June 9, 2014 Chickens! . . . and the "D" Words

The finished chicken coup!

Meet The Girls!

Friday 6/6.  We really should have had someone filming us during this whole chicken coup project.  We could have submitted it to America's Funniest Home Videos and won some big bucks.  Of course some parts would not have been appropriate for family viewing. . .

While we work working today, three red-tail hawks were circling us.  I could just hear them talking to each other:"Yum!  Looks like a chicken coup to me!"  We also had swallowtail butterflies flitting all around.

The wind has picked up in the late afternoon on these clear, hot days, subsiding at sundown.  We pretty much subside at sundown, too.  Will be so glad when this project is done and our new family members have arrived. . .

We quit working early today so JB could shower and go Down There to pick up a few things we need, like a bit to replace one that broke, and to relax for the evening at Hastings.  They are starting up Magic Card games on Friday nights.

Today is D-Day.  My Father was fighting in the Pacific, but I always enjoy the articles in the paper and AARP magazine about this day in Europe.  The other "D" word is being used now - drought.  This has really been a dry Spring and already there is a ban on open fires, which usually is not declared until July.

Saturday 6/7.  Happy Birthday, Sandy! (And I completely forgot to call her until late afternoon - blame it on the chickens.)

It was another clear, hot day with a high of 75.  The sun forced us back inside at about 1:30 pm, which was a perfect time for a nap.  We have been eating early suppers so we can work in the cooler evening air.   And by this evening, we were almost finished with the coup and run.  We attached the tarp on top of the roof and the other end to a plastic pipe so we can roll it up.  Put in a gate through the chicken wire and took care of all the final details.  Tomorrow I will fix up the inside of the coup with diatomaceous earth, straw, food, water and make up the nesting boxes.  Almost done!

Sunday 6/8.  The day began 55 and clear sky, and we ended up with a high for the day of 76.  But there was a nice breeze all day long, so it didn't seem so hot.

By mid afternoon, we had all the details taken care of and the tools put away.  We showered away all the dirt and sweat, just in time for a visit from our neighbors to the south.  Was nice to sit out on the porch and catch up.

After a late supper we just relaxed until Larry and Elsie arrived with our new family members at about 9:00 pm.  Larry took each one out of the box and set them on the roost.  Needless to say, they were a bit discomboobilated.  But they are here!
Whew!

Larry and Elsie's reaction to the chickens' new home is that it is more like a chicken palace than a coup!  I'll take that as a compliment.

Monday 6/9.  A very chilly and windy morning.  Only 51, without taking into account the wind chill factor.  I was up and out to feed the chickens at about 7:15 am, but they were still on the roost.  Trying to figure out just what had happened last night, I'm sure.  I'll go back out to feed them their scratch, cabbage, broccoli and apple peelings after I post this.  Then I think I will just take a chair down to the coup in the shade and watch the girls all day. . .

Thought for the day:  Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time. John Lubbock