Chicken Update....

*****Answering a question***** This is our 5th time to butcher chickens. We have been processing in Fall/Spring. We usually get 100 day old chicks from Hoover Hatchery (on-line, cornish/cross cockerels) Last fall, we only lost 5 from start to finish but this fall we lost around 20, so we have around 80 to butcher this time. We have around 40 pre-sold and we'll keep the rest. They are raised for 8 weeks. Yes, we do have an electric plucker and I would not do this if we did not have one!! We move them around on range in a cage that has wheels when they are about 4 weeks old. I would suggest reading a book called Pastured Poultry by Joe Salatin (sp) *********

Maybe it was because I did not say "Lord willing" with the chicken butchering....last night we had mechanical difficulties so we could not proceed. We had everything all set up and ready too! Right at this time we have begun, Lord willing we'll get er' going! We have chickens hanging and bleeding out as I type. Our neighbors David and Katelyn are over helping so I hope we can really get a lot done this evening.

The fellowship with the B's at the Affair of the Heart was fun! I actually bought a few things this time. Bethany, Anna and myself each got a sterling silver necklace, Anna got a bracelet, Mercy and Hosie got a bracelet too. All those items were under $10 each. I did get Mercy a Lee Middleton baby doll. She is a small baby, about 12 inches, just right for "little" Mercy!! She is very proud of her!!

Whenever I get in a large crowd, I find myself wondering what people are going through, are they hurting, are they in sorrow as I? If people were to look at me, do they know that I have a little boy that is not with us right now? In this mass of people no one knows about Joel. I saw many babies that looked like him when he was a baby and I saw 3 year olds that were his size and even some little boys that sucked a passy like him. I saw little boys in over-alls, it could have been him there! I saw things with his name on it, I saw toys and things he would have liked. The sorrow follows me wherever I go, it always will, but His grace is great and I am thirsty for it...... I saw Joel all around today.......

Tomorrow we'll finish up the butchering, Lord willing :) and then later in the evening we are going to a Weiner Roast at some folks that live close to us, the Doolittle family.

Better get to work.......

Cindy