The Great Chicken Campaign

Our "youngest child" is on the other side of porch door whining because, even though she is inches from me, she isn't right under my feet. I've kept her inside for the safety of our newest additions, two feathery friends we are "fostering" who are currently spreading woodchips everywhere in search of "treats". WE HAVE CHICKENS!!! - the culmination of an extensive chicken campaign in our home. The push for enough electoral votes recently gained great speed and crossed the line to a victory!

I can trace my first longing for these fowl friends to my childhood and endless hours in a hot suburban house sitting in "summer dark" and watching "Little House on the Prarie". Fast forward many years and I did get to live on the prairie but was busy growing three boys and two enormous gardens in our snake infested backyard. (If you knew me then you may remember this blog was known as "My Life on the Prairie" and filled with mastering the art of potty training and library fines).

But now those said boys are old enough to help with the cleaning of the coop and at least one has enthusiastically joined in my political persuasions regarding the necessity for chickens. This combined with the urgent need of friends to remove these HOA-contraband animals from their premises before putting their house on the market (reason number 1006 I can't ever live in a new neighborhood - they come with HOAs), and ta-dah, I can hear their little clucking egg-producing-songs drifting up through my master bath window.

Currently, Maggie and Rosalyn (named after two of our esteemed former First Ladies) are here for temporary shelter, but it is the hope of the adults in the "birth family" to persuade the "child-parent" of these two feathery ladies, to make this a foster-adopt arrangement upon their departure to Texas. I'm already eyeing some scrap lumber to add on to the coop so we can adopt a few more, but like every political career, you've got to start small and work your way up!

My main mission right now is to keep that trembling dog/child so eager to "meet" our new charges on the other side of the storm door while they cluelessly (but cutely) taunt her inches from the glass. And while humming the theme song to "Little House" I'll be collecting some fresh eggs with a big grin on my face.

A Boy and His Dog

I never realized when we welcomed our youngest child, albeit four-legged, that she would literally be treated accordingly. She receives many treats, has a bed on 2 floors of the house, leaves her toys everywhere and steals others that become her slobbered domain. Unfortunately, she is also teased like a youngest as well. My man-children find continual entertainment in laying on her, taking her toys, falsely announcing "squirrel" to get a reaction, building structures all around her while she sleeps, and so on. This behavior really caught me by surprise.

I can sort of understand the pestering coming from my youngest son since he does not have a smaller sibling to dominate. But it still baffles me a bit; I can only attribute this dominating behavior to their boy-ness. Especially when I see their dad poking at her ears or paws while she sleeps just to see her twitch.

The opposite of this strange relationship with dogs might be even harder to understand: pushing a little dog in a stroller. I like to tease my husband that that will be us someday when we pass an older lady pushing a carriage full of furry noise. It is fun to see the look of total unbelief mixed with strong resistance cross his face. Maybe kind of like it is fun for him to watch Zoey twitch in her sleep.

Thankfully Zoey is a very tolerant dog and as the youngest in the family, when not being picked on, is rightfully very, very spoiled. She spends most of her time curled up on something soft and fluffy (usually all my throw pillows that are ALWAYS on the floor...sigh) waiting for her next walk or treat or the doorbell to ring. Life with 3 boys is full of testosterone-driven mysteries - and I wouldn't have it any other way.