Consolidated Kansas

[PrairieChickens]

All I did yesterday was go to the dentist and teach little kids crochet

 

[mommahen10]

Oooooh, maybe we could paint their nails. I'm thinking pink and sparkly. I'm just kidding but it seems like a funny idea. I don't think I would use paint on the chickens because I would be scared it would hurt them somehow. I would mark them with zip ties around their foot instead. It wouldn't be as easy as a quick spritz of paint, but I think it may be safer. I think it's so cool that you have a chicken taking care of another. That's really sweet. I was thinking about your chickens while I was putting younger ones in our coop today. I was hoping there would be one that wouldn't just be so bossy and actually be nice to them.

 

[JosieChick]

Oh dear, that sounds like a mess. I just finished a book published by the American Academy of Pediatrics that is called something like the new mothers guide to breastfeeding. It is very repetitive but a nice book. I am sure there are lots of things I will learn that you never read in a book. I think it is still called the "nesting phase" although my DH hasn't gotten geared up for that yet! He keeps telling me we have plenty of time but I feel like nine months goes by in a flash!! He was giving me a hard time about having all these boxes of cloth diapers and all our big pieces of furniture and I told him that we are only 5 months away from having an infant and I want to be ready. I like to have everything done way ahead of time and I already feel like I am behind because we are moving in the middle of all this.

I've had 4 friends call me from the hospital, 2 first time moms, one first time dad called for his wife & 1 mom with her 3rd child, they couldn't nurse. I told them to kick all of their visitors out of the room & turn on the tv, watch something or stare out the window and get their mind on something other than nursing, relaxing is the key and.... and it worked for 3 of them, one couldn't get it and it was her 3rd child, I told her she was a pro she should call the pediatrician, turned out her baby was tongue tied and after they cut that little piece under the tongue that baby nursed. I'm sure you're better prepared than I was back in the late 80's, the only book I could find was What to expect when your expecting, it was very helpful but about the only thing to read. This was back when they didn't often show pg. ladies below the neck on TV shows, information wasn't easy to find. I missed the part that said I should sleep in my bra so I woke up in a milk soaked hospital bed. After my milk came in, my bras were too small, thankfully a family member got me some bigger bras. It's great that you DH is excited and willing to help! I think my DH will be better with the grand kids someday than he was with our children. My DH was always excited about the "nesting phase", that's what they called it back then, everything, I mean everything was in order, organized and immaculately clean.

Danz
Sounds like your first husband wasn't easy to live with! Glad you are happier now!

Oh how terrible. Poor baby and you! That is a good point. I have slept with cats my whole life and I have never smothered on of them! I would never sleep with a baby between me and my DH because he would roll over on a baby, he wacks me in his sleep all the time rolling around at night. I am so glad we have upgraded to a queen sized bed because I don't get kneed in the back nearly as much. Plus I have like ten pillows I have to sleep with so he is getting a taste of his own bed hogging medicine! I think if you follow the rules like don't use a bunch of blankets, don't put the baby on a pillow etc it is pretty safe. We are planning on having a home birth, I am hunting for a midwife now down in the Wichita area that will come out to us. There is a hospital in El Dorado that is about 15 minutes away at most so if anything isn't right we can get to a hospital but I really want to have the baby when it is ready and on its terms not on a doctors schedule.

My DD and her husband co-slept with my granddaughter, and it worked wonderfully. When I was in the hospital with her (at birth), her eyes hurt from the bright lights in the nursery and she cried all the time. When they would bring her to me "to nurse" she would quiet and go to sleep. I put her on my stomach and put my hands over her little bum and we both went to sleep. The nurse about had a coronary when she came in, "YOU CAN"T SLEEP WITH THAT BABY, YOU MIGHT ROLL ON HER" she shrieked. I jumped, dd started crying, and the nurse grabbed her and put her in the little crib. My only excuse is that I was still half asleep when I said, "I won't roll on her, I sleep with a cat all the time." It took serious negotiation to be allowed to keep her in the room where it was dark after that. They finally let us go home the next morning (about 48 hours after she was born).

My DD gave birth at home both times, with a midwife, into water. So much better. I can't say I was comfortable with the home birth, but it was her choice and was the right solution for her.

! In fact, there are some fascinating studies on co sleeping and its effect on a babies growth. They actually know now that being in close contact to mom either close to or in bed during the night reduces the risk of SID due to the number of arousals during the night in response to mom's movements and also increases the effectiveness of the intestinal tract in the infant so they absorb nutrients better and gain weight quicker. There are a lot of benefits to baby being close to bed and mom during the night. The caveat is breastfeeding moms. If a mom is formula or bottle feeding the same effects are not seen and the benefits are not as high. Thank heavens my DH is on my side and very supportive. I don't know what I would do if he wasn't.

I don't think outlawing co sleeping helps anything but many states have considered it. I think this happens when people are irresponsible and don't follow some simple rules to make having a baby in bed safe. Women who consume alcohol or smoke are far more likely to suffocate their baby in bed. Also, women who don't breast feed tend to hold their baby up closer near their face putting them closer to pillows and increasing the risk that they will suffocate.

Most men aren't! I have a wonderful man now that tolerates me and visa versa. Maturity makes a huge difference. I do wish I knew then what I know now.
Mammahen and everyone else. I just can't believe any state would say you can't sleep with a baby. What kind of woman could roll over on her baby?? Having kids just heightens your awareness of all of your senses until you wake up if their breathing changes. I can't imagine any one being able to roll over on a baby and not know it unless they weighed at least 400 pounds. Seriously?? To me that was the very best part of breast feeding. When the babies were really little I usually got up and nursed in a comfy chair but once they got a little older and I wasn't so hyper over protective you bet I'd grab them and take them back to bed with me.

I do this! I think I am going to get nine million things done and I only get 7 million and then I am soooo sore! Hope you feel better.

HOLY @%$#@$%$# COW!!! I'm sooooooo sore I can barely move. I'm such a weeny. I went outside right after lunch, didn't come in until well after dark. I cleaned out all of the brooders, tidied up the brooder room, cleaned all of the outside chick/little chicken pens, rooster/turkey pen. I raked, and scraped, and shoveled and dumped. That was enough work as it was and I didn't even get to the two big pens. One is new so doesn't need it but I'll still have to do the layer pen tomorrow. The kids can do a lot, but every once in a while I want to do it myself and make sure it's done thoroughly. Tomorrow is a new day, I hope these muscles loosen up enough to takle the layer coop. My dh got me a cool wagon for Christmas, I've been telling him I wanted it but I asked if I could have it early since it helps with the work. The wagon part tilts to dump so that helped dump the yuck on the garden, I could pull it much easier than I could manage the yard carts. It helps with the water too, but it splashes a lot because it's so bumpy, but it doesn't splash me so I'm HAPPY!

Danz- You have to tell me what you think of this funky chicken. I think its a pullet but I not sure. I thought most of the chicks from you were going to be roos but so far most have turned out to be pullets. It threw me off because they all got really red combs but then that was it!

 

[Kansas Prairie]

Update on my foster mother. She sleeps on the roost with the chick under her wing. I think this is really odd but nice. I am not sure the chick would have made it without a foster mother.
Second; has anyone here ever marked a bird with paint. I have 6 RIR and they all look the same. Want to mark them so the non laying ones can go to dinner. Same with my sex links. Thinking cheep spray paint and just a little sprits while they are in the nest box. Any suggestions?

I wouldn't spray paint them, some times the ones who spend the most time in the nest boxes aren't laying eggs. Some people put different colored food coloring in the vent area, and the egg reportedly come out with some color on it. Color coded zip ties to match the food color maybe???

 

[Kansas Prairie]

My Jakes are tearing each others feathers up. It's their hobby, reminds me of boys wanting to wrestle all of the time. Do they regrow tail feathers?

 

[mommahen10]

I like the food coloring idea, it would surely get some on the egg. That's smart thinking. Your turkeys are sooooo beautiful!

Josie, I didn't trust my dh in bed either. I put the portacrib on my side, raised it to the level of the bed and kept the baby there. I also put a second bed in my room. Usually I would go to bed with my dh and keep baby on the portacrib side, then when baby woke up we would go to the other bed and sleep normally. I got to where I could nurse on both sides but only lay on one side. I don't think that was best for baby though, but you learn all kinds of cool tricks. LOL, how about leaning over screaming baby buckled into carseat. That's my craziest one. My dh is always so determined to get somewhere he can't be bothered with stopping and I can't be bothered with crying babies, I just can't let that happen.

PrairieChickens, is the trapezius muscle on the side of the neck? Is it on the same side that you crochet with? I know it takes both hands but the one you hold your hook in?

 

[chicken danz]

That is definitely a pullet judging by her color, and mostly salmon faverolle. Does she have 5 toes? Looks like a gold laced polish might have been involved in there as well. If you need a broody she will have the genetics for it. Should lay medium sized light brown or tannish colored eggs. I think she is pretty cute!!!
Sometimes those mixed breeds make for some awesome funky chickens. And heaven knows they are hardy. They make good layers if nothing else.
I kind of miss having a yard full of funky chickens. I've only kept the gold laced polish/cochin combos cause they are so awesome looking. The rest of the mixed birds I've sold.
Pretty birds, Kansas Prairie. They'll eventually grow them back if they quit fighting. If you have girls around though I wouldn't expect them to stop.
I got a call tonight of someone who lost a couple ducks I had sold them last spring. They were very upset. Not sure what happened but they got their necks broken (not by a predator- he said it was his fault.) He was very upset cause he had them tamed to pick up and play with. He is down to one duck and it's lonely. I told him I had some hatching today and another group a few days old and he is coming tomorrow to buy a couple of new babies.
I think my buyer will be here this weekend so it was good timing. I wasn't planning to hatch any more until the first of the year. I hate to short my buyer but I can get more out of selling them to an individual. It's all money for future feed.
I spent my afternoon with my Dad and he had ordered me a pretty little glass rooster. It totally surprised me. I need to find a special place of honer for it. My Dad isn't one to just buy gifts for now reason.
I even spent a little time with him teaching him how to use the computer. It hasn't been used since Mom passed away but it is still hooked up to the internet. He actually said he might be able to master it if he gets some glasses he can see better with. He has rejected the idea of learning the computer since I bought the first one for him and Mom maybe 15 years ago and taught her how to use it to email. I really think he would enjoy using the computer in the assisted living home he is moving to this weekend. It would be better than wasting his day watching tv and taking naps.

 

[PrairieChickens]

Oooooh, maybe we could paint their nails. I'm thinking pink and sparkly. I'm just kidding but it seems like a funny idea. I don't think I would use paint on the chickens because I would be scared it would hurt them somehow. I would mark them with zip ties around their foot instead. It wouldn't be as easy as a quick spritz of paint, but I think it may be safer. I think it's so cool that you have a chicken taking care of another. That's really sweet. I was thinking about your chickens while I was putting younger ones in our coop today. I was hoping there would be one that wouldn't just be so bossy and actually be nice to them.

It's not quite the same as a hen taking on the role of a mama, but when Tina Eggturner was eaten by an opossum and Bjork was all depressed, Bubbles kept Bjork company until she'd finished grieving. For a couple of weeks after Tina died, Bubbles was glued to Bjork's side. Then, once Bjork started to find her feet again, they hung out less and less, and now they're back to doing their own thing.

 

[PrairieChickens]

PrairieChickens, is the trapezius muscle on the side of the neck? Is it on the same side that you crochet with? I know it takes both hands but the one you hold your hook in?

Yeah, and it's not uncommon for my trapezius to be a little stiff after a long day of hard core crocheting (that sounds so silly), but I didn't do that yesterday. I must have strained it while carrying my tote to and from the class and my car--it's the only remotely arduous thing I did yesterday.

 

[mommahen10]

Danz, that's so awesome about your Dad getting you a nice gift. That's so sweet, I'm sure he knows how much you love your chickens. I agree, the computer is a good thing to keep him busy. How does he feel about the move? That's always hard stuff.

PrairieChickens, that's so sweet that Bubbles kept Bjork company. It amazes me how smart they can be. It doesn't sound silly to me that your muscles can act up while crocheting. I have a wrist that acts up when I crochet a lot, or sew a lot, or do too many dishes. The other day I was kneading bread dough with my left hand and my right elbow. I'm sure that was a sight, I just couldn't use my wrist at all. Then yesterday, hardly any pain even after all that hard work outside. Sometimes just weird stuff happens.

Well, I'm hoping and praying my ds got me a deer. I heard 2 shots out that way. We could really use the meat.