Thursday, July 15, 2010

Pet owners once again

Last year my Mom came to visit us in Washington. It was the beautiful fall time, while Andrew was still deployed, and we went to the pumpkin patch to get some pretty gourds and yummy hot donuts. But a different day, we had to stop at Office Max for something, and while I ran in the store, my Mom took the kids next door to Petsmart.

Little did I know what a brilliant move that was. We have since gone several times - it's a great way to look at animals without going to a zoo, and the kids hardly know the difference. When Andrew came home, he started going with us. Even now, if the kids are good in a store, we sometimes reward them by going to the petstore afterward.

The thing is, this practice seemed to awaken in Andrew a desire to have a fish tank. He always wandered off to stare at the tanks and price them out. We both wanted a huge one (like the kind that take up a whole wall) but that was just a dream, obviously.

We went again to Pesmart at the very beginning of the month, and Andrew seemed more in love with the fish than ever. After so many times of looking at the fish, Andrew decided to, as he put it, "just bite the bullet" and get a fish tank. I was just happy he was finally communicating something he wanted to buy for himself, as that is a rare occurence in our marriage. We got a Biorb, which is pretty dang cool. Because of the ammonia levels in the water (or something) we could only get 3 fish at first and we can add one every 28 days up to 8 fish. We named our little trio Milton, Enid, and Molly. (Eva chose Molly - she's the black one.) They all look very distinct from each other so it's easy to tell them apart.

Andrew has diligently fed and cared for the fish morning and night, and I frequently find him sitting on the couch watching them swim. (Even when we are watching a movie, he watches the fish.) The kids think it's fun to feed them with Dad's help, and I'm just glad have a pet that I don't have much to do with. They are low-maintenance and relaxing to watch, so I'm one happy pet-owner.
Andrew jokes that we should just get more fish and have no more kids. Some days I'm inclined to agree. See? I'm not an animal-hater. I officially like owning fish.

7 comments:

The Willis Wonder Years said...

HOw fun! I love that Eva named her fish Molly. Why? Does she have a friend that name or was it just by random though? So cute! We miss you guys!

Lindsay said...

We totally do the petsmart thing too. I wish it would have inspired Kenny to buy fish instead of chicken, ducks, and geese. He sort of went the other way with the whole thing haha. Maybe we should stop taking our husbands to the pet store, and only take the kids! :)

Elise said...

Fun!

I'm scared to buy fish since I tend to kill aquatic creatures...

Chels said...

I was shocked when I saw the post name, but now I get it. That fish tank looks cool. Can't wait to see them in person

Brittani said...

I hear you, the kids love to see the fish at walmart...but I am not ready to be a pet owner again. btw, I can totally see Andrew doing that!

Marelize said...

I can't believe you sold out! We are supposed to have solidarity in our non-pets households. haha. Can't wait to see those little fishies.

Tess said...

Oh how I love reading your blog. It is so much fun! By the way, about the back pain- it's something that I think happens on that 3rd pregnancy. The chiropractor was my best friend while I was pregnant with Ty- every 2 weeks I was there, actually sometimes every week. . . good luck!