Remember the freebie chick? Well, what is it with chicks?! Here we are again, but this time we have two freebie chicks. And this time it’s really awkward because we don’t have any other chicks at all! Everyone else is several months old and out on pasture. We thought we were past brooder houses and heat lamps and electrolytes and all those day-old-baby things.

The last couple weeks have been really busy for us. We spent every evening and weekend for two weeks out looking for a car. (Thankfully we got that settled!) Then we rolled right into the end of the school year, with the spring concert, the graduation, the awards ceremony, family in town, and night meetings for work. Oh yeah, and our dryer broke down. Again. {sigh} But we managed to squeeze in a trip to the local “chicken swap” (which is really a sale, not a swap, but I digress) while picking up feed on Saturday. I’m looking to replace a couple full-grown hens in our laying house to keep our egg customers happy.

I took the Ladybug with me, since she’s our “Laying House Manager” and “Egg-Marketer.” And since we had family in town for the Cowboy’s graduation, I took our 9 year old niece (we like to call her Curls!) as well. It was an all-girls excursion down to the local Tractor Supply.

Ha! Let’s just call that mistake #1. (I should’ve known better–this is sorta how we ended up with runner ducks!)

The place was full of baby chicks, rabbits, guinea pigs, and other completely not-what-we’re-here-for temptations. I did manage to find a couple Black Australops to replace the two we lost and got the phone number of another farmer who’s got some Americaunas we’re picking up this weekend.

So we had bought something–and it was actually what we were looking for…I thought was home free.

Let’s just call that mistake #2.

We go inside to get our feed and the swap is still going full-throttle. I managed to weave through the rescue puppies inside and avoid an entire table-top cage full of kittens and managed to walk out with only one thing that was not on our list–a package of marigold seeds. As we’re loading up, we move the Blacks into our carrier and, since the swap is winding down, I send the girls back over to the return the unneeded box for another customer.

Mistake #3!

Both girls come back with a day-old chick in their hands as a thank you for being so sweet and thoughtful!

Ugh!

I said “Take those right back girls, you can’t keep them!”

And the Ladybug said, “They’re a special blessing for being such good Christians.”

{Ahem} Where do you go with that?

I said “We don’t have any other chicks, where are we going to put them? How are we going to take care of them?”

And the Ladybug said, “We’ll have to put them in a box with the heat lamp like we did with the Easter chicks and give them food and water every day and change their shavings.” Now, in all fairness I can’t exactly say she doesn’t know how to take care of them, or that she won’t every day because, well, she does.

So we headed home with those chicks in their hands (because the older chickens in the carrier would have trampled and peck them to death for sure) and the whole time I’m wondering how in the world I explain this to Mr. Fix-It. Yeah, that went over like a lead balloon. Right up until I told him he was welcome to pile them back in the truck himself and take them back.

If you’re a parent, you know exactly what I’m talking about…those big blue eyes looking up at you over a tiny baby chicken that someone gave her because she was polite and thoughtful and respectful–just like you always tell her to be–and the why? with tears hovering…

Ha! This was a lost cause from the moment her little hands closed on those black feathers–and he knew it!

So Honey and Honeysuckle (who with my luck are probably both roosters!) are now making their home in our mudroom.

At least someone’s getting some use out of the dryer right now!

Mimi and Papa convinced Curls to leave her chick here because they had no way to get it home safely and a chick alone is an unhappy chick. She didn’t give up without a fight. {smile} (The almost tears look works with blue eyes or brown eyes!) She bargained them into some of her own chicks when they did get home and we sent her home with our Chicken Book for good measure. Now she has 6 of her own.

 

Do you have any big plans for the holiday weekend?

I’ll be back next week with the EVERYTHING SUMMER {LINK UP} so be sure to come back by and either share your posts or read, read, read all the great ideas!

See where I’m sharing this week…