New Cousin and New Uncle!!!!

Meet our New Cousin Buzz McPherson!!!

He's an Eclectus..........

Our New Uncle Levi Jo Nicholson

 

Water, Water, Everywhere!!!!

Big Girl and Rockie got into spritzing this morning and bathing in their bowls....

"Rocking Out" my new do...

I look like a "drowned Rat"

More Daddy, More!!!

News "Flap"

So much has been happening at the nest!!  Here's a short recap:

VEGGIE TALES-
We have successfully transitioned to fresh fruit and veggies.  We started with fruit cups, canned peas, and canned corn.  I guess we should say "canned" veggies...but we're on our way.  Rockie would much rather eat french fries and a side of pizza, but some healthy pasta has shown to be an acceptable substitute.  In addition to veggies, Rockie has made some progress with switching from all seed to pellets.  We were at a 25 seed/75 pellet ratio, but he wasn't eating too well, so we've reverted to 50 seed/50 pellet.  Bill and I decided it's a battle we don't want to pick with him.  He's known seed his entire life, I would be grumpy too if someone made me change.

AVICAKE STOCK IS INCREASING!!!

I went for my usual trip to the pet store to stock up on parrot crack...aka Avicakes, and much to my surprise, they make avicakes for the keets.  I laughed to myself, but we all know they were in the bag at the checkout....So this is our impression of Keet Avicakes:

 Jasper checking it out, then they all ran around it...typical keet behavior, and started digging in.. I'm in huge trouble now.  Before millet would satisfy as "keet crack"...

Here are what the parrots have to say:

Blah Blah How about that I'm still eating mine:

HOMEMADE TOYS.....

Popsicle sticks
practice golf balls
Leather cord
Old toy parts

and we have.....

Thank you Daddy!!!

FLIGHT SUIT

Ha Ha...this was one of those toddler/baby moments trying to squirm them into their flight suits.  Biting, clawing, and flapping...One parrot made it, the other had a meltdown.

INTRODUCING OUR NEW COUSIN LEVI

Aunt Stacy lost her beloved Quaker Alex :(  But she's proud to announce that Levi will be joining her nest:

Congrats to Aunt Stacy!!!  This last picture is a family photo of Levi and his brothers and sisters.


A WORD FROM THE PARROTS COURTESY OF MOM....
Well sorry for the delay in our blogs.  Life has been crazy at the nest.  Mom and Dad are working more and more these days, but when they're home on the weekend....  We get a great parrot massage and plenty of time to poop on them.  The poor keets had to go through "wing checks"....Suckers!! 

BTW...we did hear that Grandma Kathy is coming to stay at our nest while Mom and Dad go to the Beach with Grandpa and Grandma Anthony.  "While the parents are away, the parrots will play....."



Love from the Nest.

Mini Vacay went OKAY!!

You know you've got it really bad when you go on a mini vacay and your only souvenir is a bird magazine that you bought in the pet shop....Sad!!!  It's even sadder when you buy seed for one of the parrots when it's cheaper there than at home.

As mentioned in an earlier blog, this was the first time I had been away from the birds since we got them, even the keets.  I must say, I was a little sad when we got them up Friday morning and then drove off in the jeep.  My mom, bless her, decided to stay at the nest while we were gone.  She kept reassuring me that everything was going to be just fine.  Bill and I made every list known to man...this applies to all the electronics in my house not just bird info.  My parents are electronically challenged and explaining to them how to simply turn on the tv is no simple task.  Three remotes later you can watch a movie in the living room, in the bedroom it only takes two.   Thank goodness the only real crisis we had was explaining how to turn on the TV...Thank goodness I had cell range at that point.  At the resort, I had to do the classic extend your ear towards the window and point your toe towards the hall and pray for service. 

Overall the trip was good but I noticed how much I missed my feathered children (including Syta the fish, we just refer to her as a bird..ha ha).  The funniest part of coming home from the weekend is the fact that we didn't waste any time getting home.  In the past we would take "our route" through Vermillion, Oh and head towards home arriving early evening.  We pulled into the garage by 11am.  When the parrots hear the garage door open, they know I'm home.  When they heard the door on Sunday morning, they erupted with excitement.  I swear they saved all their energy for us when we got home.  It was such a sweet sound hearing all seven of them, I'm sure I could hear Syta "sloshing" around in her cage too.

My sweet mother not only stayed at my house, she baked my fave peach pie for my birthday, had birthday presents from her and my father along with a mother's day gift from the kiddos.  Very thoughtful.    It's very reassuring that I have two sets of grandparents that are so dedicated to my children.  My Mother-in-law was on back-up if my mom had any problems.

So I conclude by stating that I'm very thankful all the thought and consideration that went into our weekend getaway.  Both set of parents were responsible for our little trip.  I enjoyed our time away, but I must say, I loved being back into the routine of getting up with the birds and heading to work. 

Stay tuned....in 30 days we leave for the beach with my in-laws.....This time we're going to be gone for longer and the parrots are going to my parents and Syta and the keets are going to stay with Aunt Merri.  I think that vacation will be a little more relaxing since I won't worry as much since I know that my parrots won't be a big problem for my parents.  The keets are going to turn Aunt Merri's house into a three-ringed circus, I hope she's ready....

Well this girl is tired, a weekend getaway is nice, but them comes the dreaded Monday at work.  31 clients later, I'm back into the swing of things.  A four day mental break was nice, but I must say, I'm REALLY looking forward to an entire week off from work.  But as many of you know, I'm always checking my voice mail and work email even off the clock.  My clients are so precious to me but I have to remember that a vacation is a good thing now and them.

Love to all from the nest...I'm typing quietly in the bedroom as the spoiled children sleep in the living room....BRATS!!!!

The great Cough Drop Debate...

I went today to the allergist to have my allergy testing done.  After sitting there for about an hour of testing the results were in....no allergies....<minor allergy to dust>....Highlights of Conversation with Dr. Houser:

SCH is crazy...He was speechless that they didn't know that there was a cough drop in my mouth.  He was very perplexed when he saw my CT results and was really worried about what the scan had shown.  Thankfully, my dentist, Dr. Yerkey, was intelligent enough to suggest a gum/cough drop in my mouth (according to Houser).  He told me that the x-ray/MRI office located in the same plaza as his office encourages you to have something in your mouth, if you're feeling anxious...WHAT?!...Overall he was very thankful that the situation didn't stem further...me too. 

I'm still a little nerved about the radiologist would also suggest that I have my sinuses "cleaned out" by an ENT on staff at the hospital.  Ummm...excuse me but my ordering physician is the one who calls the shots.  I've already had several dates with an ENT and have had No results.  Then there's always the test results..my sinuses WERE CLEAR!!  Yes please let me schedule a surgery....<imagine that scenario....MAJOR MELTDOWN>....

The end result is that I have chronic sinus infections.  No big deal, he said that I'm allowed to have one per quarter....that makes me laugh out loud...but if I have more frequent infections then I have to go see him.  He prescribed a new nasal spray that I can use when I'm more symptomatic...as right now...I can't hear correctly out of my left ear.....Bill said that the volume level on the tv has been getting louder.   But that's up for debate...Is it really my sinuses or could it be...A screaming parrot in my ear...hmmm....Challenging question!!!

Thank you to everyone for the prayers over the great cough drop debate.  I'm also very thankful to hear that I wasn't allergic to my feathered children.  I was dreading the thought of shots, but you know I would be driving to Boardman weekly and paying a weekly copay just for a houseful of spoiled birds!!!

**Coming soon....We leave for Lake Erie in two weeks...My parents are bird-sitting....I'm not ready for this as I've been with them EVERY night since they came home....Bill has been on the road 2-3 nights/week but that doesn't mean anything either.  He always talks to them before bed....Uncle Nick Nick met the parrots too....I'm afraid that he's going to get a serious injury, Rockie doesn't take well to Fuzz jumping at his cage.....

It is reassuring to know that I don't have to worry about boarding the birds.  Both set of grandparents are bird sitting during vacations and I couldn't be more thankful.  I knew I would have it bad, but this a maternal thing....Even poor Syta gets spoiled as I call cleaning her fish bowl....Cage cleaning...Uniformity in this house!!!

Love from the Nest!

 I'm signing this blog because right now the parrots have "pepper breath"...Little did I know that parrots LOVE anything hot....bring on the jalapenos..... 

Three Winged Circus

The past two weeks have been a whirlwind of events, hence the title three "winged" circus.

First event-the great "cough drop" debate.  I've been having chronic sinus infections that have been treated with in doctor terms "bazooka antibiotics."  I saw my brilliant allergist who shipped me off to have the dreaded CT.  Much to my delight, my primary care physician has a Cat Scan in their office.  Of course they wouldn't allow me to have the ct done there as my order physician was my allergist...not part of the doctor complex.  This meant I had to go to the dreaded hospital for my ct...dry heaving as I write about it.  As many of you know, I have an extreme phobia of hospitals.  I scheduled my ct scan for 7:30 in the morning and warned the department that I was coming loaded with Xanax and antibacterial accessories.  Fast forward to the next day, I get a phone call from the allergist stating that they found a "mass" in my mouth and that I needed to contact my dentist or oral surgeon right away.   Instant Meltdown....Fast Forward again to the dentist visit..With the support of my faithful husband, we braved the maze of the hospital to get my ct films and went to see my dentist.  Much to my surprise, he can't find the "mass" in my mouth and being the wonderful guy that he is, he called the head of radiology to try and figure out what was going on.  The dentist asked me if I had gum or anything in my mouth the morning of the scan....<deer in the headlight look>...I couldn't remember what I wore that day let alone what was in my mouth.  I was fortunate enough to remind them that I had a nose ring.  After much discussion with the radiologist, the magic/dreaded word came out of his mouth....Rescan....WHAT?!!!  So the next day I was contacted by the hospital, who was more than accommodating with my work schedule.  They were sure to make sure that I didn't have anything in my mouth this time.  I even was to wait on the ct table while the head of radiology came to read my scans...Surprise, there's no mass...I did have a cough drop in my mouth...How embarrassed am I....The radiologist was apologetic for my undue stress, and saying his staff should have reminded me....It's not their fault by any means, these things happen and they were so wonderful about the incident...But you know I was the discussion at the water cooler...."you know that crazy girl who came in last week, well boy was she a trip..."  I'm just so thankful that I didn't have a mass and that we could laugh about the event..However, allergy testing is next week....I'm getting to be a pro at this stuff...5 sinus ct's under my belt and 4th time for allergy testing....my luck I'll be allergic to cough drops...I'll never live that one down.

Second Event-CiCi loses her tail feathers.  My poor baby parakeet looks like she's lost part of her body.  Of course it was the day that I found out that there wasn't a mass and was over the moon, but very run down from all the stress and anxiety.  Bill was out for the night, so I spent a little bit of time with the birds in the living room.  The parrots were on top of their cage while the keets were taking turns playing cause and effect...flying of the cage, yelling at each other, and all the other things the "rodeo clowns" do.  I was getting all the birds rounded up because I was afraid I would fall asleep and wake with bird poop everywhere.  Poor CiCi was trying to get back to her cage when I slipped and found her under my foot.  I was so scared that I had killed her but to my surprise she was still alive, but the poor baby was losing her feathers as each second went by.  I scooped her up and took her over to the sink to asses the damage.  Her entire back is naked of all her tail feathers.  I called Bill and sobbed once again on the phone....Thankfully she's still the same happy bird minus some feathers.  Somewhere, my name has fallen onto the "wall of shame"

Third event-Trip to the Vet for the parrots. I'm proud to report that they are healthy a few modifications to diets and exercise are needed, but for being parrot parents for only two months, we've earned the seal of approval from the vet.  We return in ONE YEAR for another wellness check-up.  Both Big Girl and Rockie were champs.  Of course I'm sure we embarrassed them as Mom and Dad coming walking in with their "yellow and blue" blankies to match their colors..yellow crowned, blue fronted.  I also had a diaper bag of baby wipes, bottled water, our hand towels because the scent of home may comfort them, treats, food....All for just one little trip to the vet.  Spoiled brats! 

Thankfully this two week span has come to an end and I'm so excited to lay my head down on my pillow and try to catch up on the lost hours of sleep I've had over the past two weeks.  Many prayers were sent up for me and my family and I'm so thankful for a wonderful support system, even though it was a cough drop, the time in between was a nightmare.  CiCi losing her feathers was tragic for me, but she's still showing the other keets that it doesn't take a tail to keep her from moving around...And I'm so very relieved to find out that the parrots are doing so well and are HEALTHY!!!

New topic for discussion at our house is to microchip the parrots......Due to religious beliefs Bill and I are indifferent.....

Good Night from the Anthony Nest!!! 

disclaimer-drool spots are to be disregarded as the author is falling asleep as she's typing....

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