The Amazing Millie

So this is the gigantic egg laid by one of our hens, Millie. The top picture shows it in comparison to one of her normal (but still large) eggs. Jeremy was hoping it would turn out to be a rare double egg (not just a double-yolker but an actual egg inside another egg--it actually happens) and that we would make it to the front page of the local paper. (That is why I am posing like a crazy person in the second picture.) Well, we boiled it and cracked it open and no such luck--it's just a big egg. Jeremy ate it with gusto anyhow. Just had to share, especially seeing as how it was probably rather painful for Millie, and she deserves recognition for her accomplishment.

New chicks on the block

We got chicks yesterday, ten black sex links. We have not yet retired the old girls, since it will be quite some time before these are laying--but the breed is supposed to be excellent layers. Mimi thought they were ducks at first, but now she is saying "Chick! Chick!" We will try to get some cute pictures with her to post.

Great Depression Cooking with Clara

Evidence that there is still good stuff on YouTube. I came across this series of nine videos and really, really, wish that someone had thought to do this with my great-grandmother before she passed in 2000 at the age of 98 (although no one was ever able to duplicate her chicken 'n dumplings even when shown multiple times). Clara reminds us that simple, cheap food can be wholesome and good. It got me thinking again of how the Internet has become a repository for cultural lore that used to be passed down in families and circulated among (physical) communities. In Episode 4, she mentions that back then, everyone had backyard gardens and chickens, but she doesn't think it's allowed anymore. She also tells of when she caught an uninvited neighbor picking produce from her garden. I'm thinking that very soon, her memories are going to become much more than just quaint little stories.

We have eggs!

We unexpectedly discovered that the four scavenged chickens my dad brought us had started laying. We had intended to order chicks last spring, but MiMi got us sidetracked a bit from that endeavor. The eggs are a decent size and a lovely pinkish color once washed--not bad for random feral chickens. Store eggs pale in comparison to home-grown. I am looking forward to many omelets, quiches, and fried egg sandwiches--who knows, maybe I will even attempt a soufflé!

New batch of chickens

Four hens--hopefully they will start laying in the spring . . .

MiMi likes the chickens . . .