Hello Hamster, Goodbye Lemur

December 1st brought a new little guy into our care. He turned one on December 20th, and he's been a big joy to watch over. It took us a few weeks to name him since we had many options, but wanted to find just the right fit. After much debate and thought, we finally decided that Hamster fit him the best. Not just any hamster though, specifically the "Teddy Bear Hamster".

Teddy bear hamster's tend to make great pets because they are easy to care for and cuddly too. This little guy is pretty cuddly and likes to nuzzle his face into his Mama's chest each day that she comes to pick him up. He gives great little hugs. He's very easy going, yet busy too. We've even heard him growl or squeak at times when he's trying to talk to you and get you to respond back to him. He smiles often and enjoys being with K-Bird, Rabbit, and Keegaroo each day that he's hear. His time overlapped with Lemur's last month here before he moved, and they shared some fun interactions with each other. Here are some pictures of our new little Hamster and also Lemur's last day with the family.

 

  

 

Meet Our Cubs - Season 6

I'm so excited to be posting this new slide show the week of Christmas! K-Bird and I have been working diligently on it for awhile in hopes of sharing it with all our families. It has been an eventful year with some very special kiddos. A lot of our cubs have moved on to new adventures (and states) recently, so we wanted to highlight our fun times and good memories with the cubs of 2014. Pony, Duck, and Puppy are still around (and Rabbit of course), and a new cub started December 1st. We've finally decided on an animal name for him, so we'll be introducing him very soon! We hope you all have a wonderful and blessed Christmas! Thank you for the honor of letting us watch your little gifts!

Wallaby's Farewell

Wallaby's family moved to Missouri the day before Thanksgiving. He's been around here for over 2 years, so things seem a bit different with him gone. We will treasure the special times we had with him, his smiles and laughs, playing ring around the rosy, and his most recent desire to for us to draw "Daddy, Mommy, and Baby" dinosaurs. Here are some fun pictures of his last few days with Pony and Duck (his buddies) and a goodbye picture with our family. We will miss you sweet boy, especially your dimples and hugs!

Fun in the Leaves

We'll Miss These Girls!

These two girls have brought a lot of fun and laughter into our home. We'll miss having them around! They enjoyed playing together the few times they came on the same days. Mermaid was quite sad when Deer stopped coming in September and started preschool. Mermaid's Mommy just had a baby brother, so she will be taking time off to spend time with them while Mom's on maternity leave. Both girls have new adventures ahead of them as they learn "the big sister" role since Deer's Mama is also expecting a little one in February of next year. They are both good helpers, so I think they'll do great! Thanks for some fun times, girls! We love your smiles :) !!!

Little Man Lemur

We've had the privilege of of watching a new little guy since September 10th. He comes 1 - 3 days per week and started with us at the age of 3 months old. We have been anticipating his arrival since spring and were so excited to hear about his birth date in June this summer.

We received his birth announcement in the mail and immediately fell in love with his big, dark, and bright eyes and adorable little smirk. We've decided to call him Lemur because of his inviting eyes, the way he moves and squirms so much, and his many outfits with stripes on them! His personality reminds me of the song "I Like to Move It" from the Madagascar movie.

We are sad to say that we recently found out that Lemur will be moving to another state in December because of his daddy's new job offer. Our time with him will be short, but we are doing are best to make every moment special with him while he's here. We've captured some snapshots of his cuteness, so please enjoy!

 

This little guy has been a lot of fun to interact with, has great smiles, and does really well with his naps and eating schedule. Wallaby, Pony, Duck, and Mermaid have all really enjoyed his time with us so far. They've adjusted well to having him here and like to "boop" him with their finger or give him hugs and kisses. Mermaid especially likes to practice being a big sister when Lemur comes. Her little brother will be born in a few weeks, so she will get to be home with Mom for awhile and enjoy his company. We wish Deer was still with us, but she started preschool in September.

 

Thanks for coming Lemur! We sure are enjoying our time with you.

Our New Friend, Mermaid

We have the privilege of introducing Mermaid to the den! I know it's not exactly an animal name, but it is to this little girl, as you can see in the video clip above! We tried to come up with an animal name for her, but sometimes things just don't fit as well, and you just have to go with what seems to fit the best. She joined our crew near the end of March, and we are so happy to have her adorable sweetness here 3 days a week.

Mermaid received her special name because she has a stuffed Mermaid that she loves to play with, and she recently enjoyed visiting the aquarium in Denver with her family on her 3rd birthday. She was very fascinated by the swimming mermaids and to this day still talks about seeing them. She is also very cautious and highly observant of sights, sounds, smells, and what's going on around her. Sounds similar to the life of a Mermaid, if you ask me...

She loves to read books and Daniel Tiger is her favorite show. Every day she brings her stuffed kitties named "Winks" and "WayWay" as well as her special blanket named "Corners". She is very girly and insists that I call her pants "leggings" and her barrette a "clippy". She has grown quite fond of Rabbit and Puppy, especially when they play as if they are all kittens with specially designed tails and great imaginations! She also has become an instant friend to Deer since they are the same age and enjoy being playmates. Mermaid is a good little helper in watching out for the toddlers and will be a wonderful big sister in November.

Meet our Cubs - Seasons 4 & 5

It has been quite awhile since we've posted due to the very fact that our little cubs keep us quite busy. The evidence is below with our newest slideshows. SkyBird has been working very hard on these for awhile, and her ability to manage putting these clips together is amazing. I am very grateful for her hard work to capture the fun and eventful moments we have around here.

The first slideshow has highlights from last summer and early fall when Otter and Panda were still with us. Our seasons overlapped a bit with our cubs and because we had lots of pictures to show, we decided to make make a second slide show of pictures from early 2014 to capture the our daily experiences. Some of the second slideshow highlights our last and very special days with Kitten before she moved on to a smaller daycare home setting.

We hope you enjoy the shows!