A/N:
My apologies for the long wait, I was waiting in a certain something before I could begin this chapter but now I'm just going to go ahead and write it, I can't make you all wait any longer. Also, my birthday was on the tenth so I was a bit out of commission lol.
Also, for an awesome fan, thanks for J and E. (You'll know what I'm talking about when you see it).
June 20, 2013,
Journal,
The last week, every single night, I've had that dream. I look forward to it now. I may not have Kara here in life but at least I can still have her in my dreams. It's always the same. The kids, her, the lemonade and our conversation but it's great to look forward to at the end of the day.
Most of my morning was spent on my everyday chores, boring but necessary. Weeding, watering, harvesting. The monotony of that only broken by exercising the horses. Now THAT'S something enjoyable. I can see why Karen and Sebastian enjoyed it so much. Each of the horses had their own personality, their own likes and dislikes.
After that was over I went with Boyd into the barn to collect the eggs. He'd already put the chickens out that morning so our hands were safe from their pecking beaks as we stole their young.
"No gloves today, huh?" Boyd said merrily. "Don't know why I never thought to put them out first before this."
"Sometimes the simplest solutions are the hardest to think of." I told him as I placed the last of the dozen eggs in the basket. As I turned toward the door, eager to clean the filth from them I heard a soft crack. I paused and glanced at Boyd. He too had heard the sound and was already glancing around the barn nervously.
"Ya hear that?" He whispered. I nodded and pointed to the tack room. With both Boyd and I in the barn, there was no way something could have gotten in or gone unseen but better safe than sorry.
I grabbed my machete from the floor beside the hens nests and crept toward the open tack room door. As I got closer, Boyd right behind me with a pitchfork at his side, the cracks grew louder and came in quicker succession.
We came upon the open door, our backs now flat against the wall and I peered around the frame, readying myself for the worst.
The peep that greeted us had me letting out the breath I didn't realize I'd held. Two small balls of fluff peered from over the box we'd put the fertilized eggs in weeks ago. Boyd hurried over chuckling to himself. He scooped one of the yellow puff balls in one hand and a handful of the broken shells in the other. "You gave us quite the scare." He said to the chick.
"Is it a buy or a girl?" I asked.
"That's one trade I never learned, Bruce. It's called chicken sexing, only trained people can tell you a chickens gender before it's about a month old. We're just going to have to wait." He dropped the handful of shell onto the floor below and scooped out the other chick, handing it to me. "You should take this in to show the girls and Oliver. They're sure to get a kick out of it."
"Don't chicks have to be with their mothers?" I asked.
"Not really. The most they need them for is warmth. It's warm enough right now, they can go without a heat lamp or their mother hen. Just be quick, I'm going to bring this one out to meet the rest of the group." We walked to the doors and split up, Boyd heading toward the group of chickens pecking at the ground and myself toward the house where I knew the girls would be setting up lunch.
"Carrie! Connie! Bre!" I shouted as I stepped across the threshold. "I found McNuggets!"
"McDonalds?" Bre asked from the kitchen. "How did you find them all the way out here?"
