CompostaBlog

Roof Going UP!

From the chicken run side closest to the house you can see how much progress we’re making! I will be able to go in the gate and be out of the rain and they will have some shelter from the rain and still be able to be outside… so long as the rain is not blowing sideways. LOL

We’ve stacked so many things off and on through the time we’ve been working on it that the wire is starting to sag in the middle, Errrr. But I think I can run some wire through it and it will be alright. Remind me, if I EVER build another chicken coop to NOT use ‘chicken wire’ it is a pain in the BUTT. Baby chicks get right through it, animals can push right through it.. it’s sort of good for nothing.

Ryan thinking out the chicken coop roof.

I rather liked this photo of shadow, thinking, trying to get things right. NOT being a carpenter I can only appreciate knowing how to build something like this easily and without SO MUCH EFFORT. Ryan had one semester of carpentry in high school VoTech and he’s done a fabulous job. I will be proud to say he built it for me for a very long time…

This weekend, at the beginning, when we thought we were going to be finishing up (ha ha!) he said… “I wish this could last a lot longer…” Awww… I’m such a lucky mom! But I quickly informed him that I had PLENTY of indoor projects to keep us busy over the winter!

Framing done!

What a long day, getting things square against all odds. The entire chicken coop frame was off square from the chicken run due to the fact that I wanted to use the 4×4’s from the garden fence to build off of… seemed such a shame to let all that wood, cement, and hard work go to waste.

You can see the autumn leaves are starting to really fall. Another reminder that we don’t have long to go before it gets cold and the chicks still don’t have a place to get out of the cold. Errrr.

From the garden side. Seems we didn

My son works during the day, goes to school three nights a week, has two children, one newly born August 28th and his brother will be two in November. His wife is taking online classes so she can stay home with the children, but ooooooooh do they have their hands full! Can anyone say “You should have WAITED on the family?” LOL Well, ‘Life is what happens while you’re making other plans” I suppose, it is what it is. And being a grandmother is SO way fun.

So, we have devoted our Sundays to working on the chicken coop… it’s the one day we can all get together. Ryan and I work on the coop. Amanda does her homework on the laptop in the lounge chair (our chair count just keeps growing) Aiden runs around chasing the rooster (who is loose in the yard while the baby chicks in the chicken run if you’ll recall) and the dog, pulling up my strawberry plants, watering the fall garden, and generally just having a ball pushing his trucks around.

Our first night outside. Covered, warm, and safe.

Seating Space Available

Phase One Complete

This is where I sit and take a break in between digging post holes and stapling wire. This was so much fun doing with the girls. Well, at least two of them showed up for the hard work.

Building a chicken coop has proven to be a bit trickier than I had hoped it would be. I suppose I could have skimped on lumber or not sunk the posts so deep and used less cement, blah, blah, but this will last for a very long time. If I ever sell this house, I hope they like chickens.

Where I wanted it build, toward the backof the yard from the house, there is a tree that offers a bit of shade from the harsh afternoon sun. This photo is facing south and slightly west, as you can see, later in the afternoon. So we had to build the chicken coop around the tree a bit. I don’t know why I always seem to have to do things the hard way. But it will look so nice when it is finished. The garden and garden gate are off to the right. I wanted it close so I can put the straw and pine shavings (or whatever I decide to use for litter on the chicken coop floor) into the compost easily. Also, this location is away from anything. There are no houses close, only a large emtpy lot behind, as you can see. My hope is that no one will complain for any reason. I hope to set a good example of how to use chickens in an urban homestead with very little fuss or complaint.