Lewis Family: Chickens

So these pictures are not in order but we sure have enjoyed our chickens. Some days I wonder why we waited so long to get them, but then I think we probably got them at the right time. The kids are big enough to help care for them and they are so much fun to watch pecking around the yard. We have learned some life lessons and heart ache as we lost one to sickness, two to animals, and one because roosters don't really belong in neighborhoods.

Here's T with one of our two golden wyandottes- originally named Eve or Mrs. Noah (from our grand plan to name the hens after the first 10 women in the Bible). now named Goldy

Can you tell which one is Flopsy? Originally our brown leg horns were Rachel and Leah but Flopsy really fit! We did have a system to our naming- The Goldens were Eve and Mrs. Noah (original mothers of humans), the silvers were Sarah and Hagar, Brown Leg Horns were Rachel and Leah, Plymouth Barred Rocks were Shiprah and Puah, Pillar and someone were Rhode Island Reds and Liberty our Ameraucana. All the chickens got new easier to remember names.
Flopsy laid 10 eggs in the last 13 days- almost one a day since she started last Monday.

Flopsy's first egg

My wonderful farmer husband! working hard on the coop (AKA chicken palace)

Flopsy laid her first four eggs by the window and these (7 and 8) under the deck. We've started keeping the chickens in the run until Flopsy lays her egg in the coop. Maybe tomorrow she'll find the nesting boxes. Today we kept them even longer since there were lots of hawks circling overhead.

The kids were so excited to have homegrown eggs. I was too! Flopsy's eggs are smaller than store-bought but so bright and good! We've been weighing her eggs. The first few were 1.4 ounes and now they've grown to 1.7 ounces which is what she will probably lay.

All of us enjoyed chicken watching!

Everyone was involved in the building project!

Look at these little sweeties! We kept them inside for about a month. they sang so sweetly- although it did get loud! Here are our wyandottes and leg horns when they were days old.

It was so neat to watch how fast they change. Every day it seemed like they got new feathers. They were a lot like newborns too- eat, sleep, potty, cuddle. So sweet!

Many hands make light work :)

Doesn't take long to paint with five painters!

We had lots of days of chicken playtime- cuddling these little chicks!

Our rhode island reds at 2 days old.

Fun to have animals to show our friends!

Chicken cuddling with our plymouth barred rocks and rhode island reds.

We used this moveable run a lot at the beginning but only until we found that they wouldn't run or fly away. Now they're only in the coop/ run at night or if we have an intense soccer game :)

Roo is a very handsome rooster. We kept him until he started crowing (very loudly) and getting more aggressive and we were so thankful for good friends who took them to their country home- lots more land! I still miss him some but now I'm not worried about him bothering kids playing in backyard or our neighbors. He wasn't mean but he really wanted his treats and got pretty demanding. He definitely kept his little flock together. It was also very neat to see the two little flocks merge together. We had 6 pullets (2 brown leg horn, 2 golden wyandottes, and 2 silver wyandottes) and then two weeks laster got 5 more 2 rhode island red and 2 Plymouth Barred Rocks. Until Roo brought the two flocks together, they mostly stayed separate. Each group would peck and scratch together, eat together, and cuddle and nap together. (I never knew chickens cuddle!) The chickens don't nap as often now but sometimes still do. They are very good at going to bed on their own- I wish our kids were that good at going to bed!