To broiler or not to broiler.....

We moved our buff Orpingtons and silver Ameraucanas 

out to the coop yard, in a large pen

they are quite happy in their new but temporary home :D 

had to bring them in for a bit yesterday 

when we got a sudden hail storm and I thought it was a bit cold for them…..

Wow did that tick them off lol

We decided it was time to put our Reds and Barred on pullet feed as they are getting to be pretty big now…….

that meant a trip to feed store

We took a look at the chicks while there

 a couple of white chickens, egg layers either Leghorns or Rocks are what we had in mind

 okay at this point I’ll say I have no clue where else in town to get chicks and was leaning away from mail order…..

We haven't been dealt real straight up at this store, it was clear we were new to this whole chicken thing....

 things like not telling us if the Ameraucanas or Orpingtons were bantams or not, after they thought I would rather have full sized birds……

 I was going to get them either way

 I just wanted to know what we had lol

The guy said to us……I can give you a great deal on the older ones…..

I say we were really looking for younger ones as we want them to be people friendly 

at least to us ;)

We know the younger ones stand a better chance...

I say I really wanted Leghorns, not fast growing chicks, as I have heard they have issues with health….

he tells us they are Leghorns just a little bit faster growing not too much though…..

I ask what kind of deal..... I'll give you a dollar off of each, is his reply

I ask why they have broiler in the name…..

didn't sound like an egg layer to me…..

he reassured me they were Leghorns, something like the tag wasn't right…….

okay I’m new to keeping chickens and haven’t read much about raising “meat” chickens…..

we wanted eggs….

a few feathers here and there…..

  what Jorden calls shoulder chickens…..

I really didn’t want to read up on meat chickens…..I love a good chicken taco and wanted to keep it that way ;)

I did know they are a hybrid of Cornish and Rocks...poor health, I assumed from poor care..... but not much more than that..

These poor chicks couldn’t even walk across a cardboard box…….

 I wasn't sure they would make it home…….

Even though I HATE being "played" 

we had to help them

 when ringing up our sale I heard him tell the girl that they were indeed fast growing broilers.....

     After some reading…..

ugh if they are lucky we might only loose a few before “harvest” time …..

6 to 8 weeks….

after that their fate is not much better…

worn though feet…heart attacks…broken legs

with good care

So what now, we got them knowing full well we had no clue about the breed…..

eat them, nope can’t eat someone I pet 

 besides we promised…… 

I’m not against raising chickens to eat …..

I am against raising them poorly 

as well as creating hybrids where their health 

or lack of health is of no issue…..

I waited until the next day after them coming home with us to attune them to Reiki….

we were doing hands on and distant…..

I wanted them to get used to the feel of the energy…..

it was really cool…. 

I've done a few attunements by now lol  a lot of animals….

but it was like a light went on…..

Almost two full days after bringing them home… 

when we go to by them, they let us pet them 

they are taking food from our hands……

walking, jumping and even small busts of flying :D 

They are getting big fast…..too fast…

However we are going to go with free feeding,

adding a bit of scratch around to get them foraging and moving more....

the fresh lettuce from the garden was a hit 

 I can't see a chicken being withheld feed....

that's their whole life....eating 

or looking for something to eat lol

Chickens

 I'm still having a hard time believing that we have CHICKENS

They are so cute 

Our Reds are very friendly love to be pet 

our new little ones are still a bit jumpy but getting better every day 

 Sam doesn't seem to mind at all 

Randy Granger

 

Randy Granger

We got another chance to see Randy play this week....what a show

I did take a shot with my phone, not even close to how good the setting was

his music and voice filled the room

it was Great

AND Brent got me a new knitting bag :D 

matches the color of my other bag, you can never have too many knitting bags ;)

I thought he got me a tee shirt as well, but now he's saying it might look better on him lol 

It really was a good show, we heard a song from his newest CD yet to be released, very moving....looking forward to hearing more....

It's always so much fun to listen to the people coming out of his shows.....he blows them away...the feeling and heart he puts into his music comes through so clearly

One young guy was so taken, he really wanted a CD but didn't have cash on hand.....he went out to his car and found enough to buy a disk....said he couldn't wait to have his friends hear it :D 

The only issue we had was a bit of allergy flare ups, for the guys mostly....I just got real dry and had a hard time talking near the end, but I had taken a sinus tab, they didn't take anything more than their Allegra the night before....not bad for the amount of perfume and air fresheners we were among...... we even took the long way back to our car, walking on grass with trees in full bloom all around us.....it was beautiful 

while we still have the small issues with our allergies, running nose and the like, it's no where near what price we used to pay..........

after we came home and cooked out.....Jorden's green chili on burgers.....life is good

Randy Granger and dragons

We went to see Randy Granger perform yesterday at the Cultural Diversity Day held at Dona Ana Branch Community College  

This is Randy playing the Halo and the Hang ( pronounced hung ) , his hands move so fast it hard to get a clear shot :D       

     Randy's web site

We really weren't sure what we were walking into, but any chance to see him play live we try and make it there, it is always a lot of fun...... it's never like "been there done that" kind of thing, each show has it's own feel about it, his talent is amazing......the guy can even make tapping on a table sound good lol

We get there and it's clearly set with a Asian theme COOL

When I think of Randy and his music I never really thought Asian

but he really fit in well, he even played an impromptu encore with one of the professors singing

not only did we get to see Randy play

we got to see some really nice art work

 This was embroidered all in satin stitch, my phone did not take as good of a shot as I would have liked ( never does, like I need the help getting a bad shot lol ), it was done so well it did look like a photo

                and check out these silk fans

and dragons ( embroidered as well )

not only great music and cool art work but they fed us sushi :D

We heard some poetry and kids singing

they really put a lot of work into it :D

the only issue we ran into was we were sitting in the middle in front of the stage ( we were lucky enough to have a very nice guy let us sit with him ) we kind of got surrounded by everyone who wanted a good photo line up, the applause was so loud the guys were dang near deaf after the show lol

 Thanks to all of the performers

it was a great show

Spring

Woo Hoo it's Spring :D
I was so happy to see these little guys
still going strong


was worried about them
it got cold a few days ago

heard on Face book that it was snowing ......
we go take a look as we were just out there ....... it was snowing lol

all around we could see tiny flakes dancing in the wind.... so pretty :D



We found this cool kids weaving set at a thrift store
not sure how old...no date, guessing a few years as it's made of metal ;)



Even came with some newer ribbon...the date reads 1980 lol

Guardian Angel Baby Bath Towel with hood

Guardian Angel Baby Bath Towel with hood

The angel is surrounded by stocking stitch. The main body of the towel is done in knit stitch. The hood is grafted at the top.

Sz 9 US circular needles ( knit flat )
26 inches tall by 33 inches wide
Gauge 4 stitches by 6 rows per one inch done in stocking stitch
400 yards approximately of worsted weight 100% cotton
　
k = knit
k2tog = knit 2 stitches together
p = purl
yo = yarn over needle
( )x = repeat directions inside brackets as many times as indicated

New pay pattern on Ravelry

buy now
 

Hope everyone had a good St. Patty's Day

It went really good for us yesterday :D

We went to a performance by Randy Granger ( http://www.randygranger.net/ ), he sings and plays Native American flute among many other talents.
Check out some of his you tube videos, if there is any reason for me to get off of dial up internet it would be to see his videos ( I can make red sauce now :D ), as it is I’m willing to wait for a few hours for them to upload lol …. good uninterrupted crafting time ;)

We have been able to see him a few times.
One show was at White Sands, it was to be outside in the dunes. It started to rain, along came the thunder…..
We were a bit late, by the time we got there they were moving everything into a large room, big wooden beams across the roof…...not only was that the prettiest I’ve ever seen White Sands, but the music was magical, even the thunder was well timed ;)

Yesterday it was the wind…....it gave you this feeling of being out in the middle of nowhere..... when you closed your eyes you could lose where you were….it just added this cool background sound.... even though Randy was playing a flute in the wind it sounded great, he worked it so well, and his voice…….again the magic of his music comes through

We were a bit late to this show again ( I swear I’m driving next time lol ) but it turned out really cool.... we got to see how his playing was hitting people the closer we got…....people were just stopping in mid speech to listen, even walking away from who there were talking to lol
At one show I heard a man ask his wife as she was getting one of Randy's Cd's, if she was sure that it had the song that made her cry on it, as he liked that one too :D ( Hallelujah )
Even though the weather may kick up or something comes up, he is always professional in a light hearted easy manner, quick with humor….and that music…..

We went book shopping after that. Got me some beading books on clearance.
Lucky thing the book store is right next to the craft store, so got me a few things to finish up some bead work…...hit a thrift store too :D

We went to the park after that it was full, made sandwiches and kicked back watched all the people........

Got home in time to spend some daylight time outside in the garden :D

Worked on beading….had home made pizza that everyone one helped make ……..yep it was a good day, hope yours was too

Flower and Leaf Leg Warmers

Flower and Leaf Leg Warmers
Plus size
Size 11 and 10.5 US needles dpns or cable needles
Size 8 US for leafs and flowers
Gauge 3 stitches by 4 rows done in straight stitch using size 11
180 yards of worsted weight
4 purl seed beads

The warmers are knit up first with the leafs sew on later. The larger needles give a looser knit that is very stretchy and fit a wide range of larger sized cafes. Shaping is achieved with changing of needle size.

k = knit
k2tog = knit 2 stitches together
purl = purl to end
p2tog = purl 2 stitches together
sl 1 = slide one stitch purl wise
2 by 2 = knit 2 stitches, purl 2 stitches
yo = yarn over needle
( )x = repeat directions inside brackets as many times as indicated

Cast on 40 stitches with size US 11 needles, join in the round

1 - 8 ) 2 by 2
9 - 16 ) knit

Change to US 10.5 sized needles
17 - 27 ) knit
28 ) ( k2tog, k18 )x 2
29 - 38 ) knit
39 ) ( k2tog, k17 )x 2
40 - 43 ) knit
44 - 53 ) 2 by 2
Bind off. Weave in ends.

Leaf

( make 4 )
Cast on 3 using size US 8 needles
1 ) ( k1, yo )x 2, k1
2 ) purl
3) k2, yo, k1, yo, k2
4 ) purl
5 ) k2 tog, ( k1, yo )x 2, k1, k2tog
6 ) purl
7 ) k2tog, ( k1, yo )x 2, k1, k2tog
8 ) p2tog, p3, p2tog
9 ) k2, yo, k1, yo, k2
10 ) p2tog, p1, p2tog
11 ) sl 1, k2tog, psso

4 petal flower

( make 2 )
Cast on 24 sts using size 8 US needles
*k1, bind off 4 stitches * repeat to end ( 8 stitches on needle )
Cut yarn leaving tail about 16 inches, thread onto yarn needle

Place remaining stitches on yarn needle, pull tight and secure.
Sew in place on pattern. Sew one seed bead into the center of each flower.

Cable Trimmed Shawl

Cable Trimmed Shawl
I had been playing with the idea of a heavy shawl with cables. I wanted it to be warm and cozy. Something to sit in front of a fire with.
Top down, garter stitch with cables trimming the lower half. Picot bind off.
5 feet wide by 2 1/2 feet long ( approximately )

buy now
on Ravelry

Witchy Warmers

Make a warmer witch easy......

Witchy Warmers
Size 8 US dpns or circular needles
Gauge 4 stitches by 6 rows
113 yards of black worsted weight
70 yards of red worsted weight
12 inch wide at the calf by 13 ½ inches long

k = knit
knit = knit to end of row
k2tog = knit 2 stitches together
m1 = make new stitch by picking up bar between stitches and knit through the back loop
2 by 2 = knit 2 stitches, purl 2 stitches
　
Cast on 28 stitches, join in the round with black yarn

1 - 8 ) 2 by 2
9 ) knit
10 ) k1, m1, k14, m1, k13 ( 30 sts. )
11 ) knit
12 ) k1, m1, k15, m1, k14 ( 32 sts. )
13 ) knit

Change to red yarn
14 - 19 ) knit
20 ) k1, m1, k16, m1, k15 ( 34 sts. )
21 ) knit
12 ) k1, m1, k17, m1, k16 ( 36 sts. )
23 ) knit
　
Change to black yarn
24 - 29 ) knit
30 ) k1, m1, k18, m1, k17 ( 38 sts. )
31 ) knit
32 ) k1, m1, k19, m1, k18 ( 40 sts. )
33 - 36 ) knit
　
Change to red yarn
37 - 46 ) knit
　
Change to black yarn
47 - 50 ) knit
51 ) k1, m1, k20, m1, k19 ( 42 sts. )
52 - 59 ) knit
　
Change to red yarn
60 - 69 ) knit

Change to black yarn
70 - 71 ) knit
72 ) k1, k2tog, k19, k2tog, k18
73 - 78 ) 2 by 2

Bind off. Weave in ends.