I don't think I wrote about our newest member of our family, Franklin. Franklin who we call him Frankie is a tiny and furry kind and he has cute little nose that sticks out from his burrow when we call his name. He has two black eyes that are perfectly placed for maximized cuteness. He makes Grace jealous when we talk to him sweetly. She has this look of "humph!!" with her mouth tightly closed and a little frown. She is a funny chubby cat. She doesn't like when kids are all over her but misses it when Frankie gets attention from them!
Frankie is a Dwarf Roborovski Hamster. His kind is from a Kazakhstan region and although I can't imagine hamsters living in the wild, they apparently do. He is smaller than average hamsters and moves very fast. I am not sure he will ever be tame or we many not have time and patience to make him one. He used to hide when we get near the cage, but now he comes out to get a sniff at us when we call his name. It might be as tame as he gets at least for now.
The way I told kids about how I "met" Frankie at PetSmart next to my Trader Joe's went like this (some parts of it is fiction):
So, I went shopping at Trader Joe's and after buying groceries, stopped by at PetSmart next door to buy Grace's canned food. While I was walking towards the cat section, I passed by cube displays of small pets. There were many different kinds of rodents and bunnies moving, eating and sleeping in their cages. I got curious and took a closer step and then I saw him. He was pressing his cute tiny hands against the glass staring at me. His eyes and my eyes met and I fell in love with him. And that's why Frankie came home with me unplanned. Just because I walked in to pet shop to buy cat food and fell in love. The End.
It is true, I walked in to PetSmart to buy cat food and it is true I passed by the small pets display. That day, I was in a strange mood to do something I wouldn't do normally. I guess I felt adventurous. I was looking at different kinds of hamsters and noticed how cute they were. My parents had several hamsters in replacement for their absent daughter and they brought joy to my parents. I also remembered how much my kids asked for a hammy whenever we came to a pet shop. I went to the care supply area and noticed that the cages and care packages were on sale. It was a sign. I am taking one home today, I thought. I asked the store clerk which kind of hamsters they recommend. The care taker said the Robo hamsters are not biters and they are easy to care. It's not that Frankie was staring at me but rather he was the slowest to escape from the care taker's reach. He was put in a small box and came home with me!
Mike came home early that day before the kids did. I didn't tell him of course and when he saw the bright cage, he was surprised. He couldn't wait to see the kids reaction when they come home. I went to pick up the kids at school and told them they have a surprise waiting at home. They walked faster than usual and were excited to find out what it was. When they saw the cage and a small box, they were ecstatic! They couldn't believe I brought home a hamster. Sean couldn't rationalize me buying a hamster after all these years of begging. He kept asking me "how?" "why?" so I came up with the dramatic version of the story. It needed that bang because it was too good to be true.
Sean has been cleaning his cage every week and doing a good job it. Frankie goes on a "walk" every other day on the hamster ball and runs around the living room and kitchen. Grace cares less about him and she completely ignores him. Frankie is part of the family now and we are glad I had a sudden epiphany that day to bring him home!
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