Not Enough Lap

I may have to start eating more. I don’t have enough lap.

I’ve already mentioned my snugglebug chickens, Cheeto and Buttercup. Cheeto is lovey when he wants to be, but Buttercup wants love just about every morning, and he’s usually pecking at my feet when I’m still trying to get the fresh food and water out. I haven’t figured out how to separate the top & bottom of the waterer one handed yet, so I usually have a tantrum throwing rooster on my hands while I’m throwing the old water in one of the compost bins and filling it up with fresh water.

The other morning I had two lovey roosters on my lap and we were doing our morning cuddles when I felt a light pecking on my lower back. That’s what the boys do when they want to snuggle – they peck, I reach around to give them a skritch, they snuggle up under my arm and I lift them into my lap. Ok, these days Buttercup usually jumps when I put my arm out.

Anyway, Cheeto decided he’d had enough and hopped out of my lap so I reached around and pulled a surprised hen into my lap. She blinked at me a few times but didn’t try to jump down! Well, not until Mr. Cheeto noticed somebody else in Mama’s lap! There was quite a bit of squawking and wing flapping, and she eventually hopped down. Buttercup just watched the whole show. I suppose he was thinking “hey, as long as you’re not trying to get on my side, who cares.”

So now I’m going to have three chickens trying to cuddle in the morning. Don’t get me wrong, it’s adorable. I never imagined chickens would want to cuddle. Then again, I never imagined they’d throw tantrums either. That’s just one more thing they never mentioned in the books.