mice.

Tuesday before last Doyle woke up crying about fifteen after five in the morning. In my half-asleep stupor I thought I heard scratching coming from inside one of the walls in my bedroom. It soon stopped and I figured it was probably my DVR box doing something and my sleepy imagination was playing tricks on me. Two night later I was woken up by the scratching sound, again, just past five a.m. This time I popped up wide awake and listened. I walked over to the wall just to make sure and yes, there was most definitely some thing inside the wall.

I proceeded to panic.

I immediately started packing up a suitcase throwing all the clean clothes I could find of mine and the kids inside. When the clock finally hit six a.m I called my mom who I knew would be sympathetic to my plight as she is also afraid of mice. I got the okay from her to come on over, so I woke up the kids, got them dressed as quickly as possible and high-tailed it to my mom's house on the north side of OKC.

Once a more reasonable hour rolled around we called an exterminator and he came out the next day. Right away he started off by saying that this isn't typically the time of year that mice enter houses, that the wall in question would be an unlikely hang out for mice, and that the house itself was sealed up pretty tight against pests, but I knew what I heard so as a last ditched effort he checked the attic and that's where he found them. He said there were dropping everywhere and that they had chewed tunnels all through the insulation. (Insert me shivering with the heeby-jeebies.) He put down multi-feed bait in the attic and in some bait stations around the house, charged me an arm and a leg and said he'd be back to check the bait in three months.

THREE MONTHS!? We spent one night in the house and after being up all night listened to the mice (which as it happens I had been hearing for months, I just didn't realize that was what the noises were) we headed back to my mom's place. My step-dad decided to be a little more proactive and put actual traps up in the attic to help take them out faster, but until I know they are gone, I refuse to go back. It was bad enough when giant spiders started moving in, but I could spray those bad boys with my giant black can o' spider death. But then I found the huge intact snake skin in the backyard, and now the mice.....Why do these things happen when my big strong husband is gone? I think it's that way for military wives everywhere.

What about you? Is there any creepy creature that would make you hit the road if you discovered them in your house?

busy little bees

it crosses my mind nearly every day that I haven't been updating my blog, and yet I never make it over here to do it. So just now when I thought to myself, "Self, it's sure been a while since you blogged anything." I decided to act and blog.

It's been 8 weeks since my husband left for Korea and I've been doing my best to keep the kids and I busy and it seems to be working. We've taken multiple picnic trips to the zoo (note to self: get a zoo membership), spent lots of time at church and at my mom's house, gone to birthday parties, Cuppies and Joe, story times, and logged many an hour just playing outside in our own yard.

Last week we took a trip down to the Earlywine Aquatic Center. While it was a very nice pool, it was EXPENSIVE!! $5 a person for everyone, including my little ten month old equals $20 for me to take the kids to the pool. It was also very crowded. Though a little smalled, Mustang's city pool looks to be equally nice (from what I've seen peeking through the fence) and has the added bonus of being a heck of a lot closer to where we live as well as about half the cost (still $5 a person, but the don't start charging till age 4.) I keep meaning to hit up an OKC sprayground since they are free of charge, but just haven't made it out to one yet.

How do you like to spend your summers? Keeping busy or taking it easy?

day one...

so the husband left this morning. yesterday i made mention of it being daddy's last day before he leaves for korea and my sweet little three year old said in a very quiet voice, "i want to go with daaaddyyyyyy..."and started to cry. he ran straight for the hubs and just kept saying "but i want to go with you....i want to stay with you...." i caught myself starting to tear up and had to really work at holding it together. especially when i caught the husband sniffling as well. he NEVER cries. i think i can recall maybe twice in the nearly 6 years we've been together him crying. how could you not cry though when this little child so desperate to keep you and you have to go away for so long?

after that little scene played out, we decided it'd be better for my mother-in-law to take hubs to the airport instead of me waking up the kids and us taking him. i've caught myself every now and then today getting that heavy feeling in my chest, but each time i just take a deep breathe, blow it out and tell myself that i don't need to be strong for the next 365 days, i just need to keep it together for today. i'm just going to focus on today. it is definitely helping that after days of cold rainy weather, God is blessing us with a beautiful, warm, sunny day.

besides, who has time to mope when all these little faces are shining around you?