Duckling Hatchlings

One word... depressing!  Oh how I have loved our little Science projects in our homeschooling journey.  We have had a difficult time following "curriculum", so we pretty much do natural Science most of the time which has led us to raising rabbits, chickens, ducks, and goats (goats were a short adventure).  We have loved it!  And it has not all been perfect.  We have many animal death experiences, but by far the successes have outweighed the failures.  Well, such has not been the case with the ducklings.  Out of MANY eggs we have only 3 little ducklings and one has a club foot.  And it is so sad to see the little thing hobble around.  Truth is... he knows nothing different, so he seems fine and happy, but it depresses me because I feel like it is something we did.  And I feel we have messed with the natural order of nature. 

This duckling thing really has me baffled.  I have not assisted and when I have seen that end with a death I have done some that I have attempted to assist; hence, the three living ones.  It racks my brain.  I can't sleep at night wondering if our little babies are dying while trying to break free of their shells.  Just four nights ago one died in the night.  And I just do not get it!  They are developing fully, yet they are dying at full gestation.  I have tried many things to change it thinking our problem may be moisture levels and such or improper turning even though I have an egg turner.  It is what it is.  But if I had it to do over again I would have not done this little Science venture. 

We have had some benefit.  We have learned about the development of the egg and the reproduction system of a chicken.  Interesting fact.... they have two ovaries, but only one is functioning.  We have learned about the layers of an egg and sadly gotten to see fully develop specimens (non-living).  We have learned that a hatchling can have a hard time standing and their little heavy heads will slowly droop to the ground as they fall asleep standing and that they sometimes have weak little legs that have them doing the splits for the first 48 hours.  Oh how we have worried, but oh how we have rejoiced over the three living ones that are thriving and doubling in size every few days. 

Busy Summer... Busy Life!

Wow!  It's been a busy Summer!  I had started to get back into a groove posting on my blog, but as we finished up the homeschool year and headed into Summer I had to prioritize my time a little better.  The result was a little unplanned blog break.  We were so busy we even cancelled vacation.  Ugh!  BUT we got the chicken coop mostly done... still needs finishing touches... and we pulled out the carpet in three rooms of our house and changed that to hard surface flooring.  We did a lot of rearranging, so it was like remodeling three rooms of our house.  Being that we have five kids and life that does not stop for our projects, it took us over a month from start to finish... and in all honesty there are still little details that I am still wrapping up.  And that is just kind of the way with my life... nothing is every truly complete.  There is always some project going on and they usually overlap one another. 

But I want to get back into posting even though this is a crazy busy time for us.  I think I will do some short posts and see how that goes for awhile.  And when I say it is crazy busy I really mean.  Here is a little peek into this homeschooling mother of five and wife... our weekly schedule is quite full:
Sunday -- Regular Sunday School and Worship Service  -- 9:45 - noonish
             -- Special Study at Church: "American Heritage" DVD viewing begins this week -- 5-6:PM
             * The last few years we have not attended Sunday night service, so this is a big deal for us.  We stopped attending when my husband was going through the Master's program in college and being that we have added more children to our family we never have resumed.  Honestly, I am okay with that because I once thought we "had" to be there. 
Monday -- Sierra has soccer practice -- 6-7:PM
Tuesday -- Sierra & Savannah have piano practice -- 5:15 - 6:PM
              -- Special Bible Study in our home ("Visionary Parenting") with a small group -- 6:30 - 8:PM
Wednesday -- Children's Church and Choir Activities  -- 6-7:45 PM
              -- Special Men's Bible Study / Special Women's Bible Study -- 6-7:30 PM
Thursday -- Savannah has soccer practice (with Daddy as Coach) -- 6-7:PM
Friday -- FREE
Saturday -- Four of the kids have soccer games and practices -- 9-11:AM
We also, intend to have park time on Fridays with other homeschoolers or special "field trips" and attend various other unplanned activities. 

Meanwhile, we have the usual homeschooling, laundry, cooking and mealtimes, housecleaning, animal care, kid care, ... that still goes on, too.  It sounds crazy.... and it is crazy... but I am so excited about the things that are going on in my life right now.  I am determined to be a better, more efficient planner, so that the next couple of weeks will go well.  Hmmm... with all this craziness it is quite ironic that I think I will blog more.  We shall see!!!