Some things I'd rather not do.

This morning I had quite the excitement at my house.  There are some things I would rather not have to deal with, and this morning was one example. 

I woke up around 7:30, and listened to the baby monitor to see if the kids were up yet.  I could hear the big boys, so I laid there listening.  Grayson went in to get Paxton when he started crying and brought him down to me.  Then the boys went in to brush their teeth.  At some point, while I was playing with Paxton in my room, Camden heard the cat outside the door.  Mayflower is an indoor cat, but she loves being outside almost as much.  He opened the door to let her in, and that is when I hear the boys yelling, "Mom! Mayflower has a bird!"  I am expecting her to be outside, and I step out of my room to see Mayflower in the family room, with a vibrant red cardinal in her mouth! 

The bird is squawking, making a horrible racket.  I tell the boys to go open the door and plan on chasing Mayflower back outside.  She has other plans though and runs upstairs.  I walk cautiously up the stairs and listen for the bird.  It sounds as though it's at the end of the hallway, so I walk down to the boys room.  Mayflower has the bird in her mouth and comes out into the hallway from the boys' room.  Then goes into the playroom.  I am able to chase her back to the top of the stairs.  But then she puts the bird down. 

At this point, I have a dilemma... Do I chase the cat out first, or try to rescue the bird? I am trying to decide the best way to rescue this bird when he makes a run for it.  Mayflower takes off after it, feathers flying, and she gets him.  I chase her back downstairs, grab her by the hind legs and shove her out the back door.

Madalynn has slept through all of the commotion right outside her door.  Then I realize I haven't seen the boys.  I go to my bedroom and they yell, "Shut the door!"  I tell them the bird and the cat are outside, crises averted.  Then I notice Gray is on the phone.  Apparently, he called Jackson while I was chasing the cat and told him we had an emergency and that he needed to get home.  He was just wrapping up the morning walk with his store manager, who thought the whole situation was quite comical. 

I was glad he was on his way home though.  That meant I didn't have to deal with the cleanup... Mayflower ate the cardinal right outside the back door.  He also vacuumed the feather upstairs.  Mayflower first took the bird under Camden's bed, so there were feathers all over their room, as well as, at the top of the stairs.

Maybe the boys have learned that even though I usually don't mess with animals if I can help it, I am capable of taking care of things when Dad isn't home.