Ugly Bunny

I really hope this toothbrush doesn't get mixed up with any of the toothbrushes that are designated for brushing human teeth.

I make foolish promises in exchange for practicing.  I admit it.  I promised Freestone a pet if he practiced 100 days in a row, and he did, darnit!  He got his hundred days back in April, but I had managed to put off the pet purchase by encouraging Freestone's indecision.  His favorite activity has become having me sit on the edge of his bed at bedtime and discuss the pros and cons of Yellow Tangs, parakeets, tortoises versus turtles and different breeds of rabbits.  He kept telling me stories about the class pet, Squirt, who is a Russian Tortoise, until I was finally struck with a brilliant idea.  I emailed the teacher and asked if Freestone could take care of Squirt for the summer.  She said yes!  Freestone was ecstatic.  He ran to tell Jake, and they had the funniest conversation, their eyes bugging out of their heads, their voices practically shouting.

"JAKE!  DO YOU WANT TO TAKE CARE OF A RUSSIAN TORTOISE FOR THE SUMMER!?!?"
"KINDA!!!!"
"WELL, WE GET TO!!!"
"DUDE!!!!!"

Ruby and I went to the classroom to pick up Squirt on the last day of school.  Freestone was smug as all his jealous classmates filed past the terrarium to say goodbye to Squirt.  I thought I had struck gold with a temporary pet who just sat under a rock and didn't cost a dime!  Then the teacher started explaining, "Squirt gets nervous and poops a lot when he's moved.  Here is a toothbrush you can scrub his shell with.  Don't worry if he doesn't eat for a few days.  He needs his UV light AND his heat lamp on at all times or he gets upset.  He really enjoys warm showers, long walks on the beach and romantic dinners."  Seriously.  The tortoise has a personality?  I didn't sign up for a sentient pet with preferences and fine tastes.  What happened to sitting under a rock all summer?  After much discussion and debate, the terrarium ended up in the mudroom, as opposed to the kitchen counter or on Freestone's bed.  He has had several warm showers and cool baths, he has been offered a variety of foods and activities, including bumping into walls and exploring the front yard with Coco's bunnies.

Yeah, Coco's bunnies.  Coco gets an idea in her head and there's no stopping her.  She took some of the kids to the farm store to look at animals recently and couldn't get the adorable, lion-faced bunnies out of her head.  I talked to her one afternoon and she said, "I guess I won't get a bunny.  I just had my eyes dilated and I don't have a car and I can't see, and they'd be too much trouble, anyway."
Two hours later, I got a text:  "Come see bunnies."  Plural?  For the past couple of days, the kids have been building condos and running back and forth from our house to Coco's to borrow animals.  So far, the cats and dogs haven't expressed much of an interest in eating the new pets, but really, it's only a matter of time before disaster strikes with the menagerie we have going.  I already accidentally turned off Squirt's UV light long enough for him to hiss his disapproval.  And I did get one text from Coco saying, "Ari and Free took a bunny to your house in a doll stroller.  Should I be worried?"   Not yet.  The bunnies love going for walks!

We were all happy as clams with Squirt, Cozy and Posy until Ruby mentioned that Coco had left one bunny at the farm store.  It had had pink-eye and its face was shaved.  It was hideous.  I said, "Let's see if we can get Coco to buy that other bunny."  I texted her, "Ruby said you left one poor, pathetic, lonely, ugly, shaved-faced bunny crying all alone at the pet store."  It worked.  The ugly bunny is coming to Coco's house Monday.