The kids have wanted chickens for years. I love animals and my husband grew up on a farm so we liked the idea as well. However, the timing just never seemed right. Last December, we stumbled across a good deal online for a chicken coop and we finally decided to go for it. I did a TON of research on chicken breeds. My husband said I was just a tad obsessed but I wanted to make sure we got ones that would be a good match for our family. I searched for gentle breeds that were good with kids but also decent egg layers. A friend of mine had ordered chicks from chickensforbackyards.com and had had a great experience plus they let you order as few as 3 chicks which was a huge plus! We ended up ordering a Buff Orpington, a Barred Plymouth Rock, an Ameraucana (Easter Egger), and a Light Brahma. I placed the order in late December and eagerly awaited the February hatch date. We got the call from the post office on February 24th that they had arrived and I immediately went to pick them up. I knew there as a slight possibility that one may have died in transit so I was a little nervous to open the box. However, when I opened the box, I found not 4 but 6 happy, peeping 2 day old chicks! The company had sent a couple extras 
They were absolutely adorable!! Just little fluffy balls of cuteness! The kids were so excited and so was I. My husband thought i was crazy but I insisted on keeping their bin in our master bathroom tub at first. My maternal side was worried about them and wanted them were I could keep an eye on them. I knew keeping them warm was super important and I became the temp natzi. I must have check the temp in their box 6-7 times a day! Thanks to my friend. I also knew we had to watch for “pasty butt”. It’s pretty much exactly what it sounds like and can be deadly if left alone. I washed several chicken rears in those first couple of weeks!
I was amazed at how fast they grew and within a couple of weeks, their fuzz was disappearing and feathers were taking it’s place. I thought of this as their awkward teenage period. Here are Ginger, Pepper, Nova, Tangen (name after a pet rooster my oldest had at my parents’ house when he was three), Purple Sofia (named by Little Miss after Sofia the First), and No Name (we purposely didn’t name it just in case Purple Sofia ends up being a rooster! They are both Light Brahmas so we can switch them out 
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This is Ginger, the Buff Orpington. She’s super friendly and has always been the first to come running when I put my hand in the cage
As the chicks grew, we knew it was time to get the coop ready. Since we had ended up with 2 extra, we decided to build a larger run and put the coop inside of it. Plus, our friends had recently lost their entire flock to a fox or coyote so I was paranoid and wanted to build something as predator proof as possible.
N loves helping his dad so he jumped at the chance to help build the run Our yard isn’t the most level so it took some work but we finally got it done.
I have to brag on my hubby. He is great at building things! He put a metal roof on the run and buried the hardware mesh underground. For added protection, he placed flat concrete blocks on top of the mesh before filling it back in with dirt.
At 5 weeks old, we moved the chickens to the garage. The were outgrowing the rubbermaid bin so we moved them to our old metal dog crate. This is also when we started giving them table scraps. You can see the head of cabbage I gave them in the background.
The kids have been really good about helping take care of the chickens. Little Miss is absolutely in love with them and tells Purple Sofia goodbye every time we leave the house. We paid a little extra to have the chicks sexed since we only wanted hens but there is a slight chance we could end up with a rooster. None of them have tried crowing yet so that’s a good sign! It’s fun to see their personalities come out. Pepper (Barred Rock), Ginger, and the 2 Easter Eggers, Nova and Tangen are the most outgoing and friendly. Pepper and Nova seem to be the most curious and the first ones to try new foods. Sofia and No Name are more cautious and shy but are still super gentle when they are being held.
Next week, they will move out to the coop. We’ve put them out there a few times to get them used to it and they seemed to really like it. I’m ready to have them out there (chickens do have a somewhat stinky smell!) but I know I’ll worry at first. I’ve gotten pretty attached to my feathered babies!
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Anybody else have chickens? Any tips?
Belinda is a wife, mom, blogger, and Brand Ambassador. She has six children including 5 boys and 1 girl. Belinda enjoys reading, photography, crafts and DIY projects, and watching her boys play soccer. You may contact Belinda at mudpiesand tiaras at gmail dot com. Click here to meet BelindaThe post Our Backyard Chicken Adventure! appeared first on MudPiesAndTiaras.com.
