Bird Sitting

Disclaimer: It is not that Greg and I dislike animals, but we are clearly NOT animal lovers. I know that people who are "Animal Lovers" do not understand people like us and think that we are incapable of compassion and love. I put up with poop, throw up, chocolate hand prints on the wall, bloody noses, multiple CDs in the DVD player, stepping on little cars or Polly Pocket girls in the dark in the middle of the night, snotty noses, and stinky, smelly kids because I LOVE THEM. There is not an animal on the planet that I love enough to enjoy that smell in my house.

This is what Greg signed us up to do for 3 weeks (we're one week down). His name is Max, and a lady at Greg's work went on "holiday" so we are watching the bird. It's really not that bad. But, he does squawk fairly loudly at times (it really upsets me when it's during Paige's nap). We now cover the cage with a sheet when we need him to be quiet. He says "hello" (in a British accent), "I love you," and sings "Old MacDonald" (it does the chirps). He does nip at us. It feels like a pinch, but I do have some bruises on my arm because of it (of course, I bruise if someone breathes too hard on me so it isn't a fair comparison). This woman absolutely LOVES this bird. She made me kiss him when she brought him to "visit" before he stayed (I didn't want to hurt her feelings, and I'm generally up for kissing at the drop of a hat, but kissing the bird was pretty gross). She lets him eat at the dinner table and he goes everywhere with her. I think Max is struggling a little because I obviously don't allow this. Our goal is just not to kill it (they cost a couple thousand dollars). He is absolutely gorgeous and I think we'll survive, but we definitely won't be purchasing one for our own.