Green eggs and ham

Yesterday, I finally got a pale green egg from one of the hens. They basically had stopped laying for a couple months for whatever reason, so I am happy they have begun again. Prior to this, I have been getting reliably one egg a day. White. Which has to be from the Yokohama hen, which is a puzzler-they are supposed to be pretty small birds and yet I am definitely getting large size eggs. I can't really judge how big the birds are, since I don't have any banties to compare them against, but she is smaller bodied than the "easter egger" hens. Today I need to clean out the boxes and put in some clean shavings, and rake out some of the bedding in the stall.

The birds themselves have settled their roosting spots. The two Yokohama's are happy enough to use the lower perch inside the chicken stall. The other three are all the way up top, in the barn rafter. As long as they stay in that spot, I can live with this, as any droppings are deposited on the aisle mats. But boy I sure have break up going on, so I was happy to snag the last bag of PDZ from the feed store yesterday. Amazing what sprinkling a little odor control does!

The weather pattern is just perfect (so far) for an easy break up. Freezing at night, into the low 40s during the day. The only thing better would be some light steady winds, to dry things out. I still have some built up ice along the barn eave, but it is retreating rapidly. No ice or slush remains on the arena but of course I have snow covering the wooded areas and rotting snow banks along the drive. I imagine it will be a few more days yet before I will need to drag out the transfer pump and move melt water across the driveway.

On the planting front, I have a bunch of sprouts to deal with today. Sprouts cannot wait, and must be planted before they expend their energy creating a root that starves. These vegetables will be held here for a while as the greenhouse is getting pretty full over there. Of course, I am weeks away from being able to use my own greenhouse-there is plenty of snow remaining on the unplowed areas.

On the horse front, I happened to notice a sale ad on the local CL, and sure enough, it was Breezy, the mare I leased about 7 years ago. She is back up for sale and it is so tempting! But I cannot purchase another horse, no matter what. The seller wants a pretty penny for her of course, and in other circumstances-I would figure out a way. So if anyone is looking for a very well seasoned show and trail horse, I can recommend her. A great all around horse, on the small side and would be perfect for kids.......14.3 hands, Reg, Appaloosa, blue roan and has excellent conformation.