The awkward stage

It's true - my babies are growing up so fast! Only 2 weeks ago, our new chicks were cute little fluff balls...


And now, they are awkward teens...






They are named (in no particular order...) American Honey (or Moscato or Christy Swanson), Lemonade Cookie, and Ginger.

What a weekend!

So many fun and exciting things happened this weekend! First of all, I came home from work on Friday to our FIRST EGG!


We're not sure who laid it, but she's laid a total of 3 so far! I'm so excited about it - five months of chicken farming has paid off. And the eggs are delicious!

Foghorn
After making that discovery, Jenny, Paula and I hopped into the rhino and drove up to Squaw Valley to celebrate my friend Kim's dirty 30th birthday. We got up there around 9pm and bar hopped in Squaw Village, returning to our condo around 1am and proceeded to eat mass quantities of chips, salsa, guacamole, and M&Ms. There were a few dares going on, none of which can be revealed on this blog due to their embarrassing nature. You get the picture.

Saturday morning we (umm...I) nursed our hangovers and went tubing. I think the whole ski resort could hear me screaming as I made it down the hill. Those tubes are scary! (and are made for 5-year-old butts):

Jenny and Paula being pulled up the tubing hill
We ended the day with naps and dinner at the Blue Coyote Cafe. Luckily there were no more dares, only a rousing game of Celebrity (courtesy of Jenny). After a yummy breakfast Sunday morning, we bid adieu to Kim and the land of snow. We treated ourselves to In 'n Out in Davis, and made it home in time to do laundry and go grocery shopping. And play with the puppy! It was a much-needed, exciting weekend!

The girls are grown up!

Well, they aren't quite grown up, but they are 4 months old today! They continue to amuse me with their antics (mostly Foghorn - she's a riot!) Anyway we're getting ready to build them their "big girl" coop outside hopefully this weekend. My cousin Alison got me this cute sign to put on the new coop. Can't wait to show you pictures of it when it's done!

Who loves Dottie Angel?

I melt when I see anything that Dottie Angel puts together. I wish I could make stuff like her, and I wish our house looked like hers. It's kind of an obsession. A few days ago I was sifting through some of her images and came upon this:


One day, this will be my backyard. Chickens running around, kitties lounging, forest and grass for all to frolic in, and pennants and flowers decorating the porch. A girl can dream, right?

Chicken update - 9 weeks!

It's amazing how big my little chickies have gotten in just 2 months. They love their new home in the garage, and are adjusting quite nicely to being the center of attention. Foghorn remains to be the friendliest and most curious, though Leghorn and Rakifi are starting to come around. The biggest news is that their food has changed - they now are getting "pullet" feed, which helps them get ready to lay eggs.

Foghorn 2 weeks and 9 weeks
Brooder then and now

6 weeks old!

Yay, the chicks are 6 weeks old, and they have a new home!


Paul spent Sunday building the girls a new pen. They have so much room to play and run around and they are peeping like crazy. I'm sad to leave them for a week - I'll be in Orlando for NWP's Annual Meeting. I'm ready to see all of my extended NWP family, but am sad to leave my girls and Paul!

38 days (5 weeks old)

Here's a really short video of the chicks - they are getting so big! Foghorn, Leghorn, and Rafiki are all doing very well. We've found out that Rafiki is indeed a rooster, so he'll be going to a new home soon. I'm kinda sad about it, but that just means that I can get a few more in the spring :) Foghorn is still the nicest of them all - she hops out of the brooder when I lift off the cover, and gets onto my index finger where she carefully watches the other two from above. This weekend we're building the garage pen for the winter (they've been in our guest room since their arrival). It's hard to imagine that we've had them for almost a month now!

22 days old (3 weeks)

The chickies are officially 3 weeks and are doing great! So far, Foghorn, Leghorn, and Rafiki's personalities have started blossoming even more. Foghorn is the friendliest of the bunch, and doesn't mind when I pick her up. She's always the first to come when I have treats. Leghorn is the bravest - she was the first to hop on the water feeder, then I found her perched on the top of the brooder! (I finally had to put a screen over them so there were no escapes). Rafiki definitely has "short hen" syndrome. She's the smallest and therefore pretends she's the biggest. She's always pushing the others out of the way, and has started gently pecking Foghorn and Leghorn when they are on the roost (she's having a hard time getting up there). Anyway, their antics continue to amuse all of us!

Here they are!

my new 10 day old baby chicks
Here they are, our new girls: 3 Barred Plymouth Rock hens from the feedstore. They are (in no particular order), Rafiki, Foghorn, and still-to-be-named. I'm seriously in chicken heaven. I'm so excited to have these little cuties here (and it helps that Paul likes them as well, along with the neighborhood kids). I had originally ordered some Rhode Island Reds and an Orpington, but the feed store in Vallejo was unsure if they would even be making the order. So, we went to Napa instead, and the Barred Rock were the best egg layers/friendliest there. (incidentally, they are making the order, and I think we'll be getting 1 orpington next week!)

So, what's up with the 2 strange names? And why is one still unnamed? Well, Rafiki refers to the monkey in the Lion King that has no hair on it's butt (this is due to the fact that she had an unfortunate poop accident, and the only remedy was to remove some of her feathers leaving her a bare ass). This is called "pasty butt" for all you non-chicken people. Anyway I think Rafiki is already pissed at me for this and peeps loudly when I pick her up.

Foghorn (short for Foghorn Leghorn) refers to the chicken (rooster, actually) in the old Warner Bros. cartoons. You know, the big white rooster? Anyway, Foghorn has a big white spot on her head, and is a sweetheart. She doesn't mind being picked up and eats out of your hand.

The final, no-name girl is also a sweetheart. I think she may be the tamest of all, and she lets me pick her up and doesn't freak out. I need to think of a good name to call her - I feel bad that she doesn't have one yet.

I really have had chicken on the brain for the last few days, and now that they are here it's worse! Last night I spent an hour just watching them peck around in the little brooder I made them. They drink, they peck, they eat, and they clean their feathers. So far the cats know that something is up in the spare room, but they haven't been too curious. Let's hope it stays that way!