Bettas by Jennifer Lapello
My name is Jennifer and I am 32 years old. I have 3 kids, ages 14, 10, and 4. I am divorced, and I currently live with my boyfriend of 5 years, Gary. He is also divorced and has an 11 year old son. The 4 year old is our kid together, so we really have a kind of extended family thing going on.
I have lived in Illinois all my life. I was born in 1976 in Carbondale, IL. In 1978, when I was 2, my parents moved to unincorporated Joliet, where I lived until I was 19. Gary and I bought a house in New Lenox, IL in September 2004, which is where we are today.
When we moved to New Lenox, I no longer had a babysitter, and the cost of daycare for the youngest was outrageous, expecially considering that I was only able to work part-time. Because of all the time I spent driving, I had to pay the daycare for full days. Add that to my gas money, and working was not very profitable. I felt lost without a job for many months afterwards, and I was bored out of my mind. Thankfully, since I found Bettas and all the work that comes with them, I haven't been bored much since.
My oldest child is my only girl, and she turned 14 in June. She is a typical teenager. She wants clothes and money and could live on the phone.
My middle child is my 10 year old boy. He is autistic, but he's nothing like the stereotypical autistic kids you see on TV that don't talk or interact. In fact, he never shuts up! He is very high-functioning for having autism, but it wasn't always that way. He is actually doing so well that he is in mainly regular-ed classes with a few of his classes held in the SI classroom at his school. He is completely addicted to his computer and can do all kinds of things that most adults don't know how to do on a computer.
My youngest is my 4 year old boy. He is my little cling-on. He follows me everywhere! He is usually a sweetheart, but he does have a wicked temper when he doesn't get his way. He loves all animals (like me) and has claimed several of my Bettas as being his.
My boyfriend, Gary, basically has no interest in the fish, which is probably a good thing, because I don't have him offering his opinion on who I should spawn/show, etc. It would be nice if he showed a slight interest, but then again, I'm sure he feels the same way about me and football.
In addition to the fish, we have two dogs. Gary's dog, Duke, is a Yellow Labrador I bought for him for Christmas 2004. He is a big baby, and I don't think he's as smart as most Labs. We love him though. He has finally calmed down and is pretty well-behaved for the most part.
My dog, Frank (he came with that name), is an 8 year old American Bulldog. I adopted him two years after my old dog passed away. Frank is great! He is a little stubborn (typical for the breed), but he is sweet and pretty well trained and excellent around kids. His old owners decided they wanted a Boxer instead of him, and they were just going to have him put down when he was 6 years old. Luckily, their neighbor offered to take him and brought him into the no-kill shelter where I found him. It amazes me how cruel and heartless people can be. Frank has no illnesses and is well-behaved, like I said before, so I have no idea why anyone would have him put down, other than being complete and utter jerks!
I also have pet rats. They are so sweet and intelligent, and the dumbos are really cute. Rats have really gotten a bad rap for all the wrong reasons. They are as smart as dogs, and they can be caged-trained and even learn their own names. They are also very clean animals, constantly grooming themselves like cats do. The only downside is that they have a short lifespan (2-3 years).
I've always been an animal lover. I've owned just about everything at some point in my life. The one animal that I miss the most though (besides my dog that passed in 2006) is my horse, Louie. He was a gorgeous American Saddlebred. I rode Saddleseat, and even competed in a few shows with him. After I had my daughter, I didn't have the kind of time for him that he needed. I gave him to a friend who had a farm, and she was the best owner! Unfortunately, Louie was sick one morning and couldn't get up. She called the vet, and they did emergency intestinal surgery on him, but he never made it out of surgery. It was a freak thing, and it wasn't her fault at all. It was just one of those things where he looked absolutely fine one day, and was dying the next. He was just 17 years old, which is young for a horse. If I ever get a house with enough land, or have enough money for boarding, I will definitely get horses again! I would love to rescue a retired Thoroughbred and learn how to jump obstacles, but that's just a dream right now.
I'm not new to showing animals. When I was a teenager, I was heavily into breeding and showing Netherland Dwarf rabbits, and I did quite well. I was the Illinois State rabbit Queen in either 92 or 93, LOL. I was always at or near the top of the youth show standings, and I traveled nearly every weekend to show my rabbits. I even went across the country a couple of times for both ANDRC and ARBA conventions. After having a kid and moving into an apartment and having to work sometimes two jobs at a time, needless to say, I didn't have the time or space or ability to travel often anymore, so I had to discontinue raising rabbits. Now that I am home all the time, I could do rabbits again, but without outside buildings to keep them in, it would be pretty smelly.
That's why I love Bettas so much. They don't take up nearly as much space, they don't make noise or smell, and they are truly living pieces of art. I've always been intrigued by genetics, so with the limitless combinations and so many unexplained genetics of Bettas, I will not get bored easily! I won't lie. I spend way too much time changing water, but it's all worth it when I see my little babies growing up into something nice! I also spend way too much time talking about Bettas, but hey, it goes with the territory.
I am a member of the Midwest Betta Club, and I encourage anyone nearby to join, because it is an awesome club filled with very knowledgeable people. And of course, I am a member of the IBC. Anyone getting into Bettas should join the IBC. There are so many things to learn about Bettas, and if you join, you get access to an online forum where you can talk to people who have been raising Bettas for years upon years and are more than willing to answer any questions or help you out with any problems. Not to mention, joining gives you access to the show standards which can really help you get a good idea of what you should be looking for (and running from) when purchasing breeding stock. Individual memberships start at $20 a year, so you more than get your money's worth!
I am currently breeding several lines of nice fish, and I offer some for sale when I have extras. I am also going to begin offering imported fish for sale.
That's basically all there is to me right now. Between the kids, the pets, the house, and the fish, I keep very busy. People who work full time jobs and have pets and kids and still find the time to raise Bettas amaze me. I don't know how they do it all. Please continue to check my site. I have a ton of stuff to add to the site when I have the time to do so. I am planning on adding as much information as I can as I have time.
~ Jennifer
About Me