Happy Birthday to ME!

So, yesterday I turned the big 32! I know... who could believe it? Actually, I got this card from a friend I work with that says "You'll never be old as long as your mind is young and innocent, and your heart is pure." Then you open it up and it says... "You are SO screwed!" Ha ha! She knows me pretty well!

I got to have a wonderful dinner with the family last night and forgot to take pictures... we had Caesar salad and crab cakes first then on to a delicious filet with sweet potatoes and green and white beans! And right before I was about to bust we had a lovely pineapple pound cake with cool whip on top! YUM!

And then I woke up this morning with a migraine and a giant zit! What?!?!? When does this zit thing stop? And the migraine thing... come on! I have suffered long enough! But my new medicine really does work if you can catch it before it gets really bad.

Anyway, I am feeling better this afternoon. And... I think this 32 years old thing is going to be okay. I have a few big decisions to make in the near future and a LOT of little ones... but I am positive about the whole thing. I will be fine. And I will look back on this year as a great one!

Have a great weekend friends!

Leslie

ps. the remaining frog, Maude, is looking for a new home... Anyone interested PLEASE let me know!

My weekend project...

Harold and Maude (D. auratus "bronze") have not been happy campers at the office. So, I decided to make them a little bigger and quieter place to live. Hence the new vivarium for them.

I started with an empty tank. I siliconed the background on and placed my beautiful rose quartz in the tank first. (Thanks for the rock Billy!)

Next I added the rocks for the water feature in the front of the tank. Then comes the hydroponic clay balls. They help with drainage. I decided to put small white rocks all along the sides too, just for the sake of appearance.

Here is a picture of the tank from the front.

And I get so excited at this point that I always forget to take a picture with only soil and wood in place. So, this is the (almost) finished viv. for my bronze beauties! I will add a little more ricca grass and maybe another Creeping Fig. Anyway...

... Harold and Maude were absolutely ecstatic! They have been jumping around the whole thing. They are looking for new hiding spaces and things to climb on.

Maude is still a little camera shy.

Here she was hunting for food before she saw the camera flash.

Harold, on the other hand, is always ready for a picture.



Have a hoppy day!
LC

ps. I will be Aunt Leslie in just 5 days... if not before...

Seven days till I am Aunt Leslie!

So... I have been hard at work on my vivariums. Creating my own little spots that I can watch grow and flourish! And my little ones are very happy!

My Christmas present from Billy is coming along very well...

... in about nine or ten months (he he) the plants will have grown in beautifully!

Rainy and Beau have really been enjoying the new and bigger home. This one even has a waterfall!

I love watching them check out every nook and cranny!




All joking aside... this time next week I will have a beautiful niece named Leah! I can't wait to share her with you too!

I think I have "Baby Envy"!

Or maybe it is just a frog problem...

This past weekend I drug Billy to my very first Reptile Expo! I wanted to see what kind of folks show up at these things. Well, there were a lot of young pimple faced boys with their allowance (from SEVERAL months) stuffed in their pockets. We also saw the occasional tattooed and pierced reptile/herp. fan. And of coarse there were a few MAD science teachers in the group. This is when I realized I should have been a middle school science teacher and my animal and bug "love" wouldn't be frowned upon. It could be all in the name of science! Oh well... I am used to being frowned upon... or at least looked at funny.

I guess I should just get down to the point.

I got two more frogs.

Two of the dendrobate imitator "Tarapoto". They are also called thumbnails. At adulthood they are less than half an inch long. Itty bitty! And the coloring on these really little beauties is like a rainbow!

So... now I am proud to introduce Rainy and Beau!!!

And I thought I would throw in a cute picture of the boys napping on my couch. (Billy, Willie and Rowdy)

The Frog Blog

Well... as most of you well know... when I like something I really like it! So, after the passing of my many pets I developed an affection for the fabulous Poison Dart Frog (which are NOT poisonus in captivity). Anyway, the only way to keep these little beauties is in a vivarium.

A vivarium (Latin, literally for "place of life;" plural: vivaria or vivariums) is an area, usually enclosed, for keeping and raising animals or plants for observation or research.

My first vivarium is above. It includes a water feature (waterfall and pond) and several hiding places for my tiny friends.

Now to introduce you to my little friends...
My first PDF was Frank "The Tank". He has been very happy since his move to the new place with his new buddies.

Frank is of the species D. leucomelas. Also called the Bumble Bee Dart Frog. He has tons of personality!

Chubs looks very similar but is camera shy...

Fancy is of the species d. azureus. Also called Blue Dart Frog. She loves the waterfall!



Fancy's friend, Jeramiah, is also very camera shy...



Here is my office vivarium! And my two lovely D. auratus "bronze".

This is Harold... he is a little bit greener with a smaller bronze spot on his back. He is also a little smaller than his partner in crime.

And now meet Maude... she is a beautiful turquoise color with a more oval bronze spot on her back. They love to climb the walls and hide in their cocohut!

Have a hoppy day!!!