Chickens, gardens and the world's largest morels

So, we are joining the leagues of local city farmsteads and getting ourselves some chickens. 4 hens, to be exact and they are arriving on Friday. These girls are 16 weeks old so they should be laying in the next couple of weeks or so. Nick is doing a masterful job of building their coop. I am helping out where I can, but mostly Finn and I watch, or smell the lilacs, or play with Inca. It has been amazingly, beautifully spring-like here in Seattle.

Last night, Nick was rummaging around under the porch looking for some old wood (our whole coop is recycled except for the wire) when he asked me if there could be morel mushrooms growing under our porch. I told him to pick one and this is what he came out with:

Probably the largest I have ever seen. There are a bunch of them under there. Our own private patch! One of my all-time favorite meals is salmon with morel mushroom tapenade (a recipe made up in Alaska when we found a bountiful patch of morels and the first king salmon of the season was freshly filleted on the kitchen counter). Looks like we are going to have a feast this weekend!

Also, I am planning our vegetable garden and thinking tomatoes, basil, shelling peas, green beans, squash and lettuce. And I found a great hanging strawberry planter that I think I am goint to try out. Hurray for spring!