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**Welcome Wagon:  Quarter-acre Farmgirl  |
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JimBobAndLarry
Farmgirl in Training
39 Posts
Sarah
Fortville
IN
USA
39 Posts |
 Posted - May 23 2005 : 8:31:07 PM
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Hi!
My Name is Sarah, I'm a Quarter Acre Farmgirl. I live in a Small quirky rural town outside of Indianapolis, Indiana. When I moved into this Big old Yellow House on Main Street (From my three acre homestead) I thought that my farm girl days were over... at least for a while. But then I found out a nifty nugget of little known information about our Town ordinances. Our town zoning allows for agriculture within the town limits, but no confinement feeding operations. Perfect.
I brought home a few laying hens, but my husband had even bigger ideas. He was going to start raising Broilers. He put in an order for 500 baby chicks to be delivered to our front door over the course of the season. The Nursery would be at our house in the mini barn and once the chickens were ready to go out on pasture they would be moved to the Apple Family Farm a couple miles down the road. My husband would tend them twice a day at the farm.
Nice plan, but all did not go as planned. He bought some used pens but they fell apart when he moved then around the pasture. So he planned to build some exquisite new pens in time for the next 100 chicks to move in. Nice plan, but… 7 weeks later there was no longer room for 100 teenage chicks in our mini barn. I whipped out the town ordinance and brought the little line about “No confinement farming in Fortville town limits” He assured me that he would take care of it, and went on with his day.
The next day I took the children outside to play, and there were chickens everywhere! Ugly ones. Everywhere. I was horrified. “Josh! The chicks got loose!”
“I know” He calmly replied.
“What Happened?” I asked as I began franticly gathering up the nearest chicks.
“Well…” He said with a smile” You said no confinement feeding operations. I’m free-rangeing them!”
So this Farmgirl spent the morning catching teenage chicks, then this Farmgirl spent the rest of the day designing and building movable chicken pens.
We no longer have hundreds of chicks in our back yard, but we do have a happy little flock of laying hens, and one broiler. There names are Henny, Pecky, Jim-BobandLarry, Amelia Bedilia, Lucille and Chick-Filet. I did spend some time running around a neighbors bush this morning trying to catch Amelia, and there is nothing more satisfying than finally catching a perky little hen.
A little about me, I have five children ages 4 months to six years, and life is an adventure. The first floor of our big Victorian House is “The Cabbage Head, School of music, Art and Coffee.” Our coffee house is open every Friday evening and I also teach fun skill building workshops for folks in the community. My big adventure is planning and building a rural village outside of Indianapolis that is zoned for home occupations, homesteading, and organic gardening. Find out more about the new town at www.ruralvillage.org.
I’m so happy to be a farm girl!
Thanks for having me here!
Sarah
"Jim-Bob&Larry is the name of my daughter's new laying hen. My little girl is three and she came up with the name all by herself. I'm Sarah." |
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bramble
True Blue Farmgirl
2044 Posts
2044 Posts |
Posted - May 23 2005 : 9:09:41 PM
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Welcome Sarah and crew! What an awesome and amazing dream! Your website is lovely and the Austrian photos are charming. May everything you wish for come to fruition. This is a grand and glorious plan! My best wishes to you all on this adventure! Hope to hear more about it in the future and more from you specifically. Have fun exploring the site!
with a happy heart |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - May 23 2005 : 10:09:20 PM
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You sound like so much fun Sarah!!!! I wish you were my neighbor for sure!!! Welcome to our little farmgirl family!!
Jenny in Utah
Bloom where you are planted! |
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jpbluesky
True Blue Farmgirl
6066 Posts
Jeannie
Florida
USA
6066 Posts |
Posted - May 24 2005 : 4:32:34 PM
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Wow Sarah! Welcome!
jpbluesky
Heaven gives its glimpses only to those
Not in position to look too close.
from "A Passing Glimpse" by Robert Frost |
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catscharm74
True Blue Farmgirl
4687 Posts
Heather
Texas
USA
4687 Posts |
Posted - May 24 2005 : 5:19:19 PM
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| Welcome, Sounds like you keep busy..have fun here..I am new and already am!!! |
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Nicol
True Blue Farmgirl
200 Posts
Nicol
200 Posts |
Posted - May 25 2005 : 1:06:00 PM
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| Welcome Sarah! Your story is hilarious. I can just picture all those chicks running around your yard! I bet I would love your coffee house. It sounds like my kind of thing. Thanks for sharing with us. |
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Kim
True Blue Farmgirl
146 Posts
Kim
Pflugerville
Texas
USA
146 Posts |
Posted - May 25 2005 : 5:59:19 PM
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Hi, Sarah! Are you on the n, s, e, or w side of Indy? My college roomate was from the far south side of Indy. We went to Indiana University
farmgirl@heart
Be at peace with yourself and the rest will follow |
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JimBobAndLarry
Farmgirl in Training
39 Posts
Sarah
Fortville
IN
USA
39 Posts |
Posted - May 28 2005 : 11:48:32 AM
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we are on the north east side of indy
"Jim-Bob&Larry is the name of my daughter's new laying hen. My little girl is three and she came up with the name all by herself. I'm Sarah." |
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westernhorse51
True Blue Farmgirl
1681 Posts
michele
farmingdale
n.j.
USA
1681 Posts |
Posted - May 28 2005 : 6:09:50 PM
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WOW Sarah!!!! welcome. You are one busy lady. I was on your site. Its going to be BIG!! Great ideas, great concepts. Good luck and welcome. Michele
"she selects wool and flax and works with eager hands". Prov. 31:13 |
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countrykat
True Blue Farmgirl
85 Posts
kathy
paola
kansas
USA
85 Posts |
Posted - May 28 2005 : 10:49:02 PM
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Hi Sarah,
Love the chicken story. We are also raising laying hens, 60 odd chickens, and we free-range for real. Some days they are all over the yard, other days they spend in the woods. It's nice living bug-free!
Welcome!!
Kathy
Paola, KS |
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