Chickens, Chickens, Chickens!!!

We have 10 chickens that we added to our little farm about 6 months ago. We got them even before I got the coop and pen built. Talk about faith!!! Allow me to tell the story... My wife and I decided to buy 6 chicks because I had gone around the house talking about the things that I wanted to do in turning our home into a small homestead. She suggested we get chickens, partly because she had them as a little girl and missed them, and after all, what farm would be complete without them? So we started our search trying to find out where to buy them. I knew nothing about buying them, caring for them or anything else about them other than the way they tasted on my dinner plate. We found someone who had some already, and offered to hatch us some for a small fee. The fee was around $1.00 per chick. I got a crash course in caring for them. We got a big box and put the chicks (day old) in our bathroom simply because I didn't have a coop built yet that could accomodate them. So we cared for them this way until they got their feathers and were big enough to go in the yard. By the time this happened, I had their coop built. I am especially proud of their coop because it costed me a grand total of about $50 for the materials, and it had been years since I had built anything. I was pleasantly surprised when it was finished. The chicks (full-grown) are about 6 months (give or take) old now, and we are eagerly waiting for their first eggs. Even though I was surprised and proud of their coop, it has had its problems. One of these problems is the simple fact that I made their yard, which is totally fenced in, taking into the calculation of 2 square feet per chicken. This is fine for them having plenty of room to move, however, as you probably know, chickens love to scratch and peck the ground in search of bugs that are tasty to them. This has left their little yard with no grass left, and every time it rains, it turns into a mud pit. So, in the near future, I will be building a new coop which will accomodate about 30 chickens, and the running yard will be 4 square feet per chicken. I am planning to do this so I can block off about half of their yard to allow grass to grow. This will also allow for more bugs to find their way into the stomachs of my little chicks. If you would like to learn how to build a simple coop, with the yard problem corrected of course, feel free to leave me a post and ask for the plans. I would be very happy to share my experience and knowledge that I have gained through this experience with you.