More on the garden and chicks

Well, I think I mentioned that I was running out of garden space faster than I was running out of seeds. My husband (David) took care of that problem by doubling the size of the garden! He got the tractor out while the kids were at soccer the other evening and when we got home, there it was. We have now planted the okra, some popcorn, pumpkins, cantaloupe. And guess what, we still have leftover space. I still have a bag of seeds, so we'll get back out there tomorrow.

We watched another video online about candelling eggs and tried again a couple of nights ago. This time, we saw some movement in one that we're sure was a baby chick! We were so happy, that we quit then and there and didn't look at any more. Ha, ha, I know, silly us - but since we don't know exactly what we're looking at anyway, we aren't likely to throw any of this batch away until we know for sure they're not going to hatch. I just hope one doesn't explode in the incubator between now and next Thursday. That's when they're due to hatch. Only one more week!

Quincy (3 year old daughter) has quit wanting to eat eggs because she thinks she'll be eating one of our chicks! I keep explaining to her that there are no chickens in these eggs, but she doesn't seem to believe me. What to do, what to do...

A Rainy Day

It rained today. This is a good thing, as we have just planted our garden. Connor is turning out to be a pretty good garden helper. He loves to hoe! Yesterday we planted peppers, tomatoes, beans, cucumbers and watermelon. We're saving room for okra. That will fill up the garden, but we still have more things to plant. I'm thinking of dragging a few more tires up from the back acres to make raised beds out of. -- What's the matter? Didn't know I was a redneck? Ha, neither did I, but I guess if the shoe fits...

We tried candelling the eggs in the incubator yesterday. We didn't have a box like suggested. I hope that makes a difference, because we didn't see anything but eggs. No little blobs like the pictures on the internet shows. I really do hope I'm not giving up my bath tub for three weeks just for a batch of rotten eggs.

The kids and I went to Sam's today to try to get a few things. We made it there before the storms hit, but the lightning was pretty close. Since they were nervous about the possibility of the power going off inside the store, I wore my flashlight. It's on a lanyard, and dangled around my neck during our trip. Some folks thought that was a little strange, but I bet they see a lot worse these days. BTW, did you know Friday is sample day at Sam's? Don't worry about eating lunch, just go and have at it. The kids think it's a blast.

It's been a busy day and I'm tired. As I've already had my cup of hot, I'm going to sign off and go to bed. Good Night all!

Crop Circles

I know how they're made! You just give a seven year old a hoe and tell him to make a straight line. Yes, you guessed it right. We planted our garden today. Well, we started planting it. Six rows of corn and some watermelon are now in the ground and ready to grow. Earlier this year we planted blueberries and blackberries. Yum.

A new day

Here it is, another new day already. The chicks and eggs are still doing fine. The rabbits are happy campers too. They boys have gone to their piano lessons and we're back at home. They're doing some schoolwork and then we're going out to plant the garden. The stinkpot girl is watching a video. She denies being a stinkpot. Ha, and I deny being grumpy - so maybe denial runs in the family!

Today is tax day. I'm not going to a tea party, mainly because I want to sit home and plant the garden. We're from a small town, and the closest one that I know about is a pretty good drive. Just for the record, in case you were just itching to know a little bit about my political philosophy, I think most politicians could care less about the people they govern, are just after power, and love to spend other people's money. I think global warming is a scam (I would call it a joke if it wasn't being used as an excuse to raise my electric bill so high that I going to be very cold next winter). I also think that a government shouldn't be able to spend money it doesn't have. No debt. That's my philosophy. I'm working on it on a personal level, and they should work on it on the state and federal level.

Enough of that. The dinosaur movie is almost over and I have to go teach the girly her letters (she's three after all, and should know them by now)!

Who am I?

I'm not a grumpy old lady! Well, my kids and my husband say that I am, but I deny it. If I'm a little short tempered these days, it's because I have 18 baby chickens in the kitchen and 30 eggs in an incubator in the bath tub. What am I supposed to do with all this fowl?! We already have 6 chickens outside, and they produce all the eggs we need. My husband thinks we'll eat some of these, but I do suppose the kids will have something to say about that. Speaking of which... we also have 5 little rabbits on the back porch. They're supposed to be meat rabbits, but the kids have them all named and love to put them in a pen in the backyard and play with them. I predict no rabbit stew for us any time soon either.

So, you might ask, why the name 'A Cup of Hot'? Well, Grumpy Old Lady was already taken! And besides, I do enjoy a nice cup of hot to help me relax. With 4 kids and all this poultry in the house, I need to relax.

I am a stay at home mom, who would love a work-from-home job. I had one of those until a few months back and found that I really liked the paycheck. Know of anyone who wants a stay at home software designer? I know all about chickens. How about some custom chicken raising software?! If so, I'm the right lady for the job.

I am also a homeschool mom. That's right, 4 kids that stay at home with me all day. We have a great time learning together. We go on a ton of field trips, attend classes and playgroups and get more 'social' time than anybody I know. That makes for a busy enough time, but then we actually do a little schoolwork every now and then too - just to keep from getting bored.

Oh well. Enough for one night. It's time to go feed the chicks and have a cup of tea.