Hi! My name is Chad and I am addicted to chickens.

I bought 25 chickens. No guarantee that they will be hens, no guarantee the eggs will even be large enough to bother cracking open. They are called" bantam" and best I can tell so far they are just meant to look purdy. But I ordered them so they are coming. So I built a brooder into the coop. You can see it in the pictures. It is 33 x 26 inches by 14 inches tall. I built it with a hole for the heat lamp and two windows for peeking and ventilation.  I hope the other hens like them.  Any way. That's what I did today. Oh, and by the way, if it crows it be comes that evenings dinner.

Saved the Garden, Saved the Dog

I got home and Yvonne was furious. Shadow our new puppy had dug up a lot of veggies Yvonne was growing. Yvonne was ready to give the dog up. I don't blame her. I was worried about the chickens being stressed out from Shadows presence and Shadow kept bugging the rabbits. Of course Shadow is part Lab and part Pit so she probably does have blood-lust for any thing live in the yard. So I put up a fence. Good fences make good neighbors. They also make puppies better and more well behaved. Therefore I saved the dog. At least for now.

Chicken swing

Give chickens some leisure time and a place to play and they'll produce more eggs....maybe. maybe they'll just swing all day.

Why do I need to learn art?

"Why do I need to learn art?" - I get this question from students all the time. Well, i'll tell you. So you have the creative, problem-solving skills to make this awesome custom duct tape ID BADGE/POCKET PROTECTOR.

Bunny Lovin'

Funny Bunny (the doe) was given a conjugal visit with Buck tonight. It didn't take Buck long. He had stop eating for a couple of days, I guess  because he was yearning. So we thought we'd set him up on a hot date. Well he didn't waste any time. Funny Bunny raced around the 2.5 x 3 foot cage a couple of times playing hard to get and as soon as she stopped there was lovin'. Then Buck fell off. But that didn't embarrass him none. He hopped right back up for another go. Then fell off again. And I do mean FELL off. Not sure if it'll take. But it ain't gonna be because Buck didn't give it his best shot. We should see results in 31 days. Little furry hopping results. Note: There is only one picture with this blog for obvious reasons.

The Family That Roosts Together Stays Together.

So tonight on my nightly visit to check on the chickens this is what I found. The funny thing is during the day they fight all the time. I guess they made-up. Yep that is ALL SIX of them on one perch. from left to right thats Tiny, Ethel, Poofy, Granny, Poppy, and Eloise. And my educated guess is that is also the order of their ages too. From the youngest to the oldest. interesting.

Chew on This

2nd Peter- the whole letter. It's not long. Read it. It will set fire to your soul so as to refine it like precious silver. If you believe in Jesus, and I do; if you believe he has once rescued you from the pit you dug for yourself, and I know he did this for me; then pay close attention to 2nd Peter 2:20. Then the reference to Prov. 26:11.

And if you are wondering what this has to do with art, chickens, or homesteading remember, none of this matters if you lose your own soul.

Making Time

I must confess. I have been bad. Not only did I skip church this morning because of the thunderstorm, I also have neglected to spend time with Eva drawing or making art. It is super easy to get caught up in other things. Like homesteading, yard work, work in general, not to mention facebook, pinterest and yes, blogger. But this morning Eva and I made some homemade postcards to send to family. We got to talk, practice writing, learn our colors better, experience watercolors, talk about postal work and mail, and as you can see I got to paint chickens and eggs. I love my girl. It's ashame that I had to have the bottom fall out of the sky to force me to spend time with her.

PVC Pipe Chicken Feeder

I made this chicken feeder. It is made out of 1 piece of 3 inch pipe 2 end caps and one 90° elbow. I cut a 1.5 foot piece off one end and drilled  1.75 inch holes with a door knob style hole cutter. I fit them together and stuck it through the hole in the chicken wire resting it on the bottom. I attached it to the 2"x4" with a metal strap with a piece of 1"x3"x 4" spacer made of scrap wood. I put a handle on the top of the top end cap.for easy removal and easy filling. Chickens are already eating from it.

Class

There are some classy folks at GHS. Some step outside the conventional box. Here are two such men. Be eccentric  Gulfport.

Consistency

I am 41 years old. Lack of consistency has kicked my butt for years. It is a battle I am ever fighting. But it is necessary. You can not live life properly and inconsistently. Not that you can't be spontaneous, but some parts of my life have to be consistent. Same God. Same wife. Same family. Same home. And this sounds like it goes without saying to some of you. But look at people who's life is a wreck. What are they inconsistent with? Family and God. Now I have been blessed with these as constants in my life. Praise be to the Lord. But other areas in my life are rocked by inconsistency but need it just as much. School/work disciplines, exercise, time alone in God's word. The list goes on. Being consistent doesn't mean simplifying your life but that can help. A lot! But also adding to your life the things that are important. For me homesteading has been very helpful. Daily chores like feeding chickens and rabbits; home maintenance, etc. A schedule. The" do-it-now" philosophy. All these things have been helpful. I recommend consistency even if you have to fight for it.

Granny

Granny's laying green. She laid yesterday. I hope she lays today. Six chickens, One egg a day is bad math.

Shadow

This is the new homestead dog. We got her yesterday afternoon. She will provide protection for the urban farm, companionship to our daughter Eva, and motivation to exercise for me. Her name is Shadow and she is our new baby girl.

An egg a day

I am anxious for my chickens to be settled in and each of them laying an egg a day. Is that's much to ask?

Chicken Little? no, I chicken a lot!

I know that I do not keep this blog up and going much, but perhaps that will change...

I have jumped on the homesteading band wagon. I didn't know there was one till I started taking an interested in this stuff. Then, while researching, I came across a ton of it. Anyhow I am in, and i am hooked.

Let me summarize. We have 6 hens, 3 rabbits, several raised beds for veggies, about 8 blueberry bushes, 4 rain barrels, brew beer, can food, and bake breads.

Now let me give you some details. This didn't happen all at once. My memory is horrible so I cannot tell you the order it happened in. All I know is 4 or five years ago none of this was true. Now I have an urban farm. my favorite part this far is the chickens.