A day with the chickens.

Any day I get to don the ole' coveralls and head outside, is a pretty nice day. I am not sure if it's because of the quiet, or the fact that you can literally plop yourself down on the ground and not worry about getting your clothes dirty. Probably a mixture of both. The chicken coop was needing some serious attention, and when I saw the forecast was calling for more snow in a couple of days, I knew today was the day to tackle it. I gave the girls the option of playing amongst themselves, or coming out to help scoop poop. Can you believe they chose to stay inside?! I was secretly glad. Remember that quiet thing I just mentioned?

 I love getting out in the fresh air, although the air inside the coop, was not exactly what I would call fresh smelling. I apologized for the messy conditions, and the occupants were quite forgiving. They were just so excited to get out and get some fresh air, that they totally overlooked how bad their nesting boxes had become. Apparently they had heard it through the grapevine, that raw foods are packed full of antioxidants, and beneficial vitamins and minerals. They were stoked that they got to get in on this new food craze. Their pelleted feed just can't compare to the goodies that they found.

Aren't they just darling? I can already tell this rooster is going to take his job of protecting his girls seriously. At least he hasn't showed aggression toward me yet. Chickens can be scary I tell ya! Especially when they are running at you full force and puffing out all those pretty feathers, and just when you think they are just giving you some kind of welcome greeting, they attach themselves to the back of your leg, and scratch and peck with all their might.

But not these darlings. They just chirp their sweet little song....

And look at you with those adoring little eyes of theirs.

These guys almost seemed offended that I wasn't taking pictures of them. They were sqwaking up a storm, and I think I could hear one of them say to the other "she used to think we were pretty!"

Not to leave them out...here are a few of the big guys.

Mr. Pecky was not amused....

After our little photo session, I plopped myself down in my frozen orchard....

And dreamed of warmer days to come. Days that are filled with sunshine and little girls laughter, as they explore the great outdoors. But today, I'll just enjoy the quiet.....even if it is cold!