VICTORY!!!!!

Let me just tell you...we had a stubborn and determined little guy on our hands!! After no luck catching the little rodent the first day, we ALMOST got him after the second night. Matt (bro-in-law), who was the fearless one to drive the car with the unwanted visitor checked the second morning and the mouse had gotten stuck in the gooey stuff the night before, but managed to use all his mighty mouse might to get out!!! Left on the sticky stuff was the fur from his belly - seriously. So then we had on our hands a half-skinned mouse running around the car. On his way to work Matt would always see him run around the passagers side so after the third night and not cathing him again, he lined the sticky strips and all the traps in a straight line - the exact path the mouse been following the previous mornings. This must have been the trick because Matt saw him come out for his morning excercise (or breakfast, maybe) during his drive to work that day. The mouse made it through the TWO things of sticky stuff and then this is what happened when he hit the very first trap:

You can see that he was not very big. In this picture he is beside a regular sized mouse trap. I wish I could be nice and say we tried not to kill him, but I would be lying. He is now in mouse heaven and I promise they are happier to have him there than I was to have him in my car! Now, let's just hope he really was a HE and that there are no offpspring!!!

Rodent Update

And I say update, because HE IS STILL IN MY CAR! Apparently this little guy has made quite the cozy little home somewhere in my car. The day we discovered him we set mouse traps up all over the car. No luck. That night Chad and his brother tore the car apart and found nothing. They set up more traps that night with cheese to intice the little guy, but when we checked the next morning....No luck. Chad's brother drove the car to work yesterday and left traps set up while he was there with peanut butter on them (we read this worked better than cheese) and still NO LUCK! Oh...and I forgot to mention that he SAW him on his way to work gallavanting around the floorboard again. This little guy is tricky, but we are bound to get him eventually. We have vacuumed the whole car so there are no crumbs except what is on the traps. Last night we tried a soft cheese because, again, we read this works better because they can't just get it and run off with it. So, at this point if he wants food he's gotta go to the trap. The only downside is that (in yet another attempt to rid my car of this visitor) we called an exterminator to see what to do and he said they can live without food for up to 7 days. Just great. Thankfully my in-laws have an extra car that they have been driving so that I can drive their car. Unfortuantely, the saga still continues. I will send a final update hopefully very, very soon.

Hickory, Dickory Dock...

...the mouse ran up the clock and then apparently STRAIGHT INTO MY CAR!!!!! AGGGHHH! I am so not kidding. This morning I was driving to school on I-85 and I thought I saw something run from under the seat to the front of the car on the passenger's side. Of course I only saw this with my peripheral vision, so I wasn't quite sure. I looked as much as I could while driving but didn't see anything except my phone charger in the floor. I just chalked it up to my imagination and kept driving. But then, only a few minutes down the road I saw the exact same thing going this time from the front to the back. I didn't figure there was any way I could have imagined this twice and it freaked me out, so I pulled over on the side of the interstate. I immediately called Chad and this is how the convo went:

Me: Chad, where are you?

Chad: I am at Exit ___ (which happened to be one exit behind me)

Me: Well you have to come and get me.

Chad: What? Why?

Me: Because there is something in my car and I am standing on the side of the interstate.

Chad: (who has started laughing at me at this point) What is it? A spider?

Me: No seriously it is something big and you better come and get me because I am NOT getting back into my car.

So, my knight came to my rescue. We opened the car and he was immediately able to find little "droppings" under the seat. UUGHHHHH!!! Chad and I traded cars and I headed on to school. About 2 minutes after we parted ways Chad called me and told me he'd seen it scurrying around. It even freaked him out and he said he just prayed all the way home that he would get there fast! Anyway, my car is now sitting at my in-laws with mouse traps and this sticky stuff in it to capture this critter. I must say that if I was going to have this happen I am glad it happened the way it did because if I had seen it and recognized what it was while I was driving, I can ASSURE you I would have wrecked my car! My dad always told me that if there was a bee in my car just to pull over (cause I HATE bees)....I guess the same rule applies to rodents!

I'll keep ya updated on how it all goes down!

DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT KEEP A NASTY CAR . THIS COULD HAPPEN TO ANY OF YOU!

Packing, packing, packing...

No, we are not moving again, but by the looks of all the stuff I am having to gather to go on our short family vacay to the beach, you would think we are! I thought I took a lot when it was just Chad and I, but throw a child in the picture and I feel like I practically have to load up one entire room from our house. We just take the usual - clothes, shoes, toiletries, etc. But for sweet, little, 1 year old Caleb we have to take it all - pack 'n play to sleep in, pack 'n play mattress, cover for mattress so it will be more comfy, sheet for mattress and cover, clothes and lots of them just in case he messes something up or it's cooler one day, stroller, travel highchair, toys to occupy him while we are in a foreign house, sippy cups, the baby monitor, diapers for a long weekend along with the wipes, butt paste and fresh smelling bags for the "shoo shoo" ones. The list goes on and on and this doesn't include the emergency items (thermometer, tylenol, etc). Oh, and since are headed to the beach, did I mention we are throwing in the wagon too?!?! Ok...off to get it all in the car.

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

Be safe and remember to give thanks for those who have fought for our country and for those who still are. A big shout out to my cuz, Jason, who will be leaving (AGAIN!) very soon to go do just that. I LOVE YA, CUZ AND WILL BE PRAYING FOR YOU!

My little mocking bird...

As soon as Caleb turned 1 it was like he decided it was time to start picking up words. As of yesterday he could say mama, da-da, juice, Daisy, uh -oh (but he leaves off the oh and just says "up"), Papa, and quack quack. Well today he added a new word to his reportoire. Here's how the story goes. I had him on the kitchen counter putting his shoes on. As he was sitting there he picked up an apple. I said, "APPLE". He tries to repeat my word and does a pretty good job. Then I suppose he decides this apple is very ball-like and tosses it to the ground. As he does this I say to him, "OHHHHH.....NOOOO" in which he repeats back to me as clear as can be and as if he's said it 100 times "OHHHHHH....NO!" Of course I die laughing and then get him to repeat it 10 more times just to make sure he was really saying it, and sure enough he was. He is just getting to be so funny, but I guess we really must start watching the things we say around him. No more of the "s words"...you know shut up, stupid, etc. - that's about as bad as it gets at our house!

Fhoto Friday

A moment with Ella Claire

WHOA!!! It's electric! :)

Enjoying his most recent favorite activity - wagon rides!

Caught!!!

When I walked into Caleb's room today this is what I found. I ran to get my camera. I have many, many hopes and dreams for my little guy and one of them is that he enjoy reading. Hopefully we are getting off to a good start!!!

Happy Friday to everyone!