Today I learned...

The weather was pretty good today, so I went out to the backyard to rake the leaves that have been calling my name for the past week or so.  Halfway through the job, I stopped to take a break and realized we really had A LOT of trees in our backyard.  In fact, today I learned that we have exactly 24 trees back there.  That makes for A LOT of leaves!  So my workout for the day was leaf-raking.  I may have broken a sweat.

Today I learned that Spencer is a genius.  Okay, maybe I knew that already, but he proved it yet again today.  This morning the car's check engine light came on just as we were driving to the office (I help out there on Tuesday mornings).  We turned around and switched the car for the 4Runner to be safe and headed to work.  During lunch Spencer looked the car over, checked a few websites, drove down to a parts store and picked up a new ignition coil for about $50, installed it, and in less than an hour the problem was solved.  Genius!

We've had this little problem with our chickens where they keep kicking leaves and other junk into their water container.  I've seen other chicken owners hang their waterers a few inches off the ground to prevent this, so today I decided to give it a try.  Today I learned that our chicken waterer leaks when it is hung above the ground.  I'm probably just doing something wrong, but every time I lifted it to attach it to the chain I bought, water poured over the edges without stopping or slowing down.  Since Spencer is the fix-it genius of the family, I gave up and just put the waterer on top of an old oil pan.  It lifts the water about 3-4 inches off the ground, so it should work until Spencer can get out there and do it properly.

So what did you learn today?  Besides the fact that two of the most notable moments of my day involved raking leaves and messing with the chickens' water (exciting life, I know).