The Verdict...

Well, we, I mean Keith, finally culled out one of our hens. She had us all fooled! She was our biggest hen in the flock and had such huge "looking" breasts - NOT! When it was all said and done, it was all FAT under those feathers! Her carcass was very puny, but we stewed her up anyway - Cajun style of course!! The verdict is that it was too much work for what you get. We will just send the old ladies over to Sam's house to retire a happy life on her 30 acre farm. Or sell them on Craig's list. Either way, we are no longer fantasizing about all the gumbo we will have this winter.

Sky Angel

We just got Sky Angel (Christian cable) this week. I am really liking it, for the most part. It is lacking a few channels that I like, but I think the more people that subscribe to it, the more they will add the better channels. There are also a TON of old movies and TV shows in it that may bore the average American to tears, but it offers clean, uplifting programing that the whole family can enjoy. MOST of the channels have an automatic 48 hour playback feature, and that is extremely cool. The monthly rate is only $24.99 for 70 channels, so that is quite a bit cheaper than our old cable. We are still not sure if they play live football, but I would hate for that to be a deal breaker since the good totally outweighs the bad. It has Fox news and several other channels we love, so for us, it is great. You can try it for 30 days risk free or just come over and check out ours. If you decide to give it a try, let me know and I can give you my referral code so I can get a free month of service. Let me know what you think about it - I'd love to hear your opinions.

Hiking, bouldering & sweating

We had such a great time hiking this afternoon with some friends from church. The water was low, so we really couldn't swim, but the hiking was great, the scenery was gorgeous and the sweating was profuse! James fell in the creek and Michael got mighty muddy, but there were no injuries or deaths. We can't wait to go back - probably in two weeks when some friends from Louisiana come for a visit. I think they would enjoy it!

There were some guys bouldering on some of the really big boulders, but we really didn't have time to do that today. Maybe next time.

This rooster's a keeper

Not like our last one who was like a prison warden. Bella, our first rooster, ruled the roost in such a militant way and he was obnoxiously noisy. He crowed for no reason at all, all day long. I really wanted to shoot him.

Jacques Clouseau, our newest crooner, is much more quiet and more mannerly. We will keep him! He is quite handsome, too! Of the rare French Cuckoo Maran breed, we plan to breed him with the two other cuckoo marans we have. They lay chocolate colored eggs. Although none of them are of laying age yet, it will be any day now! I can hardly wait to see that first dark egg!

Silent Night

We just watched a very poignant film this evening, based on a true story. This story is set in Germany on Christmas Eve of 1944, as a German mother, Elisabeth Vincken (Linda Hamilton), and her young son, Fritz (Matthew Harbour), face invasion of their home by both American and German troops. Against all odds, the mother and son try to persuade the soldiers from both sides to temporarily call a truce so that they may all join together and break bread in the spirit of Christmas.

It grips you very early into the movie and keeps you captivated throughout. I rented it through Netflix, but I am sure you could get it anywhere. Some of it was difficult to watch and listen to, and much of it really pricked me. There was triumph and adversity, elements every good drama needs. Some of it may have you thinking about our own times and government as they exist today. Maybe not. But I do recommend it if you like history.