Harley (Phoenix) is Home!

So, Phoenix came home on Friday, and today we decided to change his name to Harley. Dan was having a hard time remembering Phoenix, and honestly, I had to think about it more than I should have. Now I will have to see if Harley sticks. He is a sweet heart! He came right out of his carrier and almost immediately acted like he's been here forever. Rio was not super fond of him the first night, but we got home kind of late and it was Rio's bedtime, so I put them to bed and the next morning, they hit it off immediately. Last night I put them in the same cage and they did great. Today they were together almost all day, preening and playing together, so I think it is safe to say that they are going to be BFFs. They are biological brothers, after all, so I really wasn't worried, but I am happy that it was such an easy transition.

I got an email last Tuesday saying that my blue crown conure is ready to come home. After I got the updated pictures, I decided that I want to change his name, too, lol. He just doesn't look like an Indie to me, so I am going to call him Jack. That name has always been on my list, so I am excited to finally use it. He is scheduled to come home on Tuesday of this week, so I am going to be busy. Dan actually shocked me tonight and told me that he thinks we should get another blue crown since Jack will be a fifth wheel. The breeder I got Rio and Harley from also breeds blue crows and thinks she will have some this winter, and I am already on her wait list, so when she has a boy available, I will snag one up from her. She does a great job with her babies.

I spent a good chunk of the weekend with April, which was really nice. Since I don't see her every day at work anymore, I have to make more of an effort to get together with her. On Friday I went to CSU and donated blood with her. CSU sponsors blood drives about three times a year, and I try to give most of the time. After we donated, we went back to her apartment for lunch and ate chili. Then after we got Harley home on Friday night and settled into his cage, Dan and I went to her apartment and had dinner with her and Landon. Actually, we ate junk food, but it was fun. Last night I invited her over for pizza and she and I went to Office Depot on the way to pick the pizza up. I will see her in the morning, too, because I have to drop her off at work. Landon had to borrow her car to take to Pensacola to take a test because his car is leaking oil. I am so thankful that God gave me a daughter and that we are as close as we are.

Well, that is about all the excitement I can think of at the moment. I took a benadryl because my allergies have been crazy all day, so I think I am going to crawl into bed and play on my iPad before I fall asleep. I hope you all have a great week ahead.

Long Overdue Update

I am sorry it's been so long since I updated. I have just felt kind of icky lately. My first excuse for not updating was that I had to finish my previous classes and then I was out of town for a week visiting my mom. After I came back I finished up my work days, and that is when things got really funky. I took three days off my last week to be with Rio because Dan was out of town, and I really enjoyed those days at home. I cleaned and hung out with Rio and thought that adjusting to now working was going to be a breeze. I found out on my last Friday that it was not going to be that easy. I cried most of the day, most of that evening, all weekend, and then up through Wednesday of this week. I felt a bit useless and depressed. I missed getting up in the morning and having a purpose. I missed seeing April every day. I missed helping students. I was a mess. On Wednesday I met my Success Center team for lunch and I told Wendy, the director of the SC, that I would love to do my job part time, and she told me that she might be able to make that happen. I have my doubts, but it made me feel better to hear her say that the door was not shut and that maybe one day I would be able to go back to work there. I think that as time goes on I will get accustomed to being home and will not want to work in an office setting any more. I already feel better.

Phoenix is ready to come home. I am just waiting for a decent day to fly him in. It has been really hot here. Yesterday the forecast said that Monday's high is only supposed to be 84°, but today they bumped it up to 89°. I asked his breeder about shipping him on Monday, but she never got back to me and now I'll probably need to wait anyway, although it will not cool down substantially for at least a month, so we will need to find a day in the not-too-distant future. This is the newest picture I have of him. He looks a lot like Rio did at that age. Rio's cheeks are getting much more orange/red now. He is a beautiful boy.

I also have another surprise. I put a deposit down on a baby blue crown conure. I have wanted one since I first saw the movie Paulie years ago, but at that time I thought having a bigger and louder conure would never happen. Now that I have a bigger and louder conure, and since I will be home again, I figured, why not? Phoenix was hatched on May 28^th and Indigo was hatched on June 13^th, so Indie is just a couple of weeks behind Phoenix and should be home in the next couple of weeks. I hope that being about the same age and coming from environments where they hang around with other birds will help to ensure that they get along with each other. Rio might have a harder time since he's been alone for awhile, but since he's so laid back, I am sure he will adjust pretty quickly, especially to another sun.

Other than all that, I have been working on my second-to-last class of my doctoral degree. I have to pass an oral exam before I can move on to my last class, which means I need to be adept at explaining statistical tests, research methods, and theory. I have a lot of work to do in the next couple of weeks, but I think I will be ready. After I pass my next class, I will be ABD (all but dissertation) and I am hoping to be finished with everything by next June. It helps to have a PhD sitting five feet away from me! And on that note, I should go and start working on the assignment I have due on Monday so I can do some house cleaning a bit later. Have a wonderful Saturday!