Looney-Bird Lewellyns!

The Lewellyn families have always been bird lovers!!  As far back as I can recall, my family has owned birds of all kinds!!  Parakeets, Love-birds, Doves, Pigeons, Mynah Birds, Crows!, Parrots, Cockatoos, and probably others! Some might say we are a bit Looney over birds!!  My earliest memories are of my grand father...Pappy Floyd..who had many birds!  He had a sun-room type addition on the back of his home in Sherwood Village that was home to quite a menagerie of birds!
Pap-pap spent much of his day caring for and talking to and loving his family of birds.  He trained them to talk, raised some to sell to pet shops, could be found feeding them from his mouth to theirs, and sometimes had wounds on his lips and arms and hands from their "love" bites!!  We chuckle because as grand-children began to enter the Lewellyn family, Pappy Floyd talked to them just like he did his parrots!!The following photo and large article were published in the Bloomsburg Press Enterprise about my Pappy Floyd on July 6, 1990.

I can remember my dad telling us stories of birds they owned when he was small.  One particular bird would be outside while my dad and brother played army!  The bird would make the sound of a gun shooting and say..."uhhhhhhhhhh, gottcha!!"  That has always made me laugh as I picture it!!
Somewhere along the way mys sister Cate got the bird bug!! She has a beautiful jungle-like atmosphere on the back patio of her home in Texas...and it is filled with birds who chatter and sing and call the dog and cry and laugh and add fun to her home!  Here is Eli enjoying one of her birds!

Cates bird Dobie is famous for singing the Sponge Bob song!! Dobie is an African Grey Parrot! Check it out....at 1min 30 seconds she sings the song!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UX1t9n7IXw
And here Cate is with some of her sweeties!

Dad got the love for birds too.  He raised Homing pigeons, and I can remember watching dad release them and waiting for them to return home! We had many birds over the years..dirty as they are, they are fun! Dad would train many of them to talk by recording something he wanted to teach them, and playing it over and over on a tape recorder thru an earphone that was attached to the birds cage.   Dad recently purchased a Double Yellow Headed Amazon Parrot!  Her name is Harriet. She is young and by far the best talker I have ever seen in the family! When she came to dads home a few months ago she would call..."Lester!!" (who was her previous owner), say, "Back to work", "Hello Harriet", goodbye Harriet, I love you, cried like a baby,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okwQFYCRToE
and a few other things including singing "I'm a Yankee Doodle Parrot!"

Recently Dad has taught her to sing Jesus Loves Me, play Peek-a-boo, talk when she wants a bite of food, say "will ya look at that!", and much much more.  Harriet loves Sara and will dance and chase Sara around the kitchen table.  And Harriet also loves to play cards!!  Amber enjoyed meeting Harriet for the first time when she was visiting in May! And on that same visit Harriet surprised Schuyler by flying and landing on her head!! WE missed the picture of that one...Skyes expression was priceless!!!

 

Monday is laundry day at my parents house, and Harriets favorite day! She likes noise and talks the entire time the washer and dryer are running! And here is Harriet hamming it up at dinner time!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1DnC6DZCvI

Little by little Harriet is learning to trust Dad, and can often be found snuggled up around Dads neck or giving him gentle kisses! 

These videos do not do justice, as Harriet talks sooooo much more than you have seen here!! I am sure there will be videos to come as we capture Harriet saying new things!!