On Tuesday I brought the camera along with us when Bracken and I went for one of our visits to the chicken coop. The afternoon sun was shining in the windows and it was so fun to watch the chicks doing acrobatics all over their newly expanded space. They were using the roost Jeff made, which he was glad to hear. We were surprised they were ready for one already. They were stretching their wings out and practicing flying. They are growing so fast. I appreciate that those busy chicks let me take quite a few close ups of them.

 Right now the Americaunas are the most lively of the bunch and do the most flying too.

 This little Plymouth Barred Rock is pretty social with us and one of Bracken’s favorites to hold.

 This Golden Sex Link (thanks to you readers for teaching me about their name) is the smallest chick in our flock right now. And also one of Bracken’s favorites to hold. (Oh yeah, for those of you, like me, who didn’t know the story behind their name: they are able to tell the sex of the chick by their color right off the bat.)

 The Speckled Sussex has been more shy. She’s so pretty.

 The little Golden Sex Link and an Americauna snuggling together.

 Another view of the Speckled Sussex. You can see her “eyeshadow” more here.

 One of the Buff Orpingtons giving us a quizzical look.

 I love the fuzzy cheeks that the Americaunas have. And I think their coloring is so pretty.

 Bracken and I have been bringing them fresh grass and greens and they eat up every speck. We’ve brought them insects and slugs and they gobbled those up too. Our garden is going to be very happy to have less slugs around here!

Fluffy Buff Orpington.

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On Saturday, we’ll be picking up 5 Wellsummers (hopefully, this time.) That will bring us up to 18 chicks, which is honestly more than we’d like to have. We were planning on 15 this year. But what we’ve learned from years past is that it’s a good idea to have a little more because you might lose some, which is a part of keeping chickens.

We won’t be going to Saturday Market this weekend. But since we’ll be picking up our chicks in Eugene, we’re going to swing by the farmer’s market. Last weekend we could only fit so many cabbages in our car, since it was packed with market stuff. This weekend we’ll be stocking up on more cabbages to make another batch of kraut. It’s a staple in our home and we’ve been out for a little while now, which feels like forever for us.