postcards from Texas

The Mulder family is off the farm this week visiting KatieKate’s motherland of Texas.

I’ll be posting postcards every day this week!  Y’all come back now, ya here?

freedom ranger chicks, 5 thru 7 weeks old

Sorry for the delay, Folks.  The Mulder fam went camping for a week and a half- and I did not take the chickens or the computer with me.  I did manage to take some pictures before we left (top: 5 weeks old), and then some today (bottom: 7 weeks old).  The 6th week is gone forever… with their baby feathers. I was shocked to find them all looking like full-grown birds upon our return.  No more junior high… these peeps are varsity now.

I’m not sure if you know this, but chickens aren’t the brightest of the animal kingdom.  It’s fine.  They don’t have to do my taxes or anything, but MAN if they could just figure out that sleeping IN the coop is so. much. safer. than perching outside.  Every night after dusk I shoo/herd/man-handle the 10 or so rebels that nestle down just outside the coop window and put them inside for safe-keeping.  Granted, they are getting a bit crowded for the mini-coop, and I need to work on an overflow area so they can be contained but roomy after dark.

They are so much heavier/denser than my egg layers.  It’s wild.  They continue to burn through the feed- at least 50# every 5 days.  It’s all in one barrel now, so I can no longer keep track of bags depleted.  I know I bought 1 bag of starter mash and 14 bags of broiler mash all total.  We’ll see what’s left at the end… if any.  Now that they are old enough to graze and wander, they’ve added grass and hay and bugs and veggie scraps to their diet.

I think they’re pretty happy.  Stinky (as we all are after bedding down with 49 of our closest friends for 2 months), but happy.

These bottom pictures crack me up.  If they look like they’re ticked at me, it’s because they are.  It’s beautiful afternoon here and they simply don’t want to be bothered with photo shoots.

freedom ranger chicks, 4 weeks old

Annnnnnd, we’ve reached the month mile-marker.  50 chicks, all still happy, all still sassy.  Their sass is actually increasing to compensate for the awkwardness they feel in losing their baby feathers.  There’s a bit of Saved By the Bell action going on in there… lots of posturing, lots of flapping, lots of mischief.

This week, they’ve killed another 50# bag of feed and I have officially let them out of the circular pen to wander at will during daylight.  They still choose to stay close to the water and mound of grain but are learning to explore and peck with each day.  It’s hard to remember they’re only a month old… they’re enormous!

freedom ranger chicks, 3 weeks old

The Freedom Ranger meat chickens are now 3 weeks old!  Tonight they graduated to an outdoor pen which will allow them to roam and hunt and peck a bit during the day.  They will still sleep in the minicoop at night to protect them from critters.  You can see the skepticism on some of their faces… it took a bit of convincing before the first few would venture outside.  Chickens.

As of today, they have finished their 2nd 50# bag of feed.  That’s right: 1 week.  Let it not be said that I am not feeding them well. 

freedom ranger chicks, 2 weeks old

Our chicks are now 2 weeks old and SASSY.  Non-blurry photos are almost impossible… these guys are so active now!  They are already so much bigger than your average egg-layer chick.  You can feel the muscles in their little bodies under all that fluff.  As of today, they have finished their first 50# bag of food. 

The first picture is just a quick snap… it was taken immediately after I had to chase 45 of them down in my yard when they escaped their outdoor pen fencing.  I thought, incorrectly, that they would be too big to fit through the holes.  I was immediately and shamefully proven wrong.  Never fear: everyone is reluctantly back in the coop.  Tomorrow, I will head out to the farm store for supplies to make them a nice, portable, lightweight, and un-escapable outdoor pen so they can graze at-will. 

Crazy birds.

freedom ranger chicks, 1 week old

After one week, the chickies are super cute.  They performed well for their first photo shoot and are a huge hit with the kids.  We check on them multiple times a day.  The heat lately is fabulous for them as they begin to grow into grown-up feathers, but they are going through 3 gallons of water every day!

and the adventure begins

Regular Monday/Thursday postings are on a little break for awhile, but I wanted to pop in and let you know that the 55 Freedom Ranger chicks for our first Old School class arrived this morning!

At 5:45am.  Yes, ma’am.

They arrive by priority mail (naturally) in a ventilated cardboard box.  Chicks can survive for 2 days without food or water, thanks to the super-duper eggshell they are born in.  Eggs are amazing.  This allows them to be shipped pretty much anywhere.  These chicks were born Wednesday at 9am and were sitting at the post office bright and early this morning.

We chose Freedom Rangers (awesome name) from Pennsylvania. (website HERE)  They’ll grow with us for 10 weeks and then they’ll become, sigh, food.  That’s it.  Ten weeks.  These birds grow crazy fast.  We outfitted the mini-coop with a sliding plexi-glass window/door that allows for easy viewing.  In 3 weeks, the chicks will be allowed to graze outside and then return to the coop for bed. 

So, come on out and visit!  They’ll be here until Saturday, September 24th.   Bring your own chair because it doesn’t look like these kiddos are moving any time soon!

Blessings,

KatieKate

new digs

Curt returned from a business trip to Birmingham last night… we are fortunate to know some really incredible people down South, and we are so blessed to say they are all unharmed.  Everyone has such remarkable stories.  No one in the area has gone untouched- either physically or emotionally- from the fury that tore through last week.  If you have the means, may I recommend donating to the American Red Cross?  Growing up in a military family, the ARC was our emergency connection to home, and it will always stand for help and rescue in my book.

• • • • • • •

the mini-coop

I’d like to show you the new digs for our little peeps… finished and relocated on Sunday.  The mini-coop was designed and built entirely by Curt.  I believe I asked for “a box that opens.” I love my husband.

On Friday (before the coop was finished because that is how we so often roll) we managed to bring home 15 buff orpingtons that were ‘on sale’ at the local feed store.  One dollar each.  These ladies were a bit older than the other chicks, and I think the store was hoping to reduce their stock a bit.  Sure. Why not?

Chickens live to be about 7 years old.  Not that I’d personally know that.  We’ve had so many, erm, non-Disney-esque incidents that I no longer blink when a few ladies don’t punch their time cards in the morning.  Fencing and shelter are simply no match for our regular relentless visitors of raccoon, opossum, fox, hawk, and neighbor dog.  Also, sometimes I forget to close their door at night.  Because I am a terrible person and my children have caused me to lose. my. brain.  In my defense, it was never my life dream to be a Chicken Lady.  We got our first batch of chickens by accident and it just kind of went from there. 

Initially, I has grand visions of my children sitting on the porch, hugging their favorite fluffy bird and reading it bedtime stories. Big heart laugh, glowing smile, sunshine all the time.  Our reality at TexasNorth is a bit more practical. No names, no leashes, no serious long-term attachment.  Easy come, easy go.

Despite what our history implies, we do very much love our birds.  They’re super fun to watch.  Their compost supplements our garden and they eat oodles of bugs.  Not to mention, their eggs are fantastic.

This will house chicks, present and future, until they get their license to be with the big girls.  The mini-coop addition measures 4 feet by 6 feet and has 3 roof sections that open.  There’s also a side door (not quite finished yet) that will eventually give them access to the great outdoors and allow me to clean ‘er out.  The wood is left over from the basement project, and the roofing is left over from the big coop. Mini will get some blue paint and stars soon to dress her up, but for now we’re just concentrating on survivial.   These ladies are about a month old.  They’ll start laying eggs around 6 months of age and will continue for about 2 years.

Lord willing.

Obviously, they could use your prayers.

We should have bought more birds.

*sigh*

building coop #1  •  building coop #2  •  our first chicks

mini-coops

One thing I’ve noticed about living out-of-town is the measures folks will go to in order to make it work.  If last Thursday’s post didn’t convince you, let me try again.

Back in the day, you lived with your family until you got married.  You moved into a modest home, often only one or two rooms, and started your own family.  As your spacial needs grew and the snow thawed, rooms were added to homes and chicken coops and barns to accommodate new members and machines that needed cover.  You didn’t move.  Families stayed on the same property for generations, for better or for worse.

It’s rare these days to see expansion.  We see upgrading- moving into a bigger home, buying a bigger shed, tearing down and starting over.  But, we rarely see additions anymore. They make us think of poverty, Grapes of Wrath, Materials and personal lack-of-know-how have rendered the addition impractical.  It’s simply cheaper to move. 

We’re not moving.

But, we will need more space.  Eventually, a living addition with a bedroom and garage will be added to The Shoebox.  We finished half the basement just before SuperKid arrived, giving Rylie a bedroom of her own and a living room with carpet GodblessAmerica.  The bigger addition will not be needed for a while, but we’re going to start practicing.

We’ll be adding on to the chicken coop to make room for little peeps this summer.  Baby chicks need their own space until they are bigger enough to run with the big girls.  The big girls, well… they’re a bit like high school girls, if you catch my drift.  A little clique-ish, a little mean to newcomers. They need their space.

The mini-coop will be small enough that it will be impossible for me to become entrapped within.  Phew!  It will be large enough to hold chicks for a couple of months, and it will connect to the enclosed chicken yard to allow for exercise when they’re up for it. Ry has requested a little peep-hole to check on the birdies without taking the roof off, and that is brilliant.  We’re going to keep that kid.

I am simply the visionary around here.  The Boy does the heavy lifting.  But, we make a good team. 

And, a good home.

What would you change about your house, if you could?  Push out the kitchen?  Add another bathroom?  Create a mudroom?

autographs

UNO:

Hey.  Wanna play?  Great.  I made a Flickr Group… because, apparently anyone can.  It’s HERE.  What I’d like to do is create a gallery of TexasNorth history.  Pictures from visits, pictures of folks in their TXN hoodies and ringer tees, and pictures of things I’ve made/created/challenged you to do.  There are photos on Facebook (HERE), but you can’t ‘tag’ TexasNorth.  I have files of celebration banners and pillows and aprons I’ve made, but I want to see them out in the real world an in action! 

So if you have a great photo of TexasNorth, please post it there.  Flickr is free to join and a great way to catalog your photos online.  If you DON’T want join but have a photo to share, just email it to me: katiemulder(at)gmail(dot)com.

This leads me to a question. 

DOS:

Because my life is boring and devoid of creativity, I have decided to take on the creation of the TexasNorth website myself.  Ok, erase that first part.  I just really think I can do it. In my spare time.  Ok, erase that last part. I’m making the website.  Period.  I need a new name for the etsy/crafting side of things so it can have its own life. 

The farm… this place… is TexasNorth.  The blog is Apple Pie, Anyone?  I usually go by KatieKate in cyberworld.  What should the name of the shoppe be?  Most of my best ideas have come from or been inspired by YOU, not the least of which was the name of the farm [CHRIS DORNAN]… I believe in you.  Kind opinions welcome.

THREE:

This conversation did not get the play it deserved last week on tumblr, so I am reposting it to get your weekend started off with a giggle:

I am putting the chickens back in the car after a short visit at Rylie’s preschool for “Farm Day.”  A little blonde boy is watching me from the chain link fence.

“Those are YOUR chickens!?”

“Yep,” I say… feeling pretty cool.

[big pause as he takes it all in]

“Rylie’s Mom?”

“Yeah?”

“You can have my autograph if you want.”