Meet the Girls | Backyard Chickens

They are getting bigger.  They are starting to look more like chickens then chicks.  They have different personalities already.  The boys have no problem distinguishing which ones are 'theirs'.  I'll let you guess which ones the boys named and which ones were named by me (or my mom, who named the cuckoo maran: marion for John Wayne).  Go ahead try and figure out which ones the boys named...

I really hope the name bouncy ball doesn't stick.  I also hope it doesn't indicate its future demise.  The last two chicks are the two that we are waiting to see if they are girls or boys.  They are two of my favorites so I'm cheering for no roosters.  Hubby is hoping at least one is a rooster because he thinks 6 chickens is too many.  ::sigh::

These chicks were waaaay better models than my kids.  Maybe they are all girls ;)

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Preparing to Build

We've done a lot of research on this whole chicken business.  But when a friend offered to let me and the boys come by to see their backyard chickens and coop I was all for it!  Nothing like getting to see these sort of things in person instead of just online.

They had quite a setup!  And the coop is a little larger than the one we're planning but it was great to see and let the kids have some hands on time with the big chickens.

 Then we got to work on our own. (I swear the spot we picked is shady for about 75% of the day - I managed to pick a moment to photography it when it wasn't full shade).  The coop is going in next to the shed.  It's the farthest place from the neighbors.  I got to dig ditches.

The boys helped.

Well, the boys stayed out of the way.

Mostly.

The settings for the three photos above are all:  f/3.2, ss1/400, ISO 125.


I know it may look like a slip n' slide to you but it's actually a really long drinking fountain.

The chicks are growing fast and the weather is getting hotter by the day.  Time to pick up the pace on building this coop.


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Newest additions to the family

The boys have wanted a pet for quite a while now.  We debated on hamsters or some other small animal since a dog doesn't fit in with our life right now.

Somehow I came to the decision of chickens.  They stay outside.  Their food is cheap.  They provide eggs (bonus!) and their poop is more manageable then dogs (in my opinion) since you can compost it.

You can order baby chicks through the mail but I wanted the boys to be a part of picking them out.  So off to the farm we go!

The boys each got to pick out two chicks.  They picked sexed link chicks, so they could pick out girls.  Boy and girl chicks are born different colors.  They knew if we wound up with a boy that it would have to go back to the farm.  A rooster wouldn't be tolerated too well in this neighborhood. And they wanted to be SURE they didn't have to send their pets back.

We went to Duda Lang Farms in House Springs.  They were great!  The boys got to see chickens, roosters, turkeys, peacocks.  She even let them feed some bread to the goats and baby cow.

I'm pretty sure that Turkey is bigger than him!

Home safe and eating out of their hands.

They'll be in the garage where its warm for the next 6 weeks.  Then they'll be ready to move out to the coop.

The coop that we're in the midst of building.

Well the beginning of building.

I'm sure there's plenty of adventure ahead for us!

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Baby Girl Harper | St. Louis Newborn Photographer

At just six days old and just over six pounds this little girl is giving me baby fever big time.  Such a sweet little baby (she's also my niece, I might be a little biased, but I'm certain she is beautiful).

I am the baby whisperer :)  Put any baby in my arms (well except my own) and I will bore it to sleep.  Until I set them down... sigh.  It took a little work - if you call cuddling a baby work - to get her in to a deep sleep but once there she was putty in my hands.

Those tiny little baby feet!  She looks a lot like her brothers when they were babies in this one...

 
Hello squishy baby lips....

I definitely have baby fever.  My husband does not.  So if you know of any soon to be born babies that need photos done please send them my way.  I need a baby fix :)



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Changing Seasons

It's been such a cold and rainy weekend I could almost forget we were in the midst of a mini heat wave just a few days ago.  This is the weather we've been waiting for for months.  Time to play OUTSIDE!  A legitimate reason for the boys to wear no pants and no shirts.  Bring on the sprinklers!

"look mom! I can jump with my eyes closed!"

He thinks doing a bootie dance over the sprinkler is hilarious.  So does his little brother

All he wanted to do was drink from the sprinkler.

For you photography workshop ladies the camera settings for the above pics are:  f3.2  1/400  ISO125.
It was a really bright day with full sun but we were in the shade of the tree.

Later as the sun was setting...f2.8  1/160  ISO200

Two days after these pictures were taken I was digging through the packed up winter clothes for sweatshirts to wear and the heat in the house was back on. Again.  Gotta love St. Louis weather.



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St. Louis Photography Workshop

We had our first private Outside the Box Photography Workshop over the weekend and it was fabulous fun! Of course we had fabulous and fun 'students' so I didn't expect anything less.  Learning to shoot in manual mode in just hours is no easy feat, but these ladies got their learn on fast.  I love seeing the light bulbs go on and the AH-HA moments!  The never ending rain put a damper on getting outside for some photos but we had two gorgeous little girls to practice on indoors.

These workshops are for dslr owners who want to learn to use their camera and take better pictures.  A few things we cover are: the basics of photography; how to shoot in manual mode; all about lighting - how to get great shots indoors and outdoors; Q&A time; and hands on practice.

You can head over to the Outside the Box photography workshops blog for more information.  There are still spots open for the upcoming June 4th workshop.

Do you Pin?

Well, I pin. A lot. And I love it!

Have you heard of Pinterest.com?

What is Pinterest?
"Think of Pinterest as a virtual pinboard — a place where you can create collections of things you love and "follow" collections created by people with great taste."

I find a million things online that I want to remember, do, revisit, try out. I've bookmarked some. I've jotted down others. Its just so hard to keep track of it all. I've often wished the internet was like magazines and I could just rip out the page to save it in my 'do later' binder.

Pinterest makes this happen. You sign up (right now its by invitation only). You drag a button to your tool bar. When you come across something online that catches your eye you click the "Pin It" button and pin it to one of any number of boards you've created.

Here are my boards:

I wish this had been around when I was wedding planning!  Its great for rounding up all those images and links for ideas if you're planning to redecorate, or want to gather all those great recipes in to one place.  I have a board of inspiration for the boys room, a board for fun stuff to do with the kids, I even have a board for a possible tattoo:

Yeah, that's a lot of bird tattoos... I have a thing about flying.  And Mom, don't worry, I've been *thinking* about a tattoo for over 20 years and still haven't made the plunge.

If you want to check it out you can go to www.pinterest.com and Request an Invitation or send me your email and I'll send you an invitation to join.


Warning: Pinterest can be pretty addictive and may cause a loss in productivity and/or sleep.