Broiler Processing Day

Looking at this collage, I'm glad we chose to take a picture of our broilers each Thursday for their whole (short!) lives.  They really do grow. so. fast.

 Processing day went very smooth, and it was actually fun!  Thanks to some generous friends at Bethel Trails Farm, we borrowed some equipment that made the whole process go faster.  The most time consuming part is the plucking.  The "Featherman" takes care of all of it in 25-30 seconds!!  It saved us a ton of time.  We ended up doing all our birds, from start to finish, in 4 hours.  Everyone took a turn on each part of the process, from the kill cone all the way to converting ounces to a decimal scale for pricing and packaging. 

We had some fresh chicken for our Thanksgiving feast!  So glad we got to share some with our friends the Schaafs!!

 my little helper :D

Ben was a trooper on processing day...it was also his 9th birthday!!

 His very own Bowie knife!

Yes, that's right friends, when you live the rural life, you get a new knife for your birthday :)

Now, on to the next project for our farm...

                                                                       ...the Eggmobile!

The boys were challenged to come up with a model.  I think they're all great and very detailed!  We'll have to come up with a combination of all three!

Whew! What a busy couple of days!!  Hope you all had a fun Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving Feast with Friends

We are part of a great church and today was their annual Thanksgiving Feast for the homeschoolers.  What fun!

 My pilgrims & indians

 having fun with friends

 On the way we spotted this Vietnam Memorial with a tank and helicopter that were actually used in that war!

 The boys couldn't get enough of it!  

 I can't help but fast forward 10 years in my mind when I look at a picture like this.  What an honor it would be to have a son (or two, or three) that would be willing to serve his God and country in such a sacrificial way.  It starts now, when they're only 6, 8 & 10...teaching them to defend women and children, to live a life of service to others, to boldly accept one's duty as a man, and to have a heart of gratefulness for this country we live in.  Wow, what a responsibility I have as a stay-at-home, homeschooling mom to cultivate such a spirit in them...thank you God for such a wonderful opportunity!

Thursday's Broiler Biography

It's just about time....

We have decided to wait until Wednesday to process our broilers.  They will be exactly 9 weeks old that day.  It'll be chicken on our Thanksgiving table this year!!

Took some pictures with Ellie to give a visual of how HUGE these birds have gotten in just 58 days!  

Ellie's not quite sure...

 ...well I'll give it a try...

 ...classic!!

Little Helper's Apron

Yesterday while Ellie was napping and big kids were doing independent school work Gracyn and I got to work on an apron for her! 

 She loves to assist in the kitchen.  Her joyful spirit makes it so enjoyable.  If there is a plus to not having a dishwasher, this would be why...I get to spend one-on-one time with this adorable girl every day at the sink! 

 The best thing about this apron (besides how cute it looks on her) is it costed next to nothing to make!  The flower pattern is a vintage bed sheet we got for 2 quarters, and the polkadot is an old dress of big sister Caitlin's that we salvaged from a box in the closet!

 But here is my favorite part about this apron...it can be used for harvest days!  Or daily egg collecting!  

 Or in Graycie's case, walking around the yard with a hen!

 Now I just need to make one for my other girls and myself!!