Why Don't The "Best" Ideas Crop Up BEFORE You Do A Project?

Monday, February 25, 2013

Hubby and I finished our mini-chicken-coop/run yesterday.  We have 21 three week old Australorps that have outgrown their dog crate.  Since we've had a huge problem with dogs lately (us and our neighbor both have lost birds (as well as rabbits for the neighbor) to roaming dogs) I took down the old chicken nursery (which aforementioned dogs got into) and modified the coop and added an above ground run - IN the big chicken pen.  They are now doubly secure.

It was a process.

1st - cut the old coop in half, add a wall on the cut side 
2nd - add a roost
3rd - add legs to the new coop
4th - frame a run (eyeballing everything instead of going and getting the level to ensure it was straight - where's the fun in straight, right?)
5th - run wire
6th - add roof
7th - take the roof back off because I forgot to measure the height of the door - AND take into account placing it in it's track (hmmmm)
8th - add a door to the run area so I can access the chicks in there as well as their coop (which I hadn't done in the first nursery I made thus making maintenance much more difficult
9th -  add lock for the doors and pulley thingee for the coop door

Whew! Best part of the project, though - it was ALL free - aside from $3 in staples.  Everything came from my "no, honey, don't throw that out, I'll use it for something" pile.  :-)

Once we had moved the babies over (right before it started raining - woo-hoo!), hubby says "You know, I just had an idea for a permanent chicken nursery".  ARGH!!!  Worst part?  It's a FABULOUS idea!  So, perhaps over the summer, we'll implement it?

It started raining yesterday afternoon and pretty much hasn't quit yet.  I'm not complaining as I'm quite satisfied with the fact that it's packing down the dirt we moved in to help level out the yard and the garden hubby has harrowed for me.  It's great for the goat and horse pasture as well as the grass in the chicken pen.  However, it has made for a very grey and dismal day.  So, I decided I would at least do "something" productive.  I took all the seedlings I had started and potted them up.  I also started some more seeds.  I'm trying to get a jump on spring.  I should have had my seed orders in a long time ago so my seeds could have been started weeks ago, but - this is somewhat new to me.  Oh, I've started seeds before, but not as many as I'm starting now.  I've never grown a full blown eating garden, one where I will be able to feed us w/out going to the grocery store except for essentials.  :-)  It's a very good thing.