How many crosswalks

That's how they get you

So you didn't click on the proper square(s) with the crosswalks. Try again. How about traffic lights? Proving myself online is harder than it is in person. Proving I'm not a robo-something online is difficult at times. I have some good news though. I got a telemarking call the other day and this happened:

It even told me so

I'm starting to think this electronic and security thing is beginning to swing my way - alerting me to whose at the other end of this call. You not so tricky now, are you. Notice the NY number above? That's David upstairs, trying to Zoom me while I'm downstairs. I didn't recognize his Zoom attempt and didn't answer, despite the fact he's upstairs yelling "Answer the phone!"  Please tell me this happens in your house, too.


You just did things all week

I'm a big fan of doing things. Whether it's 5 am and dark or 2 pm and hot. Let's do things. David introduced me to the song, "I Gotta Go" by Robert Earl King (his secret man crush).  The line "wasting time standing here, I gotta go" is a classic, and highly applicable in my life. People say, Don't you get your fill of thing-doing from M-F at work? or I don't understand why you do things on the weekends, when you just did things all week.

I can always get more money, but I can't get more time. So I gotta go - do things. There's never a shortage of things to do around here. I even wear The Littles (Maybe and Sugar) out, who, come Monday, are happy to see me off to work. Let's see........what are we doing these days......


I'm willing to wait for it

Remember last blog when the 3 silkies mamas were sitting and sitting on their eggs? I had estimated that by the end of August that chicks would hatch. And hatch they did.

Just know that this was around Aug 30th and the hatching hasn't stopped. I counted 18 silkie chicks today with more eggs in-waiting. We had to move them from the upstairs part of the coop, to downstairs where there is more room for them. They are the tiniest creatures when they come out of those tiny eggs. They are wet, alive, fast-moving and flapping their microscopic wings as soon as they are out of their shell.  Every time one of these chicks hatch, it plows up new furrows in my little farm heart. Some are black, grey, lavender, and all colors in between. All miracles, every time.

They are beginning to make their way out of the safety of the coop, esp if I sprinkle oats out for them. Even those tiny babies are eating whatever their mamas eat. I have them confined with chicken wire around their coop while they grow a little bigger. Post is in there with them, too, and he does well with them all. He's the only rooster we've kept/had - but he's a good one. He's non-aggressive to everyone, and loves his girls. Another day, another chick (or two).

Good question

What am I going to do with them? I'm thinking of painting a homemade sign that goes something like "Chicks Far Sale" or "Tiny Dinosaurs For Sale" knowing full well that it'll be SILKIE CHICKS For Sale, and then call it a day. I'm selling eggs with a sign out front, so why not add a new product -  Chicks. It seems logical and although I want all the chicks for me, David does not. I'll get that sign painted real soon and have it out by this Labor Day weekend traffic. We may get one extra car down the road, who knows. If it goes as well as my egg sales, I may have an issue. Now, I could sell them to the last people that bought all my silkie chicks. The problem with that is that they eat them. Yes, I eat chicken too. Just not my own. Selling them to certain death is still a problem for me. I'm not sure that's ever going to be okay.



Hide and Sheep

After the sale of some of our lambs, we are widdled down to 5 sheep now: 3 ewes (Belle, Lulu and Grace) and 2 female lambs (Brooklyn and Willow). In approx 8 months, we'll start the hunt for Trey The Ram to begin this lambing process again.

Grace and Brooklyn

Lulu and Willow 

Grace and Brooklyn, Lulu and Willow as well as Belle are thriving and enjoying their fair share of grazing. With the population decreased, that leaves more forbes for them. 

Forever my Belle

They are well-guarded by Lucy and Marley who are amazing dogs. Who, by the way, do not bother the ducks at the pond, which makes the random duck incident remain unsolved. We are so pleased with their progress of bonding with the sheep and taking on their role as guard dogs for them. Levi and Whisper continue to back them up, teach them and guide them. Though Levi/Whisper are semi-retired, they make sure the parameter is safe at all times.



Coopscaping

Since moving things is something I fancy, I decided a little coop-moving was in order. Several coops were spread around the front area for various reasons, so I decided to consolidate them all next to each other. Chickens don't like change, at all, but they've adjusted to the new outcome. We have little silkie chicks (that have to be confined for awhile longer), and 7 teenagers who are living in smaller coops outside of the Main Coop area (located inside the barn).

From l to r: Small Coop housing 3 teenagers (cat included)
Hippie House housing all the silkies (fenced)
Guest House housing 4 teenagers (luxury suite)

Likely, all these chickens (except for the silkies) will ultimately join the flock inside the barn. While they are young, they tend to stay together and include: 2 blue orpingtons, 1 lavender orpingtons (Small coop), 2 leghorns and 2 sapphire gems (Guest House). They really are beautiful chickens. The four Ideal 236's (that's actually the breed they are: Ideal 236) have turned out stunning. See for yourself.



We were told they may be hard to keep away from the hawks because they are so very white and yummy. So far, so good. They'll start laying eggs in about 2 months or so.

I dare not count chickens right now. With all those chicks, and more hatching, it would certainly make me look crazier than usual to count all of them. I better go work on painting my Chicks For Sale sign.

What it's like to walk out the front door. Hello. 

Or out the window. Teenagers hanging around.

Mixology, look it up

I do keep things shook up around here. I'd like to place blame for this on other things like 'cooler weather is coming' or 'with all this rain we should....' or 'for pasture management purposes' or or or

Let's just say it was time to move more things and mix it up. With all the rain, it was time to provide better shelter for Hope and Faith, esp as Fall approaches and that warm rain is now not-so-warm. After all options are considered, we pick the one that's free99. It's creating a duplex with Dora's stall in the barn. A make-shift area for the horses to come in from cold/rain - all without having Dora try and kick them out. Dora is a stickler about her area. The goats can come into her stall, but no one else (unless I say so, anyway). After shifting a few things around and gathering only 2 pieces of the portable fencing, we created Hope and Faith's area.





















Now it is cement flooring and needs some mats, but it will work wonderfully to allow all the mini's to be out of the rain and cold when they desire to be. Dora still has her area, and they have theirs, yet close by each other.

There's this.....uh, no
you guys cannot get through this and eat the chicken food

This fencing has a small hole in it, and as a bonus, the goats think they've hit the jackpot and can come on up inside the barn. That's a no-no as the chicken food in the barn is for the chickens. It's hard to tell them no because they are so dang cute. But I'd go broke if they did, as they love them some chicken food.

Another bonus to this is I have a dedicated place to bring them in, halter them, tie them and groom them - all at the same time. All with Dora in her own place. She's a Princess, yes, but being old and blind in one eye pulls on my heartstrings. With that said, Hope and Faith are extra special as they are the most kind, gentle, and sweet-spirited mini's. They do not bite nor kick (Dora) and are as cooperative as they can be, considering their past has been so hard.

They tolerate my love, and my desire to groom them and braid their mane. Their physical scars are so visible from the abuse they've endured in their short life, that it's hard to imagine the depth of their emotional scars. We have a deal, and I hold up my end of the bargain: Endless love. And brushing. And more love. And some braids. (The photo of them both has a filter on it that makes them look brown, but their not. They are beautiful black mini's.)  They tolerate me so well, and I'm hoping it's because they know I won't hurt them. Their spirit once broken, is blossoming into a beautiful flower of Hope and Faith.

They really are a regular family with
the usual family things going on.

Un-becoming

As I move through my PV (polycythemia vera) journey, so does the Voices of MPN. Who are they, you ask? They are my people. Their website, their support groups, their resource material online (and mailed to you), their webinars, their presence. I could go on and on. What they do for me is what they do for everyone who has a myeloproliferative neoplasm. Their umbrella covers us and brings us comfort and knowledge in a feeling-of-togetherness format. Along with my health care team, multiple MPN sites (like the one mentioned above), and my family/friends, I am well supported. David has been beside me, as has Lauren, and I'm most grateful. 

Today, I had my second phlebotomy. It's part of the treatment for the thick blood that PV brings. While my bone marrow is churning out red blood cells and too much of it, along with white blood cells and platelets, I must have some taken away. Wouldn't it be nice to just take an aspirin and call it a day? Well, I do that too. I take an aspirin as well as Eliquis every day, and still need to have blood taken from me. Yes, it takes away needed minerals and things such as iron, but being iron deficient is part of this shitstorm. Which is part of the reason the number one symptom of this condition is fatigue. 

I digressed, almost falling down the dark rabbit hole that's always lurking. Where was I, oh yeah, I went to the Infusion Center for my phlebotomy this morning. After having a phlebotomy last month, I was ready for what was to come. It's not that bad, really, if all goes well. And all has gone well for me thus far. There's a needle, and they drain 500 ml of blood from you, and then in my case today, I had 500 ml of saline infused back in me - all via an IV. Easy greasy, esp compared to those around me having chemo and a myriad of other things happening to them. I see the multiple bags hanging, one after the other, and then more. People come here ready to invest 1/2 or all of their day to their treatment. I'm now a part of this. I'm a nurse, although not being a nurse while there. So odd. They are the ones starting the IV on me. So odd. I'm adjusting to this new normal, and grateful for them. 

Me, excited about my new PV
awareness shirt. I've
already gone out on a run in it.

Cha Cha Changes

I've made the tough decision to change from my long-time hematologist oncologist in Carrollton to one closer to where I live. So, I transferred my care to a wonderful hematologist oncologist in McKinney named Dr Athar. This was my first phlebotomy with this facility, although having one before, I was familiar with the process. But this time, it was like changing rooms at the Day Care, going from the Infant Room to the Toddler Room. It's new, with new workers and new rules. The other kids there are new, and I want to go back to my old room where I was comfortable.

Lucky for me, all the new kids were nice, and the workers, kind. I'll be going to the McKinney location for any treatments and doctor visits now. I'm settling in to my new surroundings. And the shorter drive was great! 

Back home jiggly jig and seeing David's face when I got back home is like seeing your food coming at a restaurant. He's there to catch me. I see him watching me. I see him analyzing if I'm okay. I see him happy if I'm happy. God has blessed me with this support, love and grace that I sometimes wonder if I'm worthy. How does one have such grace and blessings bestowed upon them? God. It's all Him. 

I'm walking this story that God has written for me. It feels good, like this is exactly where I'm supposed to be doing the things I'm supposed to do. One thing I know for sure, is He's going to have me do more. Be more. I'm un-becoming all while becoming . Like the journey isn't so much about becoming anything, but about un-becoming everything that isn't really me. Following the path laid before me. 

Thanks for coming along with me, as you have before,

Cyndi