Tuesday, April 4, 2006
Sarah didn’t want her guinea pig anymore, so she gave it to Laila. The guinea pigs have had two babies in the time we have had them. Four guinea pigs were a lot for Laila to take care of. Because of my allergies, I tried to talk Laila into getting rid of them.
Laila agreed as long as she could keep her favorite. She had named her Taxi. I knew how much she loved her, so it was fine with me as long as she changed her cage. Laila promised that she would.
A neighbor said she would like to have the 3 guinea pigs that we were getting rid of. Laila went with me to give them to her.
I was glad to have gotten rid of the 3, and Laila was glad that she got to keep Taxi. It was a good solution for both of us.
Wednesday, April 5, 2006
Johny came with Laila and me to YW this evening. When we got home, Laila went to hold her guinea pig, only to find an empty cage. Laila asked her dad if he knew where it was.
He said that while we were at YW, he had gone and stood in front of the grocery store with a sign that said “Free guinea pig.” Laila was devastated! She asked him why he had done that. He said he didn’t think she would be responsible.
Laila asked him to go back to the store and find the people he had given it away to. He said, “They were Mexicans, and I’m sure they have eaten her by now.”
I was horrified. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I tried to comfort Laila. I felt so bad! There was nothing I could say or do to help her feel better.
When the kids were in bed, I asked Richard why he never even gave her a chance to show that she would be responsible. He told me I should be happy about it because he had done it for me, so I wouldn’t have allergies anymore.
His thinking is so bizarre to me that I didn’t know how to respond.
Saturday, April 8, 2006
I can’t count how many times Laila has asked me for a dog. I have told her, “When Sarah and Jared move out.”
The strangest thing happened today. Laila came with me to Big O Tires so that I could get the van inspected.
On the way to Big O Tires, Laila told me that when she gets her dog, she wants it to be medium-sized. And then she told me that her dog was going to be smart. I smiled and said, “Yes, someday.”
I have gone to Big O Tires so many times before, but for some reason, I missed the turn, so I had to make a U-turn.
As I was making the U-turn, Laila said, “Look, mom!” There was a big sign that said PUPPIES. Laila asked, “While we get the car inspected, can we go look at the puppies? I thought there was no harm in looking.
The man said the dogs were $250.00. I told him that I only had $200 in my wallet. He quickly responded, “I’ll sell it to you for that much.” I wanted to say no thank-you. Instead, I just smiled.
Then he said, “These dogs are one of the smartest dogs in the world. They grow to be about 30 lbs, so it will be a medium dog.” It was as if he had heard Laila’s and my conversation from a few minutes earlier.
I told him that I didn’t want to have to potty-train another dog. He said, “It is already potty-trained.”
I needed the money I had in my wallet. Laila excitedly turned to me and said, “Mom, I have $200 in the bank! So I gave the man the $200.00 that I had in my wallet.
There were 4 Aussie Border Collies to choose from. Laila knew just what dog she wanted. She named her Lilly. It was a name she had already picked out in case she had a daughter someday.
After Laila and I had been to the bank, we picked up the van. When we got home, we looked up Aussie Border Collie on the computer to learn more about her dog. The internet only had good things to say about it. It also said it was a good therapy dog for children who are in distress. The dog was perfect for Laila.
Laila wanted to go to Sarah’s work so that she could show her the dog, so we did.
I asked Johny, “Now that Sarah and Laila have a dog, does this mean you want one too?” Johny laughed and said, “No, I am good! They are too much work!” I was relieved to hear that.
When Sarah came home from work, she went into the backyard and spent some time playing with Lilly. It was the first time in a long time that I saw my kids happy together.
When Richard got home from work and saw that we had gotten a dog, he got upset with me because I had not asked him about it first. I thought if you were normal, I would have, but under the circumstances, I really didn’t care what he thought about it.
When Laila went to bed tonight, she was the happiest girl in the world! And that was all that really mattered to me.
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