hamsters, impending deaths and historic b&b's

I have had about five hamsters in my lifetime, the first being Cecil B. deMille who had originally belonged to my uncle. However he wasn't very responsible with taking care of Cecil, so my grandmother gave him to us. I was about five. That hamster lived to be a ripe old age- for a hamster, mind you- finally going off to that great hamster exercise wheel in the sky when he was about six. Anyway, I had various hamsters in college and beyond, none living quite as long as Cecil did. So Clare wanted to know what happened to them all. I basically told her, "Hamsters, like everything, do not live forever. Everything dies eventually." She said, "Well Mummy, that's going to happen to you alright!" Thanks, Clare, for that insight into your mother's mortality.

She brought it up again yesterday. She informed me when she got older she was going to have a daughter since she would be all alone. I inquired as to what she meant, why would she be all alone when there are many of us here to be around her who care about her? She said, "Well you're not going to live for long as I get older, so I suppose I had better have a daughter so I won't be all alone." Does she know something we don't? Newsflash to Greg, my parents, Clare's godparents and our other various relatives and friends, apparently we are all going to be dead very soon.

Such happy thoughts coming from my almost-six-year-old.

I was awake until 4am last evening. Mostly wandering around the house since I was unable to sleep. I finally decided to read more Harry Potter around 2-ish. Needless to say I got very little sleep.

So tomorrow is Clare's big day, six years old...still unsure as to what the day's plans will be. Zoo or cinema. We collected the Tinkerbelle cake today. Although she was really trying to cajole me into letting her have a slice tonight.

Now it is much much later than when I began to type this entry earlier this evening. The child and Jacks are in bed, as I should be, but Greg and I have been passing links to each other via email concerning various Bed and Breakfasts in wonderful historic Virginia. I think we have it narrowed down to four since the hunt ensued. We figured we'd treat ourselves and have a night out at a nice B&B, and celebrate our birthdays, too. How often do we ever go out without Clare? Pretty much never. Anyhow, every time we decide to go to a B&B (about once a year thus far, our annual night out!) it is a very long, drawn out process to narrow it down. Last year we went to Milton Hall during our holiday in Virginia. I will have to get back on here and announce which one we choose sometime this week. But for now, my bed is definitely calling for me.