they're wearing us down

We had pet turtles last year. They were with us for two days, before we released them to our creek, because they weren't eating and we feared for their little turtle lives.

Those two days were very happy days at our home. But since the release of Terrence, Flower and Sprigitiz (who also goes by the name of Butterfly) our children have been very sad.



They desperately want a pet, or something, anything with a heartbeat. Not a day passes that they won't ask multiple times for an animal. Carolyn told me that if I would buy her a dog, she would bake me 100,000 cookies. If, however, I did not buy her a dog, she would no longer talk to me and run away to live with her grandmother.

This is the face of a child who is angry with her mother for telling her NO, she cannot have a puppy or a bunny or a guinea pig or any other animal that the mother would ultimately be responsible for keeping alive after the novelty wore off...



My mother has offered to buy the children a goat. Apparently, you can walk it on a leash and it does a great job keeping grass short. The only problem I foresee is, a GOAT? Also, I'm not sure a goat would be capable of generating the same nice lines as our lawnmower.

After much more pleading today, tonight Charlie suggested that perhaps tomorrow we can go to the animal shelter and "look." Oh wow, I can just see how that's going to go...

If I endorse this bout of craziness and we go to the animal shelter, my next blog post will surround a big hairy dog running through the house, with mud all over it's big feet, while the happy children try to ride it like a pony. Or maybe my next blog post will surround an adorable little puppy, that likes to chew on Legos and children's shoes.

Or maybe there won't be any more blog posts, since it'll be impossible for me to type once I'm completely restrained in a straight jacket?