Raising little ones to maturity is tough work…

When we moved into our home this spring I noticed a bird house in the middle of one of the flower beds, but didn’t think much about it.  Throughout the spring, various birds checked it out, but none appeared to stay.  A few weeks ago, to my delight, I noticed that the plain little home had occupants!  Blue birds!

I checked in with our home’s former owner to see if they were new or returning. She shared that they did indeed have a nesting pair until “Lightening’s arrival.”  Lightening – a sweet, but deadly orange tiger cat would apparently jump up and perch on top of the birdhouse.  That was the end of the bluebirds nesting there and brought about their quick relocation to an unknown tree cavity.  She was delighted to hear that they were back in their home …  with Lightening’s absence.

I’ve kept my eye on the grey weathered home and sure enough they’ve stayed around these past two weeks.  I’m guessing that we have a sitting mama.  I’ve watched their comings and goings.  They are ever vigilant, stopping at two or three spots around the yard before entering the nest – confirming that their entrance is as safe as possible. You’d think, that without the cat, their home would be an ideal location to raise chicks, but it doesn’t appear to be so easy… Routinely, the smartly dressed, blue and orange male is chased by a robin and this morning I observed a pair of swallows* circling. One swept down, poking his beak into the birdhouse while the other perched on top. The picture above shows their boldness, however I wasn’t quick enough to capture the papa’s flutter of bright blue wings telling them, in no uncertain terms, to move along.

As I watched this drama unfold my thoughts turned to my kids.  It would be easy to think, “Oh we live in beautiful, small-town Vermont, and they’re going to be ok on their own.” But truth be told, parenting, whether you’re a bird or a human, takes a lot of vigilance, hard work, boldness, and teamwork.  We need to be ever watching, talking with our kids and teens, setting boundaries, and teaming up with other adults in our communities to bring them safely through to adulthood.

This week we reach a milestone at our house – my eldest hits double digits!  I’m sure I’ll need a lot more help along the way.  One resource that I’ve used and will continue to look at is PARENTUPVT.ORG.  It helps me to know some of the issues that he’ll face as he gets older and provides me with ideas for starting some of those tough conversations.

We’d love your comments…. What resources and connections have you found to be helpful as you guide your kids to adulthood?

• Swallows are my best guess given their shape while flying…