the little chicks

Almost two months ago, our niece Madi called to see if she could get a chick. She was on her way to a farm supply store and was deciding on a whim that she should get a chick. But she needed to be sure it had a home after it outgrew her apartment. Rory was thrilled to say yes, as he thinks animals are the most fun we've had in a long time, and is ready to support any animal adventurers. 

She called an hour later and nervously explained that there was a six chick minimum. She wondered if we'd take six chicks. And because we've got the room, we thought six sounded more fun than one and told her to go for it. One chick had been acting lethargic from the start and died the next day, but the other five chicks have thrived. Madi loved them like her own little babies, gave them baths and blow dried their feathers. And she gave them their own instagram account. Be sure to scroll to the beginning so you can see how teeny, tiny these chicks began.

They are adorable and we are pleased to have more chickens on our farm. Two weeks ago we got a text from Madi asking if we were ready for her chicks. She and her husband Chace brought them on a Saturday and it was a sad farewell. She really, really, really loved Pam, Taylor, Mountain Wind, Lindsay and Teensy. She even had a funeral for the sixth chick that had lovingly been kept in a ziplock in her freezer until she could give it a proper burial in our field. 

It was a sad goodbye, and though I couldn't promise to give them a blow dry each day, I did promise we would take good care of them. And Rory promised too. And maybe that is why he built them their own adorable little coop. We knew they couldn't go in with the big birds, but these ladies needed to get out the barn. They stink! Chickens are so smelly! The goats and lambs hardly have a scent. But five little chicks can fill the barn with chicken smell, and we were ready to get them out doors. 

So using nothing but scraps around his shop Rory built them their own adorable home sweet home. And they seem quite happy about their new digs. They spent most of the afternoon exploring the great outdoors which is quite the change from the walk-in closet they came from. But I promised Madi that the life we would give these chicks would be the very best life a chicken could ever hope for. Minus the blow dry.

lessons from ivar

Before church on Sunday I sat with the kids eating rice krispies and told Ivar, "Hey, I'm going to run upstairs and get you a different shirt or pair of shorts for you. Usually when you put an outfit together if you have lots of colors on your shirt you just wear one color on your shorts. Or if you have lots of colors on your shorts you pick a shirt that is just one color. So do you want to keep wearing your shirt or your shorts?"

Ivar looked down at his colorful duds and told me quite plainly, "Mom, I like this outfit. So this is the one I'm going wear." And then he looked back up at me.

I couldn't argue with that. I told him that was a great reason. In fact, I spent most of my morning at church praying that he never lose his sense of self and that I might grow in confidence to match that of my 5-year-old son.

second cousins

I have lots of cousins on the Bredberg side of my family. 17 first cousins and now with marriage and kids, that world of cousins and cousins kids has multiplied quickly. On Saturday a lot of us were together for Nik's graduation open house and some of us ended up at the park for part of the party.

I stood back and watched my kids and my cousin's kids play together on all the playground equipment that I swear I was just playing on with the cousins that now had the kids. Somehow we are now the ones who stand in clumps and catch up while watching our kids. The passage of time is a very crazy and surreal thing. I felt it profoundly on Saturday.

And oh it was so good to be together. We don't all gather for Christmas like we did growing up, or meet at Grandma's farm for the 4th of July. Our own families have grown and that chapter seems to be over. But it just felt so right to be together. And it got us planning future gatherings, weeks at Bible Camp, wiener roasts and road trips to make sure we see each other a whole lot more.

weekend roadtrip

On Friday I took a little roadtrip with the kids down to my Aunt Annie and Uncle Ed's farm. While packing up I said to Ivar, "Hey Ivar, I think we should pack up a few toys for our weekend." Ivar replied very enthused, "I was just thinking about that this morning. Like how there is probably going to be a lot of Grandma-Stuff there, like jewels, and diamonds, and glass candles..."

The overnight was wonderful and it was so good to be with family. We were down there for my cousin's son's graduation party and it was so fun to see everyone. Ivar and Elsie insisted I sleep with them, so I lay between my two big kids with Hattie in the pack-n-play at the foot of the bed. And I slept great, realizing of how sweet and short this season is when I can even fit in a bed with Ivar and Elsie. We fed the orioles grape jelly with Aunt Annie, explored their farm buildings and played in the tree house.

And as it turns out, Aunt Annie had a lot of other Grandma-Stuff too. The kids were in awe of her Light Bright and played with it for hours. And Ivar built a whole train out of a toy he had never seen before: tinker toys, and used some of the light bright pieces as jewels and gold for his train to carry. So Aunt Annie did have jewels and diamonds after all!

descriptive language

Me: Elsie, no. Just because you found cookies by the couch doesn't mean you get to eat one.

Elsie: But I want one! I need sugar!

Me: No. You have already had a lot of sugar today. You had candy with Karis and a rhubarb bar with cool whip. That is a lot of sugar in one day.

Elsie: (Elsie swallows and chews her tongue for a second.) But mom. My mouth doesn't taste like sugar. It just tastes like gooey water!