Make way for ducklings

Macy has a fantastic 1st grade teacher, Mrs. Beach. She has been teaching for over 20 years, is actually retiring this year, and every spring she hatches ducklings in her class. The kids were so fortunate to learn all about this process this year, and actually get to watch them hatch- 

I showed up on Friday afternoon, right after the first one was born and got to see him move from the incubator to the "farm" box where they would stay in the classroom for 2 weeks.

Macy's teacher's husband has a lot of health problems and had to have his leg amputated at the beginning of the school year. It has been a heavy load for Mrs. Beach to handle and she has done it gloriously, never appearing to skip a beat in the classroom. The fact that she chose to even hatch the eggs this year was mind-blowing. 

Since they began hatching on Friday, I asked what would happen over the weekend. She explained that for the last 20+ years, she takes them home on the weekend and they live in her bathtub. I just knew the kids would love to have baby ducklings in our bathroom, and half jokingly, said I was happy take them off her hands the following weekend...

Well, guess what? She let me! In all of her years of hatching the ducks, she has never allowed a parent to take them home. But, with all she has to do to care for her husband, she was thrilled for some time off from the ducklings that second weekend. 

So Friday afternoon I went in to pick up my 7 ducklings- 

And we drove them home-

That's Katelyn with Tate and Macy. The kids decided they needed a duckling sleepover, of course. Alexander and Hannah would arrive later on that afternoon. 

We snuck the ducklings through the house, keeping them far, far away from the dogs (mostly Belle, who has been known to eat a chicken, duck, and bird when given the chance). They would live in the basement guest bathroom. Thank goodness we have an extra bathroom and the dogs aren't allowed in the basement...

Lucky ducks, made it past the dogs-

And into their new suite for the weekend-

 The kids loved on them all weekend. Neighbor kids came to visit them, and so did their parents. They are pretty irresistible...

Saturday morning before the slumber party ended, Brian and I put down a sheet and let the ducklings run around-

During the duckling slumber party, I realized that Macy and Katelyn have never had strawberry shortcake, or at least since they've been old enough to remember. So that's what I made for dessert. With homemade biscuits, which always remind me of my dad. I quite prefer the horrible-for-you, cheap, spongecake like bowl type thingy better.

Early Sunday morning Brian headed to Connecticut to commission his baby cousin into the Air Force, so I was stuck on duckling duty by myself. Let me just say this- ducklings are gross. The poop! The water/food/sludge combo they play in- yuck, yuck, yuck. I would eventually refer to them as the "Yucky Duckies"

But, they were still pretty irresistible with their cuteness.

So Sunday night rolls around and the kids go down to say goodnight to them about 8pm. I then go down to check on them before I go to bed at 9:45pm. OH NO. They are in darkness. I was so confused. All weekend long we haven't turned on the bathroom light because they have their super powerful, super bright heat lamp. But now it is out.

It takes me a second, but I realize the bulb must have blown out in the last couple hours since the kids came down to say goodnight. It's a cold, rainy night. My basement is always cold anyway. They are only 7 & 8 days old, now laying together very close and very quite. This is not good.

I go upstairs and text Sara, who is raising 7 baby chicks in her basement, and Brian who just knows about everything. I google. Says ducklings should be between 85-90 degrees. Oh man, the basement is probably 60 degrees. I hate to do it, but I call Mrs. Beach at home. On a Sunday night. At 9:50pm

She's amazing. She thankfully was awake and had the solution- just use a regular light bulb, and go to bed. No need to worry. But I did, all night long. Oh the pressure of keeping the class pets. Macy's classmates were so jealous that she got to take them home in the first place, how would it ever go over if anything happened to these little guys on our watch after the other 23 kids all so diligently hatched these sweet ducklings?

I'd had enough. I was practically skipping into the classroom to return them on Monday morning. And couldn't wait to go home to scour my bathtub!

By Friday, just 5 days since we'd had them, they'd practically doubled in size-

And I am happy to report that Mrs. Beach gave them to a petting zoo this past weekend. Perhaps we will go visit the "Yucky Duckies" sometime this summer...