The blackbird's nest

There's the sweetest couple of blackbirds nesting in our garden. They have been working on building a nest in our ivy for quite some time now. I believe they have made another nest just before this one, because I found a nest lying on the ground next to the ivy a few weeks ago and I think it were the same blackbirds working on that nest as it are the ones nesting in their new home right now. I don't know what happened to their first nest, as there were no eggs or young yet. Maybe it just wasn't stable enough? They're building against a wooden fence, so that might prove to be difficult.

Anyway we discovered the prettiest little blue-green eggs 2 days ago. The blackbird parents had temporarily left the nest. And somewhere between yesterday and the day before that the eggs hatched. The parents have been flying off and on since then, to feed their cute offspring. I believe there are five of them. The picture above I took this afternoon when the parents had temporarily left the nest again. I've been wanting to take a picture since yesterday, but I was afraid I might scare the parents into abandoning their young. But today I couldn't control myself anymore. I looked around real hard to see if the parents were watching and guarding their nest, and when I made sure they weren't I took one picture real quick. I think it turned out really well for a quick snapshot, but it doesn't take an incredible photographer to make baby blackbirds look cute, now does it?

I really hope this young family makes it! I read on the internet that 9 out of 10 blackbird's nests end in failure.
I think the same blackbirds had a go last year in an acacia tree in our garden and that nest ended up being raided by a magpie. And to make matters worse - my mother had to get up early for work this morning and left a note saying she saw the blackbird parents scaring away a magpie from our garden, so she was afraid the young might be gone later today. Fortunately, the magpie has given up, as the young were still there for the rest of the day, but I really hope that magpie or another one won't come back! I think magpies will be be the only reason the young might not survive since there aren't any cats in our neighbourhood.

I have to leave my parents' house tomorrow to go to my student apartment in another city and won't be coming back 'till friday and I really hope I will see the baby blackbirds again that day! But I guess I will learn about their progress throughout the course of the week, since my mother and I will probably e-mail and phone eachother, so if anything terrible happens to them during this week, I'm bound to find out before friday!
To end this post I'm leaving you with a poem by William Henley, which I found while looking for information on blackbird's nests on the internet.
It's a simple poem, but it really rings true, as for me too blackbirds are a symbol of spring, new life and finding joy and happiness in the little things.

'The nightingale has a lyre of gold,
The lark's is a clarion call,
And the blackbird plays but a boxwood flute,
But I love him best of all.

For his song is all of the joy of life,
And we in the mad, spring weather,
We two have listened till he sang
Our hearts and lips together.'