Oh How Times Have Changes

Wow, it has almost been a year since I started the blog about Fred and Ethel. It was short lived due to dramatic changes in our lives. Shortly after the last blog in 2007, my husband, the builder of the duck house and duck island was diagnosed with cancer. In January of 2008 he died.

So... I never finished the story of the ducklings. They only stayed a week or two. They were so cute but it was very, very stressful. They learned how to get out of the pool and paraded all around the yard anytime they wanted. We tried to work the dog schedule around them, but it was hard.

One morning Yoshi caught one. He let it go, but after that we could only count 12 ducklings, so we weren't quite sure what happened. That night we came home from work and they were gone. We never saw the ducklings again. However, after a few days, Ethel would come back in the evenings to relax and eat dinner.

Larry eventually took down the duck house and duck island and they left for the season.

This year, Fred and Ethel returned, but I can't do what we did last year, so I have let them know that they are not welcome. I have chased them away again and again and so Ethel must be nesting somewhere else. There are several houses with pools that are vacant and under foreclosure, so hopefully she has found a peaceful place to build her nest.

She came by herself this morning and I let her stay as long as she wanted.

What's interesting is last year there were three adult ducks that came by frequently. There was Fred, Ethel and Ralph. This year there is a third male duck. I have had all four at one time only once, but have had the three males several times. The new adult male is a little honory. He isn't scared of me or the dogs. He actually chases Yoshi and Yoshi almost caught him once. He is definitely his own duck. I named him Larry.

The Grandducks are here!

What a surprise! My husband has been busy today building something else for the ducks. He came and got me when Ethel was leaving the nest because we love to watch her go up and down the ramp.

We were watching her swim when we noticed something move in the nest. Before we knew it the little ducklings started jumping in the water. They didn't use the ramp, they went through the wire and jumped. They are absolutely adorable. We counted six on this first outing. I went outside to take pictures and she quickly escorted them up the ramp and back into the nest.

While they were back in the nest I placed some food down for them, that we bought at the feedstore. She came out and was eating like she was starving. This time her and five babies went for a swim and we think we saw 3 in the nest. What was heartbreaking is that one of the ducklings couldn't find his way back this time. The poor little guy was frantic, but he eventually found his way and all is well.

I should note that my dogs and cats are watching this from the sliding glass door and are getting very insistent about going outside. Not sure how we will deal with them.

Hubby is hurriedly completing the floating island project which will be complete with shade.

Due Date

My husband and I made a bet this weekend. I think the ducklings will start hatching on Thursday(tomorrow) and hubby thinks it will be Sunday.



The news for today... I had to go out of town for work and was gone Tuesday night. As I was driving home from the airport tonight, my husband was excited because Ethel was swimming and splashing in the pool. While we were on the phone, she did her little duck march up the ramp, but instead of laying on the nest, she went to side of the pen and then retreated and went back in the pool. Not only did I speed the rest of the way home, but when I pulled into the garage I slightly nudged the treadmill(not like anyone around here uses it.).



Ethel was just swimming around the pool when I arrived. Of course I had to say hi to all the dogs, so every dog and cat rushed out the door. We spent the next 20 minutes getting everyone inside.(Welcome Home!)When we finally came outside, Ethel was sitting on her next again.

Ducks of our lives...

The first ducks I remember made their home on the lake at the Air Force Base in Arkansas where we lived when I was about 7 or 8 years old. They were of course the beautfiul white ducks and I was enchanted watching them glide around the lake.

The next ducks in my life were a little less enchanting and could actually be a good plot for a new horror flick. These ducks lived on a pond that was part of farm where we lived for a few years. I am not sure if they were looking for food or just hated kids, but that always rushed me and chased me when I got off the school bus. Thank goodness we were the last bus stop and only the bus driver had to see me humiliated by running from ducks as fast as I could to get in the house. I never missed those ducks.

Then at 16 years old, my boyfriend at the time, gave me a baby duck for Easter. Now, I realize why it is not a good idea. Then I couldn't imagine why my Mom was horrified. She did let me keep it... for awhile. Mom, was at home much more than than I was, and the duck became attached to my mom. It followed her around the house just like a dog. We bought it a kiddie pool and it loved to swim, but it could never get out of the pool At some point after the duck was fully grown, a doctor in town let us take it to his pond. Hopefully, he had a good life, but now I realize how stupid the custom of Easter Chicks and Ducks is. FYI - It wasn't the boyfriend's idea to buy the duck.

So there has been a huge void in ducks in my life until now. I can't remember any at all. As coincidence has it, prior to Fred and Ethel entering our lives this year, I was doing a color change in my kitchen. As I was looking for red accessories to go over my cabinets I found a decorative red duck at Target. My husband thought I was crazy, but I purchased the red duck and it looked great. He even agreed. It looked so great that I went online and found 3 red ducklings to match and ordered them. My red kitchen has a mother duck and 3 ducklings watching over our house. Coincidence? Maybe.

Was that a duck I heard?

In the mornings as we get dressed and ready to go, we always open all of our windows and screen doors that face our backyard. We enjoy letting the fresh air in for awhile and listening to the birds sing in our backyard. We haven't see or heard the ducks in the morning for quite awhile as they seem to come out in the early evenings. Yesterday morning, I thought I heard the ducks, so I threw on my clothes and ran outside. No ducks, just my husband.

I asked him if the ducks had been there, that I thought I heard them. It was his shoes! He walked a few steps and sure enough they sounded like ducks quacking. I think we have ducks on our minds too much.

and then there is the cat...

We considered yesterday a good duck day! Fred dropped by and then Ethel left the next and took a leisurely swim in the pool. I watched Ethel from our bay window in the dining room as I didn't want to go outside and bother her. I noticed Paco, our cat that we got from the shelter a couple of years ago on the deck also duck watching.

Paco's interest in Ethel made me a little nervous as he recently killed a dove in our yard and brought it home. I don't let Paco outside but my husband does. This is one of our few disagreements in life. He thinks it is cruel to keep cats inside. Paco was two when we adopted him from the local SPCA. According to his paperwork, he had always been and inside cat. We do have another cat, Cricket that showed up on Halloween and never left. According to our vet, Cricket was about 5 months old when we found her. Somehow, I get my husband to agree that Cricket can't go outside Not sure why.

I completed my morning nest check and Ethel is still sitting on the nest.

Duck Watching...

We feel like a commercial for the couple without a life. After our long day at work we both enjoy nothing better than to spend the first hour in our backyard hoping we might get a glimpse of Fred and Ethel. Last night we were blessed with Ethel's presence, while she came out to take a swim. Unfortunately, our little duck watchers... Yoshi and Aiko were also outside. Not that they caused a problem, but for the first time they saw her go up the duck ramp and into the clump of vines which camouflages her nest so well.

For the next 30 minutes, both of them ran back and forth trying to figure out how to get into the duck pen, without going into the pool. The good news is that evidently there is no way and they have no intention of going into the pool.

We are hoping the eggs hatch during this long weekend, but we actually think it will be closer to next weekend.