I’ve always dreamed about living on a farm, somewhere with acres and acres of rolling hills, and a barnyard full of animals. While this will always be just a dream…a small piece of it has recently come true. It all began on Friday when we surprised our oldest daughter with a trip to the local feed store. One of her dreams was coming true too… she finally was getting a pet. Three squawking baby chicks in a box, and three very excited kiddos in the car made the trip home a quick one.
Now for the hard part… figuring out how to care for these little cuties. We’d picked up the essentials…a heat lamp, chick feed and some bedding, but it quickly set in that that wasn’t going to be enough for long. Yes, a small bucket soon would grow too small for these feathered friends and a coop was a must. I’d ‘thought’ I could easily buy one on Amazon and have it here in a day or so. But after a little research and some unfavorable reviews, the Mr. and I decided it was worth our while to make one of our own. So off to Home Depot he went.
A few nights later… he’s still plugging away in the garage… and our 8×4′ coop is close to being finished. So, in the mean time I thought I’d share some of my pinspiration with you (images via pinterest):
I love the simple design on this one and the white with black hinges is speaking to my farmhouse-loving’ style. It also say’s Joanna Gaines with the fenced-in. Garden area around it. Perhaps I can convince the Mr, this is also a good idea…
This charming red one is hard to beat… and I love how the coop is surrounded by plants and landscaping. However… from what I’ve read, many (ahem, probably most -eek) plants are fair game to the chickens. Then there is this last one…
I’m smitten with the grey and white Combo and, spoiler alert, this is very close to the style the Mr. is creating in our garage. Ours will have wheels on the bottom so we can move it from one area to the next, allowing the grass and vegetation to recover from the hens’ insatiable appetites. Good news is, they’ll also clear the yard of nasty insects. See? Always a silver lining. Another great perk? Farm Fresh Eggs and “free” entertainment for the kiddos. So far – this decision is still a win in my book. Check back in to see how we’re progressing as farmers over here on Blueberry Hill and all the details about raising chicks (good and bad) we’re learning along the way.
