pics and a coop update

Submitted by fluidambition on Fri, 04/23/2010 - 19:59.

Managed to get a picture of a few of them sleeping together. I put a branch in there for them to roost on, but I've only seen one of them sit on it so far, and that was for a brief period. Maybe they need some time, or maybe the branch is too slick since some of the bark came off. I'll look around for a different one tomorrow.

DH and I both took the day off work today, and the environmentally friendly wood treatment that I mentioned arrived on Monday as scheduled, so we completed the sanding and wood treatment. We wasted so much time trying to sand the frame by hand because I was resistant to renting an electric sander. For DH, if a mechanical solution can make the job more efficient, that's the way he goes. I tend to shy away from power tools, and I especially don't like spending money to buy or rent them. But I will be more open to power tools in the future since the electric sander saved us a ton of time and effort -- the lumber had stamped markings that needed to be sanded off so they weren't visible on the finished coop.

In any case, having the girls home with us means that our deadline is much more tangible, though I prefer spending time with them over most other tasks. The building process should be faster and more enjoyable now that the tedious sanding and treating step is finished... Then again, we have a lot of digging to do, so we have more tedious, backbreaking work ahead of us. Plus, we still need to figure out how to cut the rafters.