A couple weeks ago Ryan phoned from my Aunt's farm, asking if I wanted any quail eggs.
"Quail eggs?" I said, "Where on earth did you find Quail eggs?"
A friend of my Uncle had sent them home for them to enjoy. But, having hens of their own, they already had more eggs than they knew what to do with. So, in walked Ryan empty handed, and out he walked with a small carton of a dozen and a half fresh Quail eggs.
Having never used a Quail egg before, I wasn't quite sure what to do with them. But then thoughts of Easter and my table setting came to mind and I thought I would try and preserve these delicate little eggs by blowing them.
It wasn't as hard as I had heard. I simply poked a small hole in the top, and a slightly larger hole in the bottom. I then blew the contents of the egg into a glass, held the empty shell under water to rinse out the inside and set them out to dry.
After I use them for my place settings this Easter, I think I might frame them in a shadow box and set them on a shelf in the nursery beside my small collection of found nests.
Each egg is speckled in it's own unique pattern.
This is a nest I've had for years. It was found in our back ravine, abandoned through Winter and found in early Spring when the trees are bare and spotting it was easy.
I thought it was so cozy that little bits of cotton string were lovingly woven amongst the grass.
This is another nest that Ryan found with Willen on a hike. It's a little more sturdy.
Once dry, I lined an old wooden tray with a cloth and gently tucked them inside to keep them safe until Easter.
