The explanation of why I am voluntarily living with rodents

It is this little animal lover that is to blame. 

But let me back up.  One of our beloved hermit crabs, Clementine, had bit the dust about 2 months before our move to Omaha.  So we packed Sammy, her brother and survivor, and he made the move with us.  Yes...not sure if I have ever admitted this before or not, but through our 2 full days of driving from Waco to Omaha, we exited our vehicles at every rest stop, gas station, restaurant, and hotel with 2 kids, 2 adults, a dog, a cat, and a freaking hermit crab.  It was comical at best. 

So about 2 weeks after arrival to our new house, Sammy died.  After hauling his little habitat into several McDonalds and suffering through nights in hotels with him dragging his little shelled body around in the quiet dark - he just gave up.  The boys were devastated. 

Fast forward six or seven months, and I finally make good on my promise to take the kids to the "Pet Shop" to replace our two fallen shelled comrades.  While I was busy trying to pick out the least creepy and hardiest looking crab, little did I know my big boy was dreaming up a different plan, one aisle over. 

And so, with a few promises made and agreements sealed...his dream came true before we walked through the automatic exit doors.  And we welcomed Cupcake and Monjette to our family.  Two Chinese Dwarf Hamsters. 

And, believe it or not, they are delightful.  Fearful at first, they have warmed up to all of us I think due to Roanin's endless hours of holding them and whispering and magic Steve Irwin-ish stuff he does.  There have been a few episodes...a two hour stint where I chased a loose Cupcake throughout our TV room, cursing under my breath....a fatal discovery one morning by me in which I had to make a mad run to the Pet Shop to find an identical Monjette and have her in place before the boys woke up....a scary moment one afternoon when the lid was left off the cage and Pia the cat decided to "play" with poor new Monjette (no injuries were sustained THANK GOD)...and one lesson Rex had to be taught about the importance of not using the hamsters as cargo in his front end loaders.  But they are cute as they can be and pretty easy to take care of. 

Plus, I feel like I have provided Pia with her own little version of the Kardashians to keep her entertained.  What can I say...I live to serve.