This is Why My Husband is a Great Dad

Special K is a Super Dad.

This evening, the end of an exciting snow day in central Texas, my husband fashioned body sleds for the children out of large leaf bags. Yet one more reason why I love this man!

Snowy Morning in my Texas Backyard

The Chickens with the Boxer

Pretty Pullets!

You know what happens when you feed a baby chick? She turns into a pullet!!

Our four chickens are now almost seven weeks old and they are healthy little chirping, eating, clucking, pooping machines.

We have two Buff Orpingtons named Omelet and Popcorn. This is Omelet's baby picture and a shot of her today:










This is Popcorn:












And we have two gorgeous Plymouth Rocks named Rockette . . .














and Pebbles . . .













No I know EVERY mama thinks her babies are the cutest. But, seriously, aren't these some pretty pullets!?!

My New Favorite Blog

This adorable ten-year-old blogger is a bad speller and seems to have little use for punctuation. But his sweet spirit just shines through! Check it out!

http://www.inventors-notebook.blogspot.com/

Operation CHICKEN!

My family has launched a new adventure: raising chickens!!

On Black Friday we went to Homestead Heritage farm ministries for their annual festival. It's our preferred post-Thanksgiving outing and something I look forward all year long. I especially love seeing the animals because they feed my fantasy of running a tiny hobby farm! This year, our little H-Bomb couldn't tear himself away from the chicken house. He picked up a baby chick and it nestled into his hands like he was the mama chicken! Before you knew it, we had bought ourselves two chicks and a bag of feed. I immediately set out to read everything I could about chicken rearing. (Yes, I realize that a reasonable person would have researched first and bought chicks second.) Sunday, we went back to get two more babies so that we would be sure to have at least two survive to adulthood.

Two of our chicks are Buff Orpingtons; their names are Popcorn and Omelette. The other two are Barred Rocks, call names Rockette and Pebbles.

For now, all four girls are living in a gerbil cage in the house. Soon they'll move into a temporary winter home in the garage. Meanwhile, we're going to build a small chicken coop for them in the backyard. More on that (and pictures as they grow) later!

ELCA Statement on Human Sexuality

My national church organization recently met and, among other actions, voted on a long-awaited Statement on Human Sexuality. It's a long--and very interesting--document and it included several special key resolutions. Here's the two BIGGIES. They both passed, though the debate was long and the passing vote was not a landslide:

“Resolved that the ECA commit itself to finding ways to allow congregations that choose to do so to recognize, support, and hold publicly accountable life-long, monogamous, same-gender relationships."

“Resolved, that the ELCA commit itself to finding a way for people in such publicly accountable, lifelong, monogamous, same-gender relationships to serve as rostered leaders of this church.”

Amen.