Hamster search...

I’ve never yet had to smack my children. And no, I’m not a Mommy who doesn’t believe that sometimes all a child needs is a smack on the bum, but I do believe that all children respond differently to different methods of discipline, and I would rather find something more constructive than a smack to get a point across! With Ella, it has always been clear that all it takes is a stern voice to get her to pay attention. Jem’s a little different, yet I’ve never had to smack her…

…until recently - when she lost Scratchy (this is who Scratchy is)! Admittedly, I should have been paying more attention to what Jem was up to. But when she met me half way down the stairs (as I was on my way up to check on her) with eyes the size of saucers, and told me that she had lost Scratchy, I almost jumped out of my skin! Both girls know that they are not allowed to take Scratchy out of her cage unless the door to the room they are playing in is closed – we have Maya the cat, remember! And Jem knows very well that she is not allowed to play with Scratchy on her own. Not only was Jem playing with Scratchy on her own, but the door to the room was wide open. I yelled to Ella to close all the doors and windows in an effort to keep Maya outside - and the search began! We looked in every room, in every nook and cranny, while Jem sat on the floor crying because I had told her that she was in BIIIG trouble!  All I could think of was how I was going to tell Scratchy’s owners, who had just an hour before been over to visit Scratchy, that their beloved hamster was lost - or eaten! Sure, I could probably find another grey dwarf hamster to replace Scratchy, but very little chance that I would find another grey dwarf hamster half as chilled as this one is. With these thoughts running through my head, and Jem beside me, I took her by the arm and smacked her on the bum. It was just a little smack but I’m not sure who was more mortified – Jem, who stood wailing “Owieee”, or myself, who intensified the hamster search.

After turning the upstairs of our house upside down, Ella and I decided to empty out her cupboard, and found a sweet little hamster hiding amongst the toys. Never in my life have I been so relieved to see a hamster - except maybe for when I lost my own hamster! *blush*

Needless to say, my children have been told that they are not yet ready to have a hamster of their own!

Something else I firmly believe is that once the kids have been in trouble that they need to be hugged – not so that they feel that they’re getting away with anything, but so that they understand that the event is over. It’s been dealt with, and Mom or Dad still love them. They’re just little, they mess up – we all do, but there’s nothing worse than feeling that you haven’t been forgiven by the people who love you the most!

xoxo

Hamster-sitting

So my girls have made friends with kids who have a hamster. They've fallen in love with little Scratchy and each time we visit, they make a beeline for her cage!

I reckon that the two of them have made a pact to work on Mom, negotiate with Mom and wear me down until they get a hamster of their own. They've given it a lot of thought - every time I come up with a potential problem with having a hamster in the house, they hit straight back with a solution. Not always the most practical solution, but a solution nonetheless. They've also promised to help save for a hamster - and whenever Jem finds a 5c or 50c piece on the floor - or in someone's pocket - she picks it up with a flourish and tells me it's to save for the hamster!

I can feel my reserve slowly crumbling - but I'm not ready to make a trip to the pet shop just yet - for a number of reasons...
...we have a cat! I've seen Maya hunt down a mouse in the garden and I wouldn't want to wish that on any small creature, least of all one my girls have fallen in love with! (girls' response: we'll make sure hamster stays in cage and Maya doesn't eat it. My response: great, except that you're not home all the time and hamster is!)
...they play at night! Hellllooo! We sleep very well at home, each night we have a restful sleep with no disturbances. I value and appreciate and love my sleep! (girls' response: hamster won't keep us awake, we promise. My response: you've never had a hamster!). So some would say to keep the hamster in another room, but that would mean keeping him/her downstairs and then I'll be lying in bed worrying that Maya - or some other cat - is sniffing at the cage and scaring the poor creature out of its fur. And then I'll be awake anyway - a lose / lose situation!
...the cage needs to be cleaned. Yet another responsibility to add to my growing list of things to do on a weekend. (girls' response: we'll help you clean it Mommy, we promise. My response: mmmmmm).
...have you ever seem a 3 year old play with a hamster? I've seen Scratchy in Jem's hands and wanted to take her outside and whisk her away because Scratchy was lying so still that I feared Scratchy was no longer. (Jem's response to this concern: Mommmm, I won't squeeze her so hard and smash her - I'll be gentle!!).

Anyway, to cut a long story short, we were asked to hamster-sit Scratchy for two weeks. I've never seen two little girls more excited. They couldn't wait to fetch Scratchy and bring her home. The first night was Ella's turn to have her in her room. I told her that Scratchy would be very noisy but she didn't believe me. I could only hope for the best. At 1h45 Ella came padding into my room with her hands over her ears, "Mom! Scratchy is soooo noisy! Please take her out of my room!". I stumbled out of bed and carried the sweet little rodent through to the bathroom, gently closing the door behind me. Ella climbed back into bed and exclaimed, "Thank goodness, some peace and quiet!"

Luckily, Scratchy is possibly the most chilled hamster around and seems to quite enjoy all the man-, or should I say hamster-handling!

Hey Barbie! C'mon girlfriend, let's go shopping!

Ooops! Don't want to leave my bag in the bathroom!

This little creature was waiting for me when I went to bed last night – obviously left there as a little reminder. These girls of mine are super sneaky!

xoxo