Bedtime Woes

The last few weeks, our chickens have been enjoying being all big and grown up in their outside coop. We have enjoyed having the guest room back, and the "girls" have enjoyed their new digs. It's taken them a few weeks to figure out how to get up the ramp into the enclosed portion of the coop at night. Stupid, darling birds! The first night, we went out to check on them before going to bed, and they were all huddled up in a pile freezing to death. I ended up crawling through the chicken poo to fish them up one by one and put them in the safety of the coop for the night. I had about 2 feet of clearance between the ground and the ceiling of the run, so it was a tight squeeze.

The last few nights, the "big girls" (our Easter Eggers) figured it out, and walked up the ramp all by themselves. As soon as they would go upstairs, the other two chickens (the smaller and stupider Frizzles) would run around in the chicken run squawking and crying for the Easter Eggers. They just couldn't figure out where the others had gone, and how to get where they were. Every night we have gone out, picked them up and (gently) shoved them up the ramp so they could get the idea of how the whole night-time process works. As soon as they get up there with the other two, they cuddle up. It's super funny to watch. The Frizzles will actually crawl under the Easter Eggers, like they are the mamas and the Frizzles are the babies, even though they are just a few days apart in age.

And tonight...success! We went out to see how they were doing, and ALL 4 chickens made it upstairs all by their very own selves. Proud moment for us. Maybe we need to get a life. Seriously though, I was starting to get kind of worried about how they will cope when we go to Disneyland. I'm okay with asking the neighbors to feed them, but helping them find their way upstairs every night is pushing the envelope on what I feel comfortable asking others to do.

Girls day out

We took the girls out for a stretch in the sun a week or two ago. They had a lot of fun pecking around, eating grass, scratching and just being chickens. I can't believe how big they have gotten! They have grown really fast, and are going through their food in exponentially growing amounts. They have developed a taste for ham and parsley. Pippin, the smallest chicken, is still...a big chicken, for lack of a better word. When I took her outside, she thought she was going to die! After much wing-flapping and protestations on her part, I managed to get her safely outside. She had a good time once she made it, but doesn't really like being picked up much. The other three are quite friendly. Daisy, the big white chick, get jealous any time the other chicks get attention. If Ryan or I am holding one of the other chicks, she will jump out of the box, and stand on the other arm--or stand on the chick being held.


Audrey, at 2 weeks.

The girls, about 4 weeks.


Merry and Pippin (note the hairy feet--hence the names).

Daisy (the big one) and Pippin (the runt). This picture was taken today, and they are about 6 weeks old.

We have discovered that Merry and Pippin are not the Rhode Island Reds we thought we were buying. Once their feathers started coming in, they started curling. This seemed kind of odd, so Ryan posted a picture of them on the backyard chicken forum. A few different people identified them as Cochin Bantam Frizzles. When he told me they were "Frizzles", I thought he was making it up. He was telling the truth--it's a real word, and refers to the fact that their feathers look like they got caught in a wind storm. Some days, I feel like a Frizzle myself.

Watch it, ya jerk!

That's what I thought to myself as the light turned green, and I carefully entered an intersection this morning. My caution was worth it--a car ran the red light, and I very easily could have been hit.

I'm not much of a honker, so it took me a minute to figure out where to push to beep my horn in disgust. I figured that a honk, even if it's delayed by a few seconds, would get the point across. Beep, beep! Grrrr. I proceeded on my way to IHOP, where a handful of my students along with a herd of students from another district high school were meeting for a silent breakfast. (How the heck DOES that teacher get so many kids to come out for activities like this?)

As I was driving along, I noticed that I was right behind the car that cut me off a few minutes ago. Stupid jerk! Hey, will you look at that--he's pulling into IHOP...I wonder if he thinks I'm following him...

I was curious now. I pulled in and waited for a minute until the driver got out and walked in. Turns out, he was one of my students--a kid I know and love. I still think he was driving like an idiot this morning, but I'm glad all I did was honk. I don't know if he realized I was the car he almost hit or not. I think I'll keep that little piece of information to myself.