Spring has Sprung

Ahhh… spring.

I have spent all winter thinking about what we would be doing through the spring and summer (of course the two most beautiful seasons in Washington!). And now that spring is finally here, I feel as if I have already fallen behind! The garden should have been started, I would like to have had the chickens already, the yard needs work, the roof needs replaced… the list goes on.

Realistically I should be planting right about now. The lettuce and broccoli would have withstood the last few frosts that we have had recently, but I think the warmer weather plants, like tomatoes and corn, may not have made it through the cold spring start. Never the less, we should have already prepped the garden for planting.

I really am avoiding it… as once the garden is done for the winter, we don’t weed until we plant again. As you can imagine the weeds take control and flourish and it will be a solid day of weeding and soil prepping.

As for progress on the chicken coop, I have finally found some time to invest in it!

After much deliberation with Jordan about whether or not to paint the coop, I have decided that in the interest of preserving it through the elements, it must be painted. Unfortunately, I had no idea what a monumental task it would be to find paint that would be safe for the chickens! I called store after store, and spoke with too many irritated paint counter clerks. After about the 10th store, I finally found a paint that would suffice.

To sum it all up, I found paint that was non-toxic and USDA approved for use in contact with farm animals and food. Apparently the paint that we all buy at Home Depot and use on the walls in our homes is pretty toxic to most living things when ingested or when it comes into contact with food. It makes me wonder what would happen if we started licking the walls… would we grow a third hand or ear? Either way, we have no need for those chemicals around the food that we are going to eat.

As soon as I got home with the paint I started to it. In order to best protect the coop from all the rain, it was recommended that I put a double coat of primer on the whole thing. I had no idea what a task it was to just get the whole coop primer-ed! For mobility and ease of painting, I thought it best to paint the individual disassembled pieces of the coop. This way I could easily paint the pieces in the front yard if the weather would allow, or I could move them into the garage and still continue to paint regardless of what mother nature was tossing at me.

As expected, it rained and I did most of my painting in the garage. What a surprise.

It took me about 7 hours to just get the two coats of primer done! I had honestly thought that I would have been done painting the whole thing in 4! So, by the end of this evening, I have only gotten one of eight pieces with the first coat of ‘communist grey’ one the siding of the actual coop portion. I was highly disappointed in the lack of instant gratification.

As I have been busting my butt all day, I think that this is where I will close for today. I have a one hour shower ahead of me to try and scrub all the primer of my hands and face. I am not a very clean painter, it looks like I was trying to paint my hands as and arms as well as the coop.

I will try and get some of the picture of the coop uploaded tomorrow.

Good Night For Now.