New Stuffs!

We went out tonight and did a little shopping!  First, we went to Home Depot (my favorite DIY store) and picked up Play Sand for the chicks to take "dust baths" in...clean chickies, woot!  While I was there, I picked up a staple gun (can you believe I've gone this long without one?) and staples to go with it.  My plan id to get the hardware cloth outside and get the edges that need it attached to the coop so I can start painting!  After the painting is done (on the outside anyway), we can get the wire mesh (we're using 2"x4" and 1/2"x1/2") up and enclose the run!  Then, of course, I need to get a door built so I can get in, lol.

I never knew there was such a large range of staplers to choose from...we got a mid-range one that happens to be the exact kind my Mother has (and I have used before).  It works "backwards" from a normal "cheap" one, but once you get used to it, it works great!

We went with the 3/8" staples...I hope they work, lol!

When we got home, I got the sand opened up (inside a large planter I have) and I got a 12" skillet that I've been saving just for the chickens out to fill up with sand for a "chick sized" dust bath in the brooder.  That tub is sure filling up fast!  Who knew chicks would "need" that much space?  Of course, they don't really need the dust bath or the stick/roost, or even the feather duster for that matter!  But, it does make them happier having things to play with other than each other.  But, the sand was wet inside the bag!  I hadn't expected that, lol.  I was expecting to come home, dump a little sand in a tray and let them have some fun!  I suppose the fun will have to wait a day...  As for the skillet, well...that was a $20 purchase at Ross when we were looking for a nice, large, flat bottomed pan.  It worked great the first time we used it!  I even hand washed the darned thing because it's too big to go in the dishwasher!  But, apparently water somehow got between the layers of metal on the bottom of the pan.  The second time I used it (making a modified version of Chicken Cordon Bleu), when the oil/butter in the pan was nice and hot (and browning my diced chicken), something exploded within the layers of the bottom of the pan, sending it off the stove!  Luckily, I had my hands on both handles when it happened, so it didn't get very far, but it did launch hot grease and raw chicken in my direction!  After that, we dumped the cooking food in another pan, washed this one up and I decided it was going to be the chickens "treat" pan!  This was way back in December or January...long before we had even ordered our chicks, lol.  I'll still use it for their treats when they get bigger, but for now...it's just the right size for dust baths!

I also got a little painting done today...I got the first coat of primary color on the picture frames for the boys, as well as three coats of the chalkboard paint on the fronts of all three!  They look really cool, but need to cure for 24 hours before I can do anything else with them.  Once they've dried and cured, I'll tape of the edges and give the side edges a few more coats of the yellow, red, and blue.  Then, I need to decide what color to paint the fourth one, lol.  I can either paint it the same as one of the ones going to my sister's kids...or do it a completely different color.  I'm still waiting on my other half to decide if he wants to send one to our nephew on his side of the family...  Pics to come when I get them all painted...they look a bit like a 10 year old did them at the moment, lol.  I even have the chalk to go with them!  They're going to make great Easter gifts!