New "Family"

Will has been promised a new pet of his choice since he agreed to get rid of “Squirt” (the turtle.) He decided on a gecko but we asked him to hold off on getting it until after our vacation.

We finally went to the store and he decided to get two anoles instead ~ mainly because they were so cheap he could get two of them instead of just one pet. They are officially named “Diamond” and “Spot.” So far they are the easiest pets ever to take care of…well, maybe except for our fish. Since the kids brought snails home from Pier Lon last year, our fish tank has been a breeze to take care of! Will does “lizard-duty” everyday by giving them a freeze-dried cricket, several mealworms, new water and then a good spraying of water all over their cage to increase the humidity and give them something to drink from off of the wood.

While we were at the store, Weslea begged and begged and begged and begged and begged some more and then begged even more……..until we broke down and let her get a hamster. We agreed to let her get a hamster on the condition that she is never, ever allowed to ask us for a dog again! 🙂 She wanted a dwarf hamster (the really cute, teeny-tiny ones) but the pet store lady talked us out of that because they are incredibly hyper. She settled on a regular hamster that she named “Rainbow.”
Rainbow poops….a LOT. So much for the stupid potty training thing that is supposed to work for hamsters. She poops everywhere except for the little container where she is supposed to poop. Then, instead of sleeping in her designated sleeping area, she spends her entire night transferring all of her bedding and food up to her exercise wheel. Now, everytime she is exercising she makes a huge mess as all of her little pieces of food and bedding fly out of the wheel onto the floor! I’m also allergic to hamsters so we have to completely clean out her cage every other day or she really starts to bother my allergies. She is completely adorable though and Weslea is thrilled to have her as a pet!

Wyatt then wanted a hamster too, but we thought that would be a small daily disaster with him trying to sneak up to hold his hamster everyday without supervision. We talked him into taking Weslea’s fish tank and then he and Weston each picked out a new fish. I can’t remember what they have named them because their names keep changing every day it seems.

Weslea’s hamster has been the biggest hit though. The first couple of days they drove me crazy asking to hold Rainbow (you’re supposed to leave the new pets alone for a couple of days with no handling so that they can get used to their new environment.) After two days I decided to get Rainbow out so that everyone could get a chance to hold her. Well, she is a crazy, insane little thing and I even had problems getting her to stay in my grip. She actually got loose from me at first and while I was trying to grab her from off of the floor, all four of the kids started screaming insanely and ran to the highest place they could find to hide from the big, scary hamster. It was absolutely hysterical seeing their terrified faces over a little, tiny hamster. I almost peed my pants laughing and am thrilled that no one has asked to hold Rainbow since!

That’s the “BIG NEWS” from here. Mom and Dad (who really don’t like animals at all) now have seven pets at their home (three fish, one hamster, two anoles and one outdoor cat!)