If I build it-will they come???

I doubt it-but I really, really hope so.

You see, one day around seven years ago-I'm outside and I see a little, broken, beautiful, blue robin's egg lying on our deck. So-I look up-and lo and behold I see a nest nestled under the eves of our house. So I made my way upstairs and out my bedroom door to our balcony and-oh joy-three beautiful robin's eggs. Every day after that I carefully slid open the door (and Mom and Dad would fly away) and checked on my beloved eggs.

From the day that they hatched till the day they left the nest-was about two weeks. I then suffered from empty nest syndrome. Waaaaaa!!!

The next spring, after much anticipation-nothing-I figured that they must not use the same nest twice. But still-I left the nest there. But hubby had made the remark that we really needed to get that nest out of there-because it was dirty. I tell him-no, no and threaten him within an inch of his life and tell him not to touch it.

Now, it's the next spring and surprise, surprise I get the pleasure of seeing not one but two sets of baby robins develop and leave the nest. One in early spring and one in late spring. What a thrill I got watching the amazing transformation happen over the course of two weeks-twice. (Of course-this is before I had my digital camera-otherwise I would have documented this amazing process.)

Okay-so the next spring (which was year before last-I think)-I look out on my balcony and no nest. Oh, I saw red-and that doesn't happen very often. My husband denies it, but I think he got rid of it. I still get upset thinking about it.

Then, last year for some reason I looked under my husbands old truck and I saw a sturdy nest of mud and grass and twigs and I got what I thought was a brilliant idea. I took the nest and placed it right where the old one was. I made a mistake though-I told hubby about it. A few weeks later I'm out on the balcony and it's gone. I'm not even sure if I confronted hubby with this, but I'm sure he did away with it also.

Okay-this brings me to the present day. I was in my dungeon of a basement and I came across a 'fake' bird's nest in my pile o' junk. So the wheels in my head start turning and I thought to myself-I wonder if I place this out under the eves, if the robins would lay there? So I added some dryer lint for cushion and I placed it right where the robins originally built their nest. Also please note in the first photo-the yellow wire-yes, I wired it to the balcony railing. That way I know for sure-it will stay put!

Will they come? Most likely not-but there's always hope!

~Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tune without the words and never stops at all~Emily Dickenson