And he quietly slipped away......

Just Before the Angels Come

Silently, she sits by his bedside

Watching as he sleeps throughout the day

Confused as to whether to be glad he’s still with her

Or pray that the Heavenly Father

Would send His angels to take him home today.

She knows the time is getting shorter

And at each breath she sees him take

She thanks God for this moment with him

And stays close lest he should wake

Are those angel’s wings that flutter:

Is that the sound that she now hears?

Perhaps in their love and mercy

They will brush away each precious tear.

Faith, hope and trust stay with her

She is sad but all hope is not gone

As turning her eyes toward Heaven

She listens for a Heavenly angels song…

She looks up as if to see them

Those the Father sent for this dear son

And although her earthbound eyes don’t see evidence

Her spirit knows there must be at least one.

One angel bending low to kiss the cheek

Of the child of God for whom the Father waits

One angel to bring him to the Father’s arms

Right through Heaven’s majestic Pearly gates.

- poem by Thena

In Memory

of

Joey G.

April 14, 1994 - April 28, 2007

Layout by his mother, Jen G.

It's all I can think about.....

....so here I am posting to my blog, when I should definately be in bed asleep.



An acquaintance of mine from Savannah is on my mind. Her name is Jen. Among her children, she has a son named Joey. Jen refers to Joey as "her sweet boy" and he's dying of cancer. Joey just turned 13 last week. He's been undergoing treatment, but it hasn't been working. Recently, they released him from the hospital to spend time in his home with his family until the end.



Tonight, I found out that they have life-flighted Joey back to the hospital yesterday, as they can do nothing else to save him. This surely means the end is near.



Just hearing this breaks my heart. One day, his mother is going along doing her everyday things. And the next day, things are falling apart and she's learning to mother a child with cancer and try to keep things going within her home. Things started out hopeful, but in such a short time things became clear, sweet Joey is dying. How unfair life can sometimes be.




My prayer for them is peace and strength for all the members of their family during this time.




So, if you have a moment, please say a prayer for this family. I know I am. Then, I'll be saying a prayer of thanks for my beautiful children and for their good health. We are very, very blessed. And I take that for granted way too often.

She's coming, She's really coming!!!!

Woo Hoo~ I am so excited!!!! I've been sent a possible airplane flight itinerary! She's coming!!!

It's my best buddy, Sherry!!

We are gonna stamp, we are gonna scrap, we are gonna shop, we are gonna hit my pool, we are gonna stay up late talking and laughing ~~~WE ARE GONNA HAVE A GREAT TIME!!!!!!

Who else wants to come??????

Rainy Day Tent

Although it's only been 2 days....mommy is done with rainy days!!! Gone is our beautiful and warm, Spring-like days, replaced with cold, windy rainy weather. Thanks a lot, Mother Nature!!!!!

So, what's a mom to do with 2 bored little children?? Well, make a make shift "tent," of course!!

So, you grab the big, fuzzy pink blanket off the bed and you throw it over the changing table, anchored by the box of wipes. Then you stretch it over to the expensive kitchen that she doesn't play with near enough and tuck it behind it. THE KIDS ARE THRILLED!!!!

You let them fill it with pillows, blankets, books and toys to their hearts content and let them "hide in the tent," insisting you CAN'T see them anywhere!!!

Well, it bought me about 45 minutes of peace, so it was all worth it!!!!!!

So, what do you do on rainy days when the kids are tired of being inside and you are going nuts!?!?!

~~~I HAVE A NEW CELL PHONE NUMBER~~~

Effective immediately!!

So, if you need my number....shoot me a comment and I'll email my new number to you!!!!!!!

~~Roxann~~

GUESS WHAT?!?!?!?!

I got some news today that makes me very, very happy!!!! Someone that I miss so much is coming to see me very soon!! Woo Hoo!!!

But, you'll have to wait to hear who!!!!

(I know, that's mean....sorry!)

It's a MIRACLE!!!!!

Normally, I reserve the word MIRACLE, for a 100% incredible, spectacular event. But, in this case, I would say it's appropriate!

THIS HOUSE IS UNDER CONTRACT!!!!

After 5 long months on the market, we got 2 offers yesterday!!!! Isn't that how it always goes?! We couldn't get the 2 into a bidding war because one was clearly a "better" offer, mainly because they want to close next week and the lender swears they can get it done! Yea!!! That means we won't even have to make the house payment that I've already scheduled thru the bank and that would be AWESOME!!

Start praying now that nothing goes wrong and we slide into closing next week w/out any major issues. By the end of the month, hopefully you won't have to listen to me whine about this subject EVER AGAIN!!!!!! (thanks for listening, though!!!!!)

So sad......

My neighbor told me last night that she told her husband of 17 years to get out. He's a liar and a philanderer and it's not the first time he's done it. I barely know her, but she just spilled it all out to me as we sat on the sidewalk last night.



My heart just breaks for her. They have 3 children, ages 17, 13 and 5. But, you know, I don't blame her. She should not put up with that. His infidelity makes him a sleezebag in my eyes and I'm sure she's better off without him.



But that doesn't mean it's easy.



She's clearly scared. She's in so much pain. I feel so bad for her.



Ike and I have been married for almost 15 years. So, 17 isn't far away for us. I can't imagine how I would feel if I were in her shoes. Just thinking about it almost makes me sick to my stomach. However, I've never once worried that Ike would cheat on me. He just wouldn't. He's not that kind of guy. I'm lucky to have that kind of security in my marriage.



The whole situation brought to mind Carrie Underwoods song "Wasted." Here are the lyrics to the first verse and the chorus: (I'd post a link to hear it, but I can't figure out how to do it!)

Standing at the back door

She tried to make it fast

One tear hit the hard wood

It fell like broken glass.

She said sometimes love slips away

And you just can't get it back

Let's face it.

For one split second

She almost turned around

But that would be like pouring rain drops

Back into a cloud

So she took another step and said

I see the way out and I'm gonna' take it.

I don't wanna' spend my life jaded

Waiting to wake up one day and find

That I've let all these years go by

Wasted

Ever since I first heard this song, it brings out strong emotion in me. It is something about the emotion in Carrie's voice and the sentiment of the words. It's a sad song. It seems that we all have to remember not to let the years go by "wasted" and look back with regret. And in my neighbors case, I'm glad she's found the strength within herself to "fight back," to stand up for herself and say NO, what you did is not ok and I won't take it anymore! Good for her!!!



So, what do you do in a situation like this? Well, I'm of the opinion that Chocolate helps, so I think I will make a basket overflowing w/chocolate and other goodies for her. Don't you think that will cheer her up? I do. I have to do something......


So anyway......

I'm not really a huge country music fan, but I love Carrie Underwood's CD, Some Hearts. The whole CD is really good. I've been a fan of Carrie's since American Idol (you've gotta support your home state girl!!) She even graduated from the same college as Ike and I. She is really talented.

Anyway, look up Carrie's song Wasted, download it and listen to it.....and then, throw up a prayer for my neighbor....she's gonna need them!!!!

This is a three post day...scroll down for other posts.....

In Scrapbooking NEWS:

Here's my layout from this morning.....

I think it turned out reallly cute!

What do you think??

In the Kitchen NEWS:

And here's the yummy breakfast I made for my kids this morning. It's cottage cheese, covered w/ bananas and strawberries, cinnamon and topped w/ whipped cream and just enough slivered chocolate so they can say they had chocolate for breakfast!! THEY LOVED IT!!

IN OTHER NEWS:

Big Daddy's plane should have landed about 4 minutes ago. YEA!!! Hopefully, he'll get his bags and make the 1 hour drive and make it home by dinnertime!!

Signs of Spring....

Caterpiller!

Looooove this pic!

--------->

Isn't this sweet?

This is our Redbud tree from in front of our house. Isn't it beautiful?

I've really enjoyed being able to look at it from our formal living room. It's directly out our big front window.

And look what we found while studying the tree....

A Robin's nest......
so Jensen climbed the tree and discovered we had 3 eggs. (yes, I made sure he didn't touch!)

And just this week........
we have 3 BABIES!!!

(photo by Jensen.... sorry the pic isn't great, but in his defense, he was hanging 7 feet off the ground and trying to take the pic!!)

Guess Who Lost a Tooth??

How cute does he look now??



He pulled it out himself, THANK GOODNESS!




Because I do not do tooth-pulling!!



Seriously.



It squeebs me out!! I have NEVER pulled any of my kids teeth. Either they have done it themselves or Big Daddy has done it or or Aunt Lori has done it or one of my friends did it! It's the one Mommy duty that I CAN'T handle!!



So, he still believes in the *tooth fairy* so it went under the pillow and he scored $2 for this one. (And I had to borrow it from Logan, since Big Daddy is out of town and I had no cash!!)



So, after I take all the pics of Jensen, a couple of cuties wanted some picture action and here they are.........

Cutie Pie Girl

Cutie Pie Boy

If you see something crumpled on the floor......

....it's just me. I'm exhausted. I can't wait for Ike to be home tomorrow night....although, it will be late.

Even better...he has to work on Friday.....AND THE KIDS ARE OUT OF SCHOOL!!!!!!!

DANG IT! I CAN NOT GET A BREAK!!!!

(I had pictures to upload, but blogger is being stupid, so it won't upload my photos for you!!! Maybe tomorrow.......)

Wh at color are YOU?

So, I found this "color" test. And of course, I couldn't resist. I always find these types of test hard, because I have a hard time being objective. It's like, you read the question and your try to answer as honestly as possible, but I spend the whole time second guessing myself.

So this is what it said about me.....


Congratulations. You are YELLOW. YELLOWS are motivated by FUN. They are inviting and embrace life as a party that they're hosting. They love playful interaction and can be extremely sociable. They are highly persuasive and seek instant gratification. YELLOWS need to be adored and praised. While YELLOWS are carefree, they are sensitive and highly alert to others' agendas to control them. YELLOWS typically carry within themselves the gift of a good heart.
YELLOWS need to look good socially, and friendships command a high priority in their lives. YELLOWS are happy, articulate, engaging of others and crave adventure. Easily distracted, they can never sit still for long. They embrace each day in the "present tense" and choose people who, like themselves, enjoy a curious nature. YELLOWS are charismatic, spontaneous, and positive; but can also be irresponsible, obnoxious, and forgetful. When others interact with you, as a YELLOW you respond to them best if they take a positive, upbeat approach and promote light-hearted, creative, and fun interactions with you.


Understand that no two YELLOWS are exactly alike. Although you share the same core motivation as many others, your personality is still unique to you alone.


Does this sound like me???? What do you think?? Go take the test and report back to me on this post.....WHAT COLOR ARE YOU??????

Wanna guess what I've been doin'?!

Yep, you guessed it....I've been scrappin'!! WOO WOO!!!!!



So, I'll share w/ you some of my latest work. Be forewarned, although I have a kick-booty camera...I suck at this taking pictures of pictures/layouts crap (the real reason I don't submit anything - what a time waster!) Sorry for the lack of quality of some of these photo's. They are more gorgeous in person!



Ok, so for those who are counting....these are J's b-day layouts from when he turned 4! (quick math...he's 8 now...so YES, I AM 4 YEARS BEHIND IN HIS ALBUM....please don't rub it in!)



Anyways, I am not a believer of one page for a birthday, I scrap the WHOLE story! (is anyone reallllly shocked by this?) So, I present, the 5-page bday layout.....









A little explanation about page 3 of the 5-page layout. It has a double-pullout in a pocket.

See, how nicely this all hides in the pocket in the pic above??

Well, those babies pull-out from inside the pocket-page and have more birthday present opening pics and the gift list!

Now, this is definately the FUNNIEST layout I'm posting!!! This Bibleman dress-up suit was a gift from my brother, the minister. My kids *love* BIBLEMAN!!! They think he *RAWKS* !! So, anyways, the child was dying to dress up, so instead of going potty before hitting the bathtub....guess what he did?! Yep, NEKKID BIBLEMAN!!!!!

So, what's any mom supposed to do?! Well, grab the camera, of course!!! What better way to blackmail them when they're 15????

Yep, I cracked myself up w/ this one! Nothin' like censoring w/ superhero slogans!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And I know I'm partial, because after-all, this is my work. But I ABSOLUTELY LOVE this layout!!!! I am just really happy how it looks......

The really cool thing is, THE LEFT PAGE, was actually just a 1-pager that I had done about 5 months ago. But then, I later found these lists about Jensen's school from the school year and I JUST KNEW I HAD TO INCLUDE THEM....but, where???? So, the 1-page was converted to a 2-page spread.


Would you have known that if I hadn't just told you?? (Well, Jamie would, she's seen the first layout.....)

This layout is an excellent example of simple scrapbooking.....

It's Halloween pics. They aren't that great. But, it's an album for a child...you have to put them in.

So, I did.

It's cute.

It's simple.

I actually like it.

But, he LOVED IT!!!!

(this is why I scrapbook!!!)

Ok, here's another fine example of bad photography of a good layout.....sorry about the serious glare issues!

Anyway, I did a bunch of doodling on this one. Elsie doodles cuter, but these are just the kind of doodlie-doos I used to do at my desk as a girl when I did "wrong" scrapbooking. (what I mean is, I have been a scrapbooker since I was about 11, I just used the wrong materials, such as magnetic albums and materials that won't last. But I was forever stealing my mom's pinking shears to cut up photos and put them in my magnetic albums w/ cut outs of shapes and marker doodles.....

Ok, this last layout is from Christmas 2002. The pics crack me up of the UGLY Christmas tree decorations. I had Griffin on Nov. 13th and we always put up the tree the day after Thanksgiving, so since I had a 10 day old baby....guess who decorated the tree?? A 4 yr. old and a 6 yr. old. Notice, no high decorations!!! Ha ha!!!

Ok, well, since blogger has been a pain while uploading all these pics, it's taken WAY WAY too long. I'm off to bed.....

Let me know what you think of my latest works..........

I'm a baaaaaaaad blogger and other random thoughts...

**warning..whiney hiney post ahead**

#1- I'm in a bad mood because I woke up w/ a killer headache and I'm WAY to busy today to deal with that. I'm just waiting for the Excederin Migraine to kick in and scoop me out of the crap pile.

#2- I am stressed out over that damn house in Richmond Hill. That thing has got to sell. It's killing us financially. KILLING US. If anyone has a money tree...let me know. I need a loan.

#3- Why does it seem like I've fallen off the face of the earth for the past two weeks. Well, first, I've kinda hit rock bottom. By this I mean, I have been really depressed. The I can't hardly drag myself out of bed kind of depressed. (If it weren't for the princess and her brothers...I would not get out of bed.) I went thru the exact thing when I moved to GA. It happens at just past the 2 month mark of moving. We've reached the time when I've been gone from GA long enough that I'm more of a memory, and no longer a part of my old friend's day to day lives. (man, that hurt just typing it) *tears now* I knew it would come. In a way, I expected it. And unfortunately, it still kicked me straight in the a$$. And this time, it's largely my fault. I have not kept up with all my old friends as much as I would have liked to. (well, sorta my fault but mostly the fault of the damn phone company here, who has now made me pay for every damn call I make....rather than my GA phone company who let me have my Long Distance for free.) **this was not intended to make anyone feel bad....just trying to get my feelings out....**

Second, we have invited Ike's boss over for dinner tonight, so I have been bustin' my booty trying to whip this place into shape. (funny thing about being depressed...you tend to not stay on top of things....so I've been paying the price for that all week.) It's not that the place is a pig sty or anything, but it's harder to keep things neat and clean, when you are still trying to determine where things actually belong and unpack boxes, along with keep a family of six running. Plus, I want to decorate some, but the $$ I need to do it is tied up in that GA house, so it really sucks.

Bottom line, I am exhausted. Emotionally and Physically exhausted.

#4- Ike leaves for Las Vegas on Saturday for almost a week. Yep, while I sit here alone w/ no friends...he's gonna be in Vegas livin' the high life! (if our GA house had sold, I'd be there with him! how bad does that suck??) So, it's a news director training/convention thing, but you know they will be partying and drinking and gambling every night....... Ike and I love Vegas and it sucks we won't be together this time. More than anything, I just hate knowing he's leaving town and I'm stuck here with no back up. If there were an emergency...it would take at least 5 hours for my dad/stepmom to get here.

The ONLY good news of this whole thing is....since my house will be perfectly clean by the end of today....I'll be scrapbooking my butt off next week! Yep, it's true, the beginnings of my scrap area is done.....now it's just a matter of adding finishing touches, which probably won't happen until that damn house sells. (Have I mentioned I have a house for sale in GA?! Ha ha ha!)

#5- I had a complete meltdown last night. Between being completely wiped out and not being able to find my mom's cookbook...Ike thought he was gonna have to drop me off at the looney bin. All I could do was lay in my bed and cry. Well, until I tore off to the garage to search boxes for the book at 11:29pm, when I should have been asleep. That book means the world to me and it's irreplacable, of course. I find that I tend to obsess about things that are connected to my mom. (who me? obsess? hmmmm....)

#6- As Mother's Day approaches every year, as much as I look forward to it because it's a day for me, I hate it. It's a double edged sword, because it also means that I am face to face with the fact my mom is gone. And it sucks. And being the 10th anniversary of her death this summer....I still miss her so much. And I still don't understand the unfairness of it all.

#7- Seriously, they are forcasting 2-4 inches of snow here tonight and tomorrow. Can you believe that? News flash, it's mid-April!! Mother Nature, apparently did not get the memo!!My redbud out front is in full bloom and we have a nest w/ 3 eggs and they say it's gonna snow! I can't believe it! I guess we'll see!

#8- I still don't have not even ONE real friend here. Doesn't that suck? Well, since the depression hit full-force, I've been a complete shut-in. (and since the temp has been in the 30-40's, I've avoided going out....) Anyway, I have got to find a friend. Pray that I find one soon.....

Well, I could probably write more, but it's almost 9am and this house isn't going to clean itself. I hope everyone is doing fine....take care and know I think of all of you often. Much more often than you think......

~rw~

Easter

Easter 2007

Marinne and Griffin love their bunnies.

Can you believe that Jensen still believes in the EB and SC, too? This may be his last year, so I'm enjoying it while I can......

Logan is growing up so fast. He hasn't believed in the EB or SC for many years.....so he hid the eggs this year and helped me load up the baskets. Obviously, this pic is to humor me....and keep the secret from the sibs.

Marinne loved decorating the eggs! It was her first year to do it. She cried when we put the egg dye away! She was VERY into it. An artist in the making? Maybe...she loves to color!

Egg decorators hard at work....

The Egg Hunt......

Isn't this adorable?!

Even though he has outgrown all this, he's still game for a good egg hunt...... shoot, he hid all of them!

Jensen, I don't think you'll

find any in the tree!!!

The hunt is on! They had a really great time! We only wish it had been a little warmer, it was about 50 degrees outside.....

We hope your holiday was as enjoyable as ours was!

Happy Easter Everybody!!!!

How to Tame the Beast.....

See this child.....I love him. I love him with my whole heart and soul. I love him so much that I don't even think I could put it into words. He's my firstborn. He was my first gift from God. I wanted him so much. With him, everything was new. I didn't know about pregnancy. I didn't know what was normal and what wasn't. I was obsessive about everything during this pregnancy. Just ask Ike how many times I made him take me to labor and delivery during this pregnancy!!




I went thru a hell pregnancy with him, spending 4 1/2 months on 85% bedrest, throwing up every single day from 2 weeks after I conceived him until I delivered him on June 13th at 10:01pm, after over 14 hours of labor!



With him, I worried about every little thing. If he was growing ok. If I didn't feel him move, I'd drink orange juice and eat sugar, to see if he would move, even though I knew I would throw it up. All I cared about was that he was ok. Little did I know then, but that was the easy part.....the hard part is now.




Nothing has changed, really. Except than instead of growing under my heart, he grows in it. I still worry every single day that he's ok. I still worry that something could happen to him. But now, I worry about so much more than just is he healthy, is he ok? I worry every single day that I (we) are screwing him up. That maybe we don't know what the heck we are doing in raising him. I'm worried that he hates me. And my fear is that my worries about this are justified.




The thing is....we are all just learning. We are learning how to parent an older child. And it's hard. And he's learning, well, to grow up. Some days I wonder if we are failing him. I mean, how do you really know HOW to parent a pre-pre-preteen? We live in a world that is go, go, go and do, do, do. But this world can be a dangerous place for a 10 year old boy with a often-moody disposition. He thinks he's much bigger, much older, much wiser than he is. So, he resents us for trying "to control" him and for being too strict. He doesn't understand that our rules are to protect him because we love him. We are trying to teach him to have self-control. And when he doesn't seem to be in control of himself and his behavior, we discipline him. Right now, he's grounded from the computer and all electronics. (because you gotta get 'em where it hurts) He's mad. Really mad. He thinks it's unfair and dumb. He's punishing us for our decision. And, we are trying to make a point.



Yes, we are strict parents. We have high expectations of our children. We know they are capable and we expect them to raise up to a high level. Is that wrong? Is it too much pressure? I don't know anymore.



What I do know is people are amazed that I can take this family of 4 children to any restaurant in town and people are hardly aware that 4 children, 10 and under, are sitting at the table next to them. My children have learned what appropriate behavior is in a restaurant. We very often receive compliments from people dining around us about the good behavior of our children, and quite often these comments come from older adults. I am proud of this. I feel this is a result of our parenting. So, we can't be doing everything wrong, can we? Or can we?



Do any of you have older children?
How did you transition from parenting a younger child to a pre-teen?
What works? What doesn't?
Do you think I'm screwing him up?
Do you have advice for me?

Why are some of God's creature's so annoying?!

Is that wrong to say that? Because if it is, I really don't care. In my book, there are some of God's creatures that are simply too nasty to deserve to live. Bottom line.






Then, there are the creatures that come in my house and certainly were not invited!
I hate them even more!!!

Just before we moved, I had a problem with a bird who had climbed in under the eaves our our house and decided that was a better place to live than say, in a nest in a tree or a birdhouse. Then, the pain in the a$$ decided to PECK A HOLE in the ceiling of Griffin's room. Yes, the darn thing pecked a hole thru the ceiling, dropping sheetrock chunks and dust all over everything. Exactly, what kind of bird thinks it's a good idea to peck a hole in someone's ceiling. What did he think he was going to accomplish? Where was he going? What exactly was going thru his mind as he sunk his beak thru insulation and finally thru the semi-hard sheetrock?

So, Ike had to patch the hole and attempt to match that weird pattern on the ceiling.

Then, after Ike had moved. That a-hole bird did it again. I WAS FURIOUS!!!! What kind of bird decides he's gonna peck a hole in the ceiling twice??? It's not like it gets THAT cold in Savannah! So, another repair was in order. But, seriously...what a pain in the booty!

Also, I feel the same intense hatred toward Palmetto Bugs/roaches that are in Georgia. I have torn apart a room trying to kill some of those nasty creatures on more than one occasion!!!! (the only person I've met that hates them more than me is Sherry......poor girl nearly passes out when she sees one....I just get crazed!)

Most recently.....I'd like to say that.......

SUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yep, those little suckers have invaded my home. Now, do they bite? No, not this type. These are just annoying. (Although I did have a few go-arounds w/ the stingin' fireants in Savannah....and p.s. I won.)

But,these ants, well, they trail wherever they feel like it. They trail on the counter in the kitchen (and trust me, it's clean.) They trail by the front door and onto the shoes. They trail in my master bath and ruin the sanctity of my peaceful shower....because, afterall, I don't want them ON me!

::heebie jeebies, now::

So, I DECLARE WAR! I grab the closest thing to me, which might kill them. It's.....KABOOM!

It turns out, Kaboom! not only cleans your bathroom, but it will kill ants and ruin the paint on your bathroom wall. (just trust me on this one.)

So, I decide another approach is warranted. The next time, I am enraged by the sight of the ants in my bathroom, I grab the hairspray! I figure, it freezes your hair, I bet it freezes ants.


Yep, it does. But, it also leaves a sticky residue everywhere it goes. So, long term, not my best choice for ant killer.






So, I consult my friend, GOOGLE.com and read that organic, child-safe ways to deter the ants is to use cinnamon. (which I deem as too messy and bad for trying to eat well. After all, would it be good if everywhere I go in my house, I smell something that reminds me of baked goods?)











So, back to the list.......

The next suggestion for child-safe ant killer I find is to spray vinegar where they trail. Unfortunately, I HATE the smell of vinegar. It turns my stomach, so that's OUT!

Finally, I sent Big Daddy to Home Depot and he's putting out my ant killer stakes and he's provided me w/ a giant bottle of RAID.

GOD BLESS HIM!!!!!!!!!

So, I have BIG DREAMS of annihilating these stupids ANTS and declaring my home ANT-FREE by the end of the week.

So, in the interest of entertaining myself and you, I'll tell you a few other

ME vs. DISGUSTING CREATURE OF GOD stories.

These, my friends are a disgusting creature.....MICE! BLAH!!!!

I am one of those girls, who you can see running for a chair when one of these little nasty things shows itself. At least, I used to be.....




I, for one, had never seen a mouse up close and personal until after Ike and I were married.

We lived in this tiny house in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. It was kinda cute, but still a weird little house. It had a small living area (which was tilted....so the water in our big aquarium was always uneven!) It had a tiny bedroom and a tiny kitchen which could only hold a table for 2 people (there was no dining room.) It had the tiniest bathroom I've ever seen (we used to joke we could pee pee, brush our teeth and take a shower all from the same spot. Ike and I were much smaller people back then and we couldn't even both fit in there at the same time! Seriously!) And we had a half-room which had the laundry area on one end and just enough space for a twin bed. It was a weird little house, but it was ours. (sorry, walking down memory lane mostly, but trying to set up the "scene" for the story......)

Well, one day, I went into the kitchen to make so dinner and I opened the cabinet over the stove to retrieve some boxed augratin potatoes, when to my utter *dismay* followed by disgust, I was looking straight in the face of a nasty little mouse! I FREAKED OUT!!! I could not even speak....I just started shaking, slammed the cabinet shut and ran the whole 7 feet from the kitchen to the couch, where Ike was watching tv. I still couldn't speak. I just started making these mouse noises and little mouse "charades" at my new husband, who looked at me like I was completely insane!! (temporary insanity, I think it's called.....) Finally, I blurted out...... there's a &#(&* MOUSE in there!!!!

So, Ike went in the kitchen and proceded to unload the cabinet and we found that there wasn't just ONE MOUSE, there was a whole family of MICE had chewed threw the stuff around the vent pipe and they were living it up in that cabinet, peein' and poopin' on all our food! I was disgusted and furious, all at once.

So, Ike went to the store and got some wooden mouse traps and a bunch of steel wool to stuff in the hole. I was a novice at this mouse trap business, so he showed me how to load it w/ peanut butter (they love that stuff....who knew?) and we began catching mice.

In some sick way, I found it satisfying with each sound of the trap being sprung, we were one step closer to taking our kitchen back! I, for one, did not enjoy sharing my slightly sideways home w/ a bunch of mice!!!!

Everything was going great, until Ike was in Tulsa one night doing his internship at KOTV and I was left home alone to study for a test. And of course, as I am sitting there on our bed, I hear this SNAP sound and my heart jumps into my throat.

Oh my gosh, we got one!!!!

I reason, no biggie, Ike will be home in 4 hours after then newcast and the drive home. He'll take care of it.........

But, my reasoning to myself is interupted by the sound of a mouse, struggling for his life in the mouse trap. All I can hear is this, BANG! Smack! CRASH! as the trap smacks into the cabinet, as he fights for his freedom.

OH MY GOSH!!!! What do I do?! Well, the crashing continues and I reason, I have to look. So, I drag over the kitchen chair to the cabinet and peek inside. Now, the mouse sees me and freaks out, fighting even more!











S0, what's a desperate, scared of mice kinda girl supposed to do? I did what any freaked out girl in my position would do and I ran to the laundry area and I grabbed.....


Ike's hammer!








Yep, standing on a chair so I could reach the cabinet, and shaking, I smacked that sucker with the hammer till he stopped fighting. (I hit him hard enough to stop him, not hard enough to smoosh him!!! I might be freaked out, but I am not dumb.)











(What else what I supposed to do?? Sorry, animal lovers!!)











I was traumatized for life! I called Ike and I was horrified. I cried and cried. He told me he'd remove "the body" when he returned home. And he did. MY HERO!!!














To this day, I hate the little things.....gives me serious heebie jeebies just thinking about it. They are just sooooo nasty!!!!!











When we moved out of that house after our 1 year lease, we didn't have to deal w/ mice until years later.....














UNTIL......we got mice in the garage in our house in Broken Arrow. I didn't like it, but I couldn't figure out how to figure out how they were getting in. So, as long as they stayed out....I was ok.














But, one day.....they came in........and that was it......I was furious!! I turned into the MOUSE NAZI!!! I saw one run on my kitchen floor (the room directly next to the garage.)














So, me, being the levelheaded mouse hater I am, I went to the store and I bought enough glue mouse traps to make a continuous border around the perimeter of the room. I layed them side by side, until they made a continuous circle. I even thru in a few wooden, snap traps on the other side for good measure. Then, I used the mesh baby gates, to prevent them from leaving the kitchen at the two doorways.











And, I waited.........







***WARNING: Due to the concern of one my friends and dedicated reader of ~therealroxann~ ...the following picture has received a "D" rating for DISTURBING......
DO NOT SCROLL DOWN TO THE NEXT PICTURE IF YOU ARE DISTURBED EASILY!!!!!!!!!!!****

.....it was not long before I was rewarded w/ this......

NASTY RODENT!!!!!!

And, I hate to admit it, but in the interest of this story, I will confess I talk to the nasty creatures when I find one in the trap. Yep, I say things like, "Well, you got just what you deserve for coming in MY house!" or "Go ahead, try to get out of the glue. I dare ya!"

(Yes, I am aware I'm weird....)

I get so obsessed, I check the traps over and over and over, just hoping for another one. In this case, I had the kitchen "trapped up" for about 2 weeks. It only took about a week, but I wanted to be sure I had them all. I caught 7. BLAH!!! And I didn't feel sorry for them one bit!!!

Luckily, I never saw a mouse in Georgia and I haven't seen one here, yet. But you can guarantee that the next time I see a mouse.....I'll KILL IT!!!!