Frigid Weather, Summer Planning, Good Hens and Busy Fingers

The cold, windy, inhospitable weather we continue to have has been good for staying warm and cozy indoors and doing some planning.  So Papa Pea and I spent a few hours this weekend going over our spring/summer To Do List.  Even though it's double-spaced, it's two typewritten pages long.  I've often voiced my opinion that "normal" people would pick one of the items on our list and proclaim that's what they were going to get done of a summer season.  If all went well.

We prioritized the items into an A List and a B List, then labeled the ones in the A List that we could start "early" . . . as in before the snow is completely gone and nice weather settles in.  To say we aren't going to be lacking in things to keep us busy this summer is an understatement.

I have been bitten by the sock knitting bug and think I may currently be addicted.  I'm wanting to knit several pairs for myself, something I haven't done in the past.  Above is a picture of the one I'm currently working on.  It's progressed some since the photo was taken.  I'm now ready to turn the heel and finish off the rest of the foot.  I made the whole top in k2, p2 ribbing, something that takes waaay longer to do, but I think this particular yarn lent itself to that particular design.

We have 12 (Oops.  My error here.  There are a total of 12 birds in our chicken house, but only 9 laying hens.  That makes our egg production sound even better, no?) hens in our little chicken house and they have layed fantastically all winter long.  On many days we get 7 eggs . . . that is if we're quick enough to collect them before they succumb to the bitter, freezing temps.  Most of the producing girls are from the batch of chicks we started this past spring.  We try to get by with only purchasing and starting chicks every other year with the couple/few our own broody hens will hatch out this summer thrown in for good measure.  

The really exciting news on the poultry scene is that we've ordered goslings to arrive this spring.  We've sorely missed having geese but couldn't tolerate the trio of breeding stock we had before when Father Goose turned rather vicious.  The last attack sealed their ticket to freezer camp.  The new breed we're getting are Pilgrims which are touted as being very docile and non-aggressive.  Let's hope!

We haven't made a trip to the big city for needed supplies since before Thanksgiving.  Putting it off is getting to be a (worn out, not funny) joke around here so we are aiming to take a day sometime this coming week to do so.  Hmmm, let's see now.  Do we want to go on a sunny day when the temp isn't forecast to rise above 3 degrees or should we choose a day when it might get to the mid-teens but with a warning of snow?  Eeny, meeny, miny, moe . . .

It has been fairly slow and low-key around here lately.  We're taking it a little bit easy, staying warm and bundling up really, really good when going outside.  Papa Pea has a much faster metabolism than I and warms up quickly once he starts moving although it's nasty outside.  Me?  Even on our 1/2 mile hike out to get the mail and back, I never get much heat going.  Maybe I have too many clothes on and my circulation is cut off.  Tomorrow I'll run out there in just my long underwear and jogging shoes.  Oh, yeah, and wouldn't that be a sight!