So for Christmas I finally caved to the pressure and agreed to get Kyra a pet. She wanted a puppy, which was never going to happen, and then a cat, which was at least a remote possibility, but in the end I worked with her friend Grace (and her dad, John) to get a gerbil.
The little bugger is really pretty cute and funny… more or less a largish mouse. Kyra named her Pumpkin, and she totes her around the house a lot. Pumpkin clings to her shirt– possibly hanging on for dear life and screaming obscenities in gerbilese. Pumpkin also gets to ride in the Barbie RV, or put in an empty Kleenex box where she occasionally pops her head out to see what’s going on. Fun stuff.