About 3 weeks ago we had a dove fly into our house.
It was a beautiful day so I had left the back door to the deck open and was out in front of the house visiting with a neighbor while our kids played. When I heard Alice wake up I started walking into the house to go get her. Suddenly I heard a bird flapping in the kitchen! Instead of remaining calm I screamed and ran back out of the house doing a "panic dance" (not good for all the kids watching!) Then then mama bear in me kicked in and I somehow got worried that the creature in my house was going to find his way upstairs and into Alice's room...so I quickly did a panic dance up the stairs to rescue my baby. Not a good move...Maya was freaking out at the sight a of a crazy mommy. I was telling her not to come in the house as I ran up the stairs and our neighbor was keeping her out. I have since realized how much my panic traumatized her.
Once Alice was out, we had a hungry, crying baby on our hands plus a screaming Maya that thought we were going to die. Thankgoodness, my neighbor, Irene was there to help me figure out what to do. Whenever we tried to creep towards the kitchen to assess the situtation we would hear the bird flap and crash into the windows. At one point I thought it had fallen behind the kids computer--alive but injured--oh, ugg! But thankfully he wasn't injured and after a while seemed to calm down. Eventually, we got 2 windows open but I couldn't get the screens out (the door was around the corner and the bird couldn't seem to find his way back there). So, while I went and tried to feed a starving Alice, Irene got the screens out and the bird flew away to safety!
Moral of the story #1: don't leave your door open without a screen!
Even three weeks later we are paying the price for my not-so-calm response to the bird. Maya now thinks all birds want to come into her house. Whenever she sees a bird on the tree that is right in front of our big front room window she takes whatever toy she is playing with and bangs as hard as she can while sternly reprimanding the bird. Her new terror of birds has also been transfered to all bugs and squirrels. "Bird! You no come in my house!!!" It's funny at times but also sad that the same birds that we used to love to watch eat from our bird feeder are now such a threat to her safe little world!
Moral of the story #2: a mom must always remain calm!
5 comments:
I know you told me this story when I was out there, but I had no clue you freaked out so much. no wonder Maya was about to break your front window when I was there!! Daughter like mother!!
Oh- Miss Maya is such a cutie. Someday you will be able to tell her all these funny stories about herself!!
Oh JaNae...what a great story! I could completely see it all happening as I read it. You are quite the good story teller! :)
This is hilarious, JaNae! I can just see you creeping down the hall. I don't even know what I would have done. Oh yes I do, I would have freaked out just like you! Way to think quick and get a picture, too!
I love it Reminds me og the the magpie and squirrel that got into our house, and Mom trying to get it out with a laundry basket.
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