The Ladies of Lester St.

According to ChaCha.com, a "Betty" is a hot chick.  One that is attractive, stylish and self confident.

At the risk of entirely anthropomorphizing these birds, I have a flock of characters on my hands.  Roxanne is, um, let's say a little advanced.  If this were fifth grade, she would be wearing a training bra and have a steadier hand with a mascara wand than I do.  If that isn't bad enough, she is setting a standard for her friends, and Betty at least is doing her best to catch up.  Girls, girls [I want to say] quit trying to grow up so fast.

Roxanne's beautiful feathers

Foxy Roxie has feathers, y'all!  Big pretty striped ones!  And she is proud of them!  There is a great deal of flapping and wing stretching going on, as though showing off to her pen-mates how voluptuously developed she has become.  This morning when I was moving the girls from the still-soiled end of their tub to the clean end, Roxie hop-fluttered over the rolled-up bedding in the middle all by herself, asserting her independence, while the other three still had to be picked up by Mama.  What used to be a new patch of strangely straggly fuzz on her backside is now a set of honest-to-god tail feathers, which changes her whole silhouette--and Betty is also sporting her own renegade fuzz patch and matching wings.  Ramona has an elegant set of black and cream wing feathers, and even little Fern is starting to deliberately groom her wings as little red & brown patterned feathers appear.  The fuzz-to-feather ratio is beginning to shift, and I can hardly stand it.

Please note Betty's brand new tail feathers. 

Betty and Fern remain a little shy of humanity, no matter how much I pick them up and coo/stroke/sing/love them or dangle my hands inside their pen to pet and play with them, although my sister Christiana--who has the touch--has managed to lull Betty, Ramona, and Roxanne to sleep in her palms (she achieved chicken-whisperer status within the first 24 hours of her visit).  If, however, there is a "lap" chicken in the Lester St. Flock, it is Ramona.  She is, quite simply, the sweetest little thing. 

Ramona naps.

The cutest butt.  Seriously.

She fits perfectly.

Little Fern is getting freckles...

...and big-girl feathers.  Sweet baby.

Betty wins second cutest butt.  Or maybe first.  You decide.