Can you kill a rabbit with bok choy?

The movie was supposed to be a reward for studying hard.

Because Grant studied so well with his tutor on Saturday morning, I let them go to the movies in the afternoon. When I went to pick them up afterwards Grant looked so incredibly happy. "Wow, the movie was just the right thing," I thought.

Not quite.

He was happy because his tutor had bought 2 white rabbits for him. One for him and one for Audrey.

Now before you get all "awwww" on me, let me say he used my money to buy the rabbits.

The kids were thrilled.

I was not.

Because seriously - owning a pet is a big deal. It should be something you enter into after a great deal of thought and preparation. Not an impulse purchase.

Our family is sooooooo not ready to take care of another mammal. I could stretch that word "so" out from here to Ontario and it would still not convey how not ready we are.

I have trouble taking care of the 4 hearts that are already beating in this house. I can not handle any more. I love the way Kristen put it a few days ago - I have to avoid any activities "that would deplete my time, money, and sanity (three dangerously low resources right now)."

But anyway, we were proud pet owners. The kids adored them. I resigned myself to them. Buddy is on a business trip so he didn't care either way. Isn't it amazing sometimes how these things transpire while the partners are out of town?

The pet store gave Grant some strange advice when they sold him the rabbits. They said not to give them water. And make sure that any food we gave them was dried out.

Is that weird? I thought that was weird. I checked several pet care websites and none of them say that.

Last night I decided the rabbits needed some bok choy with a few drops of water on it. I mean, I think rabbits actually need water and even if they don't, surely it wouldn't kill them! Grant begged me not to do it. But I explained to him that all living things need water. It's a law of nature.

Both rabbits died overnight.

Guilt and relief, they are playing tug-of-war with my heartstrings today. Right now guilt is winning, as it always does.

At first I was sad that during our short time with the rabbits I never got to take pictures of the them. But then I realized.

I have kids.

I have an iPhone.

OF COURSE I have pictures of the rabbits!

Do I need a breathalizer for playdates now?

One of Grant's friends came by today and wanted to play but Grant was studying so I asked him to come back at 5:00.

The kid was drinking something that looked like a beer.

I looked more closely and discovered that it was a Bacardi Breezer.







He's 8.

I asked him if he knew what he was drinking.

"Fruit juice," he said.

"Yeah, and rum. Do you know what rum is?" I wanted to check for understanding because depending on whether I got my Chinese tones right, I might have said "rum" and I might have said "spicy wood".

"Yeah, my mom lets me drink it all the time," he said.

I have a feeling his mom does not let him drink rum (or spicy wood) all the time. I'm interested to see what state he's in when he comes back at 5:00.

Update: He sat outside our building and drank the rest of his Bacardi Breezer, then came back with the empty bottle. I asked him how he felt and he said fine.

I give you the empty bottle, which he left in my front hallway, as evidence. Please also take a moment to appreciate the orange table runner that I bought at the Silk Market last week. Isn't it beautiful?

How Tough Is Your Love?

The other day I was explaining to my kids what tough love is.

I told them about my friend Steve, whose mom kicked him out of the house when he was sixteen for something so terrible he never would tell me what it was.

But anyway Steve called me from the YMCA one day and asked if I could bring him some groceries. Things that didn't need to be refrigerated because he didn't have a fridge.

Now as a mom I know that Steve's mom's heart was breaking.

My kids asked if I would ever kick them out of the house. "If you ever did drugs in here then yes, I would kick you out," I said.

Audrey looked shocked. She looked at my husband.

I looked at my husband.

He smiled.

So I said what all of us were thinking.

"But don't worry, Daddy would come pick you up from the YMCA a couple of hours later."