A Bird in the Hand

My children never cease to amaze me. They not only say some of the darndest things, but they do some of the darndest things.

Saturday, Matt took Emil to the park to play catch. I took Grace with me to scan the racks of Goodwill. I really like the one on Madison and Racine. It's neat, they always have new stuff and I find excellent bargains. Most every piece of Hilfiger, Ralph Lauren, and GAP clothing for the kids came from Goodwill.

The temperature had dropped 20 degrees in 10 minutes (that's Chicago for you), so I called Matt to check on them. They were fine and to my surprise home already. The game of catch was cut short when they left the park so Emil could wash his hands. Emil had caught a bird - a real live flying bird.

I was in shock. How in the world does a 7 year old catch a bird? He's been trying since he was 2 and from what I can tell, birds are super fast. Matt said he couldn't believe it either until Emil came running toward him with it in his hands. I asked Matt did he freak out or was he calm when he saw him with it, I mean, I didn't want his spirit to be crushed. Matt admitted to yelling, "Put it down."

I had to talk to Emil. I had million questions. The first one being, how the heck did you catch a bird? He said it wasn't easy. He had to sneak up on it. The bird was desperately trying to get away from him, but it was really wet and it couldn't take flight. Emil said it did a flapping/running thing trying to get away from him. When he caught it, he just wanted to warm it up and dry its wings off so it could fly again. WOW! Is my little boy kind or what?

I'm thinking the bird's wing may have been hurt, since it couldn't fly, but Matt didn't stick around long enough to investigate.

Grace and I did pretty well ourselves. We didn't catch a bird, but we did score my newest prized possession. A gently used duvet and pillowcase set, that came with a down comforter.

The store was closing and I saw it hanging there looking like spring, all bright yellow with large colorful flowers all over it. I scanned it for rips, tears and other imperfections and reasoned that for $4.99, I could use it in the winter as extra cover for the kids. I thought it was a comforter, so I took it to the laundromat and washed it. I dried it on low and it kept balling up in the dryer. I took it out after 40 minutes - it still wasn't dry! When I got it home, I tried to shake it out, but it wouldn't smooth out. That's when I discovered the down comforter inside. What a bonus! I never noticed the buttons on the side of the duvet. I took the comforter out and let it air dry.

I slept under it last night. What satisfaction! I was so proud and comfortable. I'm a bargain hunter and the mother of a bird catcher.