Farm Fresh Eggs ❤

Hey Friends! 

I have some pretty exciting news I've been bursting to share! Our very own hens are now laying fresh organic eggs daily! We are soo happy to see all our efforts of raising the chickies pay off. 

 The day I found the first egg was memorable indeed. I had walked down to let the chickens out and chat with the goats for a bit when...I happened to notice a small nest in a bale of the goats feed hay. It caught my attention because there in that tiny indent was a little egg nestled in the hay. I ran screaming (literally😜) back to the house to show Ethan and Nolan!! The rest of the family wasn't home so I had to send out a quick text to let them in on the good news.😉 I figured that whichever chicken it was must have layed it the day before and we just hadn't noticed it. Anyway, the first egg (small though it was) will never be forgotten!!! 

 We've been blessed with many more eggs since that first one and they've only gotten bigger and better. I've been keeping track of how many we get each day on a recording sheet so I could kind of know how many chickens were laying and such. We reach a new record usually every 2 or 3 days. I think all of our chickens are now laying. We have 13 laying hens and we got a dozen eggs yesterday. Not all the chickens have been laying every day (their laying is sporadic at first), so I think that since we got 12 yesterday its likely the 13th chicken is laying but maybe just didn't that day.We'll see. Also our blue/green egg layers (Americaunas) will probably average 5 eggs per week rather than lay every day. They are known to be a little less consistent egg layers, but the colored eggs are sooo fun! 

Now that we are getting a substantial amount of eggs we are hoping to sell the extras and make a little money to help in purchasing feed. Giving the chickies organic feed definitely is pricey, but worth the healthier eggs. Anyway, it'll be nice to have the little extra money to help with that. They eat a ton!!!

As I mentioned before, one of the coolest parts of having our own eggs now is the feeling of accomplishment that comes with it. I can remember back to the day we brought home the first 12 chickie peeps (our nickname for them), They were so fluffy and small, so helpless and vulnerable.  Those first few weeks of keeping the woodstove roaring so they wouldn't get cold and everyone feeling sooo overheated have not been forgotten.😬 All the nights of getting up at 2 A.M. just to see if they were alright and checking the fire, and all the bin cleanings are well remembered. 

 Although it was a lot of work and worry it was so fun and rewarding. I think of the first time we let them outside in there day pen to let them have their first experience in the big world outside the green tub. It was so funny to see one chick get her first taste of a worm and then everyone rushing over to try and take what she had!! All those little first moments are so fun to think back on and remember just how far these ladies have come. It was quite an adventure to raise them from chicks to layers, but now we get to remember all the fun times and feel the accomplishment of all our efforts payed off. 

 Throughout this journey I have come to have a much bigger appreciation for all the simple things in life such as fluffy little chicks peeping or the first balk, a first egg or a chicken  pecking in the green grass, the goats meeting the chickens or Liberty (one of our Americaunas) swinging on the chicken swing. All of these are small things and seem to carry a simplicity not readily found in our current world. The world seems to run on busy and chaos, but here in the quiet country a chicken pecks for bugs in the yard. Laura Ingalls Wilder sums it up well, "The real things haven't changed. It's still best to be honest and truthful; to make the most of what we have; to be happy with simple pleasures; and to have courage when things go wrong." Here on my little farm I am learning to understand the truth and beauty of this idea and catch a glimpse of what our God originally intended for us - the simple things. 

Blessings,

Sarah 💛