It is an honor to have someone named after you...

We had a snail that we were given and it was HUGE (as far as snails go, I guess). I think we would have been hard pressed to get it into a glass, if we had wanted to. This snail originally began its life with our family named after Billy; the kids felt it appropriate because they saw the snail "trip", so to speak. After my grandma got sick they felt the need to change the snail's name to Freddy (my grandma's nickname). A few days ago I discovered Freddy was missing and searched through the tank for him, er, her, er, it. I found Freddy stuck, wedged actually, in the bottom of the log we have in the tank. Apparently the top was big enough for him to get in but there was no way for the dear thing to get out. Freddy was deceased and Hallie, especially, was devestated.

Hallie decided that this meant that Grandma was going to die too. After trying to reason with her that that had no bearing on Grandma living or dying, I told her that snails were very useful in our tank to help keep it clean and she could help me pick out a new one and could name it if she wanted. She decided on Freddy 2 and thought it was great that she could choose the snail.

We went to WalMart two days ago to make the purchase and Hallie was having a day where she missed Billy and Natalie a lot. We picked out a snail and I somehow got rouked(spelling?) into buying a little frog. (In my defense, he is a cute little thing.)

Hallie knows that she is named after my Grandpa, her Uncle Shawn and her Uncle Perry. She also knows that Aren is named after my Grandma, my dad and his brother, Daniel. We have told her it is because these people she was named after are very special to us.

This became her logic in naming our new snail and our frog. It is my privelege to introduce to you the newest two members of our family (and no, I don't have pictures) Billy the Frog and Baby Natalie the Black Mystery Snail. (Yes, it is called a Black Mystery Snail.)

So, Billy...Natalie...know that you are loved enough to have some cute little underwater creatures named after you. And I just pray to God that these guys don't expire in the next little while.