Evan, the 2 year old toddler!

My baby is 2!!!!!!!!!!!

He had his birthday a couple of weeks ago. It was a very small affair; daddy, baby and mommy. We thought about a party but things have been a little off lately so we decided against it. We did have a cake, balloons and presents. That was plenty for my little guy.

He is into his "bossy" phase now. I mean REALLY bossy. He tells me, daddy, the pets, kids at the playground, everybody what to do. If I'm in the wrong frame of mind, it can be a little annoying....

He's awesome, though, and I love him terribly!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Almost 2

Here is probably one of the last chances to see Evan as a One year old. He turns 2 shortly. I cannot believe he's growing up so fast.

He's quite the talker now. It took a while but now he repeats everything he hears--which is not always a good thing. He has cut down on the use of the word "sh*#" because we have made a monumental effort to stop saying it but we still hear it from him occasionally. I guess the good news is that he knows how to use it in context. For example, he might trip and drop something he's holding and the word will pop out. I wince on the one hand, and feel an irrational pride that he knows how to use it, on the other. Like I said, though, he is using it less and less--thank goodness. Cross your fingers, he hasn't used the "F" word yet.

Chicken Growth

Well, my newer chickens are growing up. I think the last time I reported on "Coop News" I had purchased some americauna chicks. They are almost full-grown now and they dwarf my bantams. Scott says they look a bit "hawkish" and more like predatory birds rather than chickens. I cannot wait until they start laying b/c they are supposed to lay blue eggs. These are 2 of the 4 americaunas.
This is what they looked like as babies:







I gave away the other set of chicks and all of my roosters except for Teddy, my black cochin. He's such a sweetheart. He never gets aggressive and is pretty quiet for a rooster.



I really didn't need any more chickens, BUT, back in May I was buying some feed and I saw the cutest little bantam chicks. There were only seven left and I knew I shouldn't come home with 7 chicks, so I asked for 4. HOWEVER, they were looking to get rid of the last of them, so I got all 7 for the price of 4. Lucky me!



Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures of them when I first got them and I lost one, so now I have 6, and they are cute! As they get more mature, it looks like I've got some white cochin bantams, and some mixed bantams, one in particular is looking more like a porcelain bantam. I don't think any of them are purebred, though.






Everybody gets along great. Ever since I got rid of the other roosters, it has been very peaceful.

Fish Bowl

This post is for Jeni because she wanted to see my fish bowl. It's not for fish, per se, but they seem to like it well enough. I've had the bowl for years and didn't know what to do with it b/c it's so big. I had been wanting to get some fish and one day it dawned on me that I already had a home for them. It turns out that the bowl holds 10 gallons of water and is perfect for fish, in my opinion. The only thing is that the curve of the bowl distorts the shape of the fish and makes them look so much bigger than they actually are, but I think this just adds to the enjoyment. I've had them for about 5 months now and they seem to be doing well.

I put Nina beside the bowl to give people a point of reference as to the size of the bowl. Then, of course, Evan wanted his picture taken too. He's so cute!

If you look close you can see my blue Beta and a couple of other fish swimming around.

Chick update

My chicks seem to be doing well. They are feathering out and getting bigger.

This is what the chicks look like at approximately 2 1/2 weeks old. You can see their feathers sprouting out. They are kinda gangly-looking at this age. It's sort of an "in-between stages" look but they'll turn pretty over the next few weeks.


I've also added 4 ameraucana chicks to the group. They look very different from the others. I've never had ameraucaunas but I am very excited. They lay BLUE eggs. So far, my chickens have just laid the regular brown and beige, so I can't wait to see some blue ones in the mix!

Here's what they look like as chicks. Very different from my

other chicks.

Rodeo Day!

Evan's "Mother's Day Out" Program has an annual "Rodeo Day" where all the kids get to enjoy some outdoor fun. There's a petting zoo, hay rides, pony rides, llamas, horse shoes and other fun games.

Even though the day was overcast, the weather was mild and it was a lot of fun.

Evan adored the animals in the petting zoo and loved the pony ride. He cried when he had to get off the pony and give another child a turn.

I found myself wandering back to the petting zoo several times in order to cuddle with the bunnies and hang out with the goats and pigs. Evan wasn't terribly interested in the llamas, but one of them, in particular, was incredibly soft. I enjoyed petting him, too.

I wanted to scoop up a bunny and hide it in my purse, but I don't think bunnies and cats mix very well. Maybe I can do some more research on that.... Also, I think we should get Evan a pony. I know Scott will not allow that to happen, but I still think it would be a great idea.

Trip to North Carolina

Henry with his mommy

Aunt Cristin holds a sleeping Henry right before we traumatize him with a BATH!
Poor little guy was sound asleep and now he's being tortured by tub time. I'm sure he's going to love bathtime in a few months.
We did not force Henry to stare at the sun while we went for a walk. It kinda looks like it but this only lasted a couple of seconds and it was purely so we could get the photo of him in his stroller. Such a sweet boy!

And here is the beautiful Jeni. She is the best mom and friend!

I had a really wonderful trip to NC to see Jeni and little Henry. He was only 6 weeks old and just a tiny bundle of love and cuddles. I got to spend some quality time with my friend and that made me feel so good. The last couple of times we saw each other, we didn't have much time to get in some decent conversations. She's also very wise, even at her young age, and is a great confidante for me.

Seeing Cristin and meeting her friend Jamie was fun and watching movies and TV shows that I was totally unfamiliar with was quite entertaining. We watched "The Man Who Fell to Earth", a David Bowie vehicle that was interesting but kinda confusing to me. I loved "Robot Chicken", a cartoon network show Jeni introduced me to, as well as a couple other funny and bizarre cartoons.

We spent most all of our time just taking it easy. I loved it!