As my mom likes to point out, the rats don’t know it’s their birthday, but that won’t stop me from spoiling them like crazy today. 
*sigh* They were so small back then! Now they’re full-grown stinkers…
Happy birthday Bunny and Button! April 14, 2013
Finally, a new video! April 10, 2013
Here is my latest YouTube video, as promised. This one’s a little different, though, as you can’t watch it on WordPress for privacy reasons. Just click the Play button like normal, then click “Watch on YouTube” which will take you to the video’s YouTube watch page. (You may have to temporarily allow pop-ups from my blog.)
Thanks for reading, and enjoy!
I am now a *gulp* seventeen year-old (!). March 27, 2013
So, as those of you who’ve made note of my “Milestone” Widget will know, Sunday (March 24th) was my seventeenth birthday. *Oh I feel so old! Bwahahahaw…sobs hysterically*
Ah-HEM. Aaaaannnnnyyyyyywwwwwaaaaaayyyyy, I had a very nice day. I woke up when it was actually still the morning, I played lotsa video games, the rats were extra sweet and cute, and I got yummy frozen yogurt! And at the end of the day when I was down about my special day almost being over, I looked outside and saw this beautiful moon (sorry for the low-quality, I’ve only got an iPhone camera for the time being):
Alright, so now about the blog. I’ve got a lot of posts and videos planned, so don’t fret my small but awesome community of Followers. Right now I’m working on updating everything, catching up on my subscriptions, and a new rat video featuring my one and only brother, who, for his sake (he’s very sensitive about his Internet privacy – I guess I’d rather that than the other way around) will be known as “N” until further notice.
Well that’s all the news for tonight. Be sure to keep tabs on the “Milestone” Widget to your right as April has some very big events, and, as always, thanks for reading.
Sticks and Stones February 12, 2013
“Congrats on making it through another year of middle school!” the unusually cheery assistant principal exclaims into the microphone. “I’m proud to say every one of our seventh graders will be graduating to the eighth grade!”
No, not every one. There’s one kid they’re forgetting. I think everyone might have forgotten about him. After all, he’s dead now.
His name is Ryan.
I know this is a very strange thing to post on a site about rats. But I feel strongly about bullying as I've experienced it many times in varying degrees. I think my sister did a very good job portraying the effects "simple jokes" can have on a person.
A Deer Little Mouse February 11, 2013
This afternoon, a deer mouse climbed the vines that cling to the house and made its way to the window ledge.
Its scurrying movements back and forth along the ledge quickly caught the attention of everyone inside.
Deer mice are recognizable by their white underbelly which contrasts with the rest of their brownish grey fur. They have big ears and beautiful dark eyes.
Oh my goodness! TWO Liebster Awards!!! February 10, 2013
Awwwwwww, you guys! Thanks so much!
To those of you who don’t have a clue as to what I’m talking about, julieisrael and dmauldin53 have both recently nominated me for The Liebster Award!
Since I received both awards so close to each other, I’m just going to re-post the rules and answer dmauldin53′s questions. If you’d like to see my facts, answers to Julie’s questions, nominees, and questions, go here.
Onto the rules!
1) Post eleven facts about yourself.
2) Answer the questions the blogger has set for you and create eleven questions for people you’ve nominated.
3) Choose eleven people to give this award to and link them in your post.
4) Go to their blogs and tell them.
dmauldin53′s questions and my answers:
1. Where are you from? (Be as specific as you wish.)
I was born in Kansas.
2. How long have you been blogging? (You may include and list other blogs besides wordpress.com)
Duuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhh…I guess six years. I used to go on a Website called SparkTop (it, sadly, has fallen into disarray and I hardly ever bother with it anymore) and they had these things called “SparkBlogs”. This was mine (the site is really glitchy, so sorry if the link doesn’t work).
3. Why do you blog? What is the purpose of your blog? (Answer one or both, your choice.)
Originally I came to WordPress to make a blog that is now private for, I guess, safety reasons. I started this blog shortly after as a way to “raise awareness of the awesomeness of rats”, but now I’m using it more to advertise my videos and record my pets’ lives.
4. Are you a published author? If so, please leave a link where we can find more information on your book/books.
NO! I WISH!!!
5. Do you enter writing contests? If so, please tell us about them.
Nah, not yet. I never have any good ideas.
6. What genre/genres do you write?
Science Fiction, Fantasy, Realistic Fiction
7. What are your hobbies?
Violin, Piano
8. Who are your favorite authors? (List as many as you wish.)
An Na (no, I don’t like her just because of her name), Tracy Barrett, and James Dashner
9. What kind of movies do you like?
Uhhhhhhhhhhh…family movies, action, comedy, historical, anime.
10. Do you have any blogging/writing tips that you would like to pass on to beginning bloggers/writers?
I believe I myself count as a beginning blogger/writer. 
11. Any quotes/sayings/words of encouragement that you would like to leave us with?
There are a lot of great quotes out there, but one I’ve recently stumbled upon is this:
“Hope” is the thing with feathers—
That perches in the soul—
And sings the tune without the words—
And never stops—at all—
And sweetest—in the Gale—is heard—
And sore must be the storm—
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm—
I’ve heard it in the chillest land—
And on the strangest Sea—
Yet, never, in Extremity,
It asked a crumb—of Me.
(Emily Dickinson)
Thank you again, dmauldin53! And congrats to you for getting two Liebster Awards yourself!
The Liebster Award
Looky what I got from julieisrael! I’ve never actually gotten an award on WordPress before, so bear with me.
Um, let’s see…these are the rules of “The Liebster Award”:
1. List 11 facts about yourself.
2. Answer the 11 questions asked by the person who nominated you.
3. Nominate 11 picks for the award along with 11 new questions for them to answer when they post a response.
4. If you’re nominated, your name/link will appear at the bottom of this post along with questions for you. Follow the same format, i.e. paste the award badge to your blog, give us 11 random facts about yourself, answer my 11 questions, and choose your nominees…but you cannot nominate the blog who nominated you.
Alright then! Here are my eleven facts.
1. Uhhhhhhhhmmmmmmm…I’m sixteen. And a girl. Yes, two very important things.
2. I’m the oldest of four. And my siblings are fighting next to me as I’m making this post.
3. I am currently being homeschooled…which is both awesome and horrible. So there’s your answer for those of you wondering about my strange hours.
4. I don’t have a Facebook or Twitter account. OMG! How weird!!!
5. I love video games. My favoritests include: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (which is WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY better than Ocarina of Time!), Skyrim, The Sims 3, and Minecraft.
6. I wear glasses.
7. I’m learning Latin. salve!
8. Bunny and Button are not my first pets. Before them I had a goldfish named Guppy. My sister won him for me at an elementary school carnival when I was in fifth grade. He died this September/October at the age of five. Pretty long for a carnival prize! He was quite the fighter…lived through hookworms, power-outages, a hurricane…and he fought off fin-rot for more than a year.
9. My favoritest shows eva’ are Avatar: The Last Airbender (No, I do NOT like in any way “The Last Airbender”. It was the worst movie EVER made.) and Clannad.
Tomoya Okazaki from “Clannad”. *commence fangirling*
10. I am currently obsessing over Avatar. In particular, this scene:
Tent + Sokka + Suki + Zuko = Very Awkward Yet Hilarious Scene
11. I play the violin and piano.
FINALLY, that’s done! Okay, now to answer Julie’s questions.
1.If you could be any animal in the world, what kind of animal would you be and why?
A fancy rat, ’cause it looks like so much fun…plus pets don’t really have any worries so that’s nice.
2.If you could wake up tomorrow and be fluent in any language, what would it be?
Japanese! I love Japan, and, as an anime and video game fan, being fluent in Japanese would be veeeery helpful.
3.What are three things that you absolutely love about yourself? (Don’t be shy.)
Um, ahem, well. Uh…I’m mature for my age (in some areas), I’m compassionate, and I usually don’t cuss. I know, weird thing to be proud of.
4.What is your favorite band and/or what are your three favorite songs?
I guess Coldplay. My three most favorite songs of theirs are Viva La Vida, Paradise, and Clocks.
5.Do you have any poems memorized? If so, what are they?
I’m sure I do, but right now I can’t think of anything.
6.In ten words or less, what is your earliest memory?
I was a baby watching my Mom make a sandwich.
7.You’re getting on a plane. Where are you going?
KANSAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
8.What’s your favorite book? (Top three if you can’t choose.)
Anna of Byzantium by Tracy Barrett
9.What is one achievement you’re proud of?
Getting this far in school.
10.What is one quote that really inspires you? (If not a quote, a person, movement, etc.)
Ugh, I hate these questions ’cause I never know how to answer! I guess one person who inspires me is Bethany Hamilton. Y’know, ’cause she’s totally awesome?
11.If you had everything you needed and would ever need—food, money, a home, love and connections, etc.—what would you do with your time?
I’d write all those books I have stuffed into my brain!
Now it’s my turn. My nominees are…
Sheryl of A Hundred Years Ago
Chuck of Counter Attack!
djmatticus of thematticuskingdom
ohhhoney of Ohh, honey!
Zen of Zen Scribbles
Sunny Lane of Izzie and Eden’s Diary
ncdogg of ncdogg
rumanaandkhila of Blue Stones
bookofstupidity of My Book of Stupidy
ratherthanwriting of Rather Than Writing
and, last but not least, my kid sister…
Mary of Inside My Head
Now for your questions!
1. I love rats (obviously). What is a strange animal you’ve fallen for?
2. What’s one of your favoritest TV shows ever?
3. What is one thing that annoys you?
4. Why did you create your blog?
5. I’m currently sixteen years old. Use three words to describe yourself when you were sixteen, or, for the younger one/ones like Mary, what do you hope to be like when you’re sixteen?
6. Which do you prefer? A big family (six total or more) or a small family (five total or less)?
7. Do you have any siblings? Younger or older?
8. I really like Julie’s sixth question, but Imma edit it a little. In two sentences or less, what is your earliest memory?
9. This is a long award…Agree?
10. STALKER QUESTION! What state/country do you live in?
11. In one sentence, what has been your greatest struggle?
ALRIGHT! It has taken me two days, but I’m finally done!
Again, thank you so very much Julie! If you haven’t already, do give her a visit as she has lots of great content. Also, if I did this wrong, I sorry. Please send me a message or leave a comment if that’s the case.
The only thing left to do now is say…
The Latest from My Readers