Unique Pets

Being married to a Nature Conservationist / Zoo Keeper has meant that we have had some rather interesting and unique pets in our home.

I would like to introduce you to my unique pet:

This is one of my three Hermit Crabs. We had a rather interesting week this week in that he decided to move homes and occupy a new shell. In the midst of this transition one of his flat mates got into an argument with him and evicted him! So we had the privilege of seeing a naked hermit crab. This is a very rare thing to witness as they are rather attached to their shells.

Pet shops advertise these little critters as easy to care for (and they are after you get their home set up correctly) so in haste I purchased four and brought them home only to discover they have some very unique environmental needs.  So my cheap pets ended up costing a lot more than I had originally budgeted for.

** Lesson learned :  Research BEFORE you purchase and bring home a unique pet!**

For more information on Hermit Crabs:

• Animal Care Land Hermit Crabs
• The Hermit Crab Patch
• Hermit Crab in a Glass Shell (very interesting)
• Hermit Crab Paradise
• Pet Care Information: Hermit Crabs

Although having pets adds dramatically to your work load at home and also means that you are checking on your children making sure that they are keeping up with the care of their individual pets I feel that they are a very valuable addition to any home.  The care of pets adds many wonderful life skills to any child be they home schooled or not. 

Pets provide learning support for your children, comfort and reduce loneliness,  they help add routine and structure to your day as well as reduce stress. There are many physical and emotional benefits to the child and the family in owning a pet.

Do you have any unique pets in your home ?  If so what are they ?
If you decided against having pets what were your reasons ?

Blessings

PS:  At present we have a dog whose favourite toy is a golf ball, a cat who runs the house (or so she thinks), two tropical fish tanks containing: neon tetras, bristle nosed catfish who are so happy they are breeding like rabbits, clown loaches, electric yellows, African mono's, flying foxes, redtailed shark, sword tail, Kribensis, and an aviary in the backyard with breeding pairs of  Gouldian Finches and Orange Breasted Waxbills, a fish pond in the yard with goldfish ,  a Redfin Fish in another container and some fresh water crayfish, and last but not least some Spiny Leaf Insects which are living in a glass enclosure in the dining room. We have had frogs in the past. We had a pet rabbit who sadly died earlier this year but we are looking at getting a new one later next year. My family did want a snake but I gave them the following choice:  Mom or the snake ?  You guessed right I do NOT like snakes. 

I think I will dig out some photo's and show you some of our unique pets from day gone by.

Tuesday's Treasures 1-12

Two weeks ago I did a post on The Little Britches Series by Ralph Moody for boys. Something for girls this week !

Elsie Dinsmore
Format: Paperback
Vendor: Hendrickson Publishers
ISBN: 1598564005
ISBN-13: 9781598564006
Ages: 10-14
Series: Original Elsie Classics

We started this series and couldn't put it down.   Martha Finley wrote a total of 28 books in this series and had a total of 60 books published in her lifetime.  We read the first ten books in the Elsie Dinsmore series. As a family we enjoyed the christian principles and character of each book.  The first few books in the series are real tear jerkers but as Elsie grows up she imparts a lot of wisdom and demonstrates good godly living and wisdom.  She trains her children well and lives a Proverbs 31 woman's life.

The series was first published in 1868. A few of the books are available for free online at Project Gutenberg. I highly recommend reading the original versions as I found that the updated versions watered down the richness of the story.  If you start with one company's printing you also need to purchase the sequels from the same company



 I hope these books bless your family as much as they did ours.

Blessings

Treasured Moments 4

Do you find yourself falling into a pattern of daily grind, skipping the 'fun' activities because you don't have time or lack energy?

Do creative arts, nature walks, drama, read aloud or spontaneous acts seem only a distant dream in your life?

Yet these Treasured Moments shared with loved ones uplift us, nurture our soul, remind us of the beauty and joy in our lives.

We want Treasured Moments for ourselves, for our children, for our families but how can we make it happen?

... Commitment ... Encouragement ... Support ... Ideas ... Plans.

I invite you to join us every Saturday and share your plans and ideas, your targets and goals and your stories ... your 'Treasured Moments'. In this way we may inspire one another, encourage ourselves and start achieving our dreams. Hosted by Erin at Seven Little Australians and Counting

My Treasured Moments this week are:
1. Having my special friend Mrs L come over with her six beautiful children and just spend some time in encouraging fellowship.

2. Watching Sir N enjoy playing with cousins and friends during the week. I also enjoyed watching him help with the big move on Tuesday.  He loved being in charge of the lift on the removal truck. I also enjoyed seeing him enjoy a lesson at a different swim school.

3. Being there when my parents received the keys for their new home.  What a special time it was walking through their new home.

4. Being encouraged as I read posts at Creating with Wisdom I especially enjoyed Vicky's post A Book Meme and look forward to making mine, discovering Susan's blog Home Grown Kids at Kerugma and being encouraged with her post Watch my heart .... not be idle .... my weakness and Belinda at Live Life with Your Kids and one of my favourite blog posts that really encouraged me was written by Jennifer Fulwiler over at Conversion Diary titled The Goal Oriented Life. In fact I am looking forward to sharing this post with my husband and going on a date and making a goal list with him.

5. Receiving my new point and shoot camera in the mail.  I am so excited. I wanted a small camera that could fit in my hand bag and could function as a capturing special moments camera for my blog.  Paul bought me a FUJIFILM Finepix AX350 from Digital Camera Warehouse.

6. Seeing the crystals finally form in the crystal growing bath which Sir N put together a few weeks ago. I will be doing a photo story on the crystal growing later this week.

7.  I have been reading and encouraged by Michelle over at Homeschooling Downunder.  She has been doing the 31 Days to Clean Challenge Having a Martha House the Mary Way by Sarah Mae.  One of my goals is to get my home in order and I have been sort of floating around aimlessly.  So I have taken the plunge and purchased the E-Book (US $4-99) and will be starting this challenge on the 1 October 2011.  I am looking forward to doing this challenge.  Do any of you want to join me ??

8. Last but not least I took the plunge and made a second blog.  This blog came about because I am feeling really run down, burnt out and in need of Godly encouragement.  I have called it : GEMS 2 TOTS. (Godly Encouragement for MotherS 2 Train Our Treasures) I will be getting it up and running some time over the next month.  So please pop on over and have a look and let me know of great resources I can share.


To join in you are welcome to add your post on Seven Little Australians and Counting using the Mr. Linky form (please link to the individual post) and include a link back to Erins post. If you haven't a blog we would still love to hear your voice, just leave your stories in the comments.

Blessings