Category: Uncategorized

Raising baby chicks is a rewarding adventure filled with fluffy cuddles and quirky antics.

About 18 months ago I started making sourdough bread.  Then I saw a meme: “sourdough is the gateway to chickens.”  If that’s not the truth!  Four months later, my family adventured to our local farm supply store and came home with eight baby chicks.

Two Barred Rock 

Two Brown Leghorn

Two Rhode Island Red

Two Buff Orpington

We’ve done everything we knew to do as first time chicken owners…  All spring, summer, and winter we let them free range in our backyard.  In the winter, we used the deep litter method and ensured their coop was comfortable.  They ate table scraps and produce from the Aldi dumpster (more on that in another blog post).  And their coop is always clean.  

Despite all that, last week I noticed the webbing between the toes on one of our Barred Rock girls was swollen.  This led to a deep dive on bumble foot, a bacterial infection causing a swollen, inflamed foot pad.  Sure enough, our girl had the telltale black scabs.  We soaked her in warm Epsom salt water and gently cleaned the area with Banixx for Chixx.  

After a week of using Banixx and soaking her multiple times we were able to scrape the scabs and grit that’d built up over time right off, no problemo!

Raising chicks teaches patience and vigilance, turning novices into confident flock keepers in just a year.

We started The Granola Moms because we needed a space where motherhood could be messy, meaningful, and honest. Where we could talk about parenting, wellness, and the world around us—not in perfectly curated tips, but in the real, thoughtful conversations we kept having off-screen.

We’re two moms with different routines, different perspectives, and the same desire to raise good humans in a complicated time. Some days we’re swapping snack ideas. Other days we’re sharing articles about policy or parenting that got us thinking. Most days we’re just trying to stay present, stay grounded, and stay kind.

This blog isn’t about doing it all perfectly. It’s about paying attention. To what’s working. To what’s not. To what matters. We write about health and home, about the small decisions that shape our days and the bigger ones shaping our future.

You won’t find rigid rules or idealized versions of motherhood here. Just two women making space to process, reflect, and connect—with each other, and with you.

Thanks for being here.

Sage & Willow