Operation Safe Sparrow Successful

I was beginning to get worried this morning...  the sparrow that Nedi had caught yesterday was still at large in the apartment, albeit out of sight.  The kits have been very successful hunting since my return - I guess they need to get it out of their system, after being "trapped" inside for 5 days, while I was on vacation.  Saturday, they caught several young mice, but didn't harm them; Saturday night, Nedi brought in a live field mouse, but by the time I could get to him, he was dead.  I let the kits play with the body until they were bored, then I put the poor thing in the trash.  Lovey caught a large vole last night, just after dark, and killed it before bringing it inside - she was very vocal about her kill and demanded a great deal of praise.  I gave it to her, and about an hour later, quietly dropped that animal into the trash.
  But, mid-morning yesterday, Nedi came running in, growling around a completely limp female sparrow.  He and Lovey were skirmishing over ownership, and since the bird looked very dead, I decided to ignore them. A few hours later, I was surprised by the rush of wings over my head - the sparrow had revived.  Of course, the kits had to chase it all around the house. The bird flew into an open bureau, then dropped down to the floor, and ran under my bed. I opened the patio door to it's widest, and made sure the curtains were wide open, also - and hoped that the bird would find it's way outside.  It never did, but fluttered in and out of hiding spots all afternoon.  I guess it settled down for the night after 8 p.m. - didn't hear it at all, until I got up this morning.  It was fluttering about, both under my bed, and by the bureau - I could hear it's wings, and an occasional chirp.  So I once again opened the patio door and the curtains, and hoped for the best. Amazingly, it happened!  The bird appeared on the end of an art tube, and then winged very gracefully out the back door.  It was a big relief for me, if not for the kits.
  This morning was kind of chilly, but I wandered over to the store and got my fresh-baked bagel and returned home.  Just as I was leaving to go walk Rosie, the wind grew much stronger, and thunder began to rumble and then boom. Trees were thrashing against the sky, and a light rain, mixed with tiny hail started to fall.  I've pushed back my time for walking Rosie, hoping this weather will blow over...  The weather folks are talking about a mix of snow and rain for tonight and tomorrow morning.  - And I had just become happy with the 80s in Oklahoma City; how foolish of me!