Eva’s Friends

[Callender Girl]

Seems as if you were meant to get that Flex, huh? I bet it works out fine for you. It's great that your dad did research on safety and reliability.

Also, hurray on the basement repairs! A flooded basement is a nightmare. Years ago, I came home after a storm to find everything in the basement floating in several inches of water. I'm lucky that the furnace and washer & dryer are on raised platforms, built by a previous owner who must have also faced flooding.

I always enjoy your photos! That really is an unusual-looking moth, and Constance looks like a creature from outer space with her eerie, glowing eyes.

Okay, your grandpa's seven Terry's beats my neighbor's two Higgins. Although, I moved, so maybe there's been more dogs named Higgins since then?

My newest chicks, including Theodora, the Ameraucana, are: Gwendolyn (another Ameraucana), Cochins Arabella and Lavinia, Cuckoo Marans Daphne, Silver-Laced Wyandotte Winifred and Rose Comb Brown Leghorn Lydia. The only names I had chosen before I got the chicks were the Cochins' -- named for characters from British TV dramas, which I really enjoy.

If you never build a rooster sanctuary or buy and renovate the old school house, it's always good to have dreams and goals, even if they only ever exist in your mind and imagination. Some people never do even that much!

Enjoy getting behind the wheel of your new car!

 

[Evadig]

Sunday, first day in September, and one year since I feel down in the basement and hurt my knee. I seem to vaguely recollect telling y'all that?

Anyway, right now all I can think about is ducks. We have lost some eggs since Wednesday. One dead in the shell, and two pecked open. One was still alive when we found it. I tried to plaster it up using another egg shell like I had read somewhere here on BYC, but it didn't work. The other one was dead but it had only had a couple days more to go.

Now the good news is, the remaining six appear to be alive and one has zipped and another has pipped. Both are peeping. Hilda was getting annoyed with my frequent investigations, so I have left them alone for the night. But it is so hard!

The whole chicken flock has lice. I found several on me after picking up Miss Prude . That explains why her feathers are so raggedy. And Tractor Supply is out of Permethrin. I will give them DE baths tomorrow as a temporary measure.

Honor is a brat and I don't know what to do with him. He's not big enough for soup and I don't believe in killing something just to get rid of it. Especially as he's not aggressive, to me at least. He picks on the hens. They don't respect him and he gets mad about it. Well, he's still young. I have time to figure out what to do with him.

I have a large stash of fabric in the closet that I am sick of looking at. I think I am going to start sewing with it, little bits at a time, and make clothes or quilts or bags to give to charity. It might as well have a use! I started by using up most of the flannel to make a baby quilt.

Have you started your job yet?

Yes, but it's kind of random. The next time I play is the 15th.

Looking forward to seeing chick pictures soon!

Hopefully...I am so worried about them, especially the zipper. It doesn't seem to have made much progress.

My newest chicks, including Theodora, the Ameraucana, are: Gwendolyn (another Ameraucana), Cochins Arabella and Lavinia, Cuckoo Marans Daphne, Silver-Laced Wyandotte Winifred and Rose Comb Brown Leghorn Lydia. The only names I had chosen before I got the chicks were the Cochins' -- named for characters from British TV dramas, which I really enjoy.

Your hens have lovely names. I don't know any TV dramas, but I do have two hens named Lucy and Viv!

If you never build a rooster sanctuary or buy and renovate the old school house, it's always good to have dreams and goals, even if they only ever exist in your mind and imagination. Some people never do even that much!

Thank you for the encouragement!

The (little bit lopsided) baby quilt

The finished dress - I love the green broadcloth! This pattern is from 1940.

Annabee

Quartette of Constance Pictures:

 

[Callender Girl]

Thanks for appreciating my girls' names. I try to choose unusual names, names from history or names that come from the countries where the chickens originated.

Life with poultry always seems to have its ups and downs -- often at the same time! Sorry about the lice, duck eggs and Honor's attitude. But, there's still eggs to hatch and new ducklings to look forward to.

I don't kill even the worst chicken, which for me would be Billy, a Cochin Bantam rooster. At 5 years old, he is beautiful, tidbits for his girls and is totally horrible with people. So, he and his two hens live in a coop and run, that I only enter when absolutely necessary.

I applaud you for making the baby quilt, which is clearly intended for a "farm kid" baby. You may see it as lopsided; I see it as a future heirloom.

My sister used to sew professionally (including wedding dresses!), and I guarantee her fabric stash is many times larger than anything you can fit in a closet. She has hundreds of bolts of fabric. But I understand wanting to use up your material; I've been contemplating donating a lot of mine; there are so many projects in my head that will never actually get to a sewing machine.

Do you have a lot of vintage patterns? I've collected a fair number from household auctions -- mostly dress patterns from the 40s and 50s. I love to see the fashions in old black-and-white movies.

The faces of Annabee and Constance show great expressions!

I hope Hilda's remaining eggs hatch successfully

 

[N F C]

Love the quilt fabric and the dress is beautiful! Hope you'll do some more projects and share them with us.

Sorry about the lice, hope you can get it under control soon.

Nice pictures of Constance, she has such pretty green eyes

 

[Evadig]

Fair warning - lots of pictures

The ducklings are here!

For easy reference, I've named them. But the names might change when we find out the gender!

Angelica hatched early Monday morning. She was snuggled under Hilda.
Greg hadn't made any progress from Sunday morning so Monday afternoon I decided to help him out. I don't know if this was the right thing to do or not. But he was very weak and when I put him back in the nest, hoping Hilda would sit on him, she stepped right on his neck. Now I think I understand why Josie from the last hatch died...if only I'd known!

I took the little bugger out and held him wrapped in a washcloth, trying to keep him warm. I was sure he'd die, like Josie. His intestines appeared to be coming out. But we were cleaning the basement that day and I couldn't carry him around, so I put him in a box in the sun, and he slept and dried off, and four hours later he was still alive.

I brought him in and put him in a little bowl under the heat lamp, and he burrowed into one of my old shirts and fell asleep. I was so tired I fell asleep too, even though I told myself I needed to wake up to check on him. The next morning he was still alive...
and my mom came in with a third duckling! Miraculously she was still alive, even though Hilda had stepped on her too.

Both Greg and Moira (named after Officer Moira Smith who was killed on 9/11) had difficulty walking. I gave them niacin and they can walk pretty well now.

That afternoon, Hilda took advantage of me candling the three remaining eggs and left Angelica peeping in the coop. She did not care. I brought it out to her and she stepped on it. Hilda is just a bad mother...

I thought she was at least a good broody until today. She ran out to play with Henry and Winnie, deserting the eggs. And she did not come back. I tried to force her to sit on them by locking her up but she threw a fit. So I took the eggs away and brought them inside. They had been cold for nearly eight hours, but when I candled them they were still kicking.

I have set up an makeshift incubator in the brooder. It is one of my old fish bowls. I am trying to give them a chance at life - I can hear one of the buggers kicking or pecking the side of the egg.

The demolition company came today and ripped out the basement floor. Now we have to wait for five days before they can do anything else.

I showed Constance one of the ducklings. She was mildly curious but when it ran toward her she got scared and went back into the bathroom (that's her safe spot).

I hope I will have good news with the three remaining eggs for Sunday!

I try to choose unusual names, names from history or names that come from the countries where the chickens originated.

Me too!

I’d like to see Billy! He sounds like quite the character!

Do you have a lot of vintage patterns? I've collected a fair number from household auctions -- mostly dress patterns from the 40s and 50s. I love to see the fashions in old black-and-white movies.

I have about fifteen, almost all from the 40’s and 50’s as well. It’s my favorite time period. I’m slowly adding to my collection. I’d buy them all if I could, but I don’t have the money right now. I mostly get mine from old patterns.com.

Love the quilt fabric and the dress is beautiful! Hope you'll do some more projects and share them with us.

Thank you! I started another quilt last night so I’ll be glad to share that with y’all when it’s finished.

Nice pictures of Constance, she has such pretty green eyes

Thank you, and yes, I love the green!

Left to right: Greg, Angelica, Moira

The brooder

The makeshift incubator

Honor and the Virtues

Left to right: Greg, Moira, Angelica

Eva admiring the chicks while Annabee looks on inquisitively.

Angelica

Moira and Greg

Greg

Liberty: "Mummy, mummy, let me get under you. I'm cold, mummy!"
Jen: rolls eyes

Eva helping load the U-Haul with the junk from the basement

Greg newly hatched

Constance trying out the quilt in progress

Two of the newest patterns

 

[N F C]

Congrats on the new ducklings, they are adorable! Hope the remaining eggs hatch

I like the newest patterns!

 

[Callender Girl]

How are the ducklings doing?

I am frantically trying to prepare for weekend guests, but I didn't want you to think I was ignoring your post. I always enjoy hearing from you; I just need to do a gazillion things before they get here this afternoon!

 

[Evadig]

I didn't write last night, because I was so tired...and then proceeded to not sleep until nearly 5am .

We had one hatch from the makeshift incubator - another Welsh Harlequin/Saxony named Doris - not sure which I like better. Of course it may end up being a boy and all...but anyway, I tried to keep her in a box but she saw she had big siblings and wanted to play with them. As soon as she could walk, it was out of the box, and she's happy. The size difference between a week-old and a two-day-old is incredible!

The other two eggs died, in the process of pipping.

I'm pretty sure I saw a weasel last evening.

Tilly (the turkey) got over the fence and went into the neighbor's yard. One of them saw her and she came up to him, so he decided it wasn't a wild turkey and it must belong to us, and carried her over much to my sister's delight. The neighbor has three overly zealous dogs...Tilly does not get to free range until I figure out how to keep her in the yard!

There's been a resident spider in my bathroom. Saturday night I went to take a shower and didn't see Ms. Spider anywhere. I assumed she had moved on and took my shower. When I reached for my towel, I saw a brown blob crawling up it. She had been exploring the towel...I thought her departure was too good to be true!

That's all for this morning.

Stan is either molting or something tried to get him - either way he looks funny without his tail.

Brush me now!

Spoiler: Ms Spider

Left to right: Angelica, Greg, Moira, Doris. I love how the bigger ones kind of have the little ones shielded .

Doris

A pretty red rose

 

[N F C]

Doris is adorable! There's not much cuter than a duckling

What a nice neighbor you have to bring Tilly back!

 

[Evadig]

I forgot to write Wednesday. Today I played organ for church - it went better than last time even though the choir director gave me the wrong music for some parts and I had to sightread. At least that's one thing I can say I'm good at!

This thread is beginning the end of its journey, unless I keep posting personal updates. But I think this in the "Pictures and Stories of my Chickens" forum. I am putting the whole flock up for adoption here on the BST forum. Life is slowly changing and I have to accept that, even though it's really hard. I can't imagine life without my birds...but I have rehomed loved pets before. It will have to happen again.

But anyway, Liberty was crowing today. I thought perhaps he was asserting his independence, but he is snuggled up under Jen again tonight.

I took the ducklings outside today and let them play in the big pen while I sat in the shade and edited pictures on my phone. Claire and Phyllis (the former Philip Howard) looked at them curiously, but Maggie was very interested...I can't tell if she liked them or not. At any rate, they actually know to come when called. I say, "here, stinkers, come on, little stinkers," and they waddle over, peeping noisily. They had a good old time nibbling at my sleeves and phone and glasses while I took pictures of the other ducks.

Prudence has been rejected by her subflock, the Old Maids. I tried to return her to them (she's out of hospital) but Lyd tried to kill her and Winston beat her while Rose stood idly by and watched. So she's back in hospital because she won't get along with anyone and vice versa. She free ranges with everyone during the day and sleeps alone at night. She doesn't seem to mind.

In three days I have gone through forty-four cups of food from a fifty pound bag and ten cups from a forty pound bag.

I guess that's all. I do want y'all to know I appreciate you as an audience . It's nice to know somebody cares.

Lots of pictures tonight, though!

I was preparing for bed, and couldn't find Constance anywhere. Finally I looked under the bed. She was sleeping on Eva's (temporary - the real one was drying) pillow!

I put down Eva's bed when it had dried and she went to bed, but you can tell from her big eyes in the picture that she's rather ill at ease. Con isn't sure what to think.

Phyllis (formerly Philip Howard)

First time meeting

Claire

Maggie

We went to a battlefield today.