Guess what I found in the incubator this morning?  Mind you, this was NOT the hatching bator.  This was in an incubator that is dedicated to incubating eggs for all but the last three days before they hatch.  For those days, the sweet little egg’uns are moved out of the crowded topsy-tipsy bator and into a hatching bator.  In the hatching bator they have peace and quiet for the last few days before hatching, as well as the correct humidity needed, no turning, etc.  So, what did I find in our not-for-chicks-to-hatch-in-bator?

This.

Peeping.  And yelling.  And generally making himself or herself very clear on several points.  First, that it is awfully hard to push out of your shell when there’s another egg ON TOP OF YOU!  (had to adjust for picture, but yes, an egg was resting directly on top of the one that hatched)  Second, that it’s very hard to get your hatching legs when the ground keeps rotating under you!  And, third, that it’s very lonely to hatch when all your roomates are a good week away from busting out of their shell!

I have to admit, I left him there a minute longer while I ran and grabbed my hubby and the camera.  If he was strong enough to push out of his egg with another egg pressing down on him, he’d last another minute.

I’ve also decided that this little guy (or girl) isn’t getting sold with the other chicks.  Aside from the fact that he’s adorable (don’t mind me, I always seem to call newly hatched chicks ‘hes’) and has great foot-feathering, which a silkie should have if they can possibly manage it, he has become my new mascot.  In a week which included a fried-out computer plus major chicken losses from both heatstroke AND hail stones the size of golf balls–

–for reals, golf ball-sized, I tell you!  In a week like that, it came as no great surprise that I also got a rejection letter from the very last agent with a full of 13 Demon Days.  An agent who I’d met, and connected with, and who seemed really excited about the book when she requested the full.  In such a week, it’s nice to have a cute and fuzzy reminder that we have to hatch where we find ourselves, even if someone screwed up and left us in the wrong incubator.  After all, it’s not like we can ask for a do-over!

I hope you’re having a great week!

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