Southern Empty Nest

It's time for Outdoor Wednesday with A Southern Daydreamer!
It's time for Outdoor Wednesday with A Southern Daydreamer!

As I reported on Monday’s post, the last of the robins has left the nest. The first baby robin left on Saturday morning. The remaining two robins thought about it all day on Saturday. Even thought the robin parents called to them, they didn’t get up the nerve on Saturday.

On Sunday morning, my husband got up around 6:30 a.m. and saw that one of the last two had left and now we were down to the final robin. The last robin left around 7 a.m.

The robins flew to a neighbor’s yard and we were able to keep an eye on them for a little while. I worried about them when I saw a neighborhood cat that had spotted them.

We no longer are sure where they are. Every time we see a robin, we wonder if it is one of ours. We feel so blessed to have gotten to follow this wonderful process from the building of the nest, the laying of the eggs, the hatching of the eggs, the fast growth of the babies to the final takeoff.

Here are the pics from the final two days.

Here are the last two
Here are the last two
Getting kind of crowded.
Getting kind of crowded.
All alone.
All alone.
Preparing for takeoff! title=
Preparing for takeoff!
Okay, one wing at a time.
Clear the runway!
Here I go!
Here I go!
I made it!
I made it!
Empty nest
Empty nest
I'm ready for the world!
I'm ready for the world!

The parents, particularly the dad will stay with the little ones for about two more week, showing them the ropes. After that, they are on their own. I’ve always loved robins, but, after this experience, I’ll never look at them the same again.

Today’s Lagniappe: Cold Buttered Rum
I’ve heard of hot buttered rum but when I saw this recipe in one of my old cookbooks, I thought it sounded really yummy! You can adjust the amount of rum to your heart’s desire.

* 1 quart butter pecan ice cream
* 2/3 cup dark rum

Combine ingredients in the container of an electric blender; cover and process until smooth, stopping once to scrape down the sides.

Pour into glasses and serve immediately.


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Comments

36 responses to “Southern Empty Nest”

  1. Kathy Avatar
    Kathy

    What a great series of posts. I’m so impressed that you were able to get such great shots of the babies. I really love the one of him “preparing for takeoff” Great post!

  2. sunnymama Avatar

    Goodbye robins! After following your outdoor wednesday posts the last few weeks I won’t look at robins in quite the same way either. Thanks for sharing the pictures of your guests’ time with you, they were lovely ๐Ÿ™‚

  3. Crystal Avatar
    Crystal

    How great it was to share your journey! I hope you don’t feel too lonely without them. Thank you I enjoyed your post very much. Here in PA robins are usually the first bird we see in the spring. Is it that way anywhere else?

    Thanks again
    Crystal

  4. Beth at Aunties Avatar

    How adorable and what a angel of a sweetheart you were to care and help this cute little creation of Heavenly Father find his wings to fly!
    I enjoyed your post and want to share it with my grandchildren. What a fanstastic nest!

  5. Stacey Avatar

    The birds are precious! I just love watching babies in the spring. We have a nest on our patio…not sure what kind of birds they are. They were in the same spot last year. It was bittersweet when they left – I missed watching them.

  6. RobinfromCA Avatar

    Awww…so sweet. Thanks for sharing this journey with all of us. It’s been so interesting and fun to watch. I hope your robins come back to live in your yard!

    Happy Outdoor Wednesday!
    Robin

  7. Kathy b Avatar

    It has been fun to follow this journey with you. It’s kind of sad that they are gone. I wonder if the Robin pair will come back again next year to nest?

    Thanks for the fun photos.

    Kathy b

  8. Lynn Guinn Avatar

    You are the chosen people! To have robins live in your midst is so special.
    Rum and ice cream? Who woulda thought it!

  9. Brenda Kula Avatar

    Always a bit sad when you see an empty nest. But then, if all occupants flew safely out to the horizon, then both the parents (and you) know you accomplished your job in a worthwhile manner and should be proud. Might want to poke a little flag in the nest in honor of your triumphant goal!
    Brenda

  10. Rechelle Avatar

    I so love when the birds build their nests in my patio cover and then I can watch the process from beginning to end. Right now we’ve got house finches working hard to get their nest done and soon, a new little family will take shape. This will be our 2nd nest this season.
    Thanks for sharing “your” robins. Enjoy your day!

  11. Mary Avatar

    I have so enjoyed tracking the progress of your robins :-). I actually felt a heart tug when I saw that empty nest. I’m not good with empty nests. Have a wonderful day.

  12. Pat Avatar

    Lovely post, Christi!

  13. Pam Avatar

    Wow, you got great shots.

  14. Christy Avatar

    How cool, you got some photos of the robin leaving the nest. I would have been so excited. Thanks for sharing.

  15. Becky K. Avatar

    How cool that you got to see them leave. We had a nest at our church last year and we would see the progress from week to week. Fun!

  16. Chandy Avatar

    That’s amazing, Christi! I would have loved to experience the same… How lucky are you?

    Thanks for sharing your pics!

    Happy OW!

  17. debbie ragan Avatar

    Happy Outddor Wednesday Christi,
    Sending you a great big hug as I know when my purple finch birdies flew the nest, I was very happy but let down…so much time had been invested in protecting and watching them…I kept a little journal. It is a neat experience and my Aunt always said it was a blessing to the house a robin builds its nest upon….you are blessed
    hugs and thank you for sharing this experience
    debbie

  18. Jennifer @ Blogging God And Me Avatar

    Awww, how sweet you could be there to watch them fly the nest so to speak. What little cuties…

    Jennifer

  19. Cathy Avatar

    Hi Christi,
    The chubby robin is a favorite bird of mine also. This was a wonderful opportunity to experience nature at its finest and a perfect one to share for Outdoor Wednesday
    Cathy

  20. Lisa Shatzer Avatar

    What a wonderful thing that you got to be a part of these birds life for awhile. Thanks for letting us be a part of it too.

  21. Kathy Avatar

    Good luck little Robins, I have enjoyed their journey too,I am sure they will be just fine, happy Wednesday, Kathy

  22. Maryrose Avatar

    Hi Christi,
    I loved the bird saga. They were ready to spread their wings. Maybe they will be back to start new families in that empty nest of yours. I will keep peeking in to see. Thanks and Happy Outdoor Wednesday.
    ~Maryrose~

  23. Maya@Completely-Coastal Avatar

    Wow, I guess it’s goodby to the robins!

  24. Karen Avatar

    I’m so glad you shared the adventures of the baby robins. The pictures are precious.

  25. Barb Avatar

    Christi, these pictures are wonderful. Thanks for sharing with us. Happy Outdoor Wednesday.

    Barb

  26. amy Avatar

    It has been a very lovely story to follow. Love the pics.

    amy@maisonbelle

  27. Ashley Avatar

    I too get excited when I get to watch a new family of birds in a nest in our yard, but like you, I too feel attached to them by the time they leave the nest, and not only worry about them, I feel cheated a little bit that I don’t get to keep up with them at least for a little while after they leave the nest. *SIGH* I just always figure that God is watching out for them, and they can’t get any better than that. Thanks for sharing this sweet story and pics. _Ashley ~

  28. Cathy Avatar

    What a wonderful story!!! I love following the progress of the little birds!!! Thank you so much for sharing this!!!

    Have a wonderful Outdoor Wednesday!!!
    XOXO
    Cathy

  29. Liz Avatar

    How adorable are they and to make a nest like that. Just to awesome. Happy ODW

  30. Jane Avatar

    Christi,

    This was such a great story and your pictures made it even better. It was an experience for all of us that followed these birds from the nest building to their farewell flight!! Those baby robins are just so cute with those big button eyes! Just precious. You are one caring person, Christi. Happy Outdoor Wednseday! ๐Ÿ™‚

    xoxo
    Jane

  31. Sandra Avatar

    Aw, how sweet! They learned how to fly! Yay! Thank you for sharing your pictures with us. ๐Ÿ™‚
    Happy Outdoor Wednesday!
    Sandra

  32. Tammy Avatar
    Tammy

    That was an amazing journey to watch through your pictures. Thanks for sharing them with us.

  33. ellen b Avatar

    Well done birdies! How nice that they learned to fly and leave the nest! Love the wing spread!

  34. Susan Avatar

    Happy Outdoor Wednesday Christi! I a so glad you shared the whole story with us! It was fun to watch their progress! Thanks for sharing your photos.~ Susan

  35. Sheila Avatar

    I’m so glad to get to see the end of this story. It was very touching to watch your robins through this process.

    We took care of an injured wild bird once when I was very young and put him on a screend porch in an old bird cage that had belonged to one of our budgies. Someone had wounded him, and my father found him and brought him home. He was a song bird, and Daddy nursed him back to health. I’ll never forget the bird taking off when we were sure he could fly (we let him out of the cage and gave him full porch privileges), and then he was off and back into the wild. You’re right. It changes your life. It changed mine, and the bird we watched was not even a baby.

    Happy Outdoor Wednesday…

    XO,

    Sheila ๐Ÿ™‚

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