Baby Chicks Anyone

Hi everyone!! I sure hope that you are all having a great Winter! I was planning last Fall to winter over some baby chicks and have them at egg laying age by the time Summer came.

Well, I had some really weird vertigo problems and keeping chicks just wasn't in the cards. So this Spring I will be looking into some new fresh little baby chicks!! I love them little fluffy critters !!

So when you get baby chicks you have to keep them warm and draft free. 

Week 1: 90-95 F
Week 2: 85-90 F
Week 3: 80-85 F
Week 4: 75-80 F
Week 5: 70-75 F
Week 6: 70 F

 So by week six the temperature should hopefully stay withing the 70 F range. By this time they are well feathered and do well out in the pen. We have some of the coldest weather here from March through May. Yes, we even have been known to have snow in June!

Therir first home for me is usually just a big card board box. That way, I can keep them in for a bit to keep them from getting into any trouble and out of danger. Remember, that small children and house pets can be pretty dangerous to a baby chick.

As tempting as it may be to buy a baby chick for your children for Easter. Please remember they grow fast and if you do not know what you are doing, you may have a mean Rooster in no time at all. 

Not to mention that a baby chick is very fragile.

I really think unless you seriously want to start keeping chickens. That the best gift for a child is a stuffed toy one.

With careful planning and gathering practical information. You can start enjoying your own Farm Fresh Eggs when the pullet reaches about 20 weeks in age! There are lots of great Chicken Keeping books and web pages out there. So get informed and enjoy! 

I have been enjoying my chickens and their eggs for about 13 years now! It has been a very rewarding hobby!

Have you ever kept chickens? Would you like too?

Blessings,

Susie

Easter Egg Decorating Family Fun

Today I was out in the Little Red Barn gathering eggs.
I again realized that I am so thankful for such beautiful fresh daily nutrition.
These eggs that my hens lay daily are such a big blessing to my family.
We cook them up so many different ways. They are scrambled, fried, or we bake with them.
We add them to soup, etc.. and one of my favorite is to boil them.

This time of year so many people are boiling eggs, and decorating them. Many families take place in this  annual tradition.
It has always been fun for my family to decorate the boiled eggs before Easter. For us, I think it is the artsy crafty side of my family that just loves this activity.

Source

We use the basic food coloring recipe on the box of the food coloring bottled in the 4-pack from the grocery store. That is my favorite method. It is simple and inexpensive and fun to mix! There are just so many color combinations from the drops!

We get out crayons, and rubber bands, and cotton swab brushes! Anything to make our eggs pretty. We put messages, and make faces. It is just lots of fun.! 

We usually make a big date with Grandma & Grandpa, too. It is a big part of spending time together from the youngest grandchild all the way up to the grandparents!

I love the time we share laughing and painting! These are some of the fondest memories we build and grow upon each and every year.
I pray that all of you have a wonderful time celebrating the Resurrection of our Savior on this Holiday weekend!

Blessings,

Little Susie Home Maker

Linking with
Thursday Favorite Things Blog Hop Linky Party

Beautiful Green Egg!

I got the most wonderful surprise! I hope you enjoy it too !

 While collecting my eggs from The Little Red Barn, ( I love calling it that, he he!)

 I was blessed with my first green egg!

And as any normal person would do..  I wooped and hollared and jumped up and down.. 

Ran into the house and showed the family with much delight!

Look, look!! Isn't it pretty!

See, I haven't had any green egg layers for years. Last fall, while I was at the local feed store, I looked in the bin that they had all lit up with heat lamps. In the straight run bin (That means unsexed girls and boys mixed)

 I saw them! 

Little striped backs like chip munks. 

I gently picked one up in my hand and looked at it's little face! I was looking for tufted cheek feathers!

Yes, they had them! Cute little faces!

I never wanted to keep peeps through the winter, 

here in Colorado, 

but these are rare little birds for me in this neck of the woods!

(Unless I mail order large quantities)

So I prayed they were Araucanas, or Americaunas 

which are known for their beautiful green and/or blue eggs!

I picked out 4 and then went to the Pullet (baby girls) bin, which was full of little black pullets (usually brown eggs layers) and made sure to get one baby girl. 

I knew that all my straight runs could end up being boys, 

and wanted to know if I took care of babies all winter, at least one would be a girl.

So the chicks have been housed in the nursery side of my coop all winter. 

Where they have been kept warm and fed and away from the older flocks.

In a recent post I was pleased they started laying!

 I ended up with three tufted cheek pullets, one black pullet, and one very pretty tufted cheek cockerel! I was getting a little brown egg a day! Must be the pretty black pullet!

Now don't get me wrong! I love all the eggs that all my lovely girls lay.

But if this doesn't say photo shoot, what does? 

I just adore all the colors from soft pinks through the browns and white and now green!

So I hurried and didn't even iron my vintage family tablecloth, 

Got out one of my favorite jade-ite glass plates, 

and now you know why this is one of my most favorite colors!

I love the color of Jadeite and the color of this egg!

I also, just recently started playing with Google Picasa. 

So bare with me on this. Just having fun!!

I hope you enjoy my pictures. Please share any comments you wish to leave.

I am always so amazed when I hear from one of my kind readers. You are the best!

Blessings,

Little Susie Home Maker

Linking with Thursday Favorite Things blog hop at Katherines Corner

Vintage Egg Cartons

 Many people like to collect vintage items. Here is a collection of beautiful egg cartons from my friend Sandie of Steadman's Corner. I decided to put them in a group with my new-old milk glass egg cups in front of my newly remodeled dish rack, china hutch, cabinet! (Isn't that what we all call them?) See inside the yellow carton? Those are fresh eggs from my girls in My Little Red Barn! 

6-month old pullet, see her cheek tufts?

So I was visiting Sandie at Steadman's Corner when I was looking at one of the beautiful photographs that Sandi takes. She is not only a Vintage Junkie, but a great photographer. I commented to her that My Girls (my chickens) would love vintage cartons like that. (Actually, it was me)

Sandie was just so kind to send me these cartons. Isn't she just the sweetest person? Thank you, Sandie. You are the greatest! She also included that vintage chick card, it says "Slick Chick" I love it!

My 6-month old pullets are beginning to lay eggs finally!

They have been integrated into the whole flock and are getting along just fine. Chickens are curious creatures. They love checking out each others diggs. Here are a few of my older ones checking out the nursery side.

This is 10 month old "Speedy"

Isn't this Rooster pretty? His name is Speedy. When he was just a peep, my son named him that, because he was just so speedy! The surprise came when we realized he was a boy, because he was sexed as a girl! We love him, anyways!

Thanks Sandie, again for your generosity and I hope you like my pictures of the cartons!

Blessings to everyone,

Little Susie Home Maker

Linking with Rednesday
Linking with Country Homemaker Hop

Blessed Little Barn Fresh Eggs

My lovely hens are always supplying me with the best tasting eggs on the planet! And they are so pretty too, don't you think?

The pale green basket I found at Hobby Lobby last spring, and I love it!

Today I am thankful once more for the little red barn or the large red coop (which ever you prefer to call it), in the back yard. It has been built with love by my dear sweet husband! He is so good at this kind of stuff!

I have to admit my girls have been a little "cooped up" this winter. They love the summer when I give them a lot of free time to wander through our yard to Free-Range.

Getting back out of the gate, while they are trying to bust out is kind of comical!

But on these warm winter days, they still have plenty of there own chicken yard space and love greeting me and eating any scraps I have to offer!

Thank you girls for todays eggs!

Blessings,

Little Susie Home Maker

Linking to Rednesday