My Mom loved her chickens, loved tossing them their grain, watching them scratch around in the garden for bugs and loved collecting their eggs. She had mostly Rhode Island Reds, but a few other breeds were usually mixed into the flock.
I, on the other hand, hated the chickens and they knew it. I couldn't go into the chicken house without them squawking and flying at me, pecking my hand when I would reach for the eggs. Darn things hated me and I always kept an eye peeled for that nasty rooster, Rooster Cogburn. He had huge spurs and I always thought he was just waiting for the opportune moment to use them on the back of my legs. Yes, I was the chicken, they were not. Sometimes things get a little mixed up on the farm.
Mom's birthday was January 9th and because of her love of her chickens, I am going to give away a small flock of poultry to one of you. I had planned on sending Mr. and Mrs. Clucker to the lucky winner, but when I went out to check on them this afternoon, I found the little Mrs. sitting happily on this nest. (Silly chicken, I didn't tell her that it is a Robin's nest and that she should have made the Mr. build her one of her own.) After a little bit of beating around the bush, they told me that yes, they were expecting a chick or two. I have no desire to separate a family, so whoever wins this giveaway will have to be willing to take the kids as well. I don't know yet who they will be but I'm sure they will have delightful little personalities.
If you would like to have the Clucker's come and live with you, please leave me a comment, telling me your feelings on life in the chicken coop. Hey, and if you tell other chickens about my giveaway on your blog, let me know and I'll pop your name in the egg carton twice!
Drawing will take place on Sunday, January 10th.
My sister, Stacey, is making a pillow out of some gorgeous fabric and giving it away in honor of our Mom as well. Make sure you pop over to Stacey's Treasures to enter her giveaway also!
21 comments:
Of course I would love to have those little cluckers come live with me! Are you kidding?! As for chicken coops, well, we have our own ... and I just love them. Especially Teeko. She follows me everywhere. I never grew up with chickens ... but as a teen I dreamed of moving to Maine and raising my own little hens. Now I am doing so --- and although sometimes I forget to appreciate them --- they do give me such joy.
Love for your Mom.
Thanks Paula,
Jodi
Paula,
Mothers are very special and I love the way you and your sisters pay tribute to her.
As far as chicken coops go, Grandma had an old wooden one. Each morning during summer holidays, Grandma would hand me her egg basket and off I'd go to gather the eggs.
Most of the chickens in that coop would give up their bounty easily, but...there was one old bird who thought that every hatch of eggs she laid should be set on. Guess she liked being a mother.
I was scared to death of that old hen. She would scratch and peck me each time I tried to reach into her nest. She was my great challenge, until I found her weakness.
I discovered that if I dropped a few kernels of grain on the floor, she would get off her nest to eat them. Yes, I solved the mystery of the cantankerous hen at eight years old. LOL
After that, I didn't mind gathering the eggs any more and it taught me a valuable life lesson. If you have a problem, there is always a way to solve it. It may take time to figure it out, but that is the challenge.
Hope you enjoyed my chicken coop story and thanks for the memories. I will add your giveaway to my sidebar.
Happy New Year to you and your family. How is Shiloh?
Blessings,
Mary
PS. I am reading Fall on Your Knees and am loving it. Thanks once again.
Very generous of you, my friend. My mother always told of stories growing up on the farm and how much she hated the chickens too. She said they were NASTY (all capital letters). Her mom (my grandma) had no problem chopping off their heads for dinner -- I was always in awe of her for doing that. I hope you holidays were wonderful.
That story is too funny! I'm sure not so funny at the time ;-)
How clever - I just love those little chickens!
(you know my dad has the same bday!)
You're so funny! And those chicks are so cute. The only real comment I have on a chicken coop is on the HUGE chicken coop/farms that are around my area in SC that give off quite an odor in the summertime! Though, I'm sure your little chicks have a much different coop life. -- michele
I love how you and Stacey honor your Mom by hosting giveaways-so sweet : )
Adorable chickens-I've been wanting a chicken coop with chickens all year. Maybe your little ones can help keep my dream alive until the money shows up to build the coop : )
After watching my friends' chickens, I figured out they weren't so hard to care for, so I started out with 3 (1 deceased). Later in the summer I was given 3 more for a total of 5. I'd love to have another chicken family to watch.
In memory of your Mom,
Yvette
Oh my, they are adorable Paula.
I love their colours ;-)
cute chickens! I'm glad your daughter is doing better.
Hi Paula,
I love your chicks. I think they'll live here in Germany in a great coop with another knitted chick, a mouse, a bat, a rat death and a donut. They'll be guarded by a knitted witch and a grmpf. Best conditions for a stay abroard.
Happy New Year Heike
they are fabulous!
I say this phrase all the time
(said it today at my mom's house).. nobody here but us chickens.
funny.
hugs.
Oh, how cute! I love those chickens. When I was young and we lived on a small hobby farm my parents raised chickens for a while - we had a rooster named Oscar who tormented me on a daily basis! I was terrified of him because he'd peck me on the forehead any chance he could get. :)
My grandparents all had chickens...Granny's were free range and finding the eggs was a challenge but Gramma had a coop...BIG to a five or six year old. Grandpa always wanted my sis and I to go and get the eggs with him. We were such little city girls that we were scared to death of them. Your kind wouldn't be scary. IT is nice to see you remember your Mom with your giveaway. My Dad's birthday was the 6th...miss him a lot.
Robin
oh paula these chickies are so cute
i remember when we raised chickens when we were little.
what a special way to honor your mom.
Those are the cutest little chickens. I bet their chicks will be little darlings to!
Loved your story about the chickens. I have grown up with chickens always in our backyard. I often had favorite chickens that I would run out to see each day. Then I grew up and went away to college and then married. My husband was raised in the city and had no desire to live the country life. So for 20 years I awoke to growling sounds of the busy street outside my window instead of the friendly old rooster I had grown up with. Then one day.........a miracle happpened, my husband agreed to move to the country! Now, the rooster wakes us up each morning........and my husband has stopped looking at boats and now is looking at tractors! Have a great week! blessings,Kathleen
What a nice way to honor your Mother.
I remember chickens at my grandparents house running loose in the yard. Not too good for a little girl who loves going barefoot. Our chickens were always confined to the barnyard. I loved gathering eggs. It was like Easter egg hunts every day.
Mama Bear
Cute chickens! I grew up in a suburban area of western NY. It was not at all rural, but we hatched and raised chicks and ducks. The ducks followed my brother up and down the boulevard on our street. We were known not by our family name, but as "the kids with the ducks". On Christmas I always think of our chickens, recalling a particularly sad one when we watched our favorite get chased and killed by a neighbor's dog who was running off lease. We, four young kids, marched to their house holding the dead chicken on Christmas morning.
Ach! What cute chickens! I left a trail of chicken feed from your house to mine... but those dang raccoons followed and ate my trail!
Hmmmm...Life in the coop, huh?
Well, between the scratching, pecking, roosting and nesting, it's pretty laid back in the coop. That is until one of the chicks tries to rule the roost. Then the rooster has to put her in her place. tee hee
Those little chickens are adorable!!
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