Cluck Cluck

In 21 days we will have peeps! I can't believe how excited I am about this, maybe it's just that motherly instinct kicking in, whatever it is, I'm loosing my mind. Ashley is on her way home from Lockhart with chicken eggs that we will be incubating for the next 21 days. Ashley's good friend Kelly just finished her first batch of eggs, but unfortunately none hatched. I've been doing a lot of research and have learned so much about this stuff. It's really quite fascinating. We started out with a big plastic storage container, but the more I read, the more I realized that it might not be insulated enough to maintain a proper temperature so we decided to get a foam ice chest instead. Mark cut a hole in the side and we stuck a 25 watt bulb in. This worked great, but the temperature kept climbing and the only way to drop the temp. was to vent the top, but venting the top allowed the humidity to escape. After toying with several different ideas...most of which were a bit on the pricey side, Mark came up with the idea of wiring a dimmer to the bulb. He bought the $3.00 dimmer, wired it up and VOILA! It works like a charm. It's exactly what we needed to get the temperature just right. I hope this works!!! When the peeps hatch, we'll probably keep them for a few days and then take them back to the farm. Oh how I wish we lived in the country and could have a chicken coop! How fun! I will post incubator pics. when Ash gets home with the camera. :)

Happy Day for Alex

Alex's teacher sent a note home the other day. It reads:

Mark & Jamie,

Just wanted to let you know how proud I was of Alex today. Over the weekend I purchased new games and activities for our class and Alex was the only one to give me a hug and say THANK YOU for bringing us all the new stuff. You have a great kid!

Happy Day :)
Jane

We stopped at Walgreens on the way home and Alex got to pick out a special treat for making Ms. Jane's "heart feel warm". :)