Dumpling

"You need to get more chickens," my sister told me. "I miss the Chicken Chronicles!"

Somehow we still haven't managed to get any more chicks this spring, though we had intended to. We have only two hens, an Easter Egger and a Marans.

The Marans (named "Dumpling", shown here), bucking common chicken wisdom, is laying more often now that she's older. She lays an egg almost every day. The Easter Egger (Americauna) is a slacker. Her eggs are larger, but we're lucky if she graces us with two a week. And they've lost their pretty green and blue hues, fading to practically white. Maybe she's just tired.

The number of eggs from two chickens is really more than enough for just the two if us. But a whole flock is fun to watch, plus they keep the yard free of ticks (if you can keep them out of the woods long enough). Stay tuned... we may yet get a few more this spring.