Kelly's Country Squawk

My favorite part about being a published author and blogger is being able to talk to my readers...especially my young readers. Yesterday, I was able to visit my kindergarten students from last year who have now graduated onto first grade this year. I read my new book, Pastor Jay , to the kids and handed out the stuffed animals that are characters in the book. Whenever a stuffed animal appeared in the story, the kids would lift them in the air when we read that specific par

This week's post is a bit late. My feathered friends were not very enthusiastic about an idea I wanted to try. We can call this an epic "Pinterest Fail" or a chicken version of the show Nailed It . Why Chickens Love Pumpkins A favorite treat for chickens this time of year is pumpkins. Pumpkins are very healthy for them. They help boost their immune systems, preparing them for the cold winter months. For the past couple of years, I’ve seen several YouTube videos of other chick

Apple Cider made from apples with our rotten apple trees. So, so good! We like using recycled bottles for our homemade apple cider. This past week was another "rotten apple tree" week. However, I believe many people across America felt like those rotten, ugly apple trees I wrote about in last week's post, Apple Picking on the Chicken Farm . There are no words that can truly ease the pain of tragedy or make sense of it. I've seen countless words on social media discussing the

My absolute favorite part of last week was launching my new book called Pastor Jay! I loved all the Facebook messages, texts, and emails...

After nine months of writing, critiquing, collaborating, and having tons of fun, my new Christian Children's Book called Pastor Jay is...

The Chicken Limo!!! When I was growing up in Indiana in the 80s, occasionally my brother and I would spot one of these chicken limos...

After a fun camping weekend with my family, I returned home to find the finalized files for my new book, Pastor Jay , from my wonderful book designer. Below is a picture of the 3D book mock-up. Once I submit her files to Amazon's publishing company, KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing), it takes about two weeks for Amazon to approve it and add Pastor Jay to their website for purchase. So, watch out for Pastor Jay in September! I'll keep you updated. Available on Amazon in Septemb

Once a month I have to buy 250 pounds of chicken feed at the Tractor Supply to feed my 70 chickens. Since I have three "strong" kiddos...

A Dozen Eggs with two Fancy Vegas Eggs A big part of my love language is giving gifts. I love to make people smile, and I absolutely...

After traveling to the gorgeous Smoky Mountains with my family last week, I realized that the summer heat in Michigan is nothing compared to the heat of the South. However, it has been quite hot! The only thing thriving in this sauna are the ten monster-sized zucchinis we found growing in our garden after being gone for five days. Thankfully, my neighbor's little boys thought our overgrown zucchinis looked like bazookas, so they had quite a fun afternoon playing with them. Ki

How about a break from chicken drama? I've got some book news to share about one of the best children's Christian books... It's been...

Seconds after giving birth to my firstborn son For those of us who have fallen in love with a partner, feelings often develop over time....

Maui, the Demi-God of the wind and sea...we named him from Moana, the Disney Movie Last night it was cool enough outside for me to sleep...

My ferocious indoor mousers, Jasper and Bessie, who wouldn't know what to do with a "real" mouse. The one on the right is terrifying,...

Life on a chicken farm can be very unpredictable, and this week has definitely been a humdinger. Most weeks my chicken duty lasts just...

My family lives on hard boiled eggs, and we snack on them all week long. I found out very quickly that farm fresh eggs boil differently...

Since starting Kelly's Country Squawk a couple years ago, I have been blessed to connect with so many readers who are curious about...

Some people have told me that they would love to have chickens, but they don't feel like they have the time to take care of them and the...

This post has been on my heart for several months. I've been putting it off and putting it off, because it's a painful story for me to...

The girls settling in for the night on their roosting bars. Like most birds, chickens love to perch (a bird's way of sitting) on trees...