Cage Free Monkeys

Its Only Weird if You Have Never Done It

We are literally running out of creative ways to cope with the massive amounts of snow here in Syracuse. So for today it was Chicken Sleigh Ride day.

I ♥ Faces: Winter Wonderland

Go on over to I ♥ Faces and check out the other snowy entries this week.

Removing Amazon From Advertising on This Site

Occasionally we bloggers partner up with big business to advertise. Its usually win-win. The blogger gets a bit of cash through readers clicking on ads and the advertiser gets face time with our readers.

I allowed Amazon.com to advertise on this website. As of this morning I have removed all of their publishing rights and cancelled my accounts.

As the web rages with the recent Amazon Fail, I want to let my readers know that Amazon ads and promotions will no longer appear on this blog. Period.

I actually forgot that Amazon had ads on here.

If you are one of the many boycotters and have a blog with advertising - please be sure to do the same.

Independence? Maturity? Or Is It Something Else?

It started maybe a week or so ago.

My little girl was growing up. As she went to bed each night, she would tell me that I didn't have to check on her. I listened and gave her the space she wanted to that would prove to me she was growing up. Night after night, she would go off to bed and I would not see her chipper little face until morning. I was proud of her. I had no idea what spurred the sudden quest for her independence but was a proud mama bear nonetheless.



Yesterday while doing laundry I made mention that I needed to change the sheets in her room. She sprung to her feet from her TV induced coma and offered to do it herself. She insisted she knew how to change sheets and her words were, " I can do it mama, you don't feel well. I want to make it easy on you."

Wow. How did I manage to raise such a responsible and thoughtful little girl. She was suddenly independent and matue. My little girl was growing up. I felt the tears coming on.



As I thought about this over my coffee this morning, I gushed with pride and just had to go sneak in to look at my now 'big girl' who was surely slumbering away proudly.



Yeah, not-so-much.

Apparently her room was victim of some great natural disaster that even FEMA could do nothing for. A natural disaster so strong, it snapped off one of the posts on her four post bed.

She figured that if I saw what used to be called her bedroom, I would make her clean it. So the best way to avoid cleaning it is to avoid me seeing it.



Guess what she is doing today?

Do You "Boo"? A Halloween Tradition

We do!

Booing is a fun and super easy way to spread early Halloween cheer around your neighborhood. Its a lso a great lesson in doubling that can be translated into many ideas such as how germs spread. (Not a pleasant thought I know...)

What is Boo-ing?

You "boo" a neighbor by leaving them a bag filled with candy and treats annonymously on their doorstep. When the open the bag they receive a poem which explains that they have been "boo-ed" and that they now need to "boo" 2 other neighbors. As people in your neighborhood get Boo-ed, they hang an included sign on their door to let people know they have been Boo-ed . Slowly your neighborhood will light up with these signs on everyone's door as it exponentially spreads each day.

So what do you do?

1. Fill a small bag with candy and seasonal treats.
2. Attach 2 empty bags and two copies of a Boo-ing Poem so the recipient knows what to do.
3. At an unsuspecting time, leave your Boo package at the doorstep of a neighbor.
4. Wait and watch it spread.

You can make your own Boo-ing poem or use the Hershey's one available HERE or the handmade version available from About.com available HERE and a printable poem HERE.

My kids and I always enjoy being the starting family--doing our first Boo-ing on October 1st. Each day we count the number of houses it spreads to--it's both exciting and easy fun.
Have fun and go out and Boo someone today!

Chicken Auto Watering System

I love DIY projects and was more than excited to tackle my latest one. I wanted to make a water system for my chickens that would basically take relying on me out of the equation.


This system keeps water super clean and refills as needed. In all, I spent about 45$ on this project and it was really easy.


The bucket is connected to a low flow adapter to the garden hose, reducing the psi. Inside the bucket is a float flow regulator- like the kind in toilets; when the float drops, more water is added until it rises again.



The pcv piping holds an additional 2 gallons of water and includes an air vent and overflow as well as two screw off ends for easy cleaning and debris removal.

Super satisfying project and no sooner did I put it into the coop, the chickens figured it right out.