I missed posting an email from the Miller Farm last Friday. My week was crazy with a whirlwind trip <span style="color:#444444;line-height:23px;">from the gulf coast of Texas </span>to central Illinois. Left on Thursday back home on Monday. Two thousand miles in five days!

We made the trip to take most of our antique furniture to our son. Chicken wrangler Sara and her sister helped us out by taking some furniture, too. In the grand scheme of things we have more than our fair share of stuff. Watch for coming blogs about how we're simplifying our lives by downsizing.

While we were traveling, life on the Miller Farm had its drama too.

<em>We are remodeling our bathroom so right now things are really a mess, and we have no shower. </em>

[caption id="attachment_1503" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<a href="http://judythewriter.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/sink-pix.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1503" title="sink pix" alt="" src="http://judythewriter.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/sink-pix.jpg?w=300" height="225" width="300" /></a> Talavera sink we bought during our days as missionaries in Mexico City and granite top are set. Wall texture and painting yet to come.[/caption]

<em>We remodeled a bathroom in a different house 16 years ago and so we knew what we were in for…we thought.</em>

<i>We've</i><em> discovered, with two teenagers, things work a little different. </em><em>But no matter what’s going on inside the house, the chickens outside must still be let out, watered, and fed every day.</em>

<em>So this morning, after I swam and showered at the pool, I went to let the chickens out and discovered not one, but two quail stuck where they didn't belong.</em>

<em>One was in the space where the eggs roll out of the cage in the coop. This has happened before so I was not too surprised.</em>

<em>Another quail was stuck in the feeder in the long cage. I have no idea how that happened.</em>

<em>I was able to free both quail without major trauma to them or </em><em style="line-height:23px;">me</em><em>.</em>

<em>Then as I was filling the water for the cage in the coop, one of the quail got out. He was on top of the cage, which is hard to reach.</em>

<em>Next, the escape artist quail  jumped to the ground. I shut the door to the coop (checking to make sure the string was on the inside so I could get back out) and trapped him.</em>

<a href="http://judythewriter.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/quail-coop1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-1505" title="quail coop" alt="" src="http://judythewriter.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/quail-coop1.jpg?w=300" height="225" width="300" /></a>

<em>Unfortunately when trying to put him back in the quail cage, he escaped again. At last sighting, he was hanging out on top of the cage. </em><em>He must think he is a chicken, which is fine with me.</em>

<em>I figure the worst case scenario is he joins the other quail, who thinks he’s a chicken, that hangs out in the chicken yard all the time. </em>

<em>Score one for Chicken Wrangler Sara.</em>

<strong>YOUR TURN:</strong> Made any whirlwind trips or chased down escape artists this week?