puppysitting=heaven for the burbidge kids

For the past several days we have been the proud puppysitters of Lola, who belongs to the Roberts family. My sister tells me I'm crazy (I think she put it more like, "What are you nuts? You're just asking for trouble.") Not because Lola is a bad dog or anything, but because it just makes my kids want one even more. A day into the adventure Coleman said to me, "This isn't so bad is it Mom?" I replied, "No, it's not bad." So he says, "Then why can't we have a dog?" Man, I knew that was coming and I let myself get sucked right into it!


Honestly, if I were inclined to have a dog (I should qualify this by saying that Lola is an inside dog and I've never been a fan of inside animals) I would take Lola. She is a great dog--smart, cute, well-trained, fun to play with, good with the kids, and she doesn't shed or stink too much. However, she's still a dog. Sorry kids, I just can't do it yet. Maybe an outside dog someday, but not yet.


I can't believe I even let her sleep on the bed! I didn't want her on my bed (I'm not that fond of her) but of course Claire wanted her on her bed. Coleman convinced Ellie to let him sleep there a couple of nights so he could have a turn with Lola too. They all love her a lot. They're sad that she has to go home tomorrow. We'll miss you Lola!

Oh ya, funny story about Lola---Yesterday we had her outside to play and I asked Garrett for a rope that I could tie her up with because she runs out of the yard the first chance she gets. Her leash is too short for her to run around, so I wanted something longer. He said she would just get tangled up in the rope. So he had the great idea to hook her leash to something too big to go under our fence. He found a large plastic dumptruck--lightweight enough for her to pull around, but too big to fit under the fence. I thought it was a brilliant plan. And it was--until the truck started CHASING Lola! She casually started trotting away when all of a sudden she realized that this thing was following her. So she tried to get away, but it just kept coming! And the faster she ran, the faster it chased her! Oh man, it was funny to watch. Garrett had to chase her down because she wasn't stopping. I felt bad for her because it really scared her, but man was it funny. Please don't call PETA on me.

kids are so strange

Being a parent is hard, mainly because you never know what to expect from your kids. Just when you think you've got it all figured out, they change things up on you. Take last night for example . . .

Anson doesn't eat vegetables. He just doesn't. Lately we've been sort of forcing him to eat a bite--I mean, one little bite--at most dinners. We use the dessert-bribing technique. I'm not proud of that, or even totally in favor of it, but that's what we've resorted to. Maybe we're bad parents. I blame it mostly on Garrett.

Anson's gotten a bit better with the torture lately, but just the other day he gagged and kind of threw up a bite of salad, then bawled the next day over 1 bite of a carrot, smothered in ranch. Some days he just makes faces. It all depends on the mood.

Last night I made a totally kid-friendly meal, something I don't do often. Not that I'm against kid food, but I don't make it a point to make things that I know the kids will eat because I want them to learn to eat whatever I make. But last night I was felt like making something I knew they'd eat. So I made homemade fish sticks, oven fries, and carrots with ranch. Can't get much more kid-friendly than that. I put one carrot on Anson's plate, hoping it wouldn't ruin the whole meal. (There are nights when he won't eat things that he does like just because there is something he doesn't like, ie. vegetables, on his plate.) He ate a couple of bites of fries and fish sticks, but they were too hot, so I suggested he eat his carrot while they cooled off. He resisted for a minute, then decided to have a bite. Next thing I know, he's finished it and asks for another one! Long story short (well, kind of short) he ended up not eating anything but carrots. He must have eaten 8 or 10 baby carrots. He kept saying, "These carrots are good--and crunchy!" I hardly wanted to say anything for fear I would jinx it!

So this isn't one of those times that the mind-changing habits of the toddler/preschool child drive you crazy, but it's just hard to know what they're going to do/like/not like next! But it does make parenting an adventure--and that's why we all got into this in the first place, right?

new house

"New house" isn't quite the right title because the house is older than we are. But it's new to our family! The house itself isn't much to look at, but the lot is huge and the yard should be even better in the spring. The fence that goes all the way around the front and side has climbing roses that are starting to bloom already. We're kind of waiting to see what happens! I'm planning to plant some more vines on the interior fences (for privacy and to hide the front of the house!)

Home sweet home--come visit!

"free" bunny

It's true, despite what I say every time we get a pet, I did it again. I gave in and said yes to a pet. But this was a free pet, so the idea was that if the kids don't take care of her, like they agreed, that we would give her away, since she was free and all. She even came with a very nice rabbit hutch and large cage and lots of supplies. She's super cute, good around the kids, and the kids adore her. (here it comes) BUT . . . what we didn't know before we got her home is that she's extremely matted all over. She was neglected by her previous owners--as in never, ever groomed. And she's a Fuzzy Lop, meaning she is a long, wool-haired rabbit, so she has to be groomed (brushed over every inch of her body) at least once a week. If this never gets done then the fur builds up and becomes tightly matted and gross. So of course, we have to take care of her!

Long story short, one groomer tried to get some of the mats off, and failed. However, they did managed to tear her skin. Apparently rabbits have extremely thin, sensitive skin and that's why it's such a problem to get the mats off. They are very tight and close to the skin. So they told me to take her to the vet, which I did today. They estimated that it would cost us about $300 to get it all done. $300!!!! THIS IS A RABBIT!!! There's the sedation, the anitbiotic shots and probiotic creme for the cut (thanks groomer) and the hour or two of labor to work on the mats. Am I terrible for wanting to just put her out of her misery? This is ridiculous. The poor thing was shaking the whole time she was being examined. I asked about just leaving the mats and he said the main problem they see with that is that it gets wet and moist and full of bacteria and MAGGOTS!!! Seriously, I'm not joking.

How do I let this happen? Why do I agree to having a pet when I know I don't want to deal with a pet? Even though the kids are supposed to take care of the pet, it always comes down to me. In this case, I have to feel guilty if we don't do something for her, but I sure as heck don't want to spend $300 on a rabbit. But how do you tell this girl that we can't spend the money on this adorable rabbit that she loves already? Tomorrow I'm calling the SPCA hospital to see if they're a little more reasonable. Please pray for Pippy--and us!