Pix of my chicken house and their run

[RoseMarie1]

It's a good thing to just sit still and know He is God. I've been cultivating that seems like all my life as it's hard to get some time alone when you are the youngest of nine kids. Then Dad had us working every spare moment when we were homesteading, so getting time to just BE was difficult, but I knew it needed to happen for me to maintain any sanity in life. Time to think, look, take a deep breath and talk to the Lord.

When I was working my most stressful nursing jobs I'd take a moment out of the day to just shut it all out, even if it was only to go to the bathroom and stay there for awhile. I think a person can get caught up in the whirlwind of life and forget that nothing of what goes on in our regular day is as important as quiet time doing one on one with God. Ya miss that, you've missed the whole point in life!

I've tried to teach it to the boys also, so we'd often have camp fires in the yard on the weekends to just sit out and stare into the fire, talk a little, laugh a lot and just BE together without any distractions. Sometimes we'd go out in the colder months when the meteors are really falling, bundle up in down comforters, lay out in the yard and see how many we could count, talk about things, talk to God, etc.

This old world is an amazing place and I don't want to miss any of it if I can help it...and then I can compare it to when it's all made anew. Can't wait!!!

HOW did I KNOW you were going to say that?

I knew it! That's JUST what I thought about to. Several years ago we did an Experiencing God class and every week that's what I was getting out my each weeks lesson but still wasn't being still. He was TRYING to tell me something and I didn't get it. THEN a little while later I ruptured the disk in my back, guess what I was then after months of going and going and going and getting it nice and inflamed? YUP still flat on my back in bed couldn't walk for 3 months in mega mega pain. I still have fits being still if I am not doing something with my hands. When I am doing I am always praying and I go all day with a prayer on my lips but to be still, man it's hard but I still am trying to do it. I guess I'm getting better than I used to be but still not enough.
Me to on can't wait!

life will be soooo much easier and so much less stress and strife. Singing and praising oh man what a day that will be!

 

[Messipaw]

 

[RoseMarie1]

that's very nice!

 

[Andykronsch]

very nice. big!!

 

[RoseMarie1]

Eating from their grazing frames.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=592005090858384

 

[RoseMarie1]

Here's a close up one.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=592007334191493

 

[MistyMountain]

Hello, I have a question on your deep litter. I read here and there about using pine needles and dried leaves. Do you use this in the coop as well as the run? Do you use this alone or with shavings? I have a TON of trees losing leaves and a number of pine groves that I could rake under. I won't have a run for my chickens, as they will be free range, but would like to save whatever I can on the bedding inside the coop. Thanks!!

 

[RoseMarie1]

Hello, I have a question on your deep litter. I read here and there about using pine needles and dried leaves. Do you use this in the coop as well as the run? Do you use this alone or with shavings? I have a TON of trees losing leaves and a number of pine groves that I could rake under. I won't have a run for my chickens, as they will be free range, but would like to save whatever I can on the bedding inside the coop. Thanks!!

oh yes that's what I use, leaves and pine straw or pine needles whichever one wants to call it. I have very little pine shavings in there though but would use them if I could get my hands on some for free since this is a very large run and chicken pen.
I did put some pine shavings in the run that I had left over from my chickens when they were chicks.

 

[RoseMarie1]

Got another egg today. This was her first egg and the reason I say that is I got TWO EGGS today so that's how I know!!! Yep I did! Those Aussies combs and wattles are getting red to so it's just a matter of time now for them laying from what everyone says.
The RIR hen that has been laying for a week now, her eggs are getting larger as you can see in the pic below.





Then a pic of the two together. Needless to say I am a happy camper getting TWO eggs and they both seem to want to lay in the same box on the north. lol


Got the board up on the bottom of the nesting box so their nesting area would be deeper. I put those dishpans in there nesting area and they couldn't keep their straw and stuff in there. I think this will be better now since it's a little deeper now. I added more straw and leaves to check it out with. Hopefully she's be able to get in it with no trouble.


Then here she is checking it out. They are very nosey when it comes to these nest.

 

[RoseMarie1]

The last post to he left was as long as it used to be before we tore it out. I just left the litter on place.




Another shot of a different angle. We put all the stumps on top of the grazing frames because we had a hole at the very bottom and we didn't want anything to be able to get inside there.



Notice the difference in the soils where the deep litter was pulled back to allow us to get at the 1x4's to take them out. Anyway notice the soil by the chair and ladder, see how whitish looking it is? Notice the deep color of the soil that was under the litter.

Bee notice the RIR toward the top of the pic off to the left of it. She is in the cows run that connects all these cow pastures together around us. That's where the DL is coming from.



We redid their feeding trough to. I wanted to hang it to get it off the ground AND move it as well since it was in a very narrow area. NOW I can get around them when they're feeding from both sides.



Nesting area all fixed up except for their closed in fence on the left side. GOT to get that done to.



LOL STILL working that DL even though it's not in the pen right now.

Man kind looking back at this post trying to find my hanging feeder so I can share it with someone and cannot believe HOW MUCH my chickens have grown since this post. WOW