Her food bowl wasn't empty, by the way, but her behavior was telling me she was hungry.

And...I got distracted. It was time to make dinner, time to get the kids a bath, time to read them a story and put them to bed, time to nurse the baby again when he woke up after I thought he was in bed for the night...

And this morning Daisy was lying limp and cold in the bottom of her cage. When I looked through her seed bowl I realized it was all husks except for the two types she wouldn't eat. Poor thing.

I felt terrible. Not so much because Daisy died, because the fact of life is that birds are not people and we lose even our most beloved pets. I felt terrible because I had noticed I should do something to take care of her and I had not, and the consequences in this case were deadly.

It's a big responsibility to have a living thing in my care who is as helpless as a baby or a bird. The bird is caged. She can't get food if I don't give it to her. The baby is helpless - he can't take care of himself if I don't watch carefully and do everything he needs to survive. It's left me shaken that one of these two beings in my care didn't make it through the night. I'm grateful the consequences of this mistake came at the cost of Daisy's life and not Daniel's.

We make mistakes all the time. Some are little, some are big, some are from sheer carelessness and others are from ignorance. I'm a rookie bird carer and this was a very sad lesson: when you see something that raises your red flag, act immediately because birds can die very quickly. When you change seeds, don't assume your little budgie isn't starving because she still has food in her bowl. She might still be starving. Pay attention!

My husband and I have discussed before how we aren't really ready to take on the responsibility of something like a flock of chickens. This little incident underscores that assessment. Caring for living things - whether it's a garden or some chickens - takes constant attention and care. You have to act when you first see something not quite right. You can't get distracted.

With children, while they aren't quite as physically fragile, the same goes for their hearts and minds. A parent has to be constantly vigilant. If a red flag goes up, a parent dismisses it at their extreme peril. Permanent damage can happen in the blink of an eye. That doesn't mean we need to be a nervous wreck watching every movement our children make like a hawk. But just as with Daisy's foraging around in her cage, our kids usually give us some warning that something isn't quite right.

Don't dismiss these things. If a Parent Radar goes off, don't ignore it. Something very well might be wrong.

And if you have a bird...make sure her bowl is full. It might save you from some very sad consequences.