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Best from the Nest, Christiana, TN (2026)

07/16/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick: IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT

Hello, everyone. Please be advised that this is the last post from this particular page. It is being replaced by "Best From The Nest II - Edward's Eggs". I apologize if I missed anyone on the invites. Please search for this page and like it to ensure you don't miss any of the exciting Adventures of Chickie Chick.

Incidentally,speaking of Chickie Chick, she is a little busy with her new project and won't be able to post for a week or two. As you can tell, this is Mom posting this week.

We had a guest speaker for class the other day. I invited Alice from the other coop to talk to the "kids" about the pecking order that exists in chicken coops. Alice is older and is very patient with other chickens. Although Chickie Chick and her two buddies may not have tested Alice's patience, they definitely tested mine.

Alice was doing her best to talk to the class. However, Chickie Chick, 'lil Dove, and Joy kept whispering to each other the whole time. I asked them twice to be quiet, but they apparently were too busy talking to pay attention. I took them out of class so they would no longer be a disruption.

Since they like to talk so much, I felt that "talent" needed to be put to a more productive use. They are now involved in a research project of learning exactly how chickens are able to lay eggs. Once they have the information ready (complete with printed posters), they must then present it to the entire class.

I'm sure Chickie Chick will fill you in on more details once she has time to post. It may be a week or two before that can happen.

In the meantime, I hope everyone is staying cool.

Until next time,
Mom

07/07/2020

Hello, everyone. I missed you all last week. But we sure did have fun on our stay-cation.

We tried to sleep in, but the roosters wouldn't let us. Something about the day breaking that makes them start crowing. (Sigh). But it was nice to have a break from homework assignments.

We didn't go anywhere, but Mom and Dad did. They were gone for a few days to some place called Illinois. Apparently Mom's dad was celebrating a birthday. While they were gone, a nice neighbor lady named Miss Karen took care of us. She was a lot of fun to be around. Shhh -- don't tell Mom, but she gave us extra treats! If Mom ever has to go somewhere again for a few days, I hope Miss Karen will be the one to take care of us.

Before Mom left, however, she read us a story. We all really enjoyed that. It was called "Charlotte's Web". The characters in the book are farm animals, like us. I won't tell too much of the story in case you haven't read it yet. My two favorite characters were Wilbur (the pig) and his friend, Charlotte (a spider).

I didn't particularly like Templeton, who is a rat. He only helped out if he was given food, and he liked to eat chicken eggs. If we ever get a Templeton in our barn, I will peck him if he tries to steal our eggs. I know you should be nice, but a girl has to do what a girl has to do!!

Anyway, our break is over and we have to start back to school. Have a great week.

Until next time.
Chickie Chick

06/22/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick:

Hello, everyone. I can't believe how fast time seems to fly by. Next week I will be a full 4 months old!

We finally got big enough to officially meet Bunny. Mom didn't let her come in our outdoor coop area until now as she was worried Bunny would accidentally hurt us if she stepped on us. She is much much bigger than us.

We found out that Bunny is a Great Pyrenees. Our class assignment was to learn about them. They are very gentle dogs, but also very protective of their territory and family members. We are now part of her "pack"; the term used for dog families.

According to dogbreedinfo.com, they have also worked as avalanche rescue dogs and other type of jobs. One of their features is a weather-resistant double coat. Must be why she loves cold weather so much.

Anyway, she is a lot of fun to be around. Oh, I almost forgot to mention that I won't be able to post an update next week. Don't worry, I'm not in trouble. We are going on vacation!! Well, actually we aren't going anywhere. Mom said it's a "stay-cation." We are all staying home, but we get to sleep in late if we want, and we get a break from our school work. We even get to play games, like hide and seek, and follow the leader.

And the best part is Mom said she would even read us a story. Can't wait!! I hope all if you get to take a vacation too.

Until next time,
Chickie Chick

06/16/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick:

Hello, everyone. I hope your week was great.

We had a surprise this past week. In fact, it caught everyone off guard, including Mom. Josephine started crowing!! Mom said that the hatchery was suppose to send all females, but sometimes they make mistakes. Josephine said he never did like his name, so we are to call him Joe.

To be honest, it really wasn't a very good crow. Mom said he can't even "carry a tune in a bucket" right now, but will get better with practice. Bass is happy with this development. He said that watching out for all of us is a lot of work, and he is happy to have some help.

That's Joe in the picture. You can see that his comb on top of his head is bigger than the girl's, and his tail feathers are getting long.

Speaking of combs, we learned in class this week that they are another way we stay cool in hot weather. I included a picture from our school book that shows the comb, wattle, and ear lobe. Our comb and wattles are thick with capillaries and veins for the overheated blood to pass through. It gets air-cooled as it passes through these blood vessels.

I thought that was pretty neat. I am enjoying biology class. I like learning how things work.
I hope you kids like science/biology classes. They can be fun!

Until next time,
Chickie Chick

06/09/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick:

Hello, everyone. I hope your week has been great. This week has been very hot here in Middle Tennessee. Icky hot is a better description.

Did you know that chickens cannot sweat to cool off, like you humans can? We have to pant (breathe rapidly). We also hold our wings out away from our bodies to allow air to flow through.

Mom set up a box fan that blows air through our in-door coop. It feels so good on hot days. Sometimes not everyone wants to take turns. Joy, especially, will get right in front and then not move for hours. It's not nice to be selfish.

Mom also puts small chunks of ice in our water. But the best is when she gives us cantaloupe or watermelon that has been chilled in the refrigerator. It's an absolute feeding frenzy then.

I hope you are staying cool. If not, try the chilled cantaloupe or watermelon. You won't be disappointed.

Until next time,
Chickie Chick

06/03/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick:

Mom: What's wrong, Chickie Chick? You are normally very excited this time each week; it's time for your weekly post. You seem a little sad.

Chickie Chick: I got into an argument with 'Lil Dove.

Mom: But you two are best friends. You do everything together. What made you argue?

Chickie Chick: She said mean things. She said that when we start laying eggs, that her egg will be better than mine.

Mom: What made her say that?

Chickie Chick: Cause my egg will be brown, but hers will be white. Bass told her that the majority of eggs sold in stores are white; so that must mean they are better. Is it true? How come our eggs won't be the same color?

Mom: Ah yes, the age-old argument on which colored eggs are best. I'll try to explain it the best I can.

Chickie Chick, the color of your egg is determined by a scientific term called DNA, or your genetic makeup. You are a Back Sexlink, and your DNA drives the brown color shell. 'Lil Dove is a Pearl Leghorn, and her DNA drives the white egg color. Nothing you can do about that. It's the same reason some humans have brown hair, red hair, blonde, black, or a variation of colors. Why, there is even a breed of chicken that lays pale blue and green eggs.

However, the egg color has absolutely nothing to do with the taste of the egg. As we have discussed in class, it's the foods you eat, and the excercise that you get (or don't get) that effects the quality of your egg. Eggs that are produced commercially can taste different than eggs produced by local farmers. But again, that is due to their environment.

Chickie Chick: I don't understand what you mean by environment.

Mom: In order to fulfill demand for eggs, a lot of the eggs in stores come from commercial operations. According to Agricultural Marketing Resource Center (AgMRC), "in the major egg-producing states, flocks of 100,000 laying hens are common, and some flocks number more than 1 million."

Chickie Chick: WOW!! That's alot.

Mom: Yes, it is. But consumer demand drives that. Well, in order to handle that many hens, you would have to add some automation to the process. Not all hens get to go outside, Chickie Chick. And whether a person prefers white eggs or brown is really a matter of preference, and sometimes cost.

Chickie Chick: Oh. I think I'm beginning to understand.

Mom: Good. Now, since you and 'Lil Dove have the same diet and you both get lots of time outside where you can eat bugs and grass, the ONLY difference between your eggs will be the shell color. If I was take each of your eggs and beak them open, you wouldn't know which one was which.

Chickie Chick: Got it!!! Thanks, Mom, I feel lots better. Man, I can't wait to tell 'Lil Dove. I don't think she meant to be mean. She just didn't understand. Don't worry, Mom. We'll be fine now.

Until next time,
Chickie Chick

05/26/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick:

IT'S HERE!!! WooHoo! And it's awesome, wonderful, amazing, fabulous, tremendous!!

Sorry, I have to catch my breath. We got to go outside!! I love being outside. The sky is soooooo blue, and the grass is soooo green. If I was a ballerina, I would have done a pirouette.

I have to admit that I was a little afraid at first. I stayed close to the barn until I got comfortable with everything. But it was also so exciting. I bet you kids know what I mean. Like the first time you ride a bicycle without the training wheels.

It didn't take us long, though, to start investigating the area. Mom said it's really good for us to get regular exercise. She said even you humans need exercise to stay healthy.

And yum, all the tasty bugs we found. And we even get to have chicken school outside on nice days. That will really make learning fun.

Well, that's it for this week. We start back to school tomorrow.

Until next time,
Chickie Chick

05/19/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick:

Hello, everyone. I was a little disappointed that we didn't get in too much schooling this past week. But I'm thrilled we finally got to move to our new room. Mom worked really hard on it. It's HUGE!! And no, I don't get my own bedroom (sigh!).

I was a bit surprised to find out someone was already living there. We met Bass, another rooster. (I'm seeing a musical theme here with the roosters' names).

Mom explained that Bass has a "deformity" in the fact he has no tail feathers. Poor guy was the victim of an attack; either a fox or bobcat tried to get him, and he got away by his tail feathers ripping out. OUCH!! They never grew back. We included his picture so you could meet him. That's him standing behind me and Joy (one of my sisters).

And then I wanted to cry when I found out Mom had to move him out of the other coop because some of the grown hens kept ganging up and picking on him. It's not his fault he doesn't have tail feathers. Besides, it's not nice to pick on someone just because they look different. You should treat everyone like you want them to treat you. Mom said that's something called the Golden Rule.

Anyway, we've all decided we are going to be his friend. He is really nice. He showed us around and pointed out where to find the water and feeder bin.

Mom said that he will help watch for predators when we are outside. He will give us a warning sound to let us know to either run inside or freeze like a statue. She said that will be his job since he can't lay eggs like we can.

I'm glad I made a new friend. But I really wish that day we "get to go outside" would hurry up. It feels like it's going to be f-o-r-e-v-e-r before it gets here.

I know, I know -- patience.

Until next time,
Chickie Chick

05/11/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick:

Wow, did this past week fly by. We found out that since we are now almost 10 weeks old, we had to start chicken school.

I thought we would get to ride a school bus, but no, we are being home-schooled. First up was a class on our diet and the types of food we get to eat.

Since we are not quite big enough to go outside by ourselves yet, Mom brought in grass clippings for us. Oh man, was it ever yummy!!

I learned that chickens that are allowed to eat grass and bugs lay more nutritious eggs then hens who don't get to go outside. Our eggs contain 1/3 less cholesterol, 1/4 less saturated fat, 2 times more omega-3 fatty acids, 2-3 times more Vitamin A, and 3 times more Vitamin E than those of commercially grown hens. Apparently clover grass (the pretty green stuff in the picture) provides nitrogen-rich protein for us.

I really had fun at school this week. I hope we get to learn more about food (it's my favorite subject). I wonder if we will have to take any tests?

Until next time,
Chickie Chick

05/04/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick:

Hello, everyone. I hope you had a great week. To be honest, it was shaping up to be a boring week, but then it got entertaining. Oh, I'm also proud to report that I have been very good and have been following the rules.

First, Bunny mis-behaved this week. She got past her fence boundary and Mom had to go looking for her. She found her standing in the middle of the road. That's a huge no-no! On top of that, she must have been after a skunk. It let her know it didn't appreciate that. We could smell Bunny before she even got to the barn. That earned her a bath, which she totally hates.
I like taking a bath, but we take dust baths. Bunny had to have a bubble bath.

Then we had visitors today!! That was a lot of fun. Three cute little girls that Mom said were great-nieces. I really liked them because they gave us sunflower seeds. I hope they come visit again real soon.

And just a little while ago, mom discovered a black snake had gotten tangled up in bird netting. We knew something bad must have happened because we could hear Mom all the way across the garden. Hahaha. She freed it, but fussed at that poor snake the entire time.

But I think he will be good to have around the garden. They eat alot of small rodents, like mice. They will also eat small birds, frogs, and lizards. Mom is hoping it will help keep the birds away from the cherry tree. I included the picture of it, it's good to know what they look like for future reference.

I have to go now. Mom wants to close up the barn as it's going to storm again.

Until next time,
Chickie Chick

04/29/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick:

Hi, everyone. I hope you all have had a great week. It definitely has been a hectic and busy time on the farm these last two weeks.

But first, the exciting news. We're moving!! (In about another week or so). We get to move into the room where the goats had stayed. Mom and Dad built them a goat shelter and moved them to the other side of the barn. They are currently renovating that room so it's better for us. I hope I get my very own bedroom, but I'll have to wait to find out.

The work got a little delayed due to a couple of storms. On Easter Sunday a really big storm came through. Even Bunny got scared! A big, big hickory tree close to our barn broke and fell over. It's in the picture. Mom said that the Lord was definitely looking out for us. If the tree had fallen towards the barn, it would have probably squashed us. Did you know that hickory is very, very heavy?

They were both glad it didn't fall on anything, including the cabbage growing in the garden. What's a cabbage, you ask. I found out it's a common garden vegetable that can be used in salads or coleslaw. It grows into round ball shape, and can be green or red. Mom then told me to not even THINK about trying to sneak into the garden. I wonder where she ever got that idea (hehe).

The other exciting news is that it got warm enough that our wind barrier was removed from the nursery windows. We can now see the green trees, and that awesome blue sky. I kinda felt like Olaf in Frozen. You know, the part where he is singing about Summer. We all felt very giddy and excited at seeing sunshine.

And we got to watch baby birds!. A bird had raised some babies way at the top of the barn. They were testing out their wings and taking their first flights. But boy did we get nervous when we saw Artemis trying to catch them. We were cheering for those poor little guys and shouting words of encouragement. All the while, the momma bird kept dive bombing the cat. Which was hysterical!! But they made it back to the top of the barn. Talk about feeling relief--whew!!

That's my update for now. For some reason, my mind keeps going back to the garden. But don't worry, I learned my lesson. I'll behave so I can keep talking with you.

Until next time,
Chickie Chick

04/21/2020

Adventures of Chickie Chick:

Hello, everyone!! I'm back!! This past week was sooo looong!! I missed getting to talk to each and everyone of you.

As you may know, I got in trouble. All I wanted to do was go see Tenor, but Mom had said no. I really thought I would be able to sneak over and get back before Mom ever knew anything happened. How was I to know that stupid cat was outside the door.

Mom sat me down and we had a little heart-to-heart. I thought Mom just didn't want me to have fun, but turns out she takes her job of keeping me safe very seriously. Did you know that Artemis (the cat) gets her name from Greek mythology? Artemis was the Greek goddess of hunting. Apparently the cat lives up to her name. Whew! That was definitely a close one.

As you can see by the picture, there is now a barrier between me and the door. Mom called it a baby gate. A baby!!??

I am no longer a baby and let Mom know that fact. She told me I was getting a too big for my britches. (I actually thought about reminding her that I have feathers, not britches, but then thought better about it. I had just gotten my Facebook privileges back. One of the secrets to success is knowing when to keep your beak shut.)

Anyway, I won't be trying to see Tenor anymore. Mom had to inform me that he already has several girlfriends, and all at the same time. The nerve!! Let me tell you, I deserve better than being just another girlfriend to someone like that.

Anyway, sorry this post is so long. Next week I'll fill you in on the big storm that hit Easter, and anything else worth mentioning.

Until next time,
Chickie Chick

Best from the Nest

07/16/2020

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