When we first became a chicken family in August of 2016, we had no idea the joy our girls would bring to our lives. We were excited for the prospect of fresh eggs, and knew from Tim’s sister, Mary, that chickens could be addicting — but we didn’t have any idea how amazing these birds are until we came home with our own little flock.

We started off with a tiny coop, which was perfect for getting started. Our first four girls, two Rhode Island Reds and two Cuckoo Marans, helped us learn the ropes of chicken keeping and taught us an understanding of chicken love — and loss, as we heartbreakingly lost our two Marans early on. Our Reds, Dolly and Loretta, continue to rule the roost and teach our newbies the way things are done around Brehmer Homestead.

By spring 2017, our starter coop had started to fall apart, and once our flock had grown to six, it was time for an upgrade. We searched the depths of Craigslist for weeks until we found just what we were looking for: the most beautiful coop, custom-made for us with Texas cedar.

Texas Cedar Shop offers a range of gorgeous, custom built chicken coops, playhouses, sheds, blinds, and more. They are a family-run company, were quick to respond to my emails, and delivered our coop to us and built it on site — not to mention they are Texans, so we were supporting our local economy. We loved working with them, and look forward to using them again (chicken coop expansion, anyone?!).

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