We Gave In

Arabella has been asking for a pet, specifically a dog, for as long as I can remember. She wanted one in Montreal and we told her that we couldn't have one in our house there because our yard wasn't fenced in. When we moved here, she told us we could get a dog now since we had a fenced in yard. I would love to have a dog, but Jay doesn't want the extra responsibility. I know that most of it would fall on me and that Arabella would love to have one and I think Max would too, but for now we will wait. We compromised with her, well Jay made the compromise with her, that she could get a fish, IF she took care of it. That means cleaning the tank and everything. I will not be cleaning a fish tank! She agreed and started doing research last month. We figured the standard goldfish would do, but they found out that it is cruel and unusual punishment to keep goldfish in a bowl...they need space, cold water and more...otherwise it is not a good environment for them...who knew. We had a goldfish for years growing up in a regular bowl on the kitchen counter...he seemed happy...or so we thought. So after lots and lots of research and making the deal that she had to be "good" for the whole month of November, we would get her a fish. I thought I would never hear the end of it. It seemed as the day got closer, it is all she talked about. She knew what kind of fish she wanted and we even had a print out from PetSmart of all the supplies she would need. She even watched videos on YouTube with Jay on how to clean the tank. She and Jay settled on a Betta fish, she wanted girl Bettas but when we got there they were all out, so she agreed to a boy Betta. She liked him because he had lots of pretty colors and she has named him "Diner" - no clue where that came from! I thought this would be a $20 investment, but after our shopping trip today and dropping $50 on the fish and accessories, did you know that Betta fish need a heater to keep their water warm? They also need silk plants and not the plastic ones otherwise they might snag their fins/tails, and we wouldn't want that to happen. Anyway, let me introduce you to Diner -

Diner seems happy and I just hope she keeps up her end of the bargain and this fish lives the 2 - 4 years it is supposed to...