The time Scott (or his friend, or both) killed a fish (maybe)...

We just got home from an afternoon play date with Ryker.  It had been far too long since we had gotten together and it was much needed for all involved.

And now the story.

Ryker and Maddox got a fish tank for Christmas (?, or just because?), which is upstairs near the boys' room.  The big boys (Ryker + Scott) are allowed to play upstairs alone while Alexis and I hang out with the babies (toddlers now? sniff!) downstairs.  We can usually hear the big boys just fine and they play really well together so we hardly ever have to go up to check.

So Alexis and I are in the kitchen getting snacks for the little ones when Ryker comes down the stairs, followed closely by Scott (as always), and says "Umm guys??!!, one of the fishes died."  I look around the corner and so it is, dead, in Ryker's hand.

Oh my.

So we ask what happened as Alexis rushes Ryker + dead fish back upstairs.  She tries putting him back in the water (just incase he had some life left in him, we both suspected that the boys had plucked him out of the tank still kickin').  No luck.  So she's upstairs figuring out what to do with the fish + cleaning up the water that was all over and washing Ryker's hands, all the while questioning him on what happened.  I'm downstairs with Scott and the littles and I ask Scott what happened.

In his words:

"The fish was swimming, then it got dead."

Me: Did you touch it?

"Yes, I held it.  Then I squished it."

Me: Was it alive when it was in the water?

"Yes.  No.  Yes."

Me:  Was it swimming and moving around?

"Yes.  It was swimming up to the rocks then down.  Then it stopped and rested at the top.  We held it.  Ryker said we could hold it and we held it.  And I squished.  Just a little."

Me: (trying not to laugh at the "squished it just a little" comment, because although we are talking loss of fish life here, that was a really funny moment) So it was already dead when you got it out?

"I don't know.  I squished it."

So we washed them up and Alexis wrapped the fish in a kleenex and put it in the outside garbage.  Now at this point Ryker is upset about the fish dying and we told him the fist went to heaven.  Ryker: "No.  He went in the trash can."  We tell him the fish's spirit went to heaven.  Ryker: "How does the garbage truck get it to heaven?"  Stumped.  We tell him that the garbage truck just deals with the fish's body and the spirit goes to heaven on its own.  He is satisfied.  He then has lots of other questions about heaven.  "will the fish have a family? What if he doesn't like his family? what will happen when he comes back and is alive again?"  We do our best.  Meanwhile Scott is so over it all and playing with trucks again.  

We never really got a straight answer as to how/when the fish died.  We can hope for the best and assume it died of natural causes (at one point Ryker said he caught him with his hands, probably easier if he's already dead no?) as opposed to being squished to death at the hands of curious toddlers.

Rest in peace Barry the fish, Jewel (his tank mate) will miss you and I'm quite certain will be getting a new roommate here shortly (I heard mom promise, and a toddler never forgets).