BOOM-BOOM...

That's right ladies and gents, I haven't fallen off the face of the Earth.  At least not yet.

As far as "chickens jackin' my style" are concerned, don't stress over us.  I have been mega busy being a doting chick-mom to our little indoor brood, since the hens went psycho on their babies!

Our sweet little bunch of hopefuls dwindled from 11 to 2.  Some didn't make it all the way out of hatching before those stinkin' hens put an end to their babies.   Sad to report, the sweet little yellow guy Mini-Me sweetly dubbed "Sunshine," was numbered among the victims.  Breaks my heart.  One minute he was perfect and fine, and the next he was gone.  Life's too short I tell ya.

We were able to whisk the lone surviving chick (we've named it "Cowlick" due to the silly cowlick still on its head...thinking it might be a rooster), and the last egg (which was in the process of hatching when we brought him in under a heat lamp to finish his fight for life--- we've named it "Zoom-Zoom" cause it reminds us of a road runner...we're talking serious-fast here) into the house.  And they've been in their little pen ever since.

Now, you must know that we understand that life & death are both parts of ranch life.  However, when you watch a chick hatch and everything that goes with it (ESPECIALLY the soft fuzzy stage), it's hard NOT to #1- eat nasty, mean hens for dinner, and #2- race right out and nab up a chicken run's worth of new chicks from the nearest Farmer's Exchange.  So that's just what I've done in the past week.  Our indoor brood has grown from 2 back up to 11!

Our two cute little road runner chicks now have 5 Silver Laced Wyandotte siblings and 4 Barred Rock siblings.  Both varieties boast the most lovely black & white color-combinations.  Added bonus, all hens from this bunch should be fantastic brown egg layers.  Huzzah!!! 

As for the mama birds, they've adjusted perfectly fine to having had CPS (Chick Protective Services) come and terminate their parental rights.  Stinkin' hookers!

As for my sanity and sleep?  I'm not well-stocked on either at this point.  With two indoor dogs and two indoor cats (all which are very curious, I might add), I've been sleeping on the sofa beside the chick pen.

Willow's just curious when the chicks make a ruckus.  She prefers to otherwise be a voyeur from the arm of our couch. 

Hula, on the other hand, is convinced these birds are the litter of pups she never got to have.  And she literally STANDS over the pen, hovering over their every move.  When they fuss, she comes and whines at me that the babies need our help.  When they try to fly up and out of the screened pen, she scolds them back down.  You can see it in her eyes how badly she wants me to let them out so she can bathe them.  (No lie, she was TREMBLING with excitement when we brought them all home!)  It's tiring, but a hoot entirely!

Hula Welcomes More Chicks from KR Romm on Vimeo.
(K, here's the deal:  just ignore the piles of laundry in the background.  Have been trudging through this week's wash & toss sessions.  And no, not really toss; here toss = donate.)

The cats' interest level comes & goes.  I had the top opened slightly the other night, and our oldest chick was just chillin' in my arms, asleep, and I was suddenly aware of Sullivan across the room starting to slink.  So, the felines are the MAIN reason I'm being the overprotective chick-mom.  When I leave the house to pick Mini-Me up from softball, each dog is penned and both cats are kicked outside.  Rather be safe than sorry.  Just can't lose anymore this year.

In other news, and speaking of Mini-Me's softball, two games have played out and we have 6 games left in the season.  Mini-Me's struggled a little trying to pick-up on some of the nuances of the game which her teammates learned last year.  But she's doing her best, and hanging in there just fine.  She's also learning about dealing with personality conflicts, and how to still respect those in authority even when she doesn't want to.  They've got her playing outfield for now.

First game, the team lost, 26-9, at home.  Second game was on the road and they lost again by "a ton-1" (the scoreboard didn't work, so Mini-Me can't remember the other team's score).  Greatest thing though?  Mini-Me scored THE ONLY run that game!  She was quite proud.  Got beaned on base, and then proceeded to steal all of the remaining 3 bases!  Through this she's realized that even though Track & Softball are VERY different, there are still ways to excel, personal bests to celebrate, and reasons to smile.

Oh yeah, and our car family experienced some changes too.  Our Jeep Cherokee grew up and went off to college with a girl in Spokane.  So Mini-Pearl needed some company.  Therefore, we adopted "Remington."  He's a '95 Ford Ranger, also white in color, and gets 26 mpg!  Like Mini-Pearl, Remington also had audio development issues.  So, I got up to my elbows in stereo guts, only to discover that the wiring harness that would've plugged into the stock stereo had been removed and the wires had been cut.  I wound up rewiring the whole kit n' kaboodle, then I had to head to the fuse panel to replace the fuses which had been blown when the idiots who cut the wires did their deed.  Beauty storybook ending is that Remington is QUITE at home and happy and healthy here on the Ranch, and he's having no issues being vocal now!  :)

(BTW, Tuffy HIGHLY approves of Remington!  He was all about getting in there to help operate on Rem's vocals.  Lol.)

And lastly, this doesn't have anything to do with accomplishments or great feats here on the Ranch, but it DID make us laugh uncontrollably!  Please know that I would normally NEVER EVER (and especially not since 2002) endorse Britney Spears.  BUT, hear me out, this video below is AWESOME!  ...and really it's not Ms. Spears who I'm applauding, since really any song in the video would have been just as entertaining.  It's the Marines.  They're a riot!  (Stuck in the middle of an arid, monotonous war zone...they've gotta have SOMETHING to do.)   Enjoy...

Soooooooooooooo funny, right?

Well, there you have it, a quick little update so that you don't worry about us.

I've gotta get back to my chick wrangling, and some Easter prep for tomorrow.  Rumor has it, I might be in-store for a romantical date with Mr LKP later tonight!  Wish me luck.  :)

Be sure to be safe this weekend and have a WONDERFUL Easter with your loved ones!

::hugs::