It's Raining!!!

This is what our baby Guineas (keets) look like now.

This is what they will look like fully feathered and mature.

Not the the most beautiful bird at first glance  but the appeal, for me at least, is in their character and personality rather than their asthetics.They are very high strung, almost paranoid little creatures,moving in waves all together at the slightest sound/change in air pressure/whatever that happens in the general vacinity of them. They are excellent flyers, preferring to roost in the tops of trees some 30-40 feet in the air rather than on the ground.They are monagamous,mating til death do us part-literally.They can be trained to be tame and will follow you like a dog, and if they become seperated from you/your property often times they will  travel great distances to return home, time and again. They alert the entire neighborhood if a car pulls into your driveway and will attack a snake or other predator in a moments notice to protect their territory. They are excellent pest control,preferring to dine on ticks and fleas and inumerous other bugs even rodents ALL DAY-EVERY DAY. Now that makes them BEAUTIFUL in my eyes.

So we finally got rain. No it didn't fall from the heavens in torrents, raging like an angry assailant against the earth, but rather fell softly and insistantly like it had a purpose and only a short time to serve it. Small drops, but lots of them followed by a brief lightening storm and some impressive thunder . All thats left now is damp,rich smelling earth, a misty drizzle and and the sound of thunder rolling gently away in the distance. it wasn't the "four horseman thundering across the heavens" thunderstorm I had hoped for ,and Edd wasn't here to enjoy it with me, but it was still satifying. The metal sheeting roof we built over the henhouse served it's purpose and the girls are dry and warm. The gardens got a decent drenching  I am sure will help bring forth some new growth I didn't see at dusk today when I checked for weeds. The duck pond and watering areas got refreshed and I hear frogs and crickets singing and humming in the woods around us. There will be tasty bugs for the hens in the morning.

I spent the day collecting my keets, running Kieren to the Optometrist(no glasses needed-excellent vision)and homeschooling the kids. I worked the gardens and fed the animals and collected the eggs. I did some laundry, I cooked dinner & I washed some dishes and I am still not done,but it's ok, I don't mind. I asked for this, no, I wanted this. I am loving this.

Owyn gave me a crown to wear today. She said it was because I was the best Mommy ever. I asked,"even though I ground you, and yell sometimes or punish you for something?". She looked at me as if I were  speaking a language she didn't understand, smiled and said," of course mommy-that's your job-to teach us and correct us when we're wrong".

Out of the mouths of babes. She's going to be 7 May 14th and her soul is so old it's drawing SS benefits already. That put a smile on my lips and tugged at my heart just a lttle too.

She has no idea how much THEY are teaching ME..