House guest...

I am a very good mom. Not to say that I don't make my mistakes...forget things...occasionally lose my cool. But this week, I am a very good mom. We have a house guest. And I don't really like her at all. She's about as cold-blooded as they come. I was totally against inviting her. In fact, I absolutely put my foot down and played my veto card. To no avail. My husband and my son gave me the old sad eyes and played on my sympathies to the point that I gave in. Apparently, the boys in my house are quite fond of her, but there's no romancing this stone. So allow me to introduce you to Firebolt. And let me add that I cannot WAIT for her to vacate the premises next Monday morning.

Firebolt is one of Mickey's classroom pets. Why, for the love of all that is good and holy, could we not have hosted the sweet little hamster? Hmmmmm? No, my son is in love with the snakes. Yes, there's more than one. I really do love Mrs. Phillips. She is an awesome teacher and has been such a blessing in each of my children's lives. When we moved into this township several years ago and Mindy was in 5th grade, she was in Mrs. P's class. At the time, Mrs. Phillips team-taught with another incredible teacher, Mr. Kimmel. I knew when we walked in that first day this was the place to be...animals galore...a rabbit, a gecko, snakes, tarantulas, rats...and a classroom environment tailored to meet each child's learning style. Some students were at tables, some were at sofas and chairs...wherever they worked best. And that's just the short list of wonderful things about this classroom. Abby was also in this class for both 4th and 5th grades. She loved it so much that it made moving to middle school an almost tragic event. Sadly, Mr. Kimmel moved to another school system a couple of years ago, but I was thrilled to have Mrs. Phillips as Mickey's teacher this year. He will loop with her for 5th grade, which is a huge advantage! An advantage that apparently costs me having to put up with a SNAKE for a week. Firebolt is NOT, by the way, spending summer vacation with us. I have spoken.

Meet Firebolt...a lovely corn snake...

And while I'm on this theme of being a good mother, I realize that I must share with you for the first time our newest family members. Their arrival was somehow lost in the fall frenzy that is our life. Before I go on, let me say that we've had several hamsters, starting with Cookie. I was desperate. It all started on the heels of that move I mentioned and in response to one sad little third-grader who cried every day for weeks upon being dropped off at school. Abby has always been a social butterfly and didn't look back for a second as she jumped on the bus the first day of kindergarten. Which is why the waterworks were killing me. So I did what every experienced self-respecting mother would do. I offered a bribe. Magic kit? A pony ride? A cowboy hat? AH! A hamster? As soon as it escaped my lips, I knew. The deal was no tears for a week. She sucked it up, and a week later we were the proud owners of our first black bear hamster. Oh, what a critter. I actually fell in love with her. But she was a little escape artist. She was always plotting to get out and explore the world. Once, I found her in the laundry room and we barely caught her by the tail as she attempted a dive into the washer drain! Alas, her zest for freedom was the cause of her eventual demise. We won't mention any names, but a certain little poodle that lives here had something to do with it.

A sight you will most likely

NEVER see again in this house...

Tragedy. To say the least. I was partially at fault. Okay, mostly at fault. I had left Cookie in her exercise ball and fallen asleep. I found her and sobbed when I had to tell my little girl. You'd better believe that immediately following her backyard service the next day, we drove straight to Petsmart. Bunny then joined our family, followed shortly after by the adoption of cousin Sarah's hamster, Freeway (he had a white stripe on his belly)...LOVED that little guy. A couple of years later, we added Tinkerbell, a teeny tiny baby black bear hamster who I believe actually died of fright after just a few months...she just never got used to us. Tinkerbell died right before we left for China to adopt Caroline. And so did my 17-year-old dog, Betty. It was more than I could bear, and I put a hold on adding any more pets for a while. I held out pretty well until this past fall.

Okay, they are pretty cute...

The onslaught began. They begged and pleaded. This time it was for a rat. Rats are great pets, didn't I know? They're very social, very intelligent. They also have tails and beady little eyes. I valiantly tried to discourage. I finally gave in. I don't even remember why. Maybe I was just tired. Off they went with Dad to purchase a rat...ONE rat, with orders to get one without red eyes. Hey, guess what? Rats come in pairs. They are SO social that they need a buddy. GOOD. GRIEF. Thus, the addition of two little ladies to our family. I demanded naming rights. I dubbed the dark-colored one Desdemona and the blonde one Cinderella. Actually, I think Caroline picked that name. And I thought it was funny.

A rare cuddle with Cinderella...

All in all, the rats have been fine pets. They're quite humorous, although they don't shove food in their cheeks like hamsters, which I find extremely entertaining. They're much quieter at night than hamsters. They make a little racket late in the evening when they're dumping their bowl and rearranging any and everything in their cage. But they're girls...they need to accessorize something, I suppose. Desi is the more relaxed and social of the two. Cinderella has nipped all of us at least once...except for Mindy, who refuses to acknowledge their existence. Don't even get me started on what she said about the snake. She's out of town for the week, so she didn't get a final vote. At any rate, I've made peace with being the mother of rodent owners.

Baby Desdemona...back in September...

I guess they get a lot of this animal love from me, although the snake-loving gene must have skipped my generation. I have to admit, Firebolt is amiable enough. Thankfully, she ate her weekly meal before we picked her up on Friday, so we haven't had to witness any carnage. She's gentle and seems quite interested in the goings-on of our house. I have news for her, though. It's a nice place, but she wouldn't want to live here. And even if she did, she's not invited. Something about her overstaying her welcome.