New Orchids

I have a love of orchids.  I think it started when I bought one on a whim a couple years ago at Lowes because it was on sale.  I thought it was pretty and seemed like it should be easy to care for.  This love grew though when I actually managed to keep the orchid alive long enough for it to bloom a second time.  I got a lot of praise from those around me because I apparently accomplished a difficult feat.  I decided to get another orchid when I saw a sad one on sale at Ikea.  Once again I had success and this beautiful white orchid kept blooming over and over.  So when I saw a crazy good sale at Lowes again, I bought 3 more orchids.  😁  Each orchid is unique color or pattern and I love them all!  My cat did damage one pretty badly and it hasn't bloomed since, but it continues to grow more leaves, so I haven't given up on it yet.

Hydrangeas

Almost every time my mom comes over to my house, she brings me bouquets of flowers straight from her own yard.  These beautiful hydrangeas are from her most recent bouquet she brought me last week.  Laurelin seemed a little too interested in tasting them though.

Blue Chair

I am having a bit of trouble being torn between wanting to get awesome pictures of Laurelin in similar set-ups as I have done with some of my previous hamsters and wanting to do new and creative things.  I decided to start out easy, but I hope that as I have more time, I can create new set-ups for Laurelin.

Munchin

I think I already mentioned that Laruelin is a fan of treats, which truthfully was no surprise after I saw how big she is!  Hahaha!  She has liked everything I have given her so far.  She seems to especially like strawberries which I found surprising because I haven't had a hamster yet that would go back for a second bite after trying it.  Anyways, enjoy this series on Laurelin stuffing her face with various treats.  😊

In a Cloud

I am really enjoying photographing Laurelin!  She is pretty easy to work with.  She's also gorgeous and looks good with everything!  ❤

Exploring the Bed

Laurelin is still getting comfortable with us.  She doesn't like being picked up and often will run if I accidentally wake her up (which happens daily as she seems to be a light sleeper).  However, she loves being held, getting treats, and getting to explore.  She seems to be awake a lot during the day which is fun for me.  She is also very loud because she is obsessed with moving around the rocks that are in her home.  She likes to clean herself often, which was generally when I got the best pictures of her.

Meet Laurelin!

I am so happy to introduce you all to Laurelin!  After Vilya's passing, I contacted The Pipsqueakery to ask if they had any Syrian hamsters available for adoption.  They said they only had dwarf hamsters available, but that they would let me know me know next time they would have Syrians available.  Truthfully, I really didn't like the idea of waiting, especially for an unknown amount of time.  So I considered getting a dwarf hamster or two instead of waiting for a Syrian hamster.  However, I decided I should check here in town first before making any decisions.  I checked Animal Care and Control's website and to my surprise, they did have an 8 month old hamster listed.  I got my travel carrier ready (just in case), but still ended up having to wait because they were closed Saturday through Monday.  I got there as soon as I could on Tuesday, filled out the paperwork, and then had to wait again.  After what felt like an extremely long wait, I finally got called back to see the hamster.  I guess you could say it was love at first sight, because after I asked exactly two questions, I then promptly told the guy I'd take her.  He seemed a bit shocked because all I did was look from the doorway at her in her tiny tank up on the shelf in the back of the room.  I got the carrier from my car while he finished up more paperwork.  And again, after what seemed like another extremely long wait, I was finally able to get her to her new home.  (In case you couldn't tell from this story, I'm clearly not all that patient.)  

I got her settled into her new home which actually required me making a run to Petsmart to buy bigger tubes because she's such a chunker that I feared she would get stuck in the tubes I had.  She barely slept that first day she was home because she was so excited to explore her new home and run on her wheel.  When my husband got home from work, we did our usual routine of looking through anything Tolkien related for a name we liked.  We choose the name Laurelin (if you're interested in reading the meaning and history of the name, check out: http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Laurelin)  

I hope you will join me in welcoming Laurelin!  These are all cell phone pictures from the first few days of having her.  I am planning on getting better pictures of her with my camera today.  😊

Her home before she moved in and did some rearranging 😂 (the two tubs are connected in the back with tubes, which is why I had to buy bigger ones so she could more easily go between the top and bottom without getting stuck):