The Coop

We live on a farm...just ask Mike and he will tell ya. We actually live in the city limits in a subdivision but that doesn't stop my man from acting like we live on a farm and no farm is complete without chickens! I wasn't on board with the whole chicken idea at first because I am a tight wad, but after watching the kids help him build the coop, paint it, and then the arrival of our baby chicks, and the promise of fresh, REAL organic eggs, I began to warm up to the idea. I also got thinking of how having chickens makes us a little more self sufficient and I like the idea of raising and growing what we need to feed our family ourselves and what that teaches our children. Besides, when Mike gets an idea in his head there is no talking him out of it and I learned long ago not to even try and to just go with it.

We even wrangled Mike's brother Macklin and his fabulous girlfriend, Tayler, into helping us paint the chicken coop when they came out for a visit in April. What a way to make a first impression on your could be, hopefully, future sister in law by putting them to work on their first visit at our house...I mean farm.

That Tayler was a huge hit at our house and May wanted to follow her everywhere. The girl got bonus points with me when she put a pair of overall over her hip little outfit and just got to work and when paint got on her super cute Sketchers she didn't even freak out like I would have done if I were her! I think she is a keeper!

We took a break from painting to have a picnic lunch. It was the first warm day we had had in April. I can't begin to describe how it makes my whole day when the people I love come and visit and to bring potential family to meet us makes me feel pretty darn special!

We got our baby chicks in the mail right after Mike's Birthday, in April. A mail carrier in Glenwood Springs actually delivered them to us at nine o'clock at night! We had them in a box, under a heat lamp, in our living room for a couple of weeks *cough* redneck *cough* and then they graduated out to the garage until the coop was completed. They have grown really fast and should be laying this fall. The breed is called Barred Plymouth Rock and they are known to be a tame and dual purpose bird...good for meat and eggs. Mike ordered fifteen hens and they sent us sixteen.
After all is said and done, I am pretty proud of my pretend farmer and our little wanna be farm!

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I just stuck this photo in of Madse because it makes me laugh my heiny off! He came into the kitchen crying that the inter tube was stuck on his head and instead of running to his rescue like good parents would, Mike and I both pulled out our cameras first! Poor kid has terrible parents!