Cluck, cluck, chickens?
Meet Eggy and Henny, and we’ll see about Mo:
Eggy, the Barred Rock hen
Henny, the Rhode Island Red hen
I don’t know what happened to Nate over the course of last week, but he woke up one morning squawking about chickens — and how we needed to get some! I suspect it has to do with all the doom and gloom of the financial markets, paired with the natural instinct to hunker down for the winter. All that, and Nate loves to implement his “zombie plan,” getting us closer to self-sufficient if zombie’s attack and the world goes to hell.
Nate, always a man of action, spent the week researching coops, setup and care for urban hens. Then we went on a visiting tour. Fellow Ballard-ites Aaron and Tina have had two hens for well over a year. They keep them in their backyard, and often let them out of the coop to cluck around the yard and play with Pico the dog.
Aaron and Tina got their hens as “pullets,” chickens that are older than chicks but less than a year old, and the Rhode Island Red and Wyandotte have treated them well. They lay more eggs when they get more daylight (I bet the hens, like most Seattleites, are Vitamin D deficient). And the eggs are better when the hens have more protein.
We also solicited thoughts from my aunt and uncle. I remember thinking it was so funny when Auntie Lorre and Uncle David told us about their hen house, but the idea of fresh eggs sounded awfully nice. Auntie Lorre got her hens as baby chicks. They thought she was their mama and followed her around the yard. Too bad their neighborhood has by-laws against chickens. Some neighbor snitched them out and made them get rid of the hens.
But we’ll benefit from it all, since they still have the water and feeding troughs! As for the hens, we’re buying two–maybe three–off Craigslist and going to pick them up on Saturday. I’m excited!
Seattle Tilth offers a City Chickens class that’s becoming quite popular. There’s no classes offered now, but they do have some pretty good resources online.
And our friend Jen wrote a story about raising chickens in the city for NW Source. She even featured Aaron and Tina’s hens!
I’ll post more this weekend, once we actually get our chickens.
Can one ever get tired of sailing pictures?
I dunno, but you shouldn’t! Especially if you’re friends with us. Here’s some pics from last weekend taken with Eryn and Brian’s fancy camera. They make us look way better than any camera of mine, and they make the day look more vibrant than it was. Yay!
We’re going sailing again this weekend, this time with Steph and Jay. I can’t wait to hang with the rib master and his mate 
Best Weekends EVER
This last weekend was one of the best weekends EVER. I was on a sailboat for both Saturday and Sunday, and I got to see so many of the people I love and adore at our nine-hour marathon house party on Saturday night. I HAD SO MUCH FUN.
It’s officially the birthday that just won’t end. And I’m OK with that.
Not that you’re really interested in the chronology of my thirtieth year, but here’s a brief overview:
After a quiet evening on the sailboat, gracefully passing into my 30th year for my actual birthday (RIP my 20’s), we spent a weekend with our dear friends, Ken and Amanda, on the sailboat in Poulsbo.
Sunset over Poulsbo
A day on the water
It's THEIR boat.
At the bar
After a few...
After a few more...
We ate, drank and were very merry. Rex and Sharon drove up and joined us on Saturday afternoon. Having just returned from Mexico, they opted to take the ferry and leave the Harley’s at home. We had a great afternoon in the sun with them, and then… more mayhem.
Here’s what you get from some drunken sailors:
EAHHHHHHH!!!!
Sunshine and sailing ... does life get any better? Ahhh, Thirty is good!
Best Weekends EVER
Somehow I wrote a blogpost, not as a post but as a new page on the blog. Ugh. I’m SO neophyte at times.
Click here to read about my best weekends EVER.
Nathan’s Correction: I just had the same issue and fixed it so that it is showing up on our blog Sorry everyone. The link has been changed as well.