Our Father’s Day

Posted by Matthew in Chickens, Journal on Jun 21st, 2010 | 1 comment

We had a nice Father’s Day at our house yesterday. We started off the festivities with a game of Wiffle Ball (me against the three oldest) and then capture the flag (we made up our own every-man-for-himself version). Then we sat on the front porch and enjoyed a glass of iced tea. Then we fired up my new grill (Father’s Day present) for some burgers. Caleb helped me flip them. You can see Samantha in the background – her first cookout!

As the grill was heating up, it reminded us of sitting around a campfire, so we decided to build a fire and roast marshmallows. Well, that got us to thinking about camping and so we decided to go ahead and set up the tent and sleep outside! We all had a great time together! I am so thankful for my children; they are blessing from God.

Josiah is posing that he is in the middle of a bite.

You can see the chickens in the background. They are growing fast! We should have some eggs by October.

Movable Chicken Coop

Posted by Matthew in Chickens, Home Education, Journal, Pictures on Jun 4th, 2010 | 2 comments

We finished building our movable chicken coop yesterday. It is made out of PVC pipe, a little re-bar, some wood reinforcement, chicken-wire, and a tarp. It houses up to around 25 chickens and is light weight so that it can be moved each day. So in addition to their feed, they get fresh grass and bugs all the time. A friend of mine designed the coop and sent me instructions on how to build it. The kids did a great job helping me build it. Our little chickens moved into it yesterday and seem to be happy. So far, so good.

Chick Update

Posted by Matthew in Chickens, Journal, Pictures on May 18th, 2010 | 2 comments

We have been asked from time to time how are chicks are doing (more specifically “Are they still alive?”). We are glad to report that all 24 chicks are still alive and rapidly moving into chickenhood. Here a picture of them about a week ago.

A unrelated, random update: Over the winter Caleb started digging a hole in our garden. By the time Spring hit, it was deep enough for him to stand in!

Our Chicks Are Here!

Posted by Matthew in Chickens, Journal, Pictures on Apr 26th, 2010 | 3 comments

We had an exciting new addition to our home over the weekend: twenty-four new chicks. As I wrote before, we are going to raise chickens primarily for eggs. We ordered twenty-five Rhode Island Reds (one didn’t survive the trip) from Welp Hatchery. We received a call on Friday morning from the post office informing us they had arrived. I could hear the chicks peeping in the background as I told him I would be there in a couple of hours to pick them up. I was surprised how small the box was that they came in:

Here I am opening the box to put them in their new, cozy home.

It didn’t take them long to adjust.

The children immediately wanted to hold them. This one Caleb is holding was good enough to look at the camera and smile.

Raising Chickens

Posted by Matthew in Chickens, Home Education, Journal on Mar 5th, 2010 | 7 comments

We have decided to raise chickens. Here are the reasons why:

1. To have fresh, natural eggs.
2. To save money on buying eggs (which we eat a lot of and which are expensive if you buy higher quality eggs).
3. To save money on buying chicken. Once the chickens quit laying well, we will butcher them for meat.
4. To press on in our journey to be resourceful, healthy, and self-sufficient.
5. To use as a source of education for the whole family.

I have learned that Rhode Island Red chickens are good for both eggs and meat. So, we are going to order 25 chicks from Welp Hatchery.  Here is my list of things to get so we are ready to care for that many chicks:

• Construct a 13 square foot, 18 inch high cardboard box
• Bedding – peat moss or wood chips
• Chick feed – 50lbs, 20% protein
• Heat lamp
• Thermometer
• One gallon waterer