We all love our cockatiels. They are great little birds with HUGE personalities. They make great first birds requiring much less space than other larger parrots. The males have great talking ability. We highly recommend that you let your cockatiels fly for exercise as long as you take the necessary precautions for the birds' safety (i.e. no open windows, no predators, no clear glass to fly into). Note that cockatiels flying around leave much less poop behind than the larger birds. If flying is not possible, make sure you have a roomy cage with lots to do.
Both of us have had Cockatiels over the years.Timothee's first bird was a cockatiel named "Eagle". Eagle, like most cockatiels, loved her bell. She loved to perch on the swing under her bell and whistle. Nancy's cockatiel, Sunny, was her first bird. Sunny loves Ollie, the male Eclectus as much as his favorite toy, Ringy Dingy.
Now for food... Cockatiels do best with a diet consisting of equal amounts of pellets, seed, and fresh vegetables especially greens. Most are not crazy about fruit. For treats, they LOVE Avicakes!