Not 2, but 8
...new residents in our backyard chicken coop.

Peter selected his 8 from among the 22 chickens raised for the past 12 weeks by Uncle Craig & Aunt Bethany.

His collection includes the very popular Polish chickens (see the speckled chicken with the fancy plume?).

We are hopeful that these 8 are all hens, but we can't be certain until they are a bit more fully developed. Let's just say that if there is one bird in this mix who decides to make a big fuss about sunrise, he will be gracing our dinner table... out of respect for our neighbors, who tend to send anonymous angry mail (or take us to court) if there is too much noise coming from our yard, but that's another story...

The 4-hour drive home yesterday with our lab, Charlie, and 8 chickens (in HIS kennel) was slightly eventful. It was only possible at all due to the fact that we gave Charlie a few doggie downers to help ease his anxiety (which is already way up there on the 4th of July!).

Peter spent quite a bit of time in the coop today, holding the chickens and caring for them. What a great Christmas gift. Thanks Craig & Beth!