Blog Archives

It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas

11/30/2014

Mommy started decorating for Christmas today! The stockings are hung by the chimney with care, and several other things are up as well. Oh boy! They have to wait until next weekend to take out the trees because she needs daddy's help, but already the holiday spirit is in our home. (That picture is actually from last year, but we'll put the same tree up).

It's so exciting, and Zack especially loves Christmas. Of course, his birthday is on December 31 too, so he had a lot to celebrate in December! As you saw on Twitter earlier, he gets so excited. I can see why. It's a great time of year, with lots of fun! Yes, Thanksgiving was low-key for us this year because daddy had the flu, but it looks like it will be made up with Christmas fun in the coming weeks. We're going to have a lot of people visiting us later this month. Mommy and daddy are going to have to clean up (as if they aren't somewhat obsessive about cleaning and organization already). I have to admit that I'm excited, too. It's so much fun! I just wish they made birdy Advent Calendars, where we could chew something to splinters every day until Christmas.

Speaking of daddy, he is improving (finally). We appreciate your prayers and concerns. He's on the healing track, and we hope it continues.

That's all today. Take care, and have a great week.

Luv,

Chloe

Nerd Birds

11/28/2014

I'm not afraid to admit it: Chloe and I are nerd birds. It's not our fault, and to be fair, my Twitter profile does say that I'm a Star Wars fan. Or rather, daddy is. Mommy is too, but daddy is the huge fan that plays the video games too.

It's not our fault. Really, it's our parronts. Daddy plays the Star Wars video games and even has a shelf full of Star Wars books. And mommy is also a Lord of the Rings and Star Trek fan. In fact, right after they adopted Chloe, they decided to watch Star Trek: Voyager through Netflix, so one of the first things my baby sister saw on TV were The Borg! I bet seeing cyborgs was a shock after coming from an aviary.

I guess it makes sense, all things considered. Daddy is a computer technician that does some website design, and mommy works in administrative law and does mystery and sci-fi writing. What else can you expect?

It seems they aren't alone, though. I heard that fans crashed iTunes downloading the Star Wars preview. Well, it's on YouTube, so I'll do you the honors. Here are the previews that released this week. You'll want to watch both, because they're different - but both good!

Star Wars: The Force Awakens International Trailer

Star Wars: The Force Awakens UK Trailer

That's all today. I hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving and that you're having a good Black Friday. Have a great weekend and Go South Carolina Gamecocks! Beat Clemson University in The Palmetto Bowl tomorrow!

Luv,

Zack

Thankfulness

11/25/2014

I want to take this opportunity to tell you how thankful Zack and I are for you, our fantastic followers and devoted readers! We have so much to be thankful for, and friends are a tremendous blessing. You can’t choose who adopts you, but your friends are a special bond by choice. We love you all and thank you for always being there for us. You’ve been great especially this year, with us losing Ollie and Grandpa in the past months. What a comfort and joy you were with your condolences and words of sympathy and encouragement. Thank you all so very much!

Yes, it’s been a tough year (especially for daddy), but we know we still have much to be thankful for. Despite our challenges, we are blessed with a good family, home, jobs, friends, and an abundance of other blessings that are too great to count in one blog entry. We also are blessed with the hope of a better tomorrow, and that things are improving even now. Life is a journey of ups and downs. Yes, we’ve seen valleys, but we also see those mountaintops on the horizon, and that’s where we’re headed. So if you too have had challenges, then know that nothing lasts forever and we will rise. Yes, we will! We’re on our way! Faith never fails. Hope never dies. Love endures.

I hope each and every one of you has a safe and Happy Thanksgiving. May your human flocks stuff you full of love and goodies that keeps your tummies from buzzing and your hearts overflowing with the love and joy that is in our nature. And remember: Christmas is next! Oh boy! Trees and stockings and gifts and SANTA! Joy upon joy!

That’s all today. In closing, I'd like to share a fun little "birdy Thanksgiving tale" below that mommy found online. Take care, and have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.

Happy Holidays!

Luv,

Chloe

How to cook Thanksgiving dinner when you live with a parrot.

- Get up early in the morning & have a cup of coffee. It's going to be a
long day, so place your Parrot on a perch nearby to keep you company
while you prepare the meal.

- Remove Parrot from kitchen counter and return him to perch.

- Prepare stuffing and remove Parrot from edge of stuffing bowl. Return
parrot to perch.

- Stuff turkey & place it in the roasting pan. Remove Parrot from edge
of pan and return him to perch. Have another cup of coffee to steady
your nerves.

- Remove Parrot's head from turkey cavity and return him to perch.
Re-stuff the turkey.

- Prepare relish tray, and remember to make twice as much so that you'll
have a regular size serving after the Parrot has eaten his fill.

- Remove parrot from kitchen counter and return him to perch.

- Prepare cranberry sauce. Discard berries "accidentally& quot; flung to the
floor by Parrot.

- Peel potatoes. Remove Parrot from edge of potato bowl and return him
to perch.

- Arrange sweet potatoes in a pan & cover with brown sugar & mini
marshmallows.

- Remove Parrot from edge of pan and return him to perch. Replace
missing marshmallows.

- Brew another pot of coffee. While it is brewing, clean up the torn
filter and pry coffee bean from Parrot's beak. Have another cup of
coffee & remove Parrot from kitchen counter and return him to perch.

***When time to serve the meal:
- Place roasted turkey on a large platter, and cover beak marks with
strategically placed sprigs of parsley.

- Put mashed potatoes into serving bowl and rewhip at last minute to
conceal beak marks and claw prints.

- Place pan of sweet potatoes on sideboard, forget presentation as
there's no way to hide the areas of missing marshmallows.

- Put rolls in decorative basket. Remove Parrot from side of basket and
return him to perch.

- Remove beaked rolls and serve what's left.

- Set a stick of butter out on the counter to soften - think better and
return it to the refrigerator.

- Wipe down counter to remove mashed potato claw tracks.

- Remove Parrot from kitchen counter and return him to perch.

- Cut the pie into serving slices. Wipe whipped cream off Parrot's beak
and place large dollops of remaining whipped cream on pie slices.

- Whole slices are then served to guests, beaked-out portions should be
reserved for host & hostess.

- Place Parrot inside cage & lock the door.

- Sit down to a nice relaxing dinner with your family - accompanied by
plaintive cries of "WANT DINNER!" from the other room.

****Ingredients:
Turkey
Stuffing
Sweet Potatoes
Mashed Potatoes with Gravy
Green Beans
Cranberry Sauce
Hot rolls and Butter
Relish tray
Pumpkin Pie with Whipped Cream
Hot Coffee
--
‎

Update

11/23/2014

0 Comments

Hello? Is anybody out there? It seems we keep missing our Twitter friends when we're online these days. Then again, our schedule has been a bit off with both of the parronts being sick lately.

Mommy is better. She started recovering on Friday (finally), and has been improving each day. She had a virus, and she said it was the gift that kept on giving for about a week before it found it's way out of the door. Daddy is still on the road to recovery. He has an upper respiratory infection, and is on antibiotics. And as usual, the cure usually makes you worse than the illness for a few days. He's improving bit by bit, though, and we hope he'll turn a corner soon.

As for Chloe and me, we're doing ok. We took good care of them and will continue to look after them. It's what we do best! We're excited about the holidays coming up soon. It's such a fun time. Believe it or not, the parronts have already done all of their Christmas shopping, and the gifts are wrapped and ready to go under the tree when they put it up. They plan ahead, mostly because December is mommy's busiest time of year at work, so she tries to plan ahead. And I'll be honest - Amazon is a big help too. Nothing beats shopping online and having it delivered to your door.

I hope all of you are doing well. We're on the mend here, and getting ready for the most wonderful time of the year. Take care, and have a good week.

Luv,

Zack

0 Comments

Paging Nurse Chloe

11/20/2014

0 Comments

Whew, I am one tired hen tonight! Mommy and daddy were both home sick today. Daddy has an upper respiratory infection, and mommy has a virus. All day, Zack and I have been on duty. Kissies here. Snuggles there. Making sure they get plenty of rest. Screaming to wake them when it's time for medicine or meals. Locator calls when they leave the room to make sure they're ok. No naps for us today. We've been on duty since we got up!

Oh my goodness, sick humans are a challenge. They need a lot of care and oversight. I don't know what they'd do without Doctor Zack and Nurse Chloe to take care of them. Probably lie around in sloth.

But it's ok. We are their emotional support companions, and support is what we do best. We're happy to have them home with us, even if they need our TLC today. We're glad to do it. It's the least we can do for them, after they've been so good to us. We love our parronts. Still, we're going to sleep good tonight! I'll really be sawing twigs once roosting time hits.

I hope you have a happy Friday tomorrow and a wonderful weekend.

Luv,

Chloe

0 Comments

Good Day

11/15/2014

0 Comments

Ahh, it's been a good day in our home today. It's cold outside, but the parronts have kept us nice and warm - they even turned on the gas logs for us. That's nice. I remember when they had them installed. I screamed at that guy the entire time he was here. I went on for hours. He stood up to the test quite well. At least, he didn't seem bothered (but I bet he heard my screams in his sleep for days after!).

We got to sleep in, which is nice because mommy had us up early last Saturday for a volunteer event she had at church last weekend. We got all caught up on our sleep. The University of South Carolina won over Florida in overtime, so the parronts were really happy to finally see the team pull off a win. Chloe is happy because Tennessee is beating up on Kentucky. Mommy and daddy went out for a nice lunch and supper today, and are all ready for church tomorrow. It's been a good day.

Well, except for the wing and nail trim the parronts gave us this afternoon. That wasn't nice at all, but they got it done quickly, they did it well, and there were no boo-boos. We're all nice, groomed, and safe for the holidays and winter.

Here's hoping you're having a good day too, and a good weekend. Stay warm if you're in one of the places getting snow and ice, and take care. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Luv,

Zack

0 Comments

Games

11/13/2014

0 Comments

Zack and I have certain games we like to play when mommy and daddy have a service person come to the house. For example, mommy's taking a long lunch today so our alarm system can get an update. Service people are fun, because most of them aren't used to parrots. We like to scream at them, and thrash our toys around dangerously. They usually don't pay much attention to us, but we get the occasional "pretty bird." Sometimes, they even feed us their fingers. That's always a treat.

We have another game we like to play when mommy comes home for lunch on a workday, too. It's the "guess why I bathed" game. We dip ourselves in our water bowls until we're soaky wet, then we scream out guts out at mommy when she leaves to go back to work. It's so much fun. It drives her crazy because then she wants to stay with us, but she's on the clock. We laugh as she drives up the driveway fretting. Sometimes, we do a "high four" too.

There's also other fun games, like Reject the Snacks, Sling the Seed, Random Screaming, Snap at the Fingers, Hide Behind the Toys, and our all time favorite - Guess Where I Pooped. It's really fun when they don't find it until they get home at night. Hee hee!

Who says you need toys to play games. With humans like these, we have tons of fun.

That's all today. Have a Happy Friday tomorrow and a wonderful weekend.

Luv,

Chloe

0 Comments

Supporting Roles

11/11/2014

0 Comments

So mommy found an article online on how parrots can be allowed on flights as "Carry On Companions." The article said that we can be allowed to fly with our parronts in the cabin if a doctor says that we're our human's "emotional support companions" for a mental disorder.

You know my question: why do they need a note from a doctor? With those big brains and higher brain functions, you know something's wrong up there. I mean really, have you ever known a human that was completely normal? And besides, we're all emotional support companions. I believe that goes without saying. That's why they adopt us, after all - it's because they drive one another crazy, but we specialize in love, happiness, and joy! Birds are great company, though, and we all know it. We're fantastic. We're happy, cheerful, beautiful, and overflowing with positive energy. That's why we're so good at comforting our human companions. That's our job, and we do it well!

That's all today. Take care and I hope you have a great week.

Luv,

Zack

0 Comments

Mommy's Writing Hiatus

11/7/2014

0 Comments

If you read mommy’s blog, then you know that she’s on her annual “holiday writing hiatus.” She typically takes a break from writing in November – December, both because they’re extremely busy months and because she’s usually so worn to a frazzle that she can’t come up with anything to write for a couple of months. In fact, she wrote “Halloween in Anipal Land” because she said she wanted to close out her writing year with a fun project that everybody would enjoy. I’d say that plan worked!

Mommy always starts the writing break with a major housecleaning, which she’s done this week. I’m glad that’s over, because cleaning isn’t fun. Now we get to spend time with more fun projects! More free play time, of course, and probably watching things on TV that are a total waste of time and brain cells. Sometimes she likes to do arts and crafts, like cross stitching or painting small wood boxes or carvings. She also likes to read, and social media – so you’ll probably be seeing more of her around Twitter. Oh my goodness. If you think I’m silly, then I hope you’re ready for both of us to be online chattering!

We’ll keep blogging, of course. That never ends because we have so much to say. We just chatter away. So never fear, because we’ll still be here, writing hiatus or not!

That’s all today. I hope you have a Happy Friday and a wonderful weekend.

Luv,

Chloe

0 Comments

Making Politics Fun

11/5/2014

0 Comments

Hi friends, it’s good to be back on the blog! Chloe and I hope you enjoyed “Halloween in Anipal Land” over the past couple of weeks. What a silly, fun tale. I know we had a lot of fun imagining it!

I hope your parronts voted yesterday. Voting is a great privilege that not all people have, so we should take advantage of it. And mommy said she felt like she really should take advantage of the right to vote, since so many women in the past suffered so she doesn’t have to. Or at least, to know that she contributed to her own suffering based on who her vote got in office!

That was a joke. I know, it was a bad one, but a funny is a funny.

Actually, we have some ideas that would make the whole process more pleasant. I think the political ads would be a lot more relevant if we made the candidates take a polygraph and televised it – kind of like those daytime talk shows. You know the “you ARE the daddy!!” or the “you are NOT the FATHER!” shows? In fact, let’s just do the debates that way. Don’t argue. Don’t squabble. Answer the questions privately with a prudent polygraph administrator, and let a charismatic host scream it over a show, like on Jerry Springer.

Here’s daddy’s idea: vote from home. The election commission should give us a special log-in, password, or something so we can go on the Internet and vote. I know; it’s subject to hacking. In which case, may the best hacker win!

Here’s an idea mommy had: if we can’t implement daddy’s idea, then let’s have a bar-b-que buffet at the polling place. Precincts are always at schools and churches that have kitchens anyway, so why not crank it up and offer a free pig pickin? (Get it? Pork? Politicians? That was another funny.)

Chloe wants to do extreme makeovers on the candidates. They always look so prissy. She thinks we should experiment with various looks: professional, casual Friday, redneck, multi-millionaire, and best of all: middle-class America. Let’s see what you can do with a TJ Maxx look!

And my second idea is the best idea of all: if it’s a close race, forget the run-offs. It’s The Hunger Games! Ok, those movies haven’t really “wowed” us, but you have to admit that applying the concept to a run-off election would be amusing. And then the hackers from daddy’s idea could really have a ball with the whole campaign game, then!

I think we all have ideas on how to make the process better, or at least more fun. But at least it’s there for us. It’s a privilege to vote. And it’s fun to think about how to make it more fun and silly!

That’s all today. I hope you’ve enjoyed this fun and crazy entry. Take care, and have a great rest of the week.

Luv,

Zack

0 Comments

<<Previous

It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas

Nerd Birds

Thankfulness

Update

Paging Nurse Chloe

Good Day

Games

Supporting Roles

Mommy's Writing Hiatus

Making Politics Fun

Niblets

Archives

Categories