For today’s chick enrichment outing, we visited a mound of dirt.
The wiggling bodies, flapping feathers, and snacking on little bits of sand were more than my newly minted chick-mom heart could hope for. Alongside them, on a coral-pink blanket, I lay with my head propped up on my elbows, soaking in their antics.
“Are you wanting lunch?” Dave asked.
The screen door swung open, and I turned.
Hearing my hesitation, he added, “I can bring it to you.”
More time with the chicks?
“Yes! Can I have it with a thick tomato and a Pepsi with ice?”
My mind couldn’t help not envision the latest harvest from the garden.
He also brought three slices of orange bell pepper and a slice of watermelon. After I spit the black seeds into the grass, the curious chicks pecked at them, then flung them over their shoulders like tiny, confused soldiers.
Later, I brought two cups of the leftover thawed raspberries, the ones I didn’t make jam, to the older laying hens. Since these birds are new here, I’m trying to win them over. Daily. Bit by bit.
I don’t move quickly around them, and if I’m carrying half an ear of corn or a watermelon rind, I hold it out so they know who their supplier is. Trust and safety—even with hand-me-down chickens—are important to me.
Three more posts went into the ground today. The perimeter of the chickens’ fenced area is finished. Now there’s just one final post to set, thirty-six inches over from the front corner. That’s where the gate will go.
The gate we’re going to build ourselves!
I love projects like this. The turnaround from dreaming, to scheming, to teaming up and taking action was less than a day.
If I push just a little, Dave bites like the biggest fish in the pond.
I love him for that.
I only have to feel a little crazy for a little while before he gets up to speed and comes running alongside me.
We make a pretty good team.
Well, time to read the book “Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe”. I chose it for book club, so away we go!
Love, Jaclynn