Like He Was One Of Those Cows In Michigan

Hooray!!!  Our sweet feathered babies are here!  We got a new brood of baby chicks just this morning - at Phil's request I'll have you know.  Plus he was responsible for their names, an honor I rarely let out of my clutches, but he picked really good ones.  Ten thousand points and an omelet to anyone who can find the common thread.  Here are Elsbeth and Andrew holding their most cherished, Els with Mary and Andrew with Sybil.  They are both Easter Eggers, precious little chicken mutts that can look very different from each other (as you may have gathered) and lay eggs ranging from white to pink to blue.  No one knows 'til their first eggs what you'll be getting from these girls, but Elsbeth is pulling hard for Mary to be a pink layer while Andrew is whispering high praise about the color blue in Sybil's ear.

And now an introduction to the other 4 newest members of the family.

Below are Isobel and Violet, both Buff Brahma's.  I've been wanting this breed since we got our first chicks, but they were never available at the right time until now.  They are brown egg layers with feathered legs, known as the gentle giants among chickens and revered for their huggability.  Don't you just want to hug one right now?

Next is Edith, a Rhode Island Red and Phil's special girl.  He just loves this breed - wonderful egg layers, sweet and beautiful - but between illness and raccoons and hawks we've had terrible luck keeping them around.  We're really pulling for Edith.

And finally, here's Daisy being a little shy for the camera (not used to be out of the scullery and all).  She's my Olive Egger, another mixed breed with a lovable temperament that lays the most amazing olive-green eggs.  We're looking forward to a very colorful egg basket come fall.

In other news, here's Elsbeth all decked out for the sheepdog trials.  Who knew it was such an ostentatious affair?  If I'm remembering correctly, she was actually a dog in the trials and won first place!  And I didn't even train her.  She's just that good.

Our sweet Nibblet, clearly more competitive and athletic than we ever knew, followed up her trial win with a medal-earning run in the Parkview Christian School Trail Trot.  It was pretty adorable watching the siblings tear off together down our local walking trail with a smattering of Andrew's school mates.  Elsbeth is holding her longhorn steer named University who was peeking out of the top of her jacket during the entire run. Andrew is not wearing a yarmulke, by the way, just in case you were curious.

A few evenings ago at supper (facon, eggs and pears if you must know), I noticed that Andrew was engrossed in some book he'd brought with him and was completely neglecting his end of the table conversation.  Curious, I peered over his shoulder to see what had him entranced.

This is what I found.

I'll round out today's installment of SweetScooterBicks with another creature update.

Have you ever seen anything so pitiful?  Poor Shiloh had a tumor removed from his tummy last week and is being prevented from chewing at his stitches in the most humbling way.  Thankfully he's getting more used to his new decoration and isn't crashing into everything quite as violently now.  Just got the pathology report back and it's benign - yea! We sure love this sweet boy.

Bickies In The Air Like You Just Don't Care

Time flies when you're having fun!  Fall, my most favorite of seasons, is just around the corner, but it's still feeling very summer 'round here.  Our first go with the vegetable garden wasn't quite a full of edible treats as we were hoping, but it was still tons of fun.  And we learned a lot.  Our best crops were green beans and cherry tomatoes, and we've got high hopes for the one darling watermelon bravely trying to grow.  We're currently in the process of setting up a few raised beds to give some fall/winter produce a try.

Random aside:  Elsbeth asked me to read her this book recently. (below)  We curled up on the couch and she took one look at the front cover and said (with absolutely no prompting from me, I swear), "That looks like Daddy."

Just before school started, we squeezed in a quick Mobley Family weekend in SC where there was much cousin fun to be had.  Dress up time was my particular favorite.  Andrew was bummed because the girls had princess dresses and there was nothing for him, so Nannie and Papa rummaged around and found some vintage scout wear. 

I also fell in love with this wacky little car thing that Phil's parents have.  No batteries ... you just weave the steering wheel back and forth and scoot around.  I don't know if the kids or adults rode on it more!  Actually, I do know.  It was me.  I rode on it more.  Most.  Whatever.

My Precious is now well into his 4th week of first grade and loving every second!  His class is actually the biggest of the entire school - 12 students! wowie! - and they (being the school) decided very last minute that they needed to split the group into two classes. Which is fabulous!  I mean, who wouldn't love their child getting so much individualized attention in school?  But Andrew had already spent time sipping tea and discussing caterpillars with Mrs. Walker before school started, so as I anticipated, we had some quivery chin moments when we had to tell him he was actually going to have a different teacher.  All fears were put to rest, however, when, on the way home from school last week, he leaned his head against the seat of the car, gazed dreamily out the window, and said softly, "I love Mrs. Rector."  :-)

Another random aside:  Phil's mom recently gave me her mother's old cast iron skillet which I reseasoned and used to bake a cake of Puny's Cornbread from the Mitford Cookbook.  Awesome.  Fabulous.  Everyone must run out today and get a sack of cast iron pans.  They will instantly transport you to Yesteryear.  Or possibly even the Days of Yore, especially if you have an apron on.

And finally, we got some new chicken babies today!  There really is nothing sweeter, even when they poop on you.  Really.  Andrew's sorrow at the loss of our  other girls was assuaged when we decided we would get chicks of the same breeds and name them the same names. We also added 2 Plymouth Barred Rocks just 'cause we wanted to. 

Here's Andrew visiting with Rosemary II. 

And Elsbeth getting a little quality time with Gretel II.

Formal introduction of our new precious fluff balls:

 Susannah II
(Rhode Island Red)

Nadine II

(Austrolorp)

 Gretel II

(Buff Orpington)

Rosemary II

(Silver-Laced Wyandotte)

Loretta

(Plymouth Barred Rock)

Roxie

(Plymouth Barred Rock)

How in the world can you stand not having a few of your own?  Seriously, a lap full of baby chickens and some cast iron and your world would take on a soft rosy glow.  Do it.