Our puppy is lovely but my goodness she is a lot of work

Our puppy is lovely but my goodness she is a lot of work. Teddi Bear follows me everywhere and then whenever I stop moving, she sits at my feet. She won't go out in the garden alone and is terrified of the hoover. She chews everything and chases my poor old cat when I'm not looking. What have we done! Last Sunday we had our burglar alarm fitted so hopefully I will stop being so worried about the recent spate of burglaries in our village. I'm still looking at every white van driver with suspicion (I never realised there were so many around). Our daughter's exams are over until the summer, thank goodness. I can remind her now that Teddi is actually hers, life will be easier once the puppy has had her vaccinations and can go out. We have enrolled at puppy training classes.

It's been a quiet week sales wise, it seems to be all or nothing with my work. I'm either rushed off my feet or panicking that I've got no orders. Hopefully things will improve next week as I have received a large number of spiders in the last few days and as I'm off to a bug show this weekend so I anticipate having even more next week. I have pre-ordered some spiders, scorpions, Rhinoceros cockroaches and Vinegaroons. I hope to get some more millipedes and unusual things at the show. I am trying to avoid 'leaf eating' bugs until the spring. The prolonged snow and ice caused chaos with my food plants grown in the garden, the privet dropped most of it's leaves, the bramble leaves have gone dry and brittle and the ferns were all squashed flat. There are new signs of life in the garden, mostly Snow Drops, they are very pretty but nothing feeds on them.

I still have my fingers crossed that my two remaining Fishing spiders will become an adult male and female pair. I no longer fear that they are both female as one moulted into an adult male this week, but of course now there is a possibility that the other will also moult into a male. Having had the third one eaten by a cricket during moulting, I am now feeding them on waxworms and flies only. They seem happy catching Bluebottles. I have been cleaning out and rearranging some of my cockroach breeding groups this week. I now sell a considerable amount of cockroaches so I need to get better organised, some of them are quite slow growing. I have to make sure that I don't sell too many as some species seem to breed far better when they are kept in a group rather than a couple of pairs. I'm not sure why this is but many people have reported it with Hissing cockroaches. Something to do with pheromones? It will be good to get some more Australian Rhinoceros cockroaches again, they are the world's largest species and fascinating to watch. I know I am especially odd in being so keen on cockroaches but I think lots of them are really cute (except the stinky ones).

I must get on with the spider feeding now, if I'm getting more in this weekend, I had better feed the ones that I already have or some may get missed out. They wouldn't really get missed as I have my famous 'tick list' and coloured sticker system. I only have to look around the bug house and see that week's colour to know what has and hasn't been fed, watered and cleaned. It is a never ending job! One last thing, ok it's a moan - I cannot believe how many people ask me to put a note on their parcel. How can I do this? It is delivered by Royal Mail, if you want to leave a note on your door for the postman then that is up to you. I cannot put 'push the door, the lock is broken' I think it could be considered 'aiding and abetting' if you then get burgled! Most of the requests would be useless anyway as Special Delivery items require a signature. The postman cannot leave it in the porch, stick it behind the side gate or anywhere else. Anyway, I am off to feed the spiders now, no doubt with Teddi on my heels.