Sunday was an exciting day for us. It was the first of September, we found the first egg from our chickens, and we saw the first sunflower opening in our garden! Bracken has been checking the nesting boxes every single day (usually more than once a day) for awhile now (weeks? a month? I’m not sure how long he’s been doing it for.) Can you imagine his excitement? When he opened the little door to the nesting box, said “no” and started to close it… but then did a double take and opened it back up. He just stood there hardly believing what was before his eyes. It was so fun for me to watch him. Then he was so sweet and gentle with the little pullet egg, like it was the most precious thing in the world. We immediately went to find Jeff in his shop and show him. I said “we have a surprise” and he guessed a strawberry (we like to bring him strawberries when we find them.) Bracken was so happy to show his dada what the surprise was. 

I said aloud “I wonder which of our chickens layed the first egg?” and Bracken said “Bear!” (his favorite chicken.) Jeff and I smiled at each other because I knew he was going to say that. We had wool and straw in the nesting boxes, but the chickens had kicked most of it out. Jeff took some moss and made some nice little nests for them in there. Yesterday morning I saw our chicken Honey in the nesting boxes. She went from one to the other rearranging. It was so funny to watch her move the moss around with her beak and get it just so. I let her be and then later we found our second little egg. I remember how excited Jeff and I were when we raised chickens before and got our first egg, but now it’s even more exciting because we get to share the joy with Bracken and witness the wonder through the eyes of a child.

And the sunflower? It was so wonderful to be greeted by a sunflower to start the day. Our sunflowers are a little late this year. We only have them thanks to Jeff’s perseverance because the chipmunks kept eating them every time he planted them and I’m not sure how many time he had to replant them. He knows I love them. 

The first of a new month. The first egg. The first sunflower. I love firsts!