Well,our chicks are 19 days old today. We started off with two houses worth of chicks in one house (double brooding). Thursday a catch crew came and moved half of each house to the house next door. We had birds in houses 2, 4, 6, 8 & 10 and now we have birds in all ten houses. It was a lot of work getting the odd number houses ready to receive birds and the even number houses ready for the catch crew to have room to work. Patrick and I worked from 4 am to about 7 pm two days in a row, but now that part is over. The really great news is that double brooding was an experiment. All the other, experienced growers absolutely hated it and so our boss has decided it wasn't worth all the work. This means our next flock should be a lot easier.
At any rate, we have been able to get done with our main chores by lunch, which gets me back in the house with the kids where I want to be. It has also allowed Patrick the time to finally finish painting the girls' room. Today we stared bringing in all their things and as I type they are nestled snug in their very own bed quietly reading books. I will post pictures of their room in the near future.
We have also robbed our camper of its couch and two recliners for our living room. It's all coming together. Patrick needs to make some bookshelves for our massive library, then we can get the rest of our boxes unpacked. We just talked tonight about doing something rustic (i.e. cheap and easy). We sure wish we still had access to Glen and Bill's mill.
The weather has been cold, but not bad. We have had a few mornings that the temperature was in the 20's (once it was 18). The wind is the killer. If the wind isn't blowing we have found we can tolerate it so far. The temperature in the chicken houses is about 80 degrees. We bundle up in layers and our Blizzard Pruf (that's how they spell it) jackets and then shed them just before we enter the chicken house. Depending on what we need to do, sometimes we end up getting so hot we sweat and then the cold air outside feels good for a minute and then we bundle up again. It's really like having a cold Oklahoma winter with a touch of Florida, smelly of course ; )
Well, I just wanted to post an update. It has been a while since our last one and I wanted you all to know we are doing well. We love and miss you all.
Our Family
Patrick, KelliPaige, Sadie (18), Daniel (14), & Emilie (9),
4 comments:
Dear Franklins, we enjoyed reading your descriptions, and Danny especially can empathize, since he had to milk the cow growing up in the Indiana cruel winters! He says that cow's body was nice and warm after trekking out to the barn in the cold.
Well, God bless you as you get accustomed to such a different lifestyle. We are praying for you and really proud of you for sticking it out. Hopefully, we can see you on our next trip up to MO.
Blessings and Love,
The Frodges
Hello Franklins,
It sounds like y'all are getting settled in pretty well. One good thing about working with chicks in the winter is their need for constant heat, so at least you can stay warm in the barns! How are he children adjusting to chicken farming, and how are all of your personal animals doing? Thanks for the update...we enjoy keeping in touch with everyone.
God Bless,
Katie
Thanks for updating. We are so glad that you are getting the hang of it! That's some learning curve! So glad you are finally getting some down time. We're really proud of you! Hope to see you soon on our own chicken farm :)
Love,
The Dischers
Hey Guys,
We have been trying to figure out what happened to you all. We lost contact well over a year ago. Our new email is cjjdriggers@comcast.net
We need to catch up. It seems that you all have moved yet again and we have moved to two different states this year as well. Shoot us an email soon. Miss you guys.
Chad, Joy, and Jaxson
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