Oh my goodness, friends. I can’t even convey how thrilled I am to announce the beginning members of our flock. This is (from left to right) Flora, Fauna and Fern!

They are our sweet little chicken babies and, while this may seem sudden and a little random to you, anyone who knows me well can tell you this is a fulfillment of a long-time dream of mine. We’re talking years long.

Why now you ask? Why NOT now is the short answer! 🙂 There are several things that have led to me getting chicks now. Practically speaking, my township now allows a small, backyard flock (they didn’t always). I’m so thankful for this change in the township ordinances because it has allowed me to get a piece of my childhood back.

I grew up on, what we lovingly called, a farmette (think: hobby farm). We had a wide variety of animals that we kept over the years and, of course, chickens were one of them. I didn’t necessarily have a strong bond with the chickens we kept, I was more of a cat lover then. But as I’ve grown there is just something so quintessential about a flock of chickens scratching in the grass, picking up bugs and munching on clover and weeds. I have such fond memories of going out in the morning to do the, “barn work,” with my Dad. I loved feeding the animals and visiting each of them with him. I want to give a piece of my childhood to my children, because where & how I grew up is a huge part of me. And, goodness, if I can give my boys the joy of raising animals AND the education of where their food comes from, then I just feel like I’ve hit the jackpot. Moreover, when you care for a living thing–when it relies on you for its needs, that experience takes you outside of yourself. It shows you how to care for and have concern for something other than you. Who’s to say where that lesson may take one in life?

Needless to say, in these recent years I’ve just been longing to get back to the basics a little with a flock of hens. And these little ladies are the start of the carrying out of a dream… to say I’m on Cloud 9 would be an understatement… over the moon would be closer to how I feel! 😊 And, yes, those chicks are wearing cupcake liners for skirts. I was feeling embarrassed at the absurdity of it all; I almost didn’t share those photos, but both my sister & my sister-in-law convinced me that the world needs to see this! 😅 Especially after the year we’ve all had. I hope they put a smile on your face. Here’s some more pictures!

You’re still here, so that tells me you want to know a little more! These chicks are so entertaining to watch…

• They go CRAZY for treats (all chickens do).

• The more we handle them while they’re young, the friendlier they’ll be as adults. I chose breeds that are docile and family friendly.

• These photos where taken when they were two days old and some when they were four days old. They are now 15 days old and growing like weeds! They look a little ridiculous during this stage as their feathers grow in and replace that adorable fluff.

• Fun trivia facts: (1) Chickens are the closest living thing we have to the T-rex. They really do look like little raptors prowling around! (2) A chicken has more bones in its neck than a giraffe!

Don’t worry– these little ladies will be making more appearances here as well as on my Instagram feed! I’ll for sure take you on a coop tour when the refurb is finished and probably give you more chicken education along the way. Let me know in the comments if that’s something you’re interested in! Thanks so much for following along, I’m so delighted to share this with you.