A Well Educated Egg!

Our girls have supplied eggs to many in the Oswayo Valley and even make it to Union Bridge, MD and Worceste, MA a few times a year.  Nothing makes me happier than to hear how everyone likes them.  How about that dark yellow/orange yolk and the white surrounding the yolk is firm and well formed in an oval shape.  No runny whites with our lovely eggs.  We even had the opportunity two years ago to let our Silky hen who had turned very "henny" set on a dozen.  Five hatched and what a great experience.  You might say the excitement around the "hen house" was at its peak.  Even Dick and I were frequent visitors several times a day to see if they hatched and after they did to check on the little chicks.  They stayed under mama for about a week and then it was time to explore the world, they never ventured more than a wings length from their mom.  It was the easiest time ever raising young ones, mama hen did all the work.  We just watched.  Not so when we mail order day old peeps.  It is constantly monitoring the heat lamp and temperature, cleaning the pen daily, checking butts (yes you really have to), feeding, watering, picking fresh greens and even playing with them.  Handling them insures they will be friendly hens. 

Now for the first time our  eggs along with Jackie and Vic Taylors eggs will be going to school!  I had a great message from Emily Weber (a teacher) wanting to buy a few of our eggs.  She has a program at school where the students will be hatching the eggs.  Needless to say, of course Emily, but you are not paying for them.  We will donate for the cause.  She knew we had a beautiful gray Silky rooster because she had given him to us.  That means the eggs should all be fertile.  Don't panic, when you buy our eggs they do not have the start of baby chicks in them.  A mother hen that is "henny"  meaning she wants to set and raise a little clutch of peeps will lay eggs daily and about the time there are 10-12 eggs she will start setting.  Yes, they will all hatch within 3 days of each other, 21 days is the amount of time for the little peeps to greet the world, give or take a 1-3 days.  Fertile eggs are just that, they will not start growing a peep until the mother hen sets to get them up to certain temperature and she will rotate them several times a day.  That is why Jackie and I are able to gather eggs over a two day period, put them in a cool place and rotate them every 12 hours until Emily picks them up in two days.  Rotating keeps the yolk from settling in one spot.  Two dozen in my cool basement, unwashed, rotated and soon off to get an education.  We are all eggcited (thanks for word Jackie)!  Life is grand when new life is brought into the world.   Ummm, unless it is SNAKES!  Then it is far from grand.

The way to tell if an egg is fertile?  Crack it, there is always a tiny white dot on the yolk, if it looks like a little hazy bulls eye it is fertile, if it is just a tiny dot it is not fertile.  I have been checking the dots every time I use eggs, more fertile than not.  Yayyyyyyy

It is a beautiful day in Clara, PA.  The biggest snowflakes are falling down giving the view that wow look outside.  They look like little snowballs.  If this keeps up the ground will soon be covered, again.  Yesterday we woke to about 3 inches but by afternoon much of it had melted.  The hills are still covered.  I know, many are ready for spring and I am too but I can't help love the beauty of snow.  Last Sunday I was so ready for setting on the deck I hauled the furniture out and we enjoyed lunch outside.  As you can see one week later and all that is on the furniture is snow and ice.  Oh well, this too shall pass.  As long as there is fresh snow to gather I think it's time to boil down some maple syrup and drizzle over the snow for a little treat that some call "Jack's Wax".  I call it sticky maple taffy.  For everything there is a reason. 

Just waiting for the next warm day.

Life has been very busy around Cook'n By the Creek.  I am knitting the third pair of socks for either birthday or Christmas gifts.  Once a month we go to Wegmans in Hornell for our favorite treats that only they have.  Along the way in the small college/university town of Alfred is a yarn shop.  I always stop and buy enough yarn for a pair of socks, this seems to keep me on task.  Plus the gal that owns the shop is wonderful with informative conversation about yarn, knitting and life.  My kinda gal.  The other stop is on the way home in Alfred at the Terra Cotta, it always has hot brewed Jamaican Me Crazy, just a nice way to end the day.  Taking a break from knitting is usually time to self teach water color painting.  It is quite a challenge but keeps my mind active and hands busy.  Soon it will be warm enough to take the knitting, painting and quilting to the great outdoors.  The best place in the world to relax, free the mind and enjoy my hobbies.  Of course garden will soon be tilled and ready to plant which means weeding, cultivating, picking and canning.  That was a fast winter when I think of what spring and summer means around here.  We ordered seeds last week that should be here any day.  Some of the order will be shipped later when it is time to plant the sets.  The garden is always worth it.  The shelves in the basement have turned the tide to more empty jars than full.  I plan on a bushel of pears this year, 1/2 a bushel is not enough. 

The barn view from the house.