I Always Knew That Fluffy Was Trouble, or "Why We Will Never Own a Rodent," or "Why I Love First Grade"

We received the following class memo yesterday from Jacob's teacher (you can click on the picture if you need a larger view):


There is so much that I love about this letter that it is hard to know where to begin. First, you've got to wonder how long Fluffy has been planning his escape. Was it the very moment that he realized that he'd be living in a room with sixteen first graders? Then there's the dogged optimism in the face of adversity, as Mrs. D quickly points out that the ants are doing GREAT!! And the creative problem solving -- how do we get the children's minds off their missing-and-presumed-dead hamster? Well, we get a new gel-based ant habitat, of course! And there's also the fact that she turned the whole sordid mess into -- what else? -- a writing exercise to help the children work through their feelings. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Mrs. D!!!

While I am sad about Fluffy, I will definitely use this episode to fend off any further requests for a hamster. Jacob, and Elizabeth, to a lesser degree, have been begging for a pet for the past several months. Jacob wants a hamster, Elizabeth wants a kitty. Needless to say, we have enough precious, adorable, needy, non-compliant, completely dependent little beings in our house for the moment and will not be getting a pet any time soon. And when we do, it will most definitely not be the kind that can escape from a cage.

RIP, Fluffy.