If Only You Could Dye Yarn Like That

Lucy looking very proper.

She has been talking more lately. Her voice is nowhere near as clear as an African Grey's but you can figure out what she is trying to say. It's sort of like being a parent whose kid is just starting to learn to talk - you can understand them but maybe other people wouldn't. Lucy says: Hi, Hello and is working on Thank You. She also makes "love love" sounds when she is happy. She imitates the tone and cadence of many, many more phrases than she can actually say. And she is very good at clicking and whistles and beeps. Thankfully she does not imitate the phone or microwave or anything. But she has learned the little kissy, clicking sound I always make to her. She shows me that she associates that sound with me and makes the sound when she is happy or trying to show she loves me. All in all a very smart little lady. :)

Charming Lucy

I've been posting mostly pictures of Scooter lately but Lucy has been getting her share of attention as well.

Hubby took these charming photos of Lucy with one of her favorite "foot toys".



She is just like a baby with the way that she likes to explore the world - everything goes in her mouth first. Whenever one of the parrots is doing something I don't want them to do, I hand them a toy to distract them. It works really well.

Simple toys like these are very much loved by our parrots. They have a variety of foot toys - ones to be chewed up, ones with funky textures and shapes, noisy ones, soft ones etc. Anything new and colorful is a welcome addition to their toy basket in the play area.



Lucy loves to try to remove the colored plastic rings. After a while when she can't get them off she loves to drop the toy on the ground. I think she likes the sound it makes. It's noisier than most of the other foot toys she has!

My Favorite Picture of Lucy

This is my favorite picture of Lucy so far. You have to click on it to get the full effect - but I think this picture finally captures what her feathers really look like. There's so much depth of color! And the way they shine and shift like mother of pearl. It's mesmerizing.



I also think this photo shows Lucy's personality so far. I am her chosen human - but even so I when I put my hands near her she always instinctively retreats a few steps and then approaches me. I always let her come to me, keeping my hand still and praising her whenever she moves towards me. It took probably a week or two for Lucy to really decide to approach me on her own and I had to be very patient about it. She was always curious and I knew she really really wanted that contact but her past baggage made her cautious. Nowadays the whole "retreat then approach" sequence takes a matter of seconds. Someday I hope it will go away entirely but I'm not holding my breath!

In this picture Lucy is curious about the camera but cautious about approaching because it's my husband behind it! I am the only one that Lucy will approach to the point of touching. But she is okay if I hand her to him. So we're working on it. :)

More Parrots (Yes Again!)

I'm working on a couple of crochet sock yarn blankets right now so I got nothin' crafty wise to show you - all I have is a bunch of little squares.

So instead you get more parrot pictures. :)

Lucy stretching her wing feathers. Whenever she does this I say "Pretty girl!" She is sitting on the handle of her toy basket in the parrot play area we have set up for her. She usually hangs out there for a couple of hours everyday. Good outside of the cage time for her.



And here s a beautiful portrait of Lucy that my Hubby took. Doesn't she look so content and satisfied? You have to click to enlarge the picture to get the full effect. She's so pretty!!



And if you are starting to get addicted to parrot posts you should check out my new friend Mary's blog Parrot Musings. She has an African Grey, two Caiques, a budgie and one of the small Macaws. I love looking at the photos and videos she posts and reading about her flock. :)

Lucy Loves...

...to ride on my shoulder and preen my hair.



Are you guys sick of parrot photos yet? I hope not because I think I'm becoming what bird owners call a Parrot Slave. Well, maybe not a slave really but definitely a parrot worshiper! She's just so beautiful. I find endless fascination in the shifting colors of her feathers. They are iridescent - every shade of green that exists all at once on one feather. It's fascinating! Click on the photo for a closer look....

This is How the Birdie Sleeps....

Lucy sleeps perched on her mineral block all squooshed into the corner of her cage. One foot on the block and one foot holding the bars. She sleeps so squashed against the side that her feathers poke out. I'm convinced she sleeps like this because it is the absolute closest she can get to the rest of us. It is the best place to see us as we come downstairs in the morning. She has plenty of nice places to perch and even a snuggly toy she could cuddle if she wanted to but instead she chooses to squish herself into the corner. Silly sweet birdie!

Bath Time!

Lucy had her first bath at our home the other day. I filled the spray bottle with nice warm water and turned the nozzle to mist. Lucy was in heaven!! She immediately turned upside down and spread out her wings so that she could get a really good soak. Pure parrot joy! Hubby took lots of photos but most of them turned out blurry since there was alot of tail wiggling and wing flapping going on. You can really see all of Lucy's beautiful colors when she spreads out her feathers. So pretty! Lucy got herself good and drenched and then I gave her a bit of a rub down with a towel to get the excess water off. Her feathers were so nice and glossy and soft afterwards! I think most people don't realize how important it is for parrots to get a regular bath. Just think what you would feel like without a regular bath - yuck! It's been really rewarding to see Lucy getting comfortable in her new home and letting her personality come out.

In crafting news I finished the gimormous dodecahedron. Pictures to follow...