While doing the rabbit chores the afternoon I got to hear Phil crow. Well, if you could call it that. He's small, and so is his call. Instead of "cock-a-doodle-doo" he only does the last half - "Doodle-doo" and it's adorable. He still doesn't want to leave the bunny barn. I took the water bowl out and cleaned it out (the ducks or the goose keep putting stones in it), but when I filled it back up, I put it just outside the bunny barn door. As I was taking my muck boots off in the house I looked out and there was Phil, feet on the cement edge of the doorway, leaning out to get a drink. Well, it's a start anyway. Maybe he will decide to leave the barn tomorrow. Or maybe he won't. He's doing a good job of keeping the bunny barn floor kicked up. There's still plenty of bunny food on the floor he hasn't gotten to. I suppose he's stuffed from all the free food available all the time now.
I finally found a happy medium where there are still just a few pellets left in the bottom of the chicken food bin in the chicken coop so I know everyone is full, but nothing is wasted.
While planting the raspberry canes this afternoon, I glanced back toward the bunny barn and saw a rabbit running loose. Not a complete surprise, sometimes doors don't get closed properly, once or twice the goose and the ducks have knocked a rabbit cage over. But this one was a surprise. It was Kin! Kin was supposed to be in the rabbit tractor over by the chicken coop across the yard on the other side of the garage. He's nice and easy to catch. I walked him back over to the tractor to see if he'd dug out.
Last night as it was getting too dark to see clearly, I noticed Kin and Kai had eaten up all the grass in their area. Instead of waiting until morning, I decided to move the pen before bed. It was dark, I moved the pen, shook the edges, it felt secure (no noticeable wobble to indicate it wasn't even), and went in for the night. Upon returning Kin to the rabbit tractor I immediately saw the problem. When I moved the pen, their food dish had gotten wedged under one of the sides, causing it to sit up a couple inches off the ground, which make the whole pen even because it was actually on a slight incline. He hadn't dug at all, just squeezed out the bottom gap. His brother Kai was still in the tractor, seemingly happy to have the nest tote to himself. The escape was totally my fault, and it was just convenient that he decided to go hang out in the bunny barn with the other rabbits.
So now I'm torn. I want to be the supportive spouse. I know he's been hoping for a promotion for a while now, and we've discussed it a couple of times. I just didn't think it would be to another store so far away. And how amazing that he was the first pick for the position, and was invited to the other store by name, without even knowing the position was available.
On the other hand, I have five kids to take care of, and most, if not all of them have Asperger's, as do I. One of them has aggressive outbursts and is difficult to deal with. And with a household full of Aspergians, one meltdown often leads to another... and another... and another... until we're all overwhelmed on some level. If Tony accepts this position, it could be two weeks between seeing him. I would effectively become a single parent with every other weekend shared custody. How does one even have a relationship when they only see their spouse twice a month? Date night, a movie, playing a game, or cuddling become impossible. Add on all the daily homestead chores, like feeding and watering the rabbits and chickens, gardening, building new garden beds, and small repairs to the house and barns... plus the daily drudge of laundry, dishes, cat box, and straightening up after five kids... How do single parents function? I can't multi task, and now I'm in panic-mode. His boss wants an answer by tomorrow.
How can I be supportive of the promotion my husband has been wanting, while maintaining my sanity?