Bald Eagles vs Chicken

Happy Thanksgiving! Most of the US enjoyed a turkey dinner today, at my house Dan and I had to interrupt a chicken dinner. Dan looked outside to check on the chickens and saw a bunch of feathers swirling around... so we decided (rapidly) to go out and locate the origin of what looked like a pillow fight gone wrong. It took a few moments but we quickly got suited up and went out to investigate. We went out the back porch (top one) and and as we stepped onto the grass a huge bird of prey flew from the ground behind the compost area up into a tree right above.  Simultaneously a Bald Eagle (Yes a Bald Eagle!!!) flew above us and then from the right to left and perched in a tree. It was amazing and it was HUGE. It was really very beautiful and much larger than I had thought. T.V. does not give you the real perspective.

So we went out to check out the area where the one bird had flown from and sure enough, there was one of my chickens- sans head. It was inevitable and I knew this day would come, but now that it has I am more afraid. That bird was huge.

So the first bird we saw was actually brown, not bald eagle colored. Dan looked it up and immature Bald Eagles can be brown and look very similar to what we saw; but hawks look similar as well.
Who knows at this point, hopefully we won't get another chance to find out.

Everybody else is doing great. I worry about Garner being the outcast but in reality I can't punish Spot and Sugar for being animals- Garner is the misfit and that's how it works with herd animals. (even with humans too at times it seems)

I have started taking inventory on my pantry and am going to do the freezer tomorrow. I want to meal plan every week and stick to it. That means it has to be easy to cook. I want to not buy any food (minus the VERY basics like milk) for 2 weeks to start. I also want to keep a record and a loose inventory of what our family actually eats in a month/ winter... maybe even a year. If I have a record I know what I need to have on hand (sounds like the opposite of the experiment but it all goes together)
Well happy Turkey Day to all and to all a good night!