Family Pet

After my sadness associated with losing the always fabulous chicken pets we had *sniffle*, I have been looking for a new family pet. It gets so lonely sometimes without a cuddly animal friend. So I had to set about finding the perfect family companion.
At first, I naturally drifted towards the puppy route, but puppies need so much love, care and attention and I am in class frequently. Also, it would be difficult if I ever went out of town. Feeding, walking, cleaning up. Additionally, I was looking at something a little smaller since dad brought home a cow.
So puppy was out, maybe a kitten. Then I remembered Figaro, or as I dubbed him - Panther. Panther was pretty, but I went out of town for 3 days and when I returned I was Panther-less. Besides, who could replace Zim? Zim was the best cat ever. Also, if I need my kitten fix, I can always go over to Alix's and play with Smudge. So no kittens.
A pet, a pet, a pet. Hamsters are not super fun. Ferrets smell. Horses need much more space, turtles aren't friendly, snakes creep people out, and tigers tend to maul their owners after a while.
Then finally the answer came. It came in an unexpected place, but I took the inspiration for what it was and started to do some research. After many articles, pictures, and Youtube videos, I was sold!
Dum, da, da, dum!! Our new family pet is....

LOLA!!

The Hedgehog!Lola is 3 months old, and a pygmy African hedgehog. She likes to scurry around and is still getting used to the family. She is warming up fantastically though, and she couldn't possibly get any cuter! She's mostly full grown, and quite prickly when she is sleeping. We had the missionaries over for dinner and she had a fun time cuddling with them, although they were skeptic at first - she looks a little bit like a porcupine.

Lola is just perfect for our family! She sleeps when I am in school and plays around when I get home. She is small and quiet, but enjoys a good adventurous romp around the house on occasion. When you hold her on her back, she rolls into a prickly ball with just her head and nose sticking out. :) I am very happy with the decision to add her into the family!

I'm on a Boat

A few months ago, I was invited on an "LDS Cruise" and frankly i had no idea what that meant. LDS events usually mean (for me), awkward single's settings with forced interactions and fruit punch. In a dimly lit cultural hall. These events make me unhappy. So, when I found out it was not a single's event, I was enthralled. When my email address was finally entered correctly, I found out it was an afternoon on a 65' yacht in Newport harbor.
This was much more exciting! I had been worried because the weather could best be described as dreary leading up to the big day. In fact, the week before I started thinking about canceling because who wants to be on a boat, in the cold, in the middle of January.
Luckily! I did not cancel, and on the morning of the excursion I woke up to 80 degree weather and sunny, clear skies. The perfect yacht day. It was a fun excursion with all the LDS students (and wives and kids) from the dental school. It was fun to see Ericka, Steve and Jeremy in clothes other than scrubs! Plus, who doesn't want to eat KFC on a yacht? The irony was fantastic, and I loved it. I also loved watching Jeremy eat an entire bucket of chicken. Bucket.
It was an absolutely gorgeous day on the harbor, and while the cruise was a little on the short side, we made up for it by going for a stroll to the Newport pier afterward. While there, we saw so many scandalously clad ladies, volleyball hunks and even a pod of dolphins!
To make the trip complete, we even stopped off for some frozen yogurt on the way home! What a great day, and what a fun time. Yachting in January.

CCB

CCB found this picture today, and I thought it was the cutest thing I had ever seen. CCB is 6'2'' and I am 5'5'' - so I feel like I definitely relate to this.