Consolidated Kansas

[chicken danz]

Crazy day and I am just now starting to unwind. I moved several dogs today but that also meant having a lot of people here all day and all of them of course wanting to see all the birds. The last guy just left 30 minutes ago. I have another person supposed to come tomorrow to buy two more pups. I hope they show up. I am so over shoveling dog poo! We got their house and pen moved today too which was a major job.
I'm trying to remember posts I've read and I'm too lazy to go back and read them again.
I bought a used car. It's a Chrysler Pacifica. Kind of a crossover SUV. It is all wheel drive and very well equipped with all those features that spoil me...and then some.
Karen I will have to ask DH about the back up cam. He said he can get one and install it nicely for around $100. It would be worth it to me. I will for sure back into something if I don't get one.

Love the fox scarf. Actually it reminds me of the old fox stole collars they used to have back in the 50's. They were actual fox furs with the fox head and feet that people wore like scarves. I actually have one of those I found at an antique auction a few years back. I remember when I was a tiny girl my mother had one and it was all the rage. I had to put it in a display cabinet cause my cats kept trying to attack it!!!
Karen does Lucy lay? I would have thought those girls would be cranking out the eggs for months. Aren't those the sweetest tiniest eggs? I'm so happy that Lucy is such a good little girl for you. I had one little white Serama hen that was like that. She would crouch for me if I touched her back. I know she thought I was her rooster! But she just loved being held. Josie had her but I don't know if she still does. She was the white hen with the metal leg band, Josie.
I've got to go chill. I am so over done. Have a good night.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

I wonder if they make "pinless peepers" for people? It just seems they may be very useful when I have to go to Atwoods during chick days.

 

[checoukan]

 

[mommahen10]

Thanks for all of the happy thoughts and wishes for my new grandbaby. I'm missing him already. It was so hard to leave, yet I wanted to be back home so badly.

I checked on all my chicks, I can't believe how much they've grown. I hope the weather warms up soon so we can start moving them outside. Maidenwolf, our last hatch the end of January they are HUGE. All but one is completely feathered and the one that isn't looks like your Asteroid. I really need to get new pics of them. Oh, I remember reading about your wonderful hatch rate, that was SWEET! I use the same laundry soap recipe, basically, it's Borax, washing soda and Fels Naptha and I have been using it for years. I don't mix mine into a liquid form just because it's not so heavy to keep it in the powder. It's low sudsing and is safe to use on HE washers. I've been using it for years now and we have a HE front load machine. It's never caused any issues.

Danz, congrats on the new car. I'm sure you will be happy with it, you spent a lot of time trying to get just what you wanted. I don't think you acted hastily at all. My new chicks from your eggs are little chubbies. I picked them up and they felt surprisingly heavy for their size. The black ones are getting reddish/brown wing feathers and have some feathering in their legs. One that I thought was a lemon also has some feathering on the feet. The striped one, it has amazing colors. It looks like the lavender in some places yet I see some browns too. The others I think must be lavenders and lemons. Ruby says the one little d'uccle is HERS. She just sits there with it, such a sweet little girl.

I'm so sorry to hear about Tweety. I'm glad she's going to get some relief though.

Hawkeye, I didn't think much of your wide variety of interests other than it was funny because it's so wide. I mean you are soft and gentle and tough all at the same time. It's funny. I don't think you sound manic at all. I think you're a smart lady with lots of knowledge and it's awesome. I didn't make my dd a hat, my sister did. It's on my facebook page, there is a pic at the top showing 4 kids in the hats she made for them. It's so sweet. I need to PM you about buying a diaper. But it's late and I will do that later.

Danz, I'm pretty sure they killed my bread starter while I was gone. Is yours still doing well? I may need to ask for a start. I will know by tomorrow.

I was really surprised at all the snow when we got back. I don't know how ya'll endured this, it's a mess out there. I have a lot of brooder cleaning to do tomorrow. It will be a busy day.

G'night all.

 

[pikeman94]

Quote:
My last batch was pretty horrid too. I know what went wrong - but I was ready to just call it a learning experience and pitch the whole 5-gallons. DH, on the other hand, said "its not THAT bad" and said he would drink it. Well, it took him a year - all by himself - to go through that batch. He finally just drank the last one. I mean, this stuff was awful, but he apparently acquired a taste for it and insisted he liked it to the very end. He now keeps nagging me to brew another batch, and I really do need to get going with it. I bought 50lb of corn sugar one time and I have it nicely stored in an airtight tote but don't precisely know where we put it when we moved. As soon as I find the sugar, I'm good to go.....

How much corn sugar did you use in your batch of beer? I imagine it would be ok to use less than 5% of the total grain bill.


DS was looking at a Burgess catalog this morning and discovered they sell hops. He suggested we buy some hop plants and then we can more fully brew our own beer. So far I haven't delved into full grain brews, since the kits are really pretty easy, and when I read the instructions for full grain brewing it sounded too complex and time-consuming. Have you found a way to simplify it down so its doable for one person in a short amount of time, and if so, would you be willing to share? I really would like to learn more about it.

If he is interested in growing his own hops I might have some rhizomes from my crowns again this year. Let me know on that. He will want to get them in the ground after the final freeze.

All-grain brewing is a tad scary if you have never done it. I was that way when I started. If you and your husband are interested and are any where neat Olathe, you are welcome to come watch an all-grain batch get made.

As for alternatives, I have heard of all-grain brew in a bag method. I am not familiar with it, but could look into it for you. Again let me know. I can talk beer making about as long as I talk chickens. That makes my DW crazy some times. In fact she calls me the "chicken whisperer".

In other news, I ran to the TSC in Olathe this evening for some layer feed and scratch grains. They had their chicks for sale. I was not impressed with their selection. I will have to head to Lawrence to see what they have. I called Orschlen's and they should get their chicks in this week. I will have to check them out as well. Besides, DD wants to go hold baby chicks. Holds are free right?

 

[HEChicken]

Quote:
My last batch was pretty horrid too. I know what went wrong - but I was ready to just call it a learning experience and pitch the whole 5-gallons. DH, on the other hand, said "its not THAT bad" and said he would drink it. Well, it took him a year - all by himself - to go through that batch. He finally just drank the last one. I mean, this stuff was awful, but he apparently acquired a taste for it and insisted he liked it to the very end. He now keeps nagging me to brew another batch, and I really do need to get going with it. I bought 50lb of corn sugar one time and I have it nicely stored in an airtight tote but don't precisely know where we put it when we moved. As soon as I find the sugar, I'm good to go.....
DS was looking at a Burgess catalog this morning and discovered they sell hops. He suggested we buy some hop plants and then we can more fully brew our own beer. So far I haven't delved into full grain brews, since the kits are really pretty easy, and when I read the instructions for full grain brewing it sounded too complex and time-consuming. Have you found a way to simplify it down so its doable for one person in a short amount of time, and if so, would you be willing to share? I really would like to learn more about it.

If he is interested in growing his own hops I might have some rhizomes from my crowns again this year. Let me know on that. He will want to get them in the ground after the final freeze.

All-grain brewing is a tad scary if you have never done it. I was that way when I started. If you and your husband are interested and are any where neat Olathe, you are welcome to come watch an all-grain batch get made.

As for alternatives, I have heard of all-grain brew in a bag method. I am not familiar with it, but could look into it for you. Again let me know. I can talk beer making about as long as I talk chickens. That makes my DW crazy some times. In fact she calls me the "chicken whisperer".

In other news, I ran to the TSC in Olathe this evening for some layer feed and scratch grains. They had their chicks for sale. I was not impressed with their selection. I will have to head to Lawrence to see what they have. I called Orschlen's and they should get their chicks in this week. I will have to check them out as well. Besides, DD wants to go hold baby chicks. Holds are free right?

Thanks Pikeman. I wasn't sure what you mean by "How much corn sugar did you use in your batch of beer? I imagine it would be ok to use less than 5% of the total grain bill."
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]To be honest I don't really remember how much corn sugar I used although I *think* it is 1lb to ferment and then about another cup when bottling. I don't think my problem was the corn sugar last time, but a missing o-ring on the fermenting bucket so it didn't create a good seal and let in bacteria. After washing it out following the previous batch, I accidentally dislodged the o-ring and didn't replace it. When the last batch went so badly, I figured that must be it and I have now replaced the o-ring so I think it should work fine next time. Oh - I tried using regular sugar in a batch one time. It worked okay but corn sugar is really the superior product, which is why I need to find where I put mine before I attempt another batch.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Deerfield - that is hilarious to think about pinless peepers for people - that is definitely what I need! I solved my immediate problem by going to ACE Hardware to get my feed this afternoon. They don't have chick days so I was safe - for now. TSC just sent me a coupon to get 15% off my next purchase there and as we all know, the opportunity to save 15% on something like feed is hard to resist. The only problem is, TSC probably has chicks by now. I will just have to be strong....[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Oh, and I candled a couple of the eggs this afternoon just out of curiosity and they both appear to be developing! I decided not to handle them any more than that since it is only day 3 so I will wait until day 7 to do a thorough candling on all of them.[/FONT]

 

[Nana2KJS]

Wow! I've been gone forever! I will never catch up, so I'll just jump right in here and say Hello again everyone!

Seems like southeast Kansas was about the only place that didn't get slammed last week with winter weather, so hope everyone has thrived and survived it all.

Checoukan, we moved my daughter off your bus route and clear down to southeast Alabama! Her husband is in flight school down there for the next couple years .... missing my little boys like crazy!

Had to send our lab with them .... she has totally fallen in love with my youngest grandson ... and he with her. I couldn't manage her very well when I had my knee surgery so she was in Pittsburg for the summer. Not much way we could separate them without someone ending up with a broken heart. But oh my ... the smell from the back of that van ...... !!!


Anyone in the Oswego area, come by the post office and say hello. The Lord has blessed me with a really good place to hang my hat for the next few years and I am now your postmaster. I have a great bunch of employees to work with and the stress level has bottomed out, so hoping to get back into the swing of things soon.

Enjoy your Sunday everyone ~ Tammy

 

[sunflowerparrot]

Danz, I'm pretty sure they killed my bread starter while I was gone. Is yours still doing well? I may need to ask for a start. I will know by tomorrow.

I've used the same starter for about 3 years now. Took 11 days to get it going, but has been thriving and doing well. I make either bread (winter) or waffles (summer) weekly and of course feed the starter weekly too. I love my fresh bread products.

 

[sunflowerparrot]

One of my eggs in the incubator has the air sac on the side - the chick is developing as everyone else and the sac is intact. I'm wondering if the chick will be able to hatch - I'm guessing I'll have to keep an eye on it and help out when the time comes. Anyone ever hear of this - what outcome should I expect?

 

[chicken danz]

I wonder if they make "pinless peepers" for people? It just seems they may be very useful when I have to go to Atwoods during chick days.

You are so funny! Too bad they don't make pinless speakers for people's mouths as well. They would sell like hotcakes.

Thanks for all of the happy thoughts and wishes for my new grandbaby. I'm missing him already. It was so hard to leave, yet I wanted to be back home so badly.
It's shame your daughter is so far away!

I checked on all my chicks, I can't believe how much they've grown. I hope the weather warms up soon so we can start moving them outside. Maidenwolf, our last hatch the end of January they are HUGE. All but one is completely feathered and the one that isn't looks like your Asteroid. I really need to get new pics of them. Oh, I remember reading about your wonderful hatch rate, that was SWEET! I use the same laundry soap recipe, basically, it's Borax, washing soda and Fels Naptha and I have been using it for years. I don't mix mine into a liquid form just because it's not so heavy to keep it in the powder. It's low sudsing and is safe to use on HE washers. I've been using it for years now and we have a HE front load machine. It's never caused any issues.
I use the same combination but mine is liquid thanks to Karen's recipe. I am really liking it. I can't believe how cheap it is.
Danz, congrats on the new car. I'm sure you will be happy with it, you spent a lot of time trying to get just what you wanted. I don't think you acted hastily at all.
I just hope in the long run it is what I wanted. I always worry about making the right choice.My new chicks from your eggs are little chubbies. I picked them up and they felt surprisingly heavy for their size. The black ones are getting reddish/brown wing feathers and have some feathering in their legs. One that I thought was a lemon also has some feathering on the feet. The striped one, it has amazing colors. It looks like the lavender in some places yet I see some browns too. The others I think must be lavenders and lemons. Ruby says the one little d'uccle is HERS. She just sits there with it, such a sweet little girl.
I sure hope you get a nice selection of orpingtons out of those. I might have accidentally gotten some Swedish flower hen eggs in there, so if one of those darker ones starts getting spotty when it gets older that is probably what you have.

I'm so sorry to hear about Tweety. I'm glad she's going to get some relief though.

Hawkeye, I didn't think much of your wide variety of interests other than it was funny because it's so wide. I mean you are soft and gentle and tough all at the same time. It's funny. I don't think you sound manic at all. I think you're a smart lady with lots of knowledge and it's awesome. I didn't make my dd a hat, my sister did. It's on my facebook page, there is a pic at the top showing 4 kids in the hats she made for them. It's so sweet. I need to PM you about buying a diaper. But it's late and I will do that later.

Danz, I'm pretty sure they killed my bread starter while I was gone. Is yours still doing well? I may need to ask for a start. I will know by tomorrow.
Well I don't think I'll be much help. I think I killed mine as well. I tried to boost it back up but it's just flat. I did find a recipe to start it again but it takes a few days to get going. It's so hard for me to remember when to feed it since I don't bake that much. I was really surprised at all the snow when we got back. I don't know how ya'll endured this, it's a mess out there. I have a lot of brooder cleaning to do tomorrow. It will be a busy day.

G'night all.

Wow! I've been gone forever! I will never catch up, so I'll just jump right in here and say Hello again everyone!

Seems like southeast Kansas was about the only place that didn't get slammed last week with winter weather, so hope everyone has thrived and survived it all.

Checoukan, we moved my daughter off your bus route and clear down to southeast Alabama! Her husband is in flight school down there for the next couple years .... missing my little boys like crazy!

Had to send our lab with them .... she has totally fallen in love with my youngest grandson ... and he with her. I couldn't manage her very well when I had my knee surgery so she was in Pittsburg for the summer. Not much way we could separate them without someone ending up with a broken heart. But oh my ... the smell from the back of that van ...... !!!

How adorable is he! Glad to see you back.
Anyone in the Oswego area, come by the post office and say hello. The Lord has blessed me with a really good place to hang my hat for the next few years and I am now your postmaster. I have a great bunch of employees to work with and the stress level has bottomed out, so hoping to get back into the swing of things soon.

Enjoy your Sunday everyone ~ Tammy

I am pretty upset this morning. I had eggs starting to hatch yesterday. This morning I found the hatcher had gotten unplugged. I suspect DH tripped over it and didn't think to check it....but he denies it. Anyway this morning it was down to 72 degrees in the hatcher. I had 4 babies in there that were very stressed. One of them has died. The other 3 seem to be okay for now. Heaven knows if they will survive though after the stress. I have several other eggs that aren't yet hatched and I am afraid they are toast. It makes me sick to think they made it all the way to hatch day to die cause they got chilled in the egg. Things were so crazy around here yesterday I have no idea when it got unplugged. I suppose once it is all stabilized again I will have to candle again to see if there is any life left at all. I guess I've gotten spoiled to the fact that it is so automatic and I don't have to hoover over it all that time. The ones that did hatch are little d'uccles. The larger breed ones hadn't hatched yet. Of course those were the ones I wanted the most.