An Update on Our Feathered Friends

The baby robins have grown significantly. I snapped this shot May 23.

Ummm, Mom, can I get my own room?!?!

You may remember from one of my previous posts that there was some question as to whether or not a Baltimore Oriole had taken up residence on our property. Today we found the answer.

Isn't amazing how they are able to make their nest hang?!? Good thing we didn't cut down this poplar like we had planned this spring. But it really isn't in a spot where it can grow forever...

As I was typing this post I thought I'd go and take a quick snap of our robin's nest. I hadn't witnessed any feeding times lately, but still frequently saw the robin flying out of the nest as I approached. Well, guess what I found...

No rest for Mamma Robin!!!

And! As we were sitting on the front deck enjoying a tea, I noticed two sparrows approaching a bush in front of me, with worms in their mouths. Devin was pacing, and every time he got close to the bush they would fly away. As he walked away, they would cautiously approach, but never enter the bush. Finally, I asked him to sit for a bit, and sure enough, they quickly dashed into the bush and left, "sans worms." Shannon and I took a quick peak and discovered yet more hungry mouths.


So fun!

And for those of you who also use blogger...do all your pictures land at the top of your post when you upload them, and then you tediously have to drag them to where you want them? or am I doing something wrong?

Today's Class - Construction 101

I always try to schedule our year so that most of the 'book work' gets done by the end of May. This year we have a few grammar lessons left, but for the most part the books have been packed away. Unless of course THIS is the summer that I actually get a program in place whereby the boys have to trade 'book time' for 'screen time.' Here's hoping!

But for today, it was practical learning...construction. Mark's dream of a shop is finally starting to materialize and it was 'all hands on deck!'

We were blessed with having 3 very capable bodies in my brother Anjo, Mark's nephew Stevin ( a general contractor...for hire...e-mail me if you too need a very capable construction guy) and Steve's apprentice, Reuben.

AND of course we had our 3 trainees:

Brent learned how to run a drill.


Devin learned how to use a trowel.


Shannon was very helpful in getting screws, nails and drinks. Lisa helped with this too, once she got home from work. They were kept quite busy since today was a day of no clouds and temperatures reaching the high 20's. Take special note of the super-cute, tiny work gloves (gotta have the right equipment!) and the effective use of the tongue to help with counting!

And of course there was the obligatory class: "How to Walk in Mud."

I'm pleased to say, they passed the mud class with flying colours. While many boots remained in the mud during the stepping process, all socked feet ended up back in the boots, dry and clean. Well, 'construction-like' clean!

And finally a look at the progress...very impressive for one day! All posts placed and leveled; concrete footings poured. Time for inspection; but I think some baths and a good night's sleep are in order first!

I Sing for Joy at the Works of Your Hands!

Friday morning I decided, "Enough is enough! I HAVE to get those flower beds done!"

So by 8:00am I was dressed, had breakfast, had Lisa off to work, and headed out the door. The children were either still sleeping or in some form of semi-conscious state lying on the couch. Yes, that's an EARLY start around here!

Mark had done the edging to the beds several weeks ago, so there were many dried clumps of grass that needed to be shaken and tossed. I had attacked most of the weeds on previous outings, but there were many new ones that needed pulling. As I worked, I was serenaded by a BEAUTIFUL song. A new one to me. By 8:30 I had the half of the bed done, and called my parents. Once Mom knew I was talking to Dad, she picked up the other phone (as she often does, makes me feel like Superman!) I whistled the bird's song to them and they said, "Oh, that's your Baltimore Oriole."

The orioles had built a nest in Mom and Dad's maple tree last year, so there was some discussion as to whether it was MY oriole, or THEIR oriole, and whether in fact we each had one. How do you know? I was just very pleased to have him around, and even caught a very close up view of him later on. Gorgeous orange colour!

A few weeks ago the children had discovered a robin's nest; on a lamp on our deck. An amazing engineering accomplishment. I told the kids that one day I was going to give them a pile of grass, dead weeds, a bit of mud and a few scraps of string and see what they could do. (I'd even let them use all their fingers!) Simply amazing! The robin had even tied a few of the stronger strings and grasses around the post as an anchor to hold it on top of the light!

Back to the garden! As I pulled and dug and moved around, the robin happily followed me, grabbing the now easy to find worms.

The boys eventually came out, and I gave them each a clipboard and a pile of worksheets and suggested they do their school work on the deck where we could call out questions and answers to each other. Homeschooling at its finest!

Mom came over and we did a walk through of what should go where, and she helped me out a bit, until she realized she should go home and work on her own beds. She's an amazing gardener. Don't know what I'd do without her!

I spent the rest of the day pulling out invasive ground cover, and other plants I've decided I don't like, and replacing them with others, from a bed I'm getting rid of altogether. Now I know why they say gardening is good exercise!

As the day progressed, I kept saying, "I'll just do this one, and then I'll go make supper." "Well, maybe one more." Finally it was 6:00pm and nothing was made or even defrosted. I was completely exhausted and felt I was about the best night to call for pizza delivery!

But that's not even why I started this post...

On MONDAY, I went back and continued some moving and splitting, and the mother robin was back gathering worms. But this time she was bringing them to her babies. (I guess I'm kind of assuming it was the mother that feeds her young...). I went inside, grabbed the camera, and sat and enjoyed a nice break while she got up the nerve to come and feed again, with me sitting there with a strange black object. The fruit of my labour...

First an overall view so you can get a feel for the surroundings...our front porch. The nest is on top of the light...(and yes, those flower boxes are now full...)


Then, momma arrives and suddenly three long necks emerge. So fun to watch!!!!



Feeding all done, a proud mom calms her young, (and a close up shot of the anchor job). I just LOVE how God can turn a day of pulling weeds, into a time of marvel, worship and praise!