Spring springs Eternally... in the Desert.

Well, maybe not eternally. We have this thing called summer that lasts from June to September and it discourages anyone and anything from being out doors between the hours of 7 am to 11:59 pm and 12 am to 5 am.

"My kid brother looked like a tick about to pop."

I'm sure you folks in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota think you're really clever when you say how cushy our winters are in Arizona... but just you remember the next time you put on your three sweaters and two pairs of wool socks that we can't put on or take enough off to get through *our* in-climate weather comfortably, smartiepantses!

Anyway.

Spring has officially arrived here in South Western Arizona. The ducks are at it like ducks (which is 3 notches above "at it like rabbits" and 1 above "at it like rock stars and politicians")
I'm loving all my eggs and finally starting to look at maybe getting into a market now that I'm at the point I can't possibly use all of my eggs and not all of my birds are mature enough to lay yet.

"uhm... call me crazy but I'm pretty sure none of my drakes look like that..."

We will not be *trying* to hatch any, but true to most famous last acts of doom I've decided to leave just a couple of eggs every day in one of the nest boxes to "just see what happens" and if any of my hens will go broody.


Since raising ducks last year went so well,  hubster talked me into geese, so we ordered 10 "hatchery choice" straight run geese from Ideal as they not only had a special running but they had the first hatch  out on feb 1st. While it is all well and good to get birds in July, Jan. and Feb mark the beginning of our spring season and gives our fowl the best shot at growing up in spring and summer and our freezer the best shot at being filled with excess male roasting geese in time for the holiday season.
They're all adorable right now, but I'm sure the time will come when they start to get extra moody and Camp Kenmore will look pretty appealing come November.

We also decided to give raising holiday turkeys a whirl, and added 10 BBW poults to the chick nursury with plans to order our first box of cornish cross chicks when the turkeys are feathered and outdoors so I think we're well on our way to the self sufficient safe meat goal.

The garden is in the ground, the heifer is having her conjugal visit in less than a week, and d'you know? all in all spring is a great time of year :)