"Batman's" Bible Box

You might remember back around Easter I posted our resurrection eggs that we were using to learn about the true meaning of Easter. Well, these eggs were still being used after Easter had come and gone. " Batman" and "Strawberry Shortcake" LOVED the eggs. I took the Easter themed trinkets out of the eggs and put in other things that would tie into some of my favorite bible stories. So we continued to go on egg hunts everyday and do our devotion based on our eggs. Eventually I felt like the eggs needed to go and we needed a more permanent solution to continue this new tradition that we started. This is where our prayer box came from. "Batman" sometimes calls it his Bible box because we always read a Bible story after we open the box. No matter what the name of the box, it is an awesome way to fit in a devotion with little ones.

Materials: 
Decorating materials such as:
Paint
Glitter
Stickers
A small wooden box
A favorite bible verse to include on the inside

We spent time decorating our box and "Batman" put his finishing touches on his box.

Each morning I put something into the box that ties into a Bible story. I hide the box so "Batman and Strawberry Shortcake" can find the box like we are still hunting for eggs ( they love this part ). After "Batman" finds the box we all read our story together.

I hope this can give some inspiration on how to fit in a small devotion with your little one.

Attention Moms: Use that Mommy intuition!

I recently had a head on encounter with good old mom intuition. That little feeling way down deep that creeps up when for no distinct reason you, the mom, sense something is wrong. This mom intuition lead my little man to get his first pair of glasses.

He never not even once told me that he couldn't see. He didn't give me any indication that he couldn't see. He watched T.V. just fine, played the ipad, played sports no problem. The one thing he didn't want to do was anything with paper and pencil. He doesn't like to color, he will not write, he has trouble cutting, he even has trouble tracing letters. At first glance lots of people and even I thought he might have trouble with his fine motor skills. Luckily I have an Occupational Therapist for an Aunt who said his fine motor skills were great. Hmmm now what!? He even passed the eye exam they give at the pediatrician's office at their 4 year old visit. This is where the mom intuition comes in.  

I decided that I would take him in for an eye exam before he started preschool just to make sure everything was a-OK, I thought something might be off with his vision. It's a good thing I took him in because he left with a whopping prescription for a 4 year old. My little man is extremely farsighted. No wonder he didn't want to color, write, trace, or cut... he couldn't see any of it! Now he is happy to look just like Dad and see everything through new eyes.

I wrote this post to let all of you moms out there know that your mom intuition, gut feeling, or whatever else you call it means something. Just because your doctor tells you something is fine or you don't see the "right" signs for a problem don't ignore your instinct. Thankfully "Batman's" eyesight was a very fixable problem with an easy solution. Give yourself a pat on the back moms, we have pretty important jobs.

We're feeling hot hot hot!

Summer is in full swing here at Yankee Belle Farm and it is HOT. Humans and animals alike are trying to spend the day keeping cool.

Alpacas:
On a hot day you can find the alpacas getting their tan on in the sun. It seems silly that these furry guys wouldn't lay in the sun when it's hot, but they do! They kind of look dead when they lay like this but have no fear they are just soaking up the sun.

If the are not soaking up the sun they are waiting to be sprayed off with a cool hose.

Pacas enjoying the cool water

Ducks:
The ducks of the farm like to spend their time in the water when they are hot. They like it when I fill up a tub with fresh cold water for them.

3 ducks in one bin

Chickens:
Chickens on the farm can be found trying to drink out of the duck's water bin or dust bathing on a hot day. Chickens roll around in the dirt to keep themselves cool and clean.

Elvira pecking at the door on a hot day, maybe she wants lemonade!

Everyone gathering around the bin for a cool drink of water

Just trying to stay cool

Humans:
Last but not least you can find us humans of the farm sipping on a cool drink or trying to stay cool in the pool. Sometimes the chickens even sneak inside the fence for the pool. Luckily they haven't tried to take a dip yet.

Strawberry Shortcake is ready for the pool!

Batman is part fish I think

Well whether it's animal or human we spend our summer days staying cool and having fun. What do you do to beat the heat?

Little Monty turns 2!!!

We had our first alpaca birthday on the farm today, Monty turned 2! Naturally we had to celebrate in full Yankee Belle Farm style so we celebrated with Monty throughout the day.

The guys came right over to the fence in the morning ready to start the day of celebrating Monty.

I even got a few birthday kisses from the birthday paca. He had a great day with some extra grain and fresh leaves. Oh and of course the people celebrated too....

Special cupcakes for the paca's people.

Batman wanted to admire the cupcake before he ate it.

Strawberry Shortcake didn't waste any time diving in.

Happy Birthday Little Monty!

Spit Happens

Who me?

Well we've had the alpacas for a couple months now and we L O V E them! I can't even remember not having the boys in our backyard. At this point all of my friends know about the alpacas and several of them have met the guys. Most new people that I meet also know about the alpacas because it always somehow comes in conversation because, well, how could it not. I get three really common questions when I mention alpacas....

1. What is an alpaca?

2. Are you the alpaca farm on 64? ( a huge new farm on a big main road near us )

3. Do they spit on you?

Most people focus on #3... do they spit. Everyone has an opinion on alpaca spit. Even the people who ask what an alpaca is have an opinion on alpaca spit. My answer, yes alpacas spit. No the do not spit on me per say. 

Why alpacas spit:

Alpacas use spit as a defense mechanism. They have no top teeth so they can't bite, they have toe nails so their kick can't do too much damage, so they spit. Now I know you might be thinking, what could spit possible do? Well let me tell you the smell of alpaca spit will knock you over. This spit comes from the bottom of their gut and could clear a room, or barnyard. 

They typically don't spit ON people, well at least mine don't. They spit at each other and if you happen to be between two perturbed alpacas then you are out of luck. Mine usually spit over food or when they are playing, which looks more like fighting. 

I thought we were spit free because for the first 2 weeks there was no spit! Our lovely blue barn was in mint condition and they seemed to be getting along great. Then one day I noticed they had started spitting. 

See all that greenish hay looking stuff... spit. Let me give you a closer look.

It looks more like hay spatter to me. Bottom line, alpacas spit but it doesn't matter much to me. I just wipe it off, and go right on about my day because, well, spit happens.

A tale of two mother hens. An adventure in co-parenting.

Usually mother hens are fiercely protective of their chicks. One hen with her baby chicks. But as everyone who has animals knows, they don't always do what the books say. Sometimes they make their own rules. This is the case with our two little moms.

Meet the girls

One silkie bantam, Gandolf the White, and one brabanter, J Chicken,  found each other and became instant friends. These are two very different breeds of chickens and the first time I saw them together was on their nest.
21 Days on the nest
They decided to sit on the nest together from the very beginning. They had never really been chicken friends before but they sure decided that they were going to do this together. for 21 long days they sat on the nest side by side. When adoption day came I brought both chickens inside and separated them before I gave them their new chicks. You see, their eggs weren't hatching so I bought some day old chicks to slip under them so they would think their eggs had hatched. I wanted to separate them because I thought they might get violent and steel each others chicks or hurt each other. NOT. THE. CASE! The second I separated them they started going nuts clucking and flapping trying to get back to each other. Well this wild chicken show lasted about 5 minutes in my dinning room before I realized I had to put them back together. So back they went. When nighttime came I slipped into the coop and put two chicks under one chicken and two chicks under the other one and prayed that they would keep their chicks and there would be no hen fighting. Now I waited.

Protectors
Once the they came both moms they went into full protector mode. Protectors of their chicks and of one another. I almost couldn't stand the cuteness when I went into the coop to find the on mom with her wing over the other mom and chicks. I couldn't make this stuff up!

They have been teaching the chicks everything they need to know and doing it together, co-parenting. I guess sometimes you need a partner to help and in some cases a rooster just won't do.

I feel like these two are forever friends now and I love watching them lead their babies around the yard everyday. Only time will tell what their relationship will be in the future, but for now they are together forever.

A lesson in love. A mamma hen.

I have taken an unexpected blogging hiatus due to computer difficulties for about a month. I wanted my first post back to be full of energy and awesome animal stories from the farm. Unfortunately that is not the post I need to write.

Last night I lost one of my favorite chickens to a predator. Not only was she the cutest fluffiest silkie you have ever seen, she was the most friendly chicken around. She tolerated "Batman" picking her up and even taking her to show and tell at school. I know that having chickens means loosing chickens. It is part of keeping livestock. Just because it is inevitable does not make it easy.

Gandolf The Grey was a fierce mamma hen. She would do anything for her little chicks. She adopted 6 chicks without question. It is amazing to watch a mother hen with her chicks. Their protective instinct runs deep. They teach their chicks everything they need to know and protect them at the same time.

I noticed she and one of her chicks were missing when I was doing my nightly coop check. Every once and a while a chicken doesn't come back to the coop so I have to trudge through the woods with my flashlight until I find them hiding in a bush somewhere. This time I had a bad feeling. Gandolf the Grey always comes back. It was especially strange because her chicks were snug inside not under their mother's wing. One of her chicks was also missing. I searched and searched and could not find them. Eventually I had to call the search. I got up early in the morning to search again. This time my search ended in tears and feathers. My poor little chicken had been a victim to a raccoon (at least I think it was a raccoon. ) I assumed that the animal took the little chick.


Tonight when I went into the coop I noticed one little chick standing in the corner. After doing a count I realized it was the lost chick! The chick had survived.

Mamma Hen was just protecting her chick. She sacrificed herself for her baby. As I spent time holding the scared chick and comforting her I thought about a mother's love. Mother's will do anything for their babies, even chickens.

My little chicken had done what any mother would do, protect her baby. I will always be sad that she is gone but it makes my heart smile because she was doing what I would do, protecting her baby.