The Adventures of Snoball: Snoball Goes To The Beach

This post is a little late. Snoball actually went to the beach this past Tuesday (the 4th) but I was feeling very tired and a little sick so I didn't upload the photos. I was away on vacation for roughly 5 days. My family and I went to Tampa and Orlando to see some theme parks and art museums and whatnot. Unfortunately, Snoball and David had to stay behind but they kept each other company.

So, anyway ... the beach! We got up early that morning and went to pick up Snoball from GC. We clipped his wings and packed him a lunch - pellets, treats, grapes and potatoes. We also filled a thermos with filtered water and brought that along for him to drink from. I packed a "toy bag" with a bunch of things from his toy box. He helped pick them out. -lol- He pulled out his rubber ducky (which is now missing its entire beak and both eyes ... I wonder what a psychiatrist would have to say about that if Snoball were ever to go to one ...) his little slinky, some colorful pacifiers, rings, and little knick knacks.

***A note about Snoball's toy box: it's different practically every day. I buy things for him and find things for him - any broken bits from other bird toys go in the toy box; anything he can hold in his foot that will keep his interest. For instance, today one of the caiques at work broke his lattice ball (the ones with the little bells inside). To the caique it was ruined, but to Snoball it was two halves of a chew toy. -lol- I also found two bells that had come off other toys which I gave to Snoball so that he could pull out the clacker, and a bunch of wiffle balls that I tied bits of paper and string to. I buy bags of plastic party favor toys from the dollar store and put a bunch of them in little muffin papers which then go inside a small tupperware. He loves chewing the tupperware open and then crinkling the muffin papers in his feet - which then, of course, reveal even MORE toys! I hide whole nuts, bits of crackers or other food items in there as well. He spends all day digging through his toy box. Honestly, he enjoys that more than anything else I've ever given him.

So, lunch and toys in hand, we all headed off to the beach. It was a clear, sunny day - perfect for the beach. We brought some towels and a big umbrella so that Snoball could be kept out of the sun. We took things slowly - getting out of the car and standing in the parking lot with him, making sure that he was calm before going on. We had to go under a bridge to get onto the actual beach so this was slow going as well. David and I were both sure that Snoball would get spooked by something, but as usual, Snoball was just glad to be out and nothing bothered him at all. Some kids passed by and one of them said excitedly, "Oh, look at the owl!" I think Snoball was a little offended because he didn't offer his typical, "Hi" with foot extended. -lol- David and I both assured Snoball that he was NOT an owl, nor did he look anything like one and carried on. We passed by a small, beach-side restaurant that was playing some upbeat music. Everyone sitting outside was very excited to see Snoball, and he was glad to show off by bouncing along to the music. He's such a ham.

We eventually made it to the seashore. David and I put our towels down and set up the umbrella. David jokingly said, "Here, can you hold this umbrella while I set up the umbrella?" (meaning, 'can you hold snoball while I set up the beach umbrella?' -lol-) Not long after we'd gotten settled down and Snoball figured out that he could climb and swing from the bars that hold the umbrella open, a family came by. They noticed Snoball right away and were very curious. They came over and asked about him and asked to take a picture of him. They were so surprised when Snoball willingly went onto their arms for photos. -lol- Snoball pulled the usual cute poses and talked to the family. David and I explained how he is mostly potty trained and how we take him places when we can, and how loveable Snoball is. We also made sure to explain how cautious we are with him - taking everything slowly, always making sure his wings are clipped, watching his body language to see when he's had enough, etc. The mother fell so in love with Snoball that she started asking me how much they cost, what it was like to have one, what kind of care they needed, etc. By the time we were done talking she said that she was going to go home and do more research on them. Perhaps there will soon be another devoted umbrella cockatoo owner in the world. -lol- :)

We stayed for roughly 30 minutes - not too long because we didn't want Snoball to get hot. We probably could have stayed much longer because Snoball was enjoying it. He hung out under the umbrella (literally) the whole time, except for when we took pictures.