First Taste of Freedom

Freedom Feathers: Our Chicken Yard is FINALLY Done!

Chickens? Yep, we got those.

Coop? Check.

Dry run? Check.

Fenced yard? Um… not until TODAY! Woooohooo!

This has been such a long time coming. Building a safe, spacious yard for our feathered babies has taken months—and more work than I ever would’ve guessed. All of it was done in my husband’s “free time,” which, let’s be honest, barely exists. He hasn’t had a real day off in ages. (I owe you big time, babe.)

The chicks had been living in brooders and small pens for what felt like forever. Then came the big upgrade to the coop and dry run—a definite step up, but still not quite enough space. Since full-on free-ranging isn't an option for us (possums and foxes and hawks, oh my!), we knew from the start we’d need to build them a proper yard.

Let me tell you, this project has been a journey. Between drilling fence posts into frozen ground, shoveling snow, and then navigating sloppy, gloppy, ankle-deep mud once the thaw came… well, I now have a whole new appreciation for fences. But we pushed through, and today, it’s finally DONE.

It was worth every backache and muddy boot.

Watching our flock step out into their new yard for the very first time was magical. They tentatively waddled out the door—some nervously pecking at patches of snow, others sipping from puddles or scratching in the decaying pine needles and leaves, hunting for bugs and seeds.

Then came the moment of joy. Full-body chicken joy.

They started running—that funny little toddler waddle-run that makes me laugh every time—and stretching their wings to test the air. A few brave ones even gave flying a try (nearly sending me into cardiac arrest thinking they’d launch themselves over the fence).

After so many cramped weeks and so much hard work, seeing them feel the sunshine on their backs and the breeze in their feathers was enough to make me tear up.

Happiness is a finished chicken yard.

For them and for me.