Happy Duck Days

 

Yeah, I know, I can hardly believe it myself. 

The pipping began

Turns out inside these little eggs are big ducklings. 

Taa Daa!

There's no pointed beak to peck out of the egg, just a rounded bill. And this little duckling has to peck its own way out. I mean, the whole process (like all reproduction) is simply amazing. 

And then there’s two.
They are so wet when they hatch.

Turns out, David and I were a few days off on our estimate regarding the age of the duck eggs, but over all, it was a success. All 6 eggs hatched on their own, with the exception of the last egg that needed a little intervention from us. That last duckling had been trying to get out of that egg for so long, that we were afraid we were going to lose the little guy. We helped a little by picking away at its "zip line" and then the duckling stretched, and popped out of its shell. David and I were so relieved that all 6 eggs actually hatched a duckling from it. Turns out we didn't drown them with too high of humidity in the incubator, or dry them up with too little humidity. We "turned" the eggs as we should have, and placed them on lockdown for their last few days. God took care of them and decided they would live to find their place in this big wide world.

Once hatched, each ducklings needed to stay in the incubator for another 16-24 hours while they rested and dried. Only then, would we moved them to the nursery (also in the house). 

All dry and doing well. 
They say goodbye to the incubator,
and hello to the nursery

We placed 3 ducklings in the nursery first, while the last 3 ducklings hatched later than them, and needed time to recoup, dry and rest in the incubator. It was Thursday morning that the remaining 3 ducklings were placed with the other 3 in the nursery, and now all 6 ducklings were reunited and thrilled to be together. 

Finally, all together 

They were actually calling for each other in separate rooms, so getting them all in the same space (once hatched) was something that settled their little souls. 

What about food and water, you ask? Well, each time we placed a new duckling in the nursery, we dipped their bills in the water, and then in the food, and then in the water again. They are quick learners, and figured out what to do lickity split. They watch and learn from each other as well. They are not a fan of the heat lamp like I thought they would be. Instead, they just want to sit in the water. Yep, they are ducks. 

David and I were so relieved after the hatching process was complete, and realized that using the incubator was great, but we had so much to learn even with what we did know about hatching eggs. Ducks are different than chicks. Yet, we got it worked out. And the ducklings are thriving. 

It would only be a day or two before the ducklings were ready to leave the nursery and head out to their new space in the barn. We settled them into a fenced area, complete with heat lamps, shelter if they desired that, and a little mini swim pond.

Snuggled up tight

They are swimmers from birth

Chick This Out

Ducks n Chicks = 💖

Wait, where did those little tiny chicks come from? The answer is David. We went to the feed store for hay and we came home with four more chicks. Yes, we just got eight chicks not that long ago. 

Look how big these eight chicks have gotten, just since the last time I showed them to you. 

For some reason, David thought we needed four more chicks, so we now have four more. These new chicks are 2 California Whites and 2 Barred Plymouth Rocks. It was something he wanted, so here we are. Six ducklings and four chicks (all only a couple of days old) learning to share the same space in the barn.

I’ll just say that the chicks are not interested in the little mini pond, and the ducklings absolutely adore the mini pond. So the chicks watch and clap their little chick wings to encourage their duckling friends to practice their swim technique. Everyone is very happy together. 

Cluckingham Population Boom

Somebody stop this madness. Yes, we have an up-and-coming new generation of chicken children who have arrived in Cluckingham. Thank you, David. So there’s 12 new chicken children in the barn. What the cluck, this seems a bit much. We even un-fenced the eight (older) chicks, as they are flying over their fence anyway. So they are out and about socializing with the big hens now. They are being well accepted thus far, although redirected at times, by some of the big girlz. But that’s the way it is in the chicken world. No one is getting hurt and they are learning their way around the barn and what the rules are. There are guidelines in Cluckingham. 

But wait, there’s more. 10 more to be exact. 10 more chickens? That can't be true. The story goes like this. It all started on a Saturday morning......... a chicken lady friend of mine texted me and asked if she could bring out a few of her chickens to add into my flock, as she was right-sizing her backyard chicken flock and needed to decrease the amount of hens that she had. I of course said, no problem! And since I wasn’t going to be home that day, she had planned to come by and “drop them over the fence” on our property, very close to the barn. 

So while I was gone that day, that indeed did happen. And to our surprise, it was 10 laying hens that they dropped over the fence to join into our flock. The exciting part about this was that they were the most beautiful chickens! Many of them Easter Eggers, Americana‘s and Wyandotte’s. These are beautiful chickens that lay gorgeous green and blue eggs. I can’t begin to tell you just how truly beautiful they are. Pictures do not do them justice. Kind of like when your on vacation and you take all these breath-taking photos, but it's just not the same as seeing it yourself. That's exactly how this is. These girlz dropped off over the fence are not your regular chickens. They are flat out gorgeous.

These girlz lay the most gorgeous blue green eggs.
This photo does not really show their true beauty. 
Trust me on this.

So many beautiful new hens!
I'm almost giddy about this.

I was beside myself for various reasons. One, because they are all so beautiful and two, because now I have 10 new laying hens, along with my 12 new chicks which equals 22 new chickens into my flock within a very short amount of time. This does not even make sense in the chicken math world. I am officially past crazy chicken lady status. I didn’t know you could go past that status. But I did! I think now it’s just called Crazy. You can take the chicken lady part out - and just say crazy. Yep, that’s me. And here I am in all my glory. Chicken glory.

Fish It Out

While David has been busy buying “me” chicks, I did decided to buy him some of his own living creatures. Maybe then he'll quit buying chicks if I can get him more interested in something else?

Fish. Lots of fish for the pond. 

I surprised him with an appointment last Saturday morning at 8 AM at Pond King in Gainesville. We would be going to buy fish and stock the pond for the first time in the 5 years we've lived here now. We can see minnows in the pond, likely from birds and fowl flying into the pond and transferring fish eggs from pond to pond that they travel. But we need some real fish.

We decided on 200 catfish and 250 bluegill fish. Pond King bagged up for us and loaded them all in the back of our truck. We had one hour to get them back to the pond.

You remember the turtle trap, right? This is so we can get rid of the turtles in an effort to be able to grow our fish population, otherwise the turtles will just eat all the fish eggs. And to be quite certain about it right now, the turtle trap has only trapped two turtles. Not to worry my sweets.  We are waiting for sunny days to come around so that all these turtles will want to climb up and sun. All this rainy weather lately does not have the turtles up and sunning. I think we got this though. Once sunny, the turtles only choice to sun now is either on the shoreline, or to climb up on the turtle trap and slide in. Time, it's all about time. And waiting for the sun to come back out.

Back to the fish. We drove the fish home and then carried the bags of fish over to the pond as we had been instructed to place the bags of fish in the edge of the pond for 15 minutes to let the water and the fish acclimate to each other. 

After about 15 minutes we did as they said, and we cut the bags open and released the fish into the water. 

I'd say they were a bit shocked. 

The water was murky with the dirt we had stirred up at the shoreline and the fish did not know what to do or where to swim. But as the cloudy, murky waters settled, you could see the fish all shooting out toward the deeper areas of the pond. They were free! 

Now, we need to focus on trapping more turtles and rehoming them in order to grow our fish population. We also bought fish food to help supplement the new fish in their growth. David also cut down two small trees that were dead on our property and sunk them in the pond to provide hiding spots for the smaller fish. Hopefully, we can get some decent size fish just in time to start fishing with bubbi Brooks. 

Fishing outfit on and he’s ready 

HTown

With all this growth on the farm and so much to look forward to in life, David made his way to Houston Sunday afternoon. Monday morning at 6 am, David will have his PET scan that tells him how things are looking after his radiation and chemotherapy. His MRI looked pretty good, but the pet scan is the gold standard to tell us what’s really going on and if there’s any cancer left in David. This is a big moment. It’s the one we’ve all been waiting for, to find out David’s response to the treatment, and if in fact the microparticles were all zapped by the radiation and disintegrated by the chemo. 

David will have his PET scan bright and early Monday morning, and then on Tuesday he has his appointment with Dr. Hanna to get the results. He also has an eye exam while he’s there as a follow up. He says he’s noticed some changes in his eyesight so they will take a look at it and let him know what’s going on there. It’s also wonderful that they are all in that one area at MD Anderson and he can see the doctors he needs to see when he makes trips like this. It’s just so convenient. Actually it might not seem convenient to have to drive to Houston to go there, but I assure you, it’s so worth it.

We are sending lots of prayers up for David and good results. We understand this is out of our hands, and are accepting of what we are told. We really do hope and pray that his cancer is gone.

On this note, I’ll close for now and tell you that my heart is full. I have confidence that all will be well. David and I trust in God and have faith in this process, and know everything is going to be as it should be. We just know it. No matter what happens, everything is going to be okay. 

Every little thing is gonna be alright,

 Cyndi

This again

28 days does a duckling make

So here we are, doing things that make us feel, as Glennon Doyle calls it: Scited. (You know her, the author of Untamed AND a new podcast called We Can Do Hard Things which I'm super excited about). Scited is when you're scared and excited all at the same time. This time though, we got ourselves into this unknowingly. Cue the dream sequence music.......It all started in the front yard of one of the doctors I work with, Dr. James. In a bush, in his front yard was a mallard duck sitting on a clutch of eggs. I didn't know this was happening, but he and his family had been watching this mama duck hide in the bushes and sit on her eggs for an unknown amount of time. His house is near a pond in their neighborhood which has ducks, and it seems they visit his swimming pool often as well. I received a call from Dr James and thinking it was work related, I was surprised to find out it was duck related instead. He called me to let me know that he had awoken one morning to find the mother duck dead from a predator attack and the eggs lying there unattended. He said he was going to buy an incubator and put the eggs in there and then asked if I would take the incubator and eggs, and see if I would take over care of them, all in hopes they would actually hatch. Of course, I say. And you know what happens next. David and I zoomed over to Dr. James house that day after work and picked up the incubator with six duck eggs inside. We did initially candle them at his house, and later would estimate them at approximately day 20, although not completely sure as we’ve never attempted to hatch duck eggs much less use an incubator to do so. But the internet is a great place to gather this type of information, and so we did. We made it safely home with the eggs in the incubator, riding the whole bumpy way back home in David’s lap while I drove as crazy as possible. Not really, it just feels that way when you have an incubator and 6 fragile duck eggs in your lap. 

Back home jiggity jig and we are scited. With minimal information such as how far along the duck eggs really were in their growth, how long they had been left unattended and possibly cooled down in the night of the attack, and 101 questions about the incubator settings in regards to not knowing the age of the ducks, we begin our search for information. What we did know from Dr. James was that they are Mallard ducks and that his children are very anxious to keep track of how they’re doing, and would like to come over when they start hatching, and have even expressed an interest in a reveal party that we shall give the ducks when they are old enough to go up to our pond. A Pond Reveal party for the ducklings when they are old enough to be released into our pond - how eggciting!

After arriving home with the incubator and duck eggs inside, and consulting the internet, we carefully placed it on the kitchen table and set the temperature of 99.5 Fahrenheit degrees and humidity of 55%. 

Eggs carefully placed in the egg turner device
inside the incubator. It will turn them for us. 

This all seems to be the consensus in regards to settings for duck eggs. So we did that. I mean, we have raised chicks before numerous times, right. Too many times to count. But we've never used an incubator for it, and it basically means that you're in charge now. If it gets messed up, it's all your fault. Don't duck it up.

We do have several friends who have incubators and often incubate fertile chicken eggs. We've even discussed this with them before, so we have a working knowledge of not letting the eggs get too hot, nor get too cold, nor get too dry or too damp (think humidity) so that they drown in their eggs. We did consult our good friend, the internet, and found out more than enough information to either be successful. Don't duck it up.  

We’ve got this memorized now

For example, here’s a chart of what the eggs would look like when you candle them to help estimate how many days old they are. What is candling? 

Candling an egg allows you to see inside and
check the progress  

Candling is where you look inside the egg (in a dark room) using a light, such as a flashlight, and see the progress of the embryo as it begins to turn into a duckling. We had to check this chart often, and although not wanting to open up the incubator on a regular basis, we did candle the eggs several times to become fairly confident about the age of the duck eggs.

It's moving! 

So this all started on a Friday night and at that time we estimated the age of the eggs to be approximately at day 20, although only an estimate. When you are hatching duck eggs you normally know how old the eggs are when you put them in the incubator because the nice thing is, the incubator has a setting that you can put the number of days old the egg is and it helps guide you in regards to the settings of a chicken or a duck egg. There is generally a steadfast temp and humidity level for eggs in an incubator, but also a different setting once the eggs are close to hatching. For example, a duck egg will hatch at approximately day 28 and at day 25, the literature advises to put them in lockdown mode. What is lockdown mode? Lockdown mode is where you are not going to be opening the incubator any further, David, as the ducklings need to have a higher humidity rate, and also there is no longer a need to turn the eggs. You're not supposed to turn the eggs at this time because it will confuse the duckling on where the yolk and the air sac is and can cause complications with their hatching. So when Wednesday afternoon came around, we did candle them again and deemed them as day 25 (checking the chart closely and watching many youtube videos) which qualified them for lockdown mode. Ya know, there's an algorithm for all this business, and the fact the mama duck has this programmed in their genetics is simply amazing. Okay, so to reiterate, this means we will not be turning the eggs any further, David, although the eggs were being automatically turned by the incubator. So the eggs will not be turned anymore, and we will lower the temperature by 1° and increase the humidity up to 70%, to allow the inside of the eggs to have increased moisture so that the ducklings can move around more freely and get themselves out of their egg more easily. When the ducklings first start pecking to get out of the egg, they have eaten through the yolk first, gotten into the air sac inside their egg, and are now pecking through the shell to get more air from the outside world and make their way into this big wide world in which we live.

Let me just say that as I blog, we are on day 25 in the initial stage of the lockdown mode, which starts approx 3 days before hatching at day 28. Wait, I think I said that already. Anyway, we candled them before we did this, and now it’s going to be up to them to make their entrance in this world. We wait. Right, David? We wait. And as soon as we see a duckling pipping, we are to call Dr. James and report to their family so that they can come over and watch the hatching of the eggs. Now they may not see all of the hatchings, as it takes time (sometimes hours) to hatch. Sometimes this happens in the middle of the night and sometimes during the day. But we will alert Dr. James' family, his wife and their children so that they can come over and be a part of this event. After all, the ducklings are alive due to their diligence in saving them. And their girls really want to know the ducklings are okay and witness their births. I’m very excited for them to watch this process. 

Side note: I used to term pipping because apparently that’s what it’s called. When the duckling starts pecking its way out of the egg and creates an air hole, the term used is pipping. When we see the pipping begin, then generally all of the ducklings are typically born within approximately a 24 hour period. Some will be hatched faster than others, depending on their strength and position in their egg.

I’m happy to say that when we candled the eggs and looked inside each of the six eggs prior to lockdown, we saw movement by the ducklings in all six eggs. So far so good. We'll see if they survive their hatching now.

So you’re probably asking yourself what do we do with them after they are born? Well, they can stay in the incubator for about 24 hours living in the warm environment and having had the nutrition from the yolk inside their egg that will last them for about a day. After that, we move them to a brooder environment which will be in the house and have a heat lamp, food and water accessible to them, and since they are ducks, they get a little tiny pond of their own to swim in. We have done this multiple times with chicks in our lives (minus the tiny pond) and this will be our first time for raising ducks in the house - from an egg. 

The egg positioner is out and 
now they will have more room
for their hatching

6 eggs willy nilly now
Come on guys, you can do it🐣

Hay Girl Hay

I wanted to tell you how great Dora and Hope are doing.

 

These girls are the best 

They each previously had rowdy kiddos (Diego and Faith, respectively). Now, they are both empty nesters and have become the closest horse friends you can find. I never imagined this to be the case, but they really enjoy each other and quite frankly, depend on each other. 

Hope has come so far in life #proud

Dora is shedding her winter coat 
slowly, but surely 

Lately, the mini's have been in the barn quite a bit due to all the rain, and we've been feeding them in there as well. The flies this year are ridiculous, so I got them the purple tub you see in the pic above that has ClariFy in it. It's a mineral block with a product called ClariFly that prevents the emergence of adult stable and house flies from the manure of said treated horses. ClariFly® inhibits the formation of chitin, a key component of the exoskeleton, and the fly is unable to survive. How cool is that technology and science? Oh yeah, got one for the donkeys, too. We try to do all we can to keep these stinking flies at bay around here. With so much poop around here - it makes that quite a task. But we keep trying.

Turtle Soup

I've never had turtle soup, but thinking that might be in the cards. Hahaha, you know that’s a big lie. What is in the cards is this.....

Fancy pants turtle trap

After David built his DIY version of a turtle trap, 

No one ever fell in the net ☹️

we did not get any takers, and decided to purchase one instead. This newly purchased trap is meant for the turtles to climb up and “sun”, and ooppps, fall in the cage below.

Hoping we get that 
many turtles (and more), and 
No, Brooke, this guy is not included 
with the purchase 

This is not David, of course, but it IS what we hope to happen. We are trying to trap some of the 1,002 turtles living in the pond as we prepare to stock the pond with blue gill fish and catfish. Turtles eat fish eggs and some small fish, so we'll need to rehome or dispose of some turtles in the pond. Now don't get too excited if you are a turtle lover. I'm happy to give some to you, just let me know. This is assuming this new trap really does work. Here goes.......

Here little turtle, over here

Ebbing and Flowing

David is ebbing through his recovery from his hernia surgery. Anything is better than having that hernia, so he's moving through it like a champ. He's got his PET scan coming up in a couple of weeks, and we are on cruise control right now, loving some downtime from treatments or more surgeries. 

Loving that thumb and his Pops

I flowed through my 5 weeks of iron infusions and celebrated it with running the Cowtown (Fort Worth) half marathon this past Saturday (first in-person race since forever) finishing with a newly-made friend during the race and we crossed the finish line together, holding hands high in the air with big smiles.

My new friend had no idea the personal celebration I had going on in my head, yet we shared a mutual celebration of finishing the race strong and thoroughly enjoyed having one another to run the race with - an unexpected surprise for us both. 

Lauren is ebbing and flowing through her life all while celebrating Brooks 7 month birthday.

Birth to 7 months. Looking good, girl 💕

Look how far you've come. Mother's Day was a first for Lauren and they celebrated by taking Brooks to the Dallas Museum of Art.

Brooks is a fan

It's still hard for me sometimes, to realize this.....

Front yard shenanigans 

.....ended up having one of her very own....

Yes, you are 6 and 3/4 months old

Clucks not ducks

Cluckingham is ebbing and flowing with the new 8 chicks growing and thriving. 

I see you, little Polish chick with your 🎩 

I recently enlarged the little chicks area, and the big girlz are all jumping inside their penned area to inspect it - and eat their treats. 

More room for the little munchkins 

I even have a couple of hens like Spice, Walter and Poppy laying their eggs inside the chicks little coop. They think they own the place, but actually, it's probably a good thing for the little 8 chicks to get used to having those big girlz around so they can start adjusting to who else lives in the town of Cluckingham. All the chickens are doing well, and even our senior girlz are hanging in there. Wait, we did lose our older Wyandotte. 

RIChickenHeaven, Sweet Pea

She passed of old age. We last left her at the water bucket, as we couldn't help but notice she was standing there for a long time taking a sip every 10 minutes or so, doing the long blink thing. Then, we came out the next morning and found she just laid right there and passed, by the water bucket in the barn. She got her last drink on. And laid down to rest. Sweet girl. We'll miss you. You are a beauty. 

To end on a happy note, I’m here to report that Louie, Dewey and Huey are living up at the pond like a boss. They love to chase away any other fowl that arrives by air. We had some visitors fly in recently, and they did not like other ducks in their pond. Fine, but you best know there’s more ducks on the way. Granted, they are Mallards and will fly away to migrate eventually. But you drakes best be nice - or else. And I don’t know what “or else” is but I’ll get it worked out. 

Gotta go check the incubator. David is probably standing next to it staring a hole through those duck eggs. He’s a nervous duck dad. 

The things we do,

Cyndi

Life is Good

Family happenings

As Brooks turned 6 months old last month, I'm trying to figure out where time actually goes. It's here, and then all of a sudden, that time has passed and the next minute is here. It seems more apparent when there is a baby involved, because like Brooks, babies are doing new things every day. So while I try to figure out where time goes, little bubbi Brooks is sitting up and playing, growing new teeth and eating food on his own and growing. Lots and lots of growing. 

I’m not sure whose happier

Look at you go

Trying hard to get that in his mouth 

What a joy 💗

It's gone now

I can't even believe it myself, but it happened. This past Thursday, David had his inguinal hernia surgery completed. It's really done. I mean, people get hernia's all the time, but to have to wait for it to be repaired was an opportunity to practice patience. The softball in his right groin is now gone. Yeah, it was bad. The hernia's need for constant attention rivaled with the radiation/chemo healing. Yet, I will say the hernia did serve as a distractor during cancer treatment - and after. 

I wish to thank Dr deVilleneuve for performing his surgical magic to make softballs disappear. I also want to thank Dr Waheed for being so careful with the anesthesia portion, knowing that David's throat was still vulnerable from the radiation, and his intubation for the surgery was seamless. Together, these amazing doctors did what they do best. And now David reaps the rewards of their hard work. I also want to say a huge Thank You to Becky and Cindy in the Recovery Room who took great care of David after his surgery. They made everything so easy, and since I used to work there with them at Stonebridge Surgery Center, they always provide comfort and expertise just when I need it the most. They know me better than I know myself. One thing I know for sure is, they are always a pocketful of sunshine. 

Rewind back to Thursday night, and I'm here to tell you the ride home from the surgery center with David was filled with nausea and vomiting that's never fun in a car (or on a plane, or anywhere for that matter). But for whatever reason, it happens after surgery sometimes. David got back on track by around Thursday night at 8 pm, and things have been looking up since then. Just a bump in the road. And actually, come to think about it, it was a bump in the road that started that whole thing.

Fast forward to Sunday, and you'd wonder if David even had surgery. He's so grateful to have this hernia fixed, that the recovery seems like a piece of cake. It's easy for me to say that, but I can tell you that he makes it look easy. Granted, people who make hard things look easy are always inspiring to me. And he keeps doing just that. Flying through hard things like he's done this all before. So glad you are feeling better, David. You certainly deserve to feel better. Let's stay on that train. The one where we feel good most all the time. 

Like all of us, we are moving through the steps of life. It just so happens that his next big step is a PET scan on May 24 (this month!) along with more labs and a visit to Dr Hanna so that he can tell David that he's cancer free. I'm sending this out to the world. If you're listening world, I said cancer free please. And you know there's lots of prayers going out. We'll get there. This month of May is deemed David's Month. He's healing (alot), he's smelling (some), he's tasting (some) and most importantly, he's working on getting back to doing the things he loves to do. This is what brings oneself alive. He's finding his self again, after the physical and mental struggles that go along with cancer treatment. We know that strength is not the absence of struggles. It's what you build due to your struggles. 

David is his own hero

David is asking himself questions now, more than ever. What life does he want? What does he want to do in this life? What brings him the most joy and happiness? It's not about asking anyone else these questions. Just himself. He's looking to be in the Clean Plate Club. The place where you have nothing on your plate, and I'm not talking about food. That Full Plate Club of hustling with projects, deadlines, obligations and expectations tricks us into thinking we are falling short if our plate is not always full. No, cancer will knock that plate right off the table. It's time for new place settings. New plates.

Hey, Namaste, what about the yoga study

Oh yeah, that. The final survey for the yoga study program was just completed last week by David and I. To recap, David and I were placed in the "no yoga, survey only" category for which David was happy he didn't have to do any yoga. What this all means is, that we are emailed a questionnaire every week or so during treatment, and for 2 months after treatment, that ask things like: are you sad, are you still doing things, do you exercise and if so, how much each week, do you feel happy, and how much of the time do you feel happy, etc. I imagine they are comparing the answers of non-yoga people to those doing yoga - and see what the differences in are with yoga involved during treatment and recovery. A bonus was that each study you completed, you were given a $10 or $20 dollar gift card to Target. This type of study gives you insight (with the types of questions they ask) into what people might feel who are going through cancer treatment and recovery from it. Yes, luckily we are still Doing Things. Lauren even gave David and I ball hats that say so. Somehow, we feel like if we are still doing things, we are somehow okay. I'll take that.

Chicken O'Clock in Cluckingham

Newbie Spice

Spice is blending into the flock so wonderfully. And the 8 little chicks are doing better than any chicks we've ever had. 

Girl, Girl, Boy

I do have a silkie rooster who will be hand delivered to the feed store this week, as we just can't do roosters here. We've tried. But we know it's just not our thing. If needed, we'll borrow another silkie rooster if and when we need one. I can't remember if I said so, but the three white silkie teenagers have turned out to be 2 girlz and 1 boy. Once the boy leaves (they will sell him at the feed store) we will be back to an equilibrium of all hens. I mean, if God wants me to have chickens, let's do this. 50 chickens it is. I hoover around that number because chicken math makes it hard to nail it down exactly. Any more than that makes me feel crazy. Or look crazy. Or both.

The Beauty Queen of Cluckingham is and always has been Veronica. 

Picture a jeweled crown on her head

This girl is a bantum (small-sized) Brahma. Feathered feet, gorgeous feathers and coloring. She's small and feisty, and lays the tiniest eggs. For the longest time, I didn't know her breed until a chicken friend came over and enlightened me. Turns out Brahma's used to be considered a meat breed chicken until around the 1930's when they were appreciated more for their golden brown eggs. While only producing about 150 eggs a year might not seem like much, it's about 3 a week. You do you. 

Little Veronica gets dog bed privileges,
which includes pooping on it, I guess 

You know I think all my chickens are beautiful. It's just that Veronica has that X factor. There's something about her. She's won the beauty pageant every year since she's arrived. 

Since I'm getting to the end of the introductions, I've saved the most traditional for last. I'd call it a little like the Hatfields and McCoys, but it's not quite like that. Nobody is killing anyone over land or stealing someone's pig. It's more like a rivalry for leading ladies, songbird, if you will. Diva, prima donna. It's the Buff Orpingtons and Rhode Island Reds. These girls are always top guns around here. They are natural leaders. Yes, the cinnamon queens can be bossy, but these girls tie it up in a bow real nice. 

I'm going to start with the Buff Orpingtons because they are the breed I have the most of. Who knew, I have 7 of them. And because they look so much alike, I can't have a different name for each of them because it's really hard for me to tell them apart. I have one with a wonky leg, which seems to be improving, thank goodness.  

Nothing to see here

I tend to call them either Butter or Sunshine. Probably because the first two Orpingtons I ever got were named that. So, let's just carry that on, shall we. It's easier that way.

The major difference between these 7 girlz is where they sleep and roost at night. The 3 (above) are always on the mid-height railing in the barn. This breed is big and fluffy, with a sturdy body and poofy feathers. Their bright red combs stand out with their buff colored feathers.  

Night night 

This sweet girl loves sleeping inside the coop (see Pebbles back behind her?). I'm guessing they enjoy the warmth more, and maybe even feel more secure there. Hard to say as they've not told me yet. 

Thank you, Lauren for the coop art

This gal always roost and sleeps here. Always. She has since she was young, and she's actually inside the coop, but just up in the rafters perched there. I always know who's going to be where, as the chickens typically do sleep in the same places each night. 

Scurrying to finish her day, before beddie bye

Well, the exception to that rule is this girlie. Everyone in the barn is perched and in their place for the night, and no, not her. She's literally running. I think she's heading for that bedtime snack, if you ask me. It's easier to eat when everyone else is in bed, amiright. 

Doing her own thing

And then there's this ray of sunshine. She is the only chicken who does not sleep in the barn. No, she likes the Belle Tower out in the middle of the pasture. All by herself. Luckily, our guard dogs are on the prowl every night protecting as well as they can, so she's good. But really, why not with the others? Maybe she just gets sic n tired of them all, and by night fall, she needs to get away. She's that one that needs extra alone time. And you can, my sweets. 

The Buff Orpingtons are all strong willed hens. The are from British descent, and lay about 250 light brown eggs a year. They tend to be the unofficial matrons and have the temperament of a mother hen, yet with a gentle side. Somebody's gotta be mama bear around here. They give it their best shot to show a strong front and stay friendly at the same time. They are an all around great chicken for just about anyone. They adapt well and do their own thing. 

Let's talk Gingers. We are pretty low on Rhode Island Reds right now. I tend to lean that way, because these girlz like to be boss lady. They ping on the same frequency as the Orpingtons, except lean more towards the "I'm in charge" wave length. I currently have 4 of these Gingers and just like the Orpingtons, I tend to call them all Ginger because they too, look so much alike and have similar personalities. The fastest way to tell them apart is by looking at their combs. 

Your wearing me out with all that sitting 

This Ginger loves to roost in the egg laying area. Then, she gets broody, and stays. For weeks. Little does she know her eggs will not hatch, silly girl. But she sits anyway.

Young thang

Now this girl is the more adventurous of the crew of Rhode Island Reds. She's a younger girl with the most beautiful comb and waddle. She's first in line for treats, and has no problem jumping straight up into the air from a dead stand still on the ground and tapping your behind to remind you to feed her. If we had a basketball team, she'll definitely be the first to join the squad. Her vertical leap is impressive. 

Her spot

This beauty gets her same spot every night, and enjoys the roost in the rafters inside the coop every night. and just behind her, is her RIR bestie.

Sits close next to her frenemy Orpington

Interestingly enough, the Orpingtons and Rhode Island Reds tend to sleep together in the coop. They've been doing this for years now. The great thing about RIR's is that they are an avid egg layer, laying 260 brown eggs a year. They, unlike the Orpingtons, are an American breed and developed right there in Rhode Island. After all, they are the state bird there. Excuse me, a chicken can be a state bird. 

Redheads run deep in our family over here. So why not continue it in chicken form.

MDA blog

Recently, David and I received the rough draft of the blog posting for the MD Anderson website. Here's the copy that MDA sent to me for review, and will be posted on their site soon from what I understand. Side note: The way it works is you write the blog, then they have editors that make it even better. Pretty sweet.

** BTW, I think some of this initial information will be highlighted around the blog posting itself. I'll find out soon enough. This is what we received after I submitted my blog to them: 

Summary: After experiencing what he thought was a sinus infection, David Graves was diagnosed with sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma. David and his wife Cyndi, also a cancer patient, found hope and healing at MD Anderson.

Pull Quote: “If you stay rooted in your being and not get lost in your mind, cancer is easier.”- Cyndi Graves, Survivor & Caregiver

Title: How we found our recipe of faith, hope and healing in our cancer journeys

 

By: Cyndi Graves

Before my husband David was diagnosed with sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma, a rare cancer of the nasal cavity, he had the usual sinus issues many people have. He had a sinus infection, congestion and sinus pain and pressure. He thought it was allergies, but when the symptoms did not go away with antibiotics and steroids, he had a CT scan. The ENT suggested that David have surgery to remove the polyp blocking the entrance to his sinus cavity. 

On Nov. 20, 2020, David underwent surgery to remove what turned out to be a tumor in his sinuses. After surgery, his ENT recommended David see skull base tumor specialist Ehab Hanna, M.D., at MD Anderson, who specializes in treating patients with sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma. We were told he was the best of the best, which turned out to be 110% accurate! 

MD Anderson coordinated all his appointments and treatments, which was very helpful since we were coming in from out of town and did not know what to do first. MD Anderson guided us through the process with ease. This took the burden off our family. 

Finding compassion and sinus cancer expertise at MD Anderson

The doctors, nurses and staff at MD Anderson were amazing. David saw them almost every day for seven weeks. They became his family. From the greeter to the screener to the receptionist to the radiation therapists to the nurses in the infusion room, he loved them all.  The doctors were wonderful and guided this symphony of cancer treatment. 

In December 2020, David arrived at MD Anderson to meet with his care team, including Dr. Hanna as well as medical oncologist Dr. Charles Lu and radiation oncologist  Dr. David Rosenthal. They determined that even though the tumor had been removed, David needed six weeks of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. 

Moving to Houston for sinus cancer treatment

David and I are from a small town in Texas called Gunter. We have a farm and were both working at the time of his diagnosis. Juggling cancer and our regular life was a thousand times better with the support of MD Anderson. 

In January 2021, we moved to Houston and stayed in an apartment for two months. David started radiation and chemotherapy in the same week. We arranged for caregivers to handle the farm while we were gone. Our daily lives changed drastically. 

David spent most of his time at MD Anderson and the rest of the time recovering and resting. He lost his smell and taste, and his salivary glands went on strike. His skin, from the neck up, would burn and crust. His sinus mucosal lining was destroyed to rid him of the nasal cancer. He lost some of his hair on his face and head, and experienced nausea and fatigue.

We learned what it was like to live with cancer treatment becoming the focus of our life. To help me manage my emotions, I blogged about our cancer experience. Together, David and I learned to accept this new season and realized that every day is a gift. 

Dealing with my own cancer diagnosis 

I, too, am a cancer patient. I have a type of blood cancer called polycythemia vera. It’s a blood disorder where the body produces too many red blood cells. It can be managed at first with medication and frequent blood draws. 

When David became a patient at MD Anderson, I transferred my care to MD Anderson and began having my regular monthly checkups there, too. I saw the magical Srdan Verstovsek M.D. 

It was a blessing to visit him regularly while I was away from my normal routine of monthly labs and visits until I returned to my local oncologist back home. 

Finding joy in everyday life

On Feb. 24, 2021, we returned home to Gunter. After David's cancer treatments, our life back on the farm is wonderful. As we travel this journey of cancer together, we do so along with millions of others doing the same. 

Our best words of wisdom would be to remain positive. If you stay rooted in your being and don’t get lost in your mind, cancer is easier. The recipe we used is a serving of hope and faith, with a pinch of humor. 

What we know for sure is that cancer is only a part of our life. Cancer can come along for the ride with David and me, but it doesn't get to ride shotgun. Cancer sits in the backseat!

And that, my friends, is it for today. I'm happy to be here to share blogs with you. I'm happy to be here to watch David move through his own journey. I'm happy to be here to hold and love Brooks and Lauren. I'm just so darn happy to be here and living. And I'm happy the softball is gone. The grace we are shown seems overwhelming at times. We are most grateful. And to add some icing to this cake we are eating, I'm into 4 of the 5 iron infusions now, and feel better than I have for a long, long time. It's sometimes hard to see how far down a rabbit hole you're falling when it's a slow descent. I'm out of that rabbit hole now and feeling great. Literally feeling great without shortness of breathe and fatigue. Can we keep that train going please. 

See ya next time,

Cyndi