fresh EGGS!!

This was a big week for us. 

As Andy and I drove away from my parents house the other day, I blurted out "I forgot to tell my mom the chickens are laying eggs!!!".  You would have thought I had forgotten to tell her something a little more important.  

Andy kind of snickered.  

Hey, what can I say, I'm excited!!

These girls are only 4 months old.  We heard they can start laying as early as 4 months, but usually

it's not until about 6 to 8 months.  We were not expecting eggs for at least a couple more months.  Way to go girls.  We aren't sure which ones are actually laying but we know two of them are.  We have gotten 2 eggs every day for the last few days. 

 I think it's Pinky.

When I first thought to look inside of their hen house, it was because Pinky was squawking and squawking and she went into the hen house and came out about a minute or two later.  The chickens are rarely in the coop when the door is open much less the hen house.  They only go in there at night.  When she went in there I knew something was up, but I was still not expecting an egg.  

These chickens are such interesting pets. Yes, they are our pets and friends.  They have personalities way different than I would have ever thought.  They are super social for the most part.  Sean and Newspaper are a little more skittish.  They will come around us when we are feeding them, otherwise they keep a little distance.  Pinky, my favorite, is beyond social.  She will follow anyone around and she is always the first to our back patio door when they are out.  She is one nosy, curious bird.  I love it.  She needs to be in everyone's business.

  I way trying to reach some ripe tomatoes yesterday that were right in the middle and I couldn't quite reach them from either side.  I kept stretching and reaching from one side, then back to the other side.  Every time I turned around, there she was.  She followed me back and forth.  I think she just wanted a tomato.  She loves them.  They all do.  When she gets one she will take the whole thing in her mouth and run as fast as she can with it.  She doesn't like to share.  It is one of the funniest things to see. 

These girls sure are entertaining!!

Fresh eggs!

  We are so excited!!

spring chicks

 We have baby chicks!!  

I am way over the top crazy about them.  

Besides being so incredibly cute, it is fun to watch and observe their curious little nature.  I had been wanting chickens for way too long now, but the timing just hadn't been right.  Julian's kindergarten class hatched chickens and we were finally ready and able to have chickens.   

I thought they were going to be my girls but it looks like someone else has taken over.  I'm not surprised.  Ella is like the little mother hen with them and she handles them so well.  

 Meet Pink Lemonade - pink neck, yellow feathers.  

Named by Julian.

She is a turken. 

 No not half turkey, half chicken.  Turkens are just a breed of chicken that do resemble turkeys with their naked necks.  She is so cute and so ugly at the same time.  Then have bigger eggs and tend to be very docile.  Julian picked her out.  

This is Newspaper.  

She is a Silver Laced Wyandotte.  

Ella picked her out.  She will be black and white when she is full feathered.  When thinking about a name, Ella was asking us to name different things that are black and white.  I threw out newspaper.  She thought it was really funny.  After playing with a couple of different names, she went back to newspaper, so Newspaper she is.

We are keeping our fingers crossed that they are all hens.  we are going to be getting two more.  Another family took two but they only wanted them while they are chicks, then they are giving them to us.  These actual chickens did not hatch at the school.  Those chickens would have a 50/50 chance of either being a rooster or a hen.  There was a problem with the incubator and none of the eggs in Julian's class hatched.  Four or five hatched in the other kinder class, so they did get to see them hatching.  Julian's teacher got these little chicks so her class would have chicks for the kids to observe.  The place they got the chicks guarantees 90% that they are hens. 

 We will have to wait until they are about 4 months and hope they don't start to crow.  We did find a place that will take roosters just in case.  

  

She is the chicken whisperer. They love her right back.

 I think this is one of my favorite pictures of her.  She set herself up next to the brooder while she was doing homework.  The brooder is where the chicks are most of the time at this point. They need to stay warm under the light.  We take them out for short periods of time inside the house.  They do poop often though, so we have to keep something handy to wipe up after them.  When it's warm and sunny outside we let them out for short periods of time.   It's so fun to watch them scratching around already. 

 They sure are entertaining.