Spring Chickens

Around this house we go through some eggs. Like a lot. When I make scrambled, I crack at least 18, and they all get devoured. If I'm making egg salad I have to do more than that. Even Melia loves them. )In the past I've delayed eggs until after the first birthday, but I've read up on them and decided to introduce them to her.)

There a couple of good things about eggs for us. 1.) Eggs are healthy. So much protein! 2.) Eggs are free (for us). My dad has several Rhode Island Reds and they put out some eggs! I can usually get 2 dozen each week (sometimes more) and it doesn't hurt my parents a bit. I've offered to pay several times, but they always tell me to take what I need. Thanks! I will! 3.) The boys love helping my dad with chicken duty at his house. They are learning that animals need to be cared for and are seeing some responsibility.

Ezra loves his "Little Fella."

With all that in mind, we have been discussing getting chickens for some time. I'm not much on caring for animals (I have 5 humans to look out for plus myself!) because I don't really have as much time to devote to them as I feel I need, so I usually convince Ronnie to wait until "later." "Later" happened last Friday. Ronnie woke up with the very precise intention of going to Tractor Supply to buy biddies. Ummmm....okay. He explained that he had checked prices online at different hatcheries and local folks on craigslist, and that he was going to Tractor Supply to see how much they were. I drove us to the store, and since the three younger kids had fallen asleep, I agreed to go in to check prices. I reported back, and Ronnie started getting out of the car, telling me that the price was good. I convinced him to let us go grab some pizza before we became chicken owners.

Elijah has been really good with the chicks

When we all went into the store, the boys made a beeline for the chirping chicks. They were so excited! We told the employee we wanted 5 pullets and a strait run, hoping for a rooster. She scooped them into the little box, and gave us extra from the strait run tub. We picked up the waterer and feeder, a bag of feed and headed home with our new family members.

Ethan is the main man in charge, but he enlists his brothers' help.

We have them in our living room in a plastic tote, under a lamp. The boys have to change the straw bedding, wash the tote out and give fresh feed and water every afternoon when Ethan gets home. We lost one on Sunday morning, but she hadn't acted right all along. We're excited that in several months we'll be getting our own eggs, that the boys are learning responsibility and that they get the joy of having their own chickens at their house.

Melia wasn't so sure at first....

but she's warmed up (even more so now). Poor baby had a fever that night.