.......HE's still in control.

I hope you have a wonderful day and that you can FROG too! :o)

TTFN!

Julie

True to Form

Well, in my last post I wrote about March.....and the old saying that if it comes "In like a lion it will go out like a lamb" and visa/versa. I also wrote that the saying could be for life as well as weather. It is as far as I'm concerned, The beginning of March was sad for me and the weather complied as well, but as the month rolled on things began to change.....thank you March for holding true. This year I'm trying out gardening in a whole new way for me. I'm planting in raised beds and planting by the moon/month phase. It's very interesting what months are fertile months and barren, strong,etc. I get calendars and the Old almanac from our local pharmacy, I always have but the almanac used to be intimidating so I never tried it out much.

But the calendar....that's a different story. I really like the symbols of the month that the days are in, you then look it up in the back to see what it means and after you've done a few you get the hang of it and it's really easy......

So we got the beds made. Then I found some black gold, this stuff is free! Yes, free......well, except for the gas and time. A friend told us about this place and I am so glad.

Have you ever wondered what they do with all of the yard debris that people in the city or county don't compost and take to the dump instead? I was and even more so....amazed when I finally reached my destination! Mounds and mounds of composted leaves, trees and dirt. They have bull dozer's working, spreading and turning the compost....all the while on the other side of the road is more and more trees, leaves and peoples yard debris being brought in to start another batch. They know me now...they probably wanted to know what a woman could be doing with so much dirt! :0) I made several trips....

They motion (it's to loud for voices) for you to pull around then a dozer loads you up and your on your way in a matter of minutes!

It makes beautiful plant beds, so rich.
I even got paid! lol I couldn't believe it, I found a penny! The things people lose in their yard. ;0)
Things are sprouting up everywhere....

yes out like a lamb....thank you again March, hope things will be a little nicer when I see you next year. ;)
How was your March?

TTFN!

Julie