Of Little Lambs and Fairy Eggs

Even though Ann and her man are still disembodied, I am done counting the sheep on Miss Rayner, thank Heaven, because those little lambs over one were rather tedious on the very tightly woven 40-count linen I am using. But I do love the way they look, don't you? Sigh. I love this sampler. I am s-l-o-w-l-y working my way through my sampler bucket list, and if this one doesn't send me to a rheumatologist for my arm/hand issues, I don't know what will.

Ann Rayner by Threads Through Time
(Mostly) NPI silk on
40-count Vintage Lakeside Linen

Now for the farm report part of this post. One recent afternoon,  I went to gather the eggs, and as they are wont to do, three of my girls had used the same nesting box. However, this time Abigail had produced a teeny tiny egg that was so sweet but certainly a fluke of nature. (This happens from time to time with the egg-laying process.) Upon researching, I learned that these little eggs are sometimes referred to as "fairy eggs." To give a some perspective, the B-52's pretty blue egg and Abby's regular egg are the size of an extra-large, I would say, so you can see just how small Abby the Chicken Fairy's egg is.  I haven't opened it yet to see what is inside, but I'm guessing it is yoke-less.

The Fairy Egg

Last week, I also gave the coop a really good cleaning. As I have such a small flock and I clean up the coop on a daily basis, every two weeks is a good schedule for this. However, I added something a little extra this time ~ Nesting Box Blend from Treats for Chickens, which contains all kinds of fragrant herbs and flowers. Not only is it aromatherapy for the hens, but it helps to ward off any bugs and parasites that can invade the coop. The girls really seemed to like it!

Nesting Box Blend

So that's the news this week from the Garden Gate, where the gardeners are strong, the hens good looking and the eggs are (mostly) above average. Happy weekend everyone!

Pssst. Abby! Does your nest smell funny?