About Me

My photo
Antwerp, Belgium
Welcome to the new, and improved version of Heaven in Belgium. I am Jientje. "Jientje", like the boys name Gene, followed by "chu"? "Gene-chu", that's how you pronounce my name. Yes!!!!That's it!! So now you know huh? I am an addicted blogger. I was born and raised and am still living in Belgium. Yeah, the "this-is- Tuesday-so-this-must-be-Brussels" kind of Belgium .. There, you see? Maybe you couldn't find it on the map, but at least I'm trying to change that a little by sharing lots of pictures. I really love to cook and create new things, like this blog for instance. I am a mother,a grandmothe and a wife too! They say I'm a traveler, and a photographer. Well that's just what they say, I love to make pictures, but I am far from professional ... If my English is not perfect, that would be because it's my second language. I do hope you'll forgive me any possible misspellings or strange vocabulary ... Now, as a result of all of the above, I get way too little sleep and my days are always much too short!

Followers

Heaven is in Belgium

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Ruby Tuesday Birds of a Feather


ruby-slippers-door-stop_copy

 

For as long as I can remember my father’s biggest passion is his aviary in the back yard. It has been there all my life, for as long as I can remember he used to keep parrots, and doves, finches … There was always a whole range of colorful birds in there. I never particularly liked that aviary, because somehow I used to think caged birds were unhappy creatures. But lately I have altered that opinion slightly because I have come to understand the birds in there were born in captivity. They were bred to live in aviaries and they could never survive in the wild. Kind of like the animals and he birds in a zoo really. They seem happy enough, the aviary is spacious enough for them to spread their wings and fly. They mate and nest and raise their little ones and my father sees to their every need. It’s his pride and joy and he loves to spend time in there.

 

And so last Sunday when we were at my parents house I followed my father in there with my camera to take some pictures of his bird collection. I thought they would make a nice Ruby Tuesday post.








Look for more rubies at Work of the poet, the home blog of Ruby Tuesday, hosted by  Mary the Teach … the one and only!

Mary is a little bit under the weather today, I hope she feels better soon!

20 comments:

Leora said...

Splendid birds. Nice to get to know your father a bit.

aspiritofsimplicity said...

Oh I just think that first bird is so beautiful. I have a pair of Zebra Finches like the one's in your last photo. I really love them. They d lay eggs and one of them hatched! They raised the baby and then I gave it to a friend. I just don't have the room for more birds. I think they are beautiful though. I love their happy little chirping.

Robin said...

What colorful cheerful little creatures.

Wanda..... said...

Those are very healthy looking birds...just beautiful Jientje...and I notice some bird houses...this makes me want to raise some chickens...we tried once, but they weren't safe enough from predators...I think I know more now...so maybe!

MaR said...

Such gorgeous birds and fantastic shots!! Your father has a wonderful hobby.
Happy RT!

moneythoughts said...

Thanks for sharing the photos.

Susanne said...

Your dad has some beautiful birds! Growing up our neighbor 2 doors down had an aviary. I remember spring and summer mornings waking up to their beautiful songs.

MrsLittleJeans said...

Wow, what a collection of birds your dad has. We had parrots and canaries when growing up, and I used to have parakeets and finches...but not anymore. Love their colors and their songs but taking care of birds is not easy.

Lovely post.

xo

Unknown said...

You will certainely cherish those pics of your father and his birds! I wish the blogging was this popular 8 years ago when I still had both of my parents...(sigh) pictures speak a thousand words! How wonderful that you are visiting America! Looks like you are spending time in the East...you are always welcome for a visit and stay at our home as well. The Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, and Zions Canyon are so close! A days visit and your camera would LOVE the scenary!

Bientje said...

Very nice pictures of dad and his hobby sis!
Big hug!
Your little sister

Anonymous said...

It is a blessing to be able to spend time with your father! These pretty birds give him happy moments and he loves them back with great care! That is a big space - looks like they have plenty of room to socialize. I like the little entry of the birds house - looks private - no wonder they reproduce well :)

Anonymous said...

Your dad sure does like his birds. Interesting that you changed your opinion and I had never thought of that before but what you say makes sense. Excellent pictures my friend. And the shots for RT fit perfectly :)

Suburban Girl said...

And...they don't have to worry about predators I assume! Not a bad perk to have. Love photo #2

quilly said...

What incredible pictures! And these birds, never knowing any different, probably have a wonderful life with your dad.

Jientje said...

@ Leora: I enjoyed writing about him.
@ hip chick: I used to have Zebra finches here too, and they too layed eggs. I took the little baby with me, he kept me company in my shop. He was a very friendly little guy.
@ Robin: they are!
@ Wanda: My father kept chickens in there too. You could easily do that where you are, great idea!
@ Mar: Yes, it's his passion.
@ Moneythoughts: You're welcome!
@ Susanne: The songs are beautiful, I love hearing them too!
@ MrsLittleJeans: You've got that right, it isn't easy!
@ Linda Higgins: Every time I see my parents I'm grateful for the time we get to spend together and I touch wood they're still in good health. Thank you for your kind offer, it's very tempting. I'll be in Chicago and Washington. Maybe I should organize a blogger meeting in Chicago. There are other blogger friends who want to meet me there too, so if you're interested, let me know?
@ Bientje: Yes sis, I wanted this post to be about him, not just ruby Tuesday bird pictures! That's why I added his picture as well! We all love him, don't we!
@ ellievellie: Oh yes. There are little ones all the time!
@ Thom: He likes them so much he never goes on holiday anymore. They never leave home longer than two days! Aaah but he enjoys it, and my father loves to be busy, so ...
@ Rebecca: So true!
@ Quilly: That's so true Quilly. My father hurts if any of them dies. They're his pets, he loves them.

Melli said...

Beauuuuutiful! I just love birds! I don't know any of yours today! I love that first one though! And the last one also! Cute couple!

Heidi said...

Gorgeous! I love the aviary. I raised chickens in the suburbs one summer. The rooster crowed when he got old enough and that was the end of it.
Heidi

Kathy said...

Pretty birds with their rosy red cheeks, what a rewarding hobby your dad has there Jientje. Kathy.

spacedlaw said...

They are really cute.

Unknown said...

He has great birds! And a great aviary! When I was a kid we had Zebra Finches and they had babies all the time - they were so cute and tiny!

What am I up to? Follow me on Twitter

    follow me on Twitter

    FEEDJIT Live Traffic Feed

    Blog Archive