tending our flock

Have I mentioned that chickens make me happy? It makes me laugh at myself... it feels kind of ridiculous how happy my chickens make me.

 Here is a little 'ode to chickens' that I made recently... I put in on the wall, although in all honesty the size and shape make it feel a little less like a mini quilt wall hanging and more like a pot holder... ah well... it's cute whatever it is- don't you think?

 We cleaned out our chicken coop... we don't do that very often. We are averaging on 3 times a year-- yucky. But, our hens don't seem to mind. Do you see how helpful Anna and Elisha were. They were doing the all important job of keeping the chickens and kids entertained ;-)

I saw a magazine article on backyard chickens that was so adorable... and so misleading! The inside of the coop was painted white. And was clean white. No poop. LIARS! there is never a time that our coop is completely poop free- those birds get it everywhere... but if you have garden you treasure that abundance ;-) (Excuse the blurry pic)

 Here is a little up close of where the magic happens... the laying box. It also serves as a miniature modern art gallery for our girls. While Andrew was building the nesting boxes the kids wanted to help... I love how they contributed ;-) Elisha was so excited to think about Baby Princess enjoying his artwork while she laid eggs... and let's be honest- I was too.

 Still so hard at work-- such helpful children ;-)

 And here is were the real work happens.

 Gotta love free coop bedding-- thank you trees!

 Have you seen the Music Man? Saying goodnight to our ladies makes me think of a scene from the Music Man. It is a hilarious song... well, I could try to tell you about it or you could just watch it for yourself. Go here and if you are in a hurry you can skip to the last 15 seconds.
If you aren't familiar with chickens, this is what they do at dusk... they make their way back to the coop and squabble over their spot up on the roost... when it is cold they snuggle up close to one another, but when it is hot they fight for space. Sometimes you can hear a loud thump when a chicken squabble leads to unsteady footing ;-)

I may feel ridiculous for having a special place in my heart for such silly birds, but when I look around- especially at things from the olden days I know that I am not the only one who has loved chickens.