Baby Chicks

There are two yellow chicks which I believe are Rhode Island Reds, and the I think the two black and white ones are Plymouth Rocks. However, I'm not an expert yet.

So precious huddled up together.

About two months ago, I got a book called The Backyard Homestead. It had everything you could ever want or need with regards to vegetable and herb gardening. I was wanting to go one step further and have a really good yield this year. There was also fruit growing and preserving, as well as recipes, which I always love. I bought this book for me, but quickly my husband was spending more and more time with the book. I could see him imagining what this would look like here or there. I also glanced over his shoulder on more than one occasion to find him studying how to grow and brew your own beer. Whatever the inspiration, he's totally into it.

One section I kept returning to after seeing several news articles floating around on the subject was the part about raising chickens. I would never even consider this except for the fact that their cheap to feed, will give you eggs, can give you meat if you aren't totally in love with the animal, and their poo is one of the best composting materials and fertilizers known to man.

Every spring, a kindergarten teacher colleague hatches chicken eggs to let the children awe in the wonder of life. After a week or two she takes them to the local feed and seed, and they send them off to live at the farm. They have an agreement that has worked seamlessly for the past few years. I told her about my interest in keeping a coop, and she offered to let me take home as many as I wanted. I live in a city that doesn't have any regulations regarding chickens, so unlike other cities, roosters are allowed. However, I think they could be a noisy nuisance. I was extremely motivated to get 4 hens. I looked all over the internet and found nothing that I was qualified to do or had experience enough to tell what was subtly happening with the chicks' feathers.

In talking with another colleague, she's heard an old breeders' secret. When you pick them up behind the wings (sorta like picking up puppies and kittens by the neck) and they fight you and flap and kick, it's a rooster. If they instead go limp when you pick them up this way, they are hens. We'll see if it worked. There were definitely a few I picked up that went absolutely nuts. Let's hope I was right. I'll be keeping my fingers and toes crossed here.

My journey so far....

How it began...
When we were expecting our second child and had to move into a suburban cul-de-sac house from our 8th floor downtown Dallas loft, I had no clue that I would become a gardening enthusiast. That following spring, I got tired of looking at the ivy that was growing in all the flowerbeds from previous owners. I had annual beds in front and Texas natives in the back. Along with guidance from my Texas Master Gardener mother-in-law, I became passionate about gardening.

It's approaching five years later, and ivy is always trying to make a come back here. Nevertheless, I'm totally surprised that I haven't let take back it's regular haunts. As I got more and more sure of my success with flowers, I decided I was ready for more a couple years later. There was an empty plot off my driveway with no sprinkler heads, no grass (only an abundance of Texas weeds), and nothing but sunshine all day. That was when I realized it was the perfect spot for a vegetable garden. After consulting with my mother-in-law, I decided upon a 4'x8' raised bed garden planted using the Square Foot Gardening method. Some things grew and were very rewarding, like radishes and lettuce. Giant sunflowers took over the garden as they resowed themselves after one year in a square I set aside for the kids. Other things did not grow well at all, like canteloupe and watermelon. Often times I planted too early or sowed seeds too late, and my utter failure was another learning experience. My expertise as a vegetable gardener is increasing all the time, and I had no idea there was so much to learn about it, most of it hands-on.

After becoming really excited about more wholesome food in the garden for my family, a great friend introduced me to an Organic Fruit and Veggie Co-op here in North Texas that would provide us with a variety of fresh organic produce at 1/2 to 1/3 the cost of organic versions in the grocery store. It has been wonderful and I know that if my children try something now and again, they are getting nutrients they otherwise might never have seen in their lives. A scary thought in today's society where our children will be the first to not outlive their parents. As a teacher, I really want to instill an understanding of food and it's relationship to our health. If these guys aren't around to take care of us, we are in a world of hurt. What will happen to the wisdom and knowledge we have passed down to them? What does the future hold for those future generations. I think we should sue processed food manufacturers like we did the tobacco companies and begin wholesae installation and implementation of community vegetable gardenings and organic co-ops. This might be the key to repairing obesity and type 2 diabetes in this country.

Bread...
One weekend trip to the store, I bought the bread my family would need for two weeks. I realized how much bread we actually buy to make lunches for my kids all week, as well as toast for breakfast and meals for my busy nights that might include turkey hot dogs or turkey burgers. My son loves french or italian loaves toasted in the oven to accompany his favorite food, spaghetti and pasta, which we include a few times on the menu in two weeks. I spent probably over $20 on bread alone. I read the labels on many of the items that we regularly purchase, which always say whole wheat. There are still things I don't know the name of or understand what they're for. Then, I realized how cheap bread is to actually make. I thought to myself, "Sure it's cheap. It's such a labor intensive process that no one does it." I decided to try it for a thrill and to see what would happen. I realized how delicious and incredibly easy baking three loaves of bread can be. I thought it would require pulling out the Kitchen Aid with the dough hook to get the dough kneaded sufficiently. Boy, was I wrong. I made it completely by hand, nothing needed but a wooden spoon and hands. Not only was it wholesome and simple food, but it was also insanely delicious. My daughter who insists on having no crust with her store bought bread loves the crust on homemade bread. So... I'll never buy a loaf of bread again for $2.00.

Laundry soap...
I shared my bread success with a fellow colleague. She then told me that she makes her own laundry detergent. I have an HE machine and thought, "Well... I'm stuck buying that special detergent." She said that the formula is low sudsing and better for HE because you use less of it to get the job done. Now, I had to try this. When we ran out of laundry detergent, I priced the necessary supplies, bar soap, washing soda, and borax. I could get three batches for the price of one Tide box. Using two tablespoons of the detergent makes it last much longer, and even better, it's all natural and better for the environment. Hmmmm... and no more wasted Tide boxes.

Now, I've decided to take green living one step further and become an urban homesteader of sorts. I'm going to post it all here from now on... gardening, composting, crafting, recipes, doing little things that eliminate what I need to buy at the store. Enjoy my adventure and comment what's worked for you.