Day 54: The Return of Owl-O-Ween

Yesterday, we saw owls! Lots and lots of owls!

Dumbledore bids you welcome!

There was so much owl-filled goodness yesterday at the National Aviary's annual Owl-O-Ween celebration! We got to meet new owls as well as see some of our old pals from years past!

Thanks to a detour that took us an extra hour, we almost missed
seeing Franklin, the spectacled owl. But fortunately, we got into
the theater just in time! Howdy, Franklin! Good to see you again!

New this year to Owl-O-Ween were the beautiful Snowy Owls!

The Snowy Owls' names are Glacier and Tundra! I'm not sure
which one this is, but I know he or she is super pretty!

That's magic right there. Pure magic!

Because Snowy Owls do so many cute things, we took lots of pictures...

... and the Snowy Owls were more than happy to mug for the camera!

Seriously, Snowy Owls look like Muppets! Those faces! Those furry little faces!

And here they are together! I told you there were two!

I'm not sure how long the Snowy Owls will be on exhibit at the Aviary
but I'm sure glad we got to see them at least once!

Naturally, like Owl-O-Weens past, there was a crafts table. And
naturally, this Halloween blogger took that craft very, very seriously.

An owl puppet! Perhaps my best creation yet!

And here's the burrowing owl! You know him from previous
Owl-O-Weens (as well as my banner picture on Twitter).

A new addition to this year's Owl-O-Ween: Oakley!

I won't lie though. I was a bit disappointed (and worried) when they
didn't bring out my old pal, Barkley. You remember! The one-eyed owl
rescued from the forest floor who served as screech owl ambassador for 18
years. But turns out Barkley is in retirement! Really! The Aviary has
a whole program for retirees. I bet Barkely plays a wicked game of Bingo!

A tiny screech owl meets a giant Eurasian Eagle Owl between lectures.
One looks hungry and the other looks scared. Worry not! They passed
through the day without meeting again!

This is Dumbledore, Pumpkin and Tootsie's father! While
the much celebrated Pumpkin is still hanging out at the Aviary,
Tootsie has moved on to other engagements and now lives at Sea World.
We miss you, Tootsie!

Handsome Dumbledore! Look at those eyes!

And that was our weekend adventure. You can still catch Owl-O-Ween at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh next Saturday, October 31st. It's a hooting good time!