a picture of a mother

It all started with hedge trimmers. Ok actually like twig shears. I don't really know what they are technically called. Scissors?
Anyway...was trimming some overgrown bushes once we got our new deck built and a bird flew out of one of the big bushes I had planned to trim wayyy down. I thought there must be a nest in this one, so I looked and sure enough a well hidden nest! This is what it looks like from the outside and this is on the lower part of the bush:

I could see just a peek of some blue from this angle...and really straining my neck because I don't think the boys could really get a glimpse of them. So I tried peeking in from the top and there in all their beauty...4 precious and gleaming bright blue eggs:

I am just so happy on this day. It is so special, miraculous, simple, precious, beautiful...can't stop with words to describe this sight, right in our backyard. 

So fast forward a week...To TODAY.

Eating breakfast like any ordinary day, and I see Mrs. Robin fly out from the bush. Oh I love it when she does that because I just love to see those eggs. I saw she wasn't too close in sight so I went out and peeked in the top. MUCH to my surprise and delight...3 sweet sweet brand new baby hatchling birds. I could not believe my eyes. I quickly and quietly called all 3 boys out to see this amazing sight. I asked Jaden to run and get my phone so I could snap a picture. Just look at the precious sight we discovered:

Okay...so now I'm obsessed, giddy, ecstatic...so so joyful and happy on this sleepy - Tyler woke up early again - morning. I get the kitchen cleaned and the boys dressed, but other than that I don't get much done. I am dying to see those birds again. As I did the dishes, the bush is right out the window. I notice a robin hopping and pecking the grass in the side yard. 

"I bet that's her!"

So I start watching her to see where she goes. Sure enough she finds herself a worm with ease and carefully and slowly, watching every which way, takes hops towards the bush that holds her precious darlings. She is very cautious, it seems. Then she gracefully flies into her home to give those brand new babies some breakfast. A few moments of seeing the branches moving, sometimes even shaking...and I am just dying to know what is going on, how she is feeding them, how she distributes one worm to 4 hungry babies. But I don't think I may ever know this amazing thing Mrs. Robin can accomplish. 

Then, before I know it, out she flies to get more breakfast for the hungry babies. I run and get my DSLR. There is beauty to be captured! The boys are semi-excited but so fun that we can actually follow what Mrs. Robin is doing and look for her as she flies and hops around and chooses different ways to enter the bush, as not to be predictable in case of predators.

I try with all my might to get a good picture of her entering the nest (the next best thing to seeing her feed those babies), but my efforts are a bit lacking. But I did get a few of Mrs. Robin and when she flew out of sight (not really...she never went completely out of sight of the nest...always keeping a close eye, I noticed), I peeked in for another look to see if they were awake or eating...I'm just so curious and in love with these sweeties! When I peeked, they were all snuggled together and all looked like they were eating things with their faces pointed down. I just wonder if they were each chowing on a piece of worm she cut up for them. They are just so brand new and sleepy like a newborn baby...and probably constantly hungry because their stomachs are so small! They are just so neat to look at. They have no feathers and you can pretty much see through their skin to their bones. Not super pretty...but absolutely amazing. 

I probably sat and waited and took pictures for 2 hours. I found something I'm actually patient at. (Except for the wanting to go look at them every 5 minutes.) Here are the pictures of Mrs. Robin that I waited so patiently for:

(At this point, we had just gone inside after looking in at the birds and Mrs. Robin made sure to check out the surroundings very carefully before going into the bush again. She walked across the entire deck railing, looking this way and that. Unfortunately for me, I didn't have my zoom lens on the camera so I missed a beautiful close up of her, but I got another one that was pretty good a little later. (Like I said, she changed up her entrances quite a bit!)

Isn't she lovely? So strong, committed, loving, careful, nurturing, hard working, diligent. I am so so thankful for today's experience with her and the 4 miracles God created for her and us to enjoy. God's handiwork for us to see...so neat and so beautiful. She cares so much for those baby birds. Finding worms for hours, carefully entering the nest making extra sure her children are safe. 

I am so thankful to be a mother. I have had a few experiences this week with balancing being extra careful with my children and letting God have the reigns in their upbringing, safety, and overall life and future. I know that He has blessed me with them today. That is all I know. So I want to do the best that I can today. I may not get tomorrow, but I do get today. I want to be as diligent, nurturing, and careful as this momma bird...and sing just like she does...to the God who created me...the God who I was created for...to bring Him glory through my life, my song, my words, my love. 

And by the way, the boys and I named all of the birds. Mrs. Robin's name is Culver and her babies are Guppyup, Cubbie, Charlotte, and Blue (A fish book we've been reading, Cubs fans, Charlotte's Web we read each night, and Blue for the last one born).