Kids and pets

Mom, I swear, if you get me this rabbit/snake/dog/hamster/turtle, I will take care of it. I promise. I will feed it and walk it and clean the cage and.... Yeah right! We have easy pets. It started with tropical fish. I don't mind the tank. It's small, pretty to look at and doesn't take much work to maintain. But it didn't end there. I get it. You can't hold a fish. You can't play with it. So, we ended up with hermit crabs and then fire-belly toads and turtles. The toads died and the crabs just chill out in the sand. Today, I took a dead turtle back to the store. When did I get here? How did I become a woman that would put a dead turtle in a plastic container and drive it to the store to get a replacement? Ick. Now, they think they're getting a dog. Wait, not a dog - two dogs. They each want one! When I say "who is going to take care of the dog?" they ask "what do you mean?" I explain that dogs need constant care, attention, feeding, exercise, play and cleaning up. So, who is going to take care of the dog? "You are Mommy!"