The Front Porch Swing

[RachaelS]

Yes! The snakes are really active this year, aren't they? They came out much earlier than usual and this is the first time we've seen a black snake out in the open here for some years now. I was searching through the outbuilding and saw a snake skin...we usually see a few in the building each year, of these little brown snakes. This is the same building I am brooding my little ducklings adjacent to. I placed moth balls all around their brooder but not where they could reach them. Hoping that keeps the black snake off them until I can hand them off to a good mama hen.

I could watch these ducklings all day long...they are much more entertaining than chicks because they are just goofballs. It's like watching a comedy show. Add a nice little bowl of water and the entertainment factor goes much higher. Is there anything cuter than the way they poop? Back up and squirt! Even though they are stoopid and fragile, I still think they are just the berries!

I have only seen one garden snake this year. Hoping the rat snakes don't come out. My GMa keeps telling me to get ducks "just for the fun of it", they never grow out of their goofball stage!!! She also won't egg duck eggs, "too rich"! But she wants me to have them for fun, LOL!

It sounds wonderful!!!

Now must go raid the fridge or cupboard for something on which to gnaw.....

It is "resting" right now, like a nice piece of steak!!!

Rachael: Sounds yummy, but, is it really a balanced meal if there's no chocolate???

Got that covered, what goes better with a redneck meal than some nice fat M&Ms...Well if the kids will let me raid their Easter candy....

 

[Triple Willow]

Rachael:  Sounds yummy, but, is it really a balanced meal if there's no chocolate??? 
I second that! lol
Bee, what a sweet broody.  Your ducks sound so sweet.  I'd love to have some for the summer... but not so sure about the winter!

Rainy all day here today.  coming down in buckets.  Wanted to get some perches up in the chick tractor, but between the rain, and having an extra grand child for the last 4 days, and my 7 y.o. being sick, I never got around to it.  They did get 1/2 of a pallet to perch on.  tomorrow may be better, but supposed to be rainy most of the week. Even when it's raining, I'd rather be out slopping around in it than stuck inside the house.

I finally got my CX a roost up. Whether they use it or not, who knows. But they did perch on it while I was TRYING to put it up ahhh! lol Hope your young one gets to feeling better soon.

 

[Beekissed]

@Bee... How much would you guess your CX averaged? I dnt believe mine are near ready. Fixing to up their feed.

I have no idea but they weren't as big as I had wanted, that's for sure...maybe 3-4 lbs dressed out? I just couldn't wait any longer to let them fill out...they were getting picked on too often by this big rooster and I figured he'd kill one of them soon if I didn't process them...two of them were already limping when I finally killed them. That rooster is no Toby, that's for sure....miss that old bird.

 

[rrrmamma]

Quote: Bruce, thanks for the encouragement .She does want to come and knows it would be the best thing to do, but is having real problems saying goodbye to her friends. I have been talking to friends of mine here with kids or siblings here age. We are planning a neighborhood bbq after she gets here to introduce her to some of them. If she is willing to hike up our driveway she can probably get a signal. We have had Verizon and now have Trac Fone since we use it so seldom. If the old boyfriend shows up he is likely looking down the barrel of a shotgun. Hubby is a gunsmith and we have quite a collection. He will be advised he is not welcome here. I still think about picking up the phone and calling my Mom. especially now and she has been gone a year last February. There are so many things I want to share with her. Madi coming to live with us, the new highland cattle we acquired, the way the farm is growing. I have to hope she sees and knows what is going on but it is nothing like a conversation with her. I miss her so much.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

I doubled down on these ducks...I have a brooder heater, a heat lamp, a nipple bucket (they are finally using it!) and a heated dog bowl for swimming and drinking. They have a veritable spa, fresh air and natural light as well.

I'm going to try a little broody magic if this Del broody will tolerate it...she is due to hatch on the 25th and if she has anything at all hatching out...or even if she doesn't...I'm going to slip these ducks to her in the middle of the night, keep her brood box covered and dark until I can observe interactions in the morning light. I'm praying she takes on the ducklings along with her own so I can stop worrying about them so much.

I love your spa idea with the heated dog bowl for the ducklings.

Back when we were dumb and lucky we gave one of our broody hens a little clutch of duck eggs and she hatched them and then raised the ducklings. Unfortunately, we didn't have a great place for her to "train" them, it was the dead middle of winter, but she did a great job and we left her with them until they were bigger than she was.

We have not had any luck letting ducks brood duck eggs ... the only ducks we've had so far that have gone broody are the Rouens, and I think they are a little nutty. They get so angry when they go broody, then they ate their eggs ...

The Khaki Campbells are adorable, and as sweet as their mushroom color is when they are ducklings, you'll love it when they start getting their breeding colors. The big, lumbering Pekins kill me they are so cute.

 

[perchie.girl]

That's how I cook too...I think my recipe box has around 10 recipes in it...about 3 or 4 of those are Mom's old recipes for hot pepper butter, Coney Island hot dog sauce, whole wheat bread, brown beans(had to do HER recipe or the boys just didn't like the beans...

). Everything else comes out of the head according to whatever ingredients are on hand. Nothing is ever fancy or requiring of a lot of different ingredients and we try to stick with ingredients that are not processed already.

If I had to follow recipes all the time I'd go crazy! A glorp of this, a handful of that, a pinch of these and stir it all up is the usual directions to my "recipes".

The only time you really need a recipe is for baking. Baking is like Chemestry.

Quote:
Wow, I think i know what you are talking about, did not know you could eat them. Ferns don't do well here. Sounds wonderful!
You have to know which is which when you go foraging for them and I believe they are poisonous if they are not cooked. Um no not poisonous but they should be cooked because they may carry microbes... Hmm.... I have never had them nor have I cooked them. Here is the Wikipedia article on them. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiddlehead_fern

It is still a very good idea when foraging for wild food to know what it is you are gathering.... Mushrooms are a big offender....

Same goes for Herb gathering.

deb

 

[heartsizedfarm]

The only time you really need a recipe is for baking.  Baking is like Chemestry. 

You have to know which is which when you go foraging for them and I believe they are poisonous if they are not cooked.   Um no not poisonous but they should be cooked because they may carry microbes...  Hmm....  I have never had them nor have I cooked them.  Here is the Wikipedia article on them.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiddlehead_fern

It is still a very good idea when foraging for wild food to know what it is you are gathering....  Mushrooms are a big offender.... 

Same goes for Herb gathering. 

deb

I've eaten spring fiddleheads every spring for perhaps forty years. So, not yet dead yet!

 

[Oldmomma]

its 3am, I couldnt sleep so I figured id pop in. Good I did 5 pages I dont have to read come morning. Sometimes my nights are my loneliest. When there is no one to reach out and find comfort in. But guess Gods got his plans so I try to find strength to say, give me your best shot. Im praying the man gets the money to my bank today so I can start planning a few things.
woke up thinking about a young man in the family who told me when my son died, im your son now, I will be there for you. Had a few folks tell me that. But this young man is the one that is hurting me most. I wont get into details cause no need but to say my youth and life til I was 27 wasnt easy. Then God put a good man into my life and I finally felt safe. Well part of my healing was to say I would never again let people hurt me again. I would either deal with them or remove them from my life.
After my son died I was going through some issues with my inlaws. Most of it is a language barrier and both are elderly and with my mil some dementia has set in but many folks around just say they have always been like this.
I am determined that first im an adult, not a child. I deserve respect and I respect my elders. But a few things have happened and I just could not turn the other cheek. Their behavior was cruel. And I chose to remove myself from people who treat me like this. An incident happened and I was upset and was telling this young man why I was upset. He told me regardless of how they treat me I should just deal with it. Maybe I deserved it! Thing was it put my children and I in danger, second part was just spiteful trying to drive me off on the part of his brother who sees my husbands return as loosing his chance to claim what is rightfully my husbands cause many thought he would never return and his brother is greedy.
I told this young man ive turned my cheek so many times in the past two years and in my lifetime and it wasnt deserved and I wasnt letting anyone tell me that it was ok to be mistreated. Its been a month now and he has not contacted me once. I hurt each time I think of him cause he was the only person who stepped up and helped me out while my husband is gone. So I feel like ive lost another son.
I dont know how to mend this. I will not allow people to mistreat me and its not deserved. And for anyone to tell me well thats just how they treat everyone wont fly. This young man only sees culture how its done for hundreds of years. Well its wrong. And each time I say ok God you took my son for whatever reason, you put challenges in front of me to test me and each time I do fine. But I have few support systems here. No members of my own family who traditionally would speak on my behalf. Also this is a male society and without my husband or a son to protect me im fair game for abuse. Im trying to raise my kids to speak out against abuse, defend those who are weak and stand strong and be independent people. But its 8 months today since my son passed and all those folks who stood by me at his funeral saying they would be there to help me have gone back into the woodwork. Most just cause they got their own lives and others cause mostly it just something you say to someone whose greiving and dont think they will ever need you.
Sorry im chatty, but midmonth I get like this and im getting better some months. Sad I share my woes with strangers than with someone who actually is near me. But I got to get it off my chest.
Its 4am and the various roosters have begun their morning crows. Ur ur ur. They go through different sounds if you really pay attention. Guess I will try and sleep a bit more. Offer a little prayer that I find comfort soon. They say it gets easier when you lose someone, nope it doesnt...you just find ways to move on alone.

 

[lovingmyhens]

Ahhh. Thinking maybe I should lay down right here and stretch my wings out in the sun....
Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Hmm they do look dead. Like a bad massacre!

 

[heartsizedfarm]

its 3am, I couldnt sleep so I figured id pop in. Good I did 5 pages I dont have to read come morning. Sometimes my nights are my loneliest. When there is no one to reach out and find comfort in. But guess Gods got his plans so I try to find strength to say, give me your best shot. Im praying the man gets the money to my bank today so I can start planning a few things.
woke up thinking about a young man in the family who told me when my son died, im your son now, I will be there for you. Had a few folks tell me that. But this young man is the one that is hurting me most. I wont get into details cause no need but to say my youth and life til I was 27 wasnt easy. Then God put a good man into my life and I finally felt safe. Well part of my healing was to say I would never again let people hurt me again. I would either deal with them or remove them from my life.
After my son died I was going through some issues with my inlaws. Most of it is a language barrier and both are elderly and with my mil some dementia has set in but many folks around just say they have always been like this.
I am determined that first im an adult, not a child. I deserve respect and I respect my elders. But a few things have happened and I just could not turn the other cheek. Their behavior was cruel. And I chose to remove myself from people who treat me like this. An incident happened and I was upset and was telling this young man why I was upset. He told me regardless of how they treat me I should just deal with it. Maybe I deserved it! Thing was it put my children and I in danger, second part was just spiteful trying to drive me off on the part of his brother who sees my husbands return as loosing his chance to claim what is rightfully my husbands cause many thought he would never return and his brother is greedy.
I told this young man ive turned my cheek so many times in the past two years and in my lifetime and it wasnt deserved and I wasnt letting anyone tell me that it was ok to be mistreated. Its been a month now and he has not contacted me once. I hurt each time I think of him cause he was the only person who stepped up and helped me out while my husband is gone. So I feel like ive lost another son.
I dont know how to mend this. I will not allow people to mistreat me and its not deserved. And for anyone to tell me well thats just how they treat everyone wont fly. This young man only sees culture how its done for hundreds of years. Well its wrong. And each time I say ok God you took my son for whatever reason, you put challenges in front of me to test me and each time I do fine. But I have few support systems here. No members of my own family who traditionally would speak on my behalf. Also this is a male society and without my husband or a son to protect me im fair game for abuse. Im trying to raise my kids to speak out against abuse, defend those who are weak and stand strong and be independent people. But its 8 months today since my son passed and all those folks who stood by me at his funeral saying they would be there to help me have gone back into the woodwork. Most just cause they got their own lives and others cause mostly it just something you say to someone whose greiving and dont think they will ever need you.
Sorry im chatty, but midmonth I get like this and im getting better some months. Sad I share my woes with strangers than with someone who actually is near me. But I got to get it off my chest.
Its 4am and the various roosters have begun their morning crows. Ur ur ur. They go through different sounds if you really pay attention. Guess I will try and sleep a bit more. Offer a little prayer that I find comfort soon. They say it gets easier when you lose someone, nope it doesnt...you just find ways to move on alone.

What women in your community have power, are building empowerment strategies for women like you? What women groups are supporting driving, voting, education, marriage equality?