Happy Valentine’s Day

Day 281 of 365

Happy Valentine’s Day! I took this picture yesterday afternoon during “driveway time,” and we all did our best to make heart for this special day. I did my best to make a heart made of organic scratch for the chickens. The chickens did their best to eat it, though they didn’t line up very well. Still, it’s the thought that counts. Plus, I want to point out a chicken in this photo. The really big chicken right in front that is kind of a golden-brown color is Mary Jane! Isn’t she so big? Gosh, I love her.

I have a short but fantastic “driveway time” story to tell too. This afternoon, I let the chickens into the driveway for their afternoon romp and then went into the coop to collect the eggs. While I was in the coop, a FedEx driver pulled into the driveway. He couldn’t see me in the coop, but I could see him and the chickens.

The chickens, shy around strangers, started to head toward the coop, but they didn’t run. I could see they were a little curious about the young man. And then he started talking to them, and this endeared him to me so much.

“Hello, chicken overlords!” I heard him say.

He said a few other things along the lines “How are you today, chickens?”

I could see he was carrying a box of special chicken food I had ordered in order to do a little scientific experiment (at least fairly scientific), as I am wanting to try different organic grains to see how the chickens do with each one. The box had chickens and chicken feet art on the outside, so the FedEx driver knew what was inside.

“If I leave this on the porch, are you guys just going to bust into it and eat it?”

At this point, I worried he might be afraid to leave the box, so I yelled from the coop, “Hello and thank you!”

This startled him, and he turned around suddenly with a surprised look on his face. When he saw me waving at him, he said, “Oh my goodness! I thought the chickens were talking back to me, and I thought I was going to have to call it a day for sure!”

How adorable is that?