SEPTEMBER JOURNAL

So suppos your waitin to see who gets to tell the stories this week.  Well us babies all got together and decided to let "Queen" Charlotte out in the Happy Hut to speak this week.  Wanta know why Jo's calling her the Queen now.  Well she's may be a linnie, but she's trying hard to follow in Queen Betty's footsteps.  Her very first clutch and she's got a whole seven eggs under her.  Poor Jo was wondering if she'd ever stop.  Now the mystery is to see how many of those hatch, being the first clutch and all.    Chester's been filling her in on all the gossip around here.

  Well now you know the scoop on us two now, but there is Olive and Popeye downstairs here with three eggs so far.  This is her first clutch as well and Jo was wondering bout her as she laid two eggs and then took not two days, but three days off before laying another.  Then you got Candy and Mango, the fischers over there, sittin on three eggs too, so far.  Sundance and Cassidy, their gettin their babies now,  and Jessica and Lucas should be getting their babies this weekend.  Then you got Pig Pen and Jesse laying eggs downstairs here too.  Those two are too funny.  Every night Jo comes to put lights out and she sees two heads pop up over the nestbox.  Pig Pen and Jesse waiting for their nightly treat of a couple handfed seeds.  Spoiled.  Jesse he's a good boy though, he waits for Jo to put her finger in for him to jump on and come out for a visit.  Then she puts him back in.  He's probably the only Dad here as well that helps Pig Pen shred all the paper and actually takes it right into the nestbox for her.  Let that be a lesson that not only the Moms shred the paper and take right into the nest box!!  Oh and rush job today here as well.  Jo has been watching Mattie in the Resting Room as she seemed to want to spend a lot of time under the paper on the floor.  Now remember Jo has some of their babies, still in the Nursery weaning.  Well what does Jo discover today but Mattie under the paper again with a big belly.  Ya all knows what that means!  So it's full house out here again.  And Jo thought she was going to take a break!  Ha. 

As you can see in the picture next door here that the babies up there in that Nursery are sure having fun with Jo.  She lets them crawl all over her as she's feeding the youngins in the Brooder.  Some of them she continually has to take and put back on her shoulder as they are crawling on her face or down her arms, but she laughs.  Poor Lou walks into the Nursery and goes all nuts, but Jo just tells him to go out, as she is used to them and goes about her chores in slow motion with them on her.  Our babies, the linnies though, while they love being on Jo, they are also quite content to just sit on their drawbridge and watch her.  Next week Jo is going to move some of our babies downstairs as they are such good babies and sit quite content on top of their cages.   Jo has it rigged up so they can run in and out of their homes all day .   Jo puts toys and food up there and all day long then she can interact and talk with them.  She spoils them, but she spoils them "good".     Then I'm told Jo is having the same troubles with this Tucker as the last Tucker.  Figures Jo should feed him forever!  His sibling, the little violet guy, is pretty much weaning himself good,  but no way hozie for Tucker.  Then those four pied babies are something special.  They have so much bright colours.  Then Jo's got some of Sidney and Slick's Amercian cinnamons, the pastal green guys, that she likes so much. 

Well folks here we are September 15, 2002 and Jo is just updating the Journal now.  Shame on her, but we well fill you in on all the racus round here and then you'll understand and maybe forgive her.  Where do we even start.  First off, who's gonna do the yipping.  O.K. let's let Twinkle do the talking.  Guess we had better tell you who Twinkle is and I guess that would be the best way to start this story off.

Hi everyone, My name is Twinkle and far as Jo can tell so far I'm gonna be a little cobalt baby.  I's is only three weeks old, so not all feathered up yet. My sibling that Jo's gonna tell you bout here as well has the name of Star.    I have a genetic disorder and have a hard time holding my head properly.   I have a sibling who is the same way as me.   A lot of people call us babies that are born like this stargazers, hence our names.   Jo discovered we had this little problem when she pulled us for handfeeding.  She was upset beyond belief.  Poor Jo.  She never had babies like us before and did not, just could not figure out why.  Course she started panicking, thinking disease, bacterial problems, etc.etc.etc.  took us to the Vet, called Health Gene Corporation for testing,  reading everywhere for information  and then after three days of worrying and near going out of her mind, Health Gene Corporation told her, they would run all the tests she wanted, but in their opinion we had a genetic problem.  So she called the breeder she bought  our Mom and Dad, Intrique and Moombeam from.  Sure enough, Jo was flabbergasted.  It WAS genetic and this pair had produced babies like this before.  They have produced three clutches for Jo and Lou so far, but this being the first that they have babies with problems for them.   Needless to say they are getting a divorce!   Jo and Lou would never in a million years have left them together had they known this.  Jo is going to try and do anything and everything she can to help us out with our little problems and has already found us a good home only 5 miles from her, so she can keep an eye on us.    But then Jo had an even bigger heartache to deal with thru all this disruption last week.  She had just sent Mork and Mindy (who she just loved) to B.C. last week as she was planning on keeping little Tucker, her baby slate masked and pairing him with a baby of her new violet masked she just got (they are at her friends waiting for testing to be done as well) down the road.  In the meantime she was going to spoil this little Tucker silly and believe me he was spoiled, as she really missed Mork and Mindy. She has not even taken their names off their homes  in the Resting Room as she can't bring herself to do it yet.  Well isn't Jo feeding little Tucker one night during all this delima, only she wasn't paying close enough attention to the job at hand, she was trying to watch us, Twinkle and Star in our little brooder and see how we were doing holding our necks up.  She shringed Tucker a bit of food and it  went down the WRONG way.    Jo knew right away he was in distress and tried to help him.  20 seconds, not even that probably and he was gone!  Jo cried, and cried and did not sleep and just felt like an absolutely terrible Mom.  To this day she cannot talk about it, as she starts to cry.  Now she has no Mork and Mindy and No Tucker.   Says she has never, in her history, lost a baby of that age to anything, let alone a foolish, neglectful error of her own fault.    So that folks was our very very sad week, last week.  Jo did nothing but clean us all week, and my gosh we were clean to start with!!, but she still just kept cleaning.  Guess she had to keep her mind busy.  But she is so relieved to know what is wrong with us and that we are gonna have a nice good home to go to. 

Jo has Lou busy now making a nice big big big new home for those baby linnies.  Guess Jo wants a nice big fancy smancy one to put in her Living Room for them to play in and on.  We'll get her to put a picture on when it's finished tonight.   

Then what do you think about the pictures next door here of their new guys.  Violet Pastal spangle silver cherry whiteface.  Even the pictures do them no justice.  They are beautiful.  Jo told us!!  They are at her friends house right now, as she wants to get them tested and make sure they are not carrying any bugs before bringing  home.  Even though they just went thru 45 days of quarantine, she's not taking any chances. 

Jo and Lou made a trip to her friends in N.S. and took them a beautiful blue cobalt linnie.  They just love him/her and all the funny little noises these guys make.  Matter of fact, don't know why I don't get to sit on Jo's shoulder as she's typing this Journal, instead of two of those linny babies!  They are at the nibblie stage and she's trying to break them of the habit, I guess. 

Jo and her friend Jo were like two kids in a candy store the other day she said.  They had a big storm here and not to far from her place a big weeping willow tree went crash, right to the ground.  Shediac clean up crew chopped the rest of it down and then left it there to clean up later.  Too bad, they won't have to now!  They got in the other Jo's truck and they  filled that little half ton right to the top with willow branches.  They were so excited.  So guess everyone will get new perches and branches for chewing  next week!!

So in the Happy Hut this week we got Jessica and Lucas with 4 baby whiteface and happily feeding them all.  Sundance and Cassidy are back in the Resting Room, as Jo has their four babies in the Nursery.  Pig Pen and Jesse are now sitting on a whopping seven eggs and Jesse just loves being spoiled out there.  Every night Jo goes to do her rounds and opens up Jesse so he can come out and sit on her shoulder to inspect things as she goes round.  Olive and Popeye are nesting on five eggs.  Candy and Mango are also sittin on five eggs in their nest they made of willow branches and Jo's not too sure bout Charlotte and Chester.  She may have got egg laying happy, but they are not hatching so Jo's kinda scratching her head on this one. 

In the Resting Room, it's also been crazy this week.  Seems Jo cannot even go near Queen Betty's home, or Peanut's or Miss Betsy's as soon as she goes near their door, they are glued,  all poised, just right ready to get out.  And it's so funny, both Peanut and Betty have their hiding positions in the Resting Room, little corners they figure Jo can't get to get them and make them go back home.  Every day, twice a day, they are out this week.  Jo dosen't mind them though, as "usually" they will come to her and she puts them back in.  But if THEY have decided it's not time, there ain't no way, they are coming to her!!  Barney's been out this week as well, but poor Kibbles, Jo won't let him out.  If you remember back, it takes her half a day to catch him.  He's smart and he's fast!!  But Miss Betsy there, Jo says she is just the most beautiful bird there is, especially when she is in flight.

Now Jo wants everyone, after they have finished hatching their babies, to take a big break.  She wants to empty the Happy Hut right out and scrub it down top to bottom while it's empty.   Lets just see if everyone cooperates with her!!

Well folks, we have to go for now, as usual, Jo has to go feed some babies.  Later this evening if Lou gets those linnie babies new home done, we'll get Jo to post more pictures of all of them in it. Then Jo has to get busy and update her babies page.

September 22, 2002  Hi Folks, Charlotte here again and is Jo ticked at me!  Why you ask, cause I laid her a nice seven UNFERTILE eggs.  Which tells her that Chester there is most likely a female as well!  Jo's convinced that Chester didn't help me lay any of those eggs, but Jo's never had a complete unfertile clutch unless it's two females paired together.  So you may find Chester having a name change to we are not sure what yet and Jo on the hunt for a man for me. 

So you see those pictures of those spick and span homes  over there.  That's Charlotte's Bird Room (the lady that I got my name after).  Jo and Lou went there like we told you, last week to deliver their linnie to them.  Lou couldn't resist taking pictures as that Bird Room is just a Picture Perfect Bird Room!!  All her guys get their play time out EVERY day, just like Jo's babies here.  Jo specially enjoyed visiting with her Tucker.    She emailed a confession to Jo last night.  One of her birds had to go ALL day with a poop stain on one of his toys!  Jo told her that was just absolutely sinful and she should be ashamed of herself!!

So you see the cute little kid with the slate linny on his shoulder.  Some kinda cute huh?  Thats Lucas, the little guy Jo's Lucas is named after.  He just loves all the birds and is SO gentle with them.  Usually little boys can tend to be rough, so this little guy.  His sister Jessica was here with him.  

Jo's been busy all week, what with all her other daily chores, she's been making us all new swing perches with lots of lots of those willow branches her and the other Jo scoffed.  She uses those big button beads, with vegetable died ropes for preening, and all kinds of neat things on them.  Trouble is, like she says, she can't just make one, or two or three..... we need 40 in this here house.  No fare if the neighbors get one and we don't! 

So how do you like the baby linnies new home.  Jo sure likes it!  Both doors open on either side so Jo can go right thru.  Now those spoiled babies get to sit pretty in the Living Room and watch over her shoulder as she does the Journal. 

Jo's Michco is still here with us.  Jo just had the bloodwork sent away on those new guys from Belgium a couple days ago, so she is still waiting for the results to make sure they are not carrying any bugs.  He's a spoiled little guy as well though.  Jo takes him most places with her the last couple days as it has been so nice outside.  He just sits perched on her shoulder, glad to be along for the ride.  

But Jo also wants me to tell you that she is so excited to finally have found an Avian Vet has located in Moncton.  Her name is Dr. Marlene Gallon and that's who Jo got to take the bloodwork and send it away.  This lady sure knows her birds and Jo was real happy with her.   Jo has got her Link Page started and when it's up and running her name will be on it with all the details how to reach her. 

Jo's down to only four couples in the Breeding Hut and Candy and Mango got their first baby today.  Course Pig Pen's up to her old tricks.  She peeled her first egg.  Jo gave her a talking to (as if that'll help!)  as she has no one at this point in time to foster her eggs to.  Mango and Candy, being fischers and all, make their nest made out of willow branches and Jo couldn't get the eggs in there if she wanted too.  Then Mattie and Matt and Olive and Popeye are still there as well.  Both those couple I think should start hatching by the weekend.  Now Mattie and Matt have proven themselves before but not Olive and Popeye, so we'll see what they come out with. 

Cause Jo's bringing us all in the Resting Room at once, she is pairing some of us up in couples.  Those lovebirds she has always only kept in one pair per house, but so far she has put Brooke and Dhillon and Cookie and Coby together and now Jessica and Lucas and Little Pearl and Seawilly are in a big house as well.   So far so good, everyone is living quite well together.  Had Jo still been working outside the house, she would never have done this with the lovebirds as she is very cautious that way, but the linnies seem to cohabitate quite well together.  Course when she tried to bring myself  and Chester into the house and put in a large flight with Nana and Nigel, I, Queen Charlotte, was having no part of that.  I chased and chased poor Nigel around that flight till Jo took me right back out.  3 females and 1 male...no way!

Peanut is getting worse and worse.  She's to the point Jo can't even go near her house, as she just naturally assumes she getting out to play!  Seems this and last week, her and Betty spend more time out than in!

As for the babies upstairs, Jo's got plenty of them right now!  They keep her hopping lately as they all get their turns out to play at least twice per day as well.  Jessica and Lucas gave Jo two nice pied whitefaces this time as well as two df violet cobalt whitefaces.  The amercian cinnamons of Sidney and Slick are grown up real fast and Jo, as well as everyone else, just thinks they are so beautiful.  She's got two beautiful pastal greens with light blue rumps and two with violet rumps.  Tommorow she's gettin Lou to take the camera upstairs and get some nice shots of them for you's.  Then Jo's got two lovebirds up there in a big baby flight with seven linnies.  Normally she would separate the lovebirds from the linnies when she takes them from the big brooder to the baby apartments but these two has been with the linnies from day one, so she decided to leave them together and keep an eye on them and see what happens.  They all get along SUPER.  Matter of  fact the little slate baby lovebird  it seems has picked a friend. Whenever Jo went into the Nursery today, this little slate was always sittin up in one of the swings with a sky blue linnie.  Preening and feeding each other, the whole bit.  We'll try and get some pictures tommorow.  Course Jo is STILL keeping close tabs on them, as we all know lovebirds can be brats at times!

Be back tommorow to fill this up with those pictures we promised.

Well Jo tried to get those pictures today and they all turned out fuzzy.  She'll try again tommorow.

See the little cobalt fellows  next door here, thats Twinkle and Star.  Those are the two little guys that some folks call star gazers and the reason Intrique and Moombeam are getting divorced.  Anyways they went and got their shots of Vitamin B today at the Vets.  We'll keep you posted as to how they do with their little neck problems.  The Dr. also told Jo to give them some extra Vitamin B12 and Thiamine. 

The little whiteface violet you also see a picture added next door,  is a fellow going to Johanna in Prince Albert, Sask when he's growed up bigger.  Then you see a picture of Betty's silver baby and her amercian cinnamon as well as Intrique's pied.   

Pig Pen and Jesse did better today in case your wondering.  They got their first baby and Candy and Mango got their second baby.  Someone put dibbs on their first baby today so Jo better to get to the baby page and update  them. 

O.K. hopefully we'll be back again tommorow.  Night