Daydreaming while waiting impatiently!

[tortoise]

Briteseas - DH is a keeper! Yesterday I had the most ridiculous meltdown. I hadn't eaten to the point where I was all nauseated and not going to be able to eat much. I figured out something I could eat at a restaurant 15 miles away. The messed up my order and I didn't get my strawberry smoothie. They gave me a strawberry shake instead. I didn't catch it at the drive-thru. Normally that sort of thing is no-big-deal, but I totally lost it. Cried in the parking lot for 30 minutes before I could drive home. Totally lost it when I got home - poor DH! I went to bed. DH woke me up a couple hours later. He got off work early, stopped at dairy queen and brought me a strawberry smoothie and a piece of peanut mousse pie, AND a piece of cheesecake.

My blood glucose was fine at my appointment yesterday. Baby is slightly growth restricted, but he seems very healthy. I'm still gaining, 40 pounds and counting! Doctor thinks it's likely his position all squished up in there throwing off the ultrasound measurements. Plus DS was a small, long and thin infant too. And I had subchorionic hematoma this pregnancy which correlates with small babies. Doctor told me not to worry at all, and they'll recheck growth ultrasound, biophysical profile, blood flow study every week until he is born.

Around the farm.... oh my! The hawk came back and killed another chicken. The hawk is now roosting near the chicken coop. DH moved the chickens to the pole shed for overnight shelter because he is poisoning a rat infestation in the coop. Some animal killed a hen and rooster in the pole shed last night. DH left the carcasses and put up a game camera. We couldn't figure out what kind of animal it is from the tracks. Looks like a small bear paw print minus claws.

DH built an incubator out of a cooler and put some eggs in it. We don't know ANYTHING about incubating eggs, so this could get verrry interesting!

DH built the frame for a chicken tractor. Looks like our free-range days are over! DS is painting it. DH cleaned out the coop to shelter the chickens until he gets the wire mesh to finish the tractor.

I have a rabbit hutch next to the chicken coop, but my little buck out there was stressing and running around this morning. Even the pigeons around here were stressed this morning! I moved my buck down to the barn. I'll need to figure out a plan for getting rabbits out in the grass safely over summer.

Oh! I squeaky-wheeled about DS's appointment and got it moved up to MONDAY MORNING! I am not dealing with his behavior alone with Baby on the way. DS has new aggression, hitting himself (hard!), talking about wanting to "kill the Baby", and even whacked the dog with a bat yesterday! That is so NOT NORMAL for DS! He's never been aggressive before. I've no idea what is going on with him and nothing I do seems to help!

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Dang girl - you've got a lot on your plate right now. Hope it all gets better real soon!

 

[tortoise]

Whatever killed the chickens has short legs. Only it's ear showed up on the game camera frame. DH is putting traps out tonight.

I planted 300 onion sets today. DH put electric fence around the garden to keep deer out. My tomato seedlings are still alive! The first sprouters have their first set of true leaves! I started putting the seedlings outside for 20 minutes in the morning. I'm leaving the clear cover on the tray since it is so windy here!

I converted a lambing pen in the barn into a rabbit exercise area. Not as nice as getting them out in the grass, but it's safer. And I can use it year-round. I realized that my doe is old enough to breed and I still haven't collected cages for growing out a litter of babies! oops! I need to get on that fast! I want to grow the entire litter out to 6 months old -- and cull them before winter.

DH put a little fan in the incubator. It got really hot, then a little cold, but is now maintaining at 99 degrees. I hope the heat was brief enough the eggs continue to develop. With the fan going and temp stabilized, I need to figure out a way to fit another layer of eggs in it!

DH tilled the raspberries to clear out the stragglers. He pruned them back too. He fertilized blueberries (all 400 of them) and the raspberries. I'm not sure what else he got done today - a lot I'm sure! He's been goin' hard all day!

 

[Denim Deb]

You have a lot going on! Hope you figure out what's killing your chickens, and hope you find out what's up w/DS. And congrats on making it to week 36!

 

[goatgurl]

week 36!!! woohoo so glad for you and your irritable uterus. have you caught the chicken killer yet? and ask dh to lower the camera please so we can all see, lol. take care of yourself kiddo

 

[tortoise]

DH trapped a big raccoon there last night - and got a photo of it on the game camera this time. I hope that's the only culprit. On the bright side, our chicken that laid bad eggs was one of the killed. We don't have to try to figure out who is giving bad eggs anymore.

DS's appointment went smoothly. He has ADHD diagnosis and a referral for medication management. I have some help for how to deal with his behavior at home. It was a huge relief! We visited a friend afterwards and did some shopping. It was beautiful weather and just nice to be out.

DH fixed the lawn mower tonight. I repotted 2 houseplants. (I splurged on matching pots for my houseplants.... blame it on being pregnant and irrational? )

I'm having a hard time keeping the humidity up in the incubator. It's been settling around 45% humidity. I'm not sure what to do about that!

 

[Denim Deb]

W/as humid as it is around here, that's one problem I don't have. I don't even add any water until I'm ready for lockdown.

How have you been feeling?

 

[tortoise]

I'm feeling a little all over the place! This whole pregnancy thing varies between really uncomfortable and painful. That all messes with my mind. My son's behavior is all over the place too. Yesterday was good. Today is terrible! Following advice to break up activities into 5 minutes tasks has not helped him be successful. I just sent him to his bedroom indefinitely because I'm losing my mind.

He asks if he can go play outside. I said no - we're in the middle of chores. He says he's going to go give the goats water, then goes outside and plays. I give him 10 minutes, and the goats still don't have water. I call him to come inside and he starts yelling at me because he "has to" give the goats water. Ooooo, this momma doesn't tolerate being yelled at! He's in his bedroom until I'm not so angry anymore and can deal with him.

We got his appointment for medication management - on Thursday! Thank God it's not a long wait for this appointment! I hope the doctor is a really good guesser on the medications and it doesn't take much adjustment! Our insurance doesn't cover behavioral diagnosis, so we're paying cash for all the appointments and medications from here on out. :/

 

[Britesea]

ouch on the insurance! I hope the medications work for him. They didn't for our son, but that's because he was diagnosed with ADHD, when what he really has is Autism Spectrum Disorder (it helps to get the right diagnosis)

 

[tortoise]

I think I cooked the eggs in the incubator. They were at 105, possibly for as long as an hour! So frustrating because we had just candled the first eggs in and they were developing. We left everything in and are still adding eggs just in case the first bunch are all ruined.

First peas are up in the garden... and frost in the forecast this week Too much row to cover. We put in 4 more rows of peas today, plus cabbage, broccoli, kohlrabi, and radishes.

No more missing chickens... The rats seem to be eradicated from the chicken coop now.

DH has been doing some serious work on electric fence around the garden! Now 4 electric tapes and a ground wire. He's being sweet about putting in a gate with actual handles. He's also trying to wire in a switch so I can turn off the garden fence without turning off the goat fence. (they're on the same fencer) He knows I won't go anywhere near an electric fence that is on!!! He is also planning on putting a wire rabbit fence around the bottom of the garden fence too!

Baby has an eviction notice! He is growth restricted, so tons of testing every week and they won't let me go overdue. So he will be here within 19 days, one way or another! ***I*** am NOT growth restricted, have gained 50# already!

My son is doing well on the low dose of medications. His Dr. warned that the benefit of the low dose will stop in a few days after his body learns to deal with the medication, and then it will need to be adjusted upwards. It's been really amazing to compare his behavior / attention before and after doses. I'm very hopeful. So far, he isn't having ANY side effects.