It's finally beginning to look a little brighter out there

Hello adventurers,

Much has transpired since our last chat in February. I hope you are all well, and enjoying the arrival of spring (you took long enough, Spring. See if you can schedule a little closer to March next year, okay?).

In the time since we last convened, there have been some exciting additions to the backyard, or as I like to call it, "Second Chance Ranch". For those of you who follow me on FB, you'll know all about dear deformed Sweetie Bird, who came to me in January after I discovered to my horror that 2 out of 3 of my original "hens" I raised since chick-hood turned out to be ROOSTERS. This is not supposed to happen! As sad as I was to see them go (they were the coolest of the 3 chickens in the coop; the remaining (and only) hen in the group is a flat-out tyrant), I was excited to acquire a hen in need of a nurturing place where she could roam free on her mangled foot, without fear of harassment from her peers.

Yes, that's right. I've created a sling for her, and I'm holding her as I do my housework. She loves it.

Sweetie has a deformed foot, and the "good" foot is gnarled. So I guess she has two deformed feet, but one is way worse than the other. Her gimpy walking style made her a target in her family chicken yard, so her guardians thought she might be better off in a kinder, gentler coop. And so did I...until I tried to introduce her to the red hen, aka, The Tyrant.

It didn't work.

So now Sweetie Bird has her own coop (actually a rabbit hutch), and The Tyrant has her own coop. Which is why I decided to get two new chicks in March, thus creating the need for a third coop.

Babies! This time, we got two sexlink chicks, to ensure womanhood in four months.

So now it's all about finding the most concise way to house everybody happily without turning my yard into a full-on Sanford and Sons Salvage Yard.

Oh, Lamont. You were my personal fashion idol back in those days. You and Loretta Lynn.

I'm seeing photos of some pretty impressive and grand coop designs, and I am trying to keep mine simple and easy enough to build that even the village idiot I can handle it. If you have suggestions, I'm all ears. Throw them my way. In the days to come, I will share with you some of my ideas and plans, and you can tell me what you think looks good, and what's just plain nutso crazy.

Have a great day, everyone! Watch out for the Evil Eye:

Aunt Esther!