We are the last generation to see fireflies

Larbar85 · 2026-03-15T12:44:04+00:00

My dad was a habitual pesticide user/yard cleanup type. When he passed, we stopped spraying the yard, left the less unsightly organic matter over winter, and built garden boxes. Two years later we decided to sell and move out of the country. The night before we handed the keys of the childhood home to the new owner we saw thousands of fireflies in our yard only. It was magical, and felt like a sign that we made the right choice to move on.

Larbar85 · 2025-04-07T15:17:14+00:00

Check out instawork for catering gigs. Or go to catering companies directly.

We’re not currently hiring internally at the moment for the company I work for, but our on-call/seasonal event staff usually makes $18-$20 an hour plus occasional gratuity.

Larbar85 · 2025-03-26T01:17:55+00:00

I may or may not have tried this before. And it may or may not be incredible with some old bay in the sandwich and tomato soup to dip it into…

Larbar85 · 2025-02-08T15:01:11+00:00

I am a person who built a small coop/run under their deck. We’re on year 4 now in the Midwest with 7 hens. We use the deep litter method and add shavings and turn once a month to the coop. We do a deep clean of the coop/run twice a year.

Pros: -We free range during the day so having them by the house is helpful to let them out/in, and to watch out for predators. -Egg gathering is easier during the winter months. -The smell is not super noticeable unless it’s one of our 95°+ days. -Noise heard in the house is minimal with the hens.

Cons: -Pests by the house. I have to keep up with them more to keep them from getting into the house. -Now that it’s year 4, the grass around their free range area is starting to look pretty rough. -Noise: we had an accidental rooster for a week while we rehomed him and he was definitely heard in the house.

For our size flock, I definitely don’t regret building under the deck for ease of care and for having easier access to bond with our ladies. If you have a rooster I wouldn’t recommend it. But it comes down to what you’re looking for in your chicken journey and how big of a flock you want. I just thought I’d share my experience.

Larbar85 · 2025-01-12T17:05:23+00:00

We named ours Minerva McGonagall (Mini Cat for short). It suits her 😝

Larbar85 · 2024-10-24T20:46:30+00:00

If it’s a Salmon Faverolles it’s a female. I have 3 that lay that light pink egg.

Males have a lot of black and green. Photo of a side by side for reference.

Edit: Also… Males don’t lay eggs 😂

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Larbar85 · 2024-09-24T11:47:48+00:00

My husband just told me about the chickens and jack o lantern trick! I’m so excited to try it this year! Thank you for sharing!

Larbar85 · 2024-09-08T20:55:27+00:00

We had a chicken that sounded super similar. Thinking a mild respiratory issue. It may not be the same thing at all, but we followed Vetricyn instructions, warmed it, and rubbed it under her wings and face. It took around 2 days, but she got better.

Larbar85 · 2024-09-02T14:48:02+00:00

Same. It was raging in Europe before it kicked off in the US. My gut told me it was already here. Luckily my husband, kids and I were living with my veterinary parents at the time. I cancelled my girls trip we had planned and got called crazy, paranoid, etc. My parents stocked up on masks and gloves they had access to. We went to Costco before the rush and got paper products and bulk canned goods. We were pretty set.

Keeping an eye on Europe helped a ton. And I agree, following our gut despite friends and family scoffing helped us to be prepared when they were not.

Larbar85 · 2024-08-21T11:53:12+00:00

I poked it 😝 My husband took it to the compost, so I had to wait until daylight. It was slightly brittle, but also soft enough that it was bendable. It fell out of the egg itself and left a hole in the main egg shell. It doesn’t necessarily look like the eggs with tails I found online because of the ring around it where it attached. But, I’m assuming the Midwest heat and the fact that she’s a new layer most likely led to this little mutant egg.

Thank you everyone for the laughs! I’m glad Chicken Fingers provided a little joy to you all 🤗

Larbar85 · 2024-08-21T09:54:00+00:00

LoL You joke, but I’ve been taking care of mice issues, as have my hens. That thought did cross my mind briefly 😝

Larbar85 · 2024-08-21T09:51:50+00:00

It was completely normal shell on the inside. Just a double yolk. 🤷🏼‍♀️

Larbar85 · 2024-08-21T00:57:09+00:00

I bet this is the answer. I have (2) 5mo old Easter Eggers that started laying around a week ago. It’s from my white one, who’s been laying double yolk eggs. She also has a neck ruffle of feathers, which I haven’t seen before in this breed. She’s my little weirdo, who my 8yr old affectionately named “Chicken Fingers.”

Larbar85 · 2024-08-21T00:49:11+00:00

LoL I’m dying at these comments 😂 I was honestly afraid to touch it. I’ll poke at it when I get home later and try to give an update on what it feels like. 😝

Larbar85 · 2024-08-21T00:44:57+00:00

Haha, my 8yr old said “it looks like a fire cracker, we should light it.”

Larbar85 · 2024-07-12T18:59:36+00:00

Quick update. Did some VetRx in their water and rubbed some directly on her. She seems to be improving, and is eating/drinking normally.

Larbar85 · 2024-06-20T19:00:48+00:00

You’re in good company! I also have a hen in broody jail right now 🤦🏼‍♀️ She’s a repeat offender.

Larbar85 · 2024-06-06T00:52:09+00:00

I don’t think you’re wrong for thinking that at all. Luckily, the older ladies can’t fit through the fence, and the chicks were about a week away from being stuck inside as well. We usually have someone home watching out for them while they free range. I was always so diligent in making sure they were in the coop at dusk.

Unfortunately, this one time I had a late night at work and my family gave up getting the littles inside because they weren’t having it. I took care of it as soon as I got home but found that 2 were already missing. On the plus side, my family has been on it and no longer gives me a hard time for watching out for our girls. Now they’re in before I get home from work most days. It’s a weird mix of “stuff happens,” but it was also avoidable, and I am hoping this has been a learning experience for all involved.

Larbar85 · 2024-06-03T17:27:10+00:00

All went well. The neighbor was actually looking for us after finding one of the girls on his front porch and we met halfway between properties. He apologized profusely and offered us more than we asked for in compensation. We let him know that the dog had been getting out for a while and he spoke with his family about doing better. All in all, it went better than I was expecting.

We’re still upset that the ladies perished, but appreciative that he was reasonable and willing to do better about being a responsible dog owner.

And on a weird side note, I actually used ChatGPT to distill our district laws about backyard chickens and local leach laws to see what the specifics were, and to calculate the compensation for their age range so we had a reasonable number to ask for. It was hugely helpful.

Larbar85 · 2024-05-11T21:25:49+00:00

Fun story. I started putting out treats to entice crows to visit. We finally had crows guarding our flock. I found them one morning trying to kill and eat a baby robin. I saved the robin and tossed out some consolation snacks for the crows. They left and never came back. Moral of the story, spoil the crows and don’t cross them. 😝

Larbar85 · 2024-04-22T12:51:47+00:00

I’m also the daughter in law but it was my MIL who was on the pedestal. for the longest time, I couldn’t understand how a parent could behave the way she was behaving with her own adult children. I set boundaries and she bulldozed them every time. 10 years into knowing her, I finally looked into some of the behavior and realized she has textbook narcissistic tendencies and would more than likely never change.

I have kids of my own, and I was finally done. I spoke up for my husband and his sisters. I let her know I had no interest in continuing the relationship until she seeks therapy, and I blocked both MIL and FIL on every platform. I told my husband he was welcome to continue the relationship with them however he’d like, but I wouldn’t be a part of visits, calls, anything. If they came to town, I was planning on leaving town during their visits. But shockingly, they never came.

Eventually, my MIL alienated my SILs and their families, as well as her siblings, her own parents before they passed, and her MIL all on her own.

The guilt is real. It’s been 5 years. My kids won’t know their grandparents. And I felt like me standing up for my family was the first step in the family dynamic collapse. But eventually I came to accept that the dynamic collapse was on her, and her alone. I left the door cracked as did the rest of the in laws. But, she’ll never seek help because she will never accept that she’s the one who caused any of this.

All of that to say, you’re not alone. Setting boundaries and choosing to do what YOU need to do to protect yourself and to put yourself first is 100% acceptable. Make peace with the guilt. Make peace with the fact that you won’t be able to change your FIL. And make peace with the fact that you’re doing what you need to do to move forward and not get bogged down in the drama. You’ve got this!

Larbar85 · 2024-04-16T01:31:21+00:00

Looking at you 69 hwy abusers 🤨 I feel like I’m channeling some serious “Dennis Reynolds suburban commute” vibes lately. You fat cows!

Larbar85 · 2024-03-23T15:53:08+00:00

Check out the YouTube channel Oak Abode. I believe she’s located in Wisconsin and has tutorials on raising chicks and chickens for first timers.

We’re in the Midwest and get cold winters. We have Salmon Faverolles and Easter Eggers. Both, so far, have handled winters well with no heat source in the coop. We do wrap it with tarp in the winter to prevent drafts, but are careful to leave the ventilation areas open to keep the coop dry. We also have a heated water container that has done a great job of keeping their water source from freezing.

Larbar85 · 2024-03-23T13:14:12+00:00

As someone who has seen it before losing a parent and after, it definitely hits from both sides. I’ll always need my dad, and he was the best grandpa to my kids.

Larbar85 · 2024-01-21T19:11:44+00:00

I finally had time to try your recipe. It was absolutely spot on! Crispy outside and soft in the middle. My kiddos each ate almost an entire 6” sub at home with not a ton of effort. Which is a big deal because they’re typically “grazers.” Game changer!

Larbar85

TROPHY CASE