Mouse in the House - May 29th

Nothing much going on here in Virginia. Before we left for Ohio, we had found little pellets near our stove and on our counters in the kitchen. Not many but enough that were unexplained that I suspected we had a mouse. We had not seen any other evidence (nibbled grocery bags or food or even seen him). We cleaned our kitchen spotless before we left for our trip and when we came home , there were many pellets all over again. So first thing Monday morning (we got home at Monday 2:00am) i went to Home Depot and bought 4 glue pads and put them down around where we found pellets in the kitchen. I even put a small dab of peanut butter in the middle of two of them. I was sure that this would work. Tuesday morning, no carcass but both peanut butter dabs were gone and there were paw marks in the glue traps. This now 100% confirmed we had a visitor. Way to go &^**ing glue traps! After work on Tuesday i went back to home depot and bought 4 "traditional" traps and set them around the kitchen with some peanut butter as bait. I was positive that this would work. Wednesday morning, no traps had gone off but mucho pellets and all peanut butter was gone. WTF! Either i am facing genius mouse or i am an idiot. I am leaning to the idiot part. Trust me all traps were set properly because they snapped when i went near them. So back to home depot Wednesday after work and I buy 4 more mouse traps. So now i have spent almost $40 and have 4 glue pads and 8 mouse traps all over my kitchen. I even put some traditional traps against the glue pads so the bastard would have to go through 2 of em to get the bait. This morning...One of them finally caught the damn thing. What relief. I have literally tossed and turned the last 4 nights dreaming about mice and rats. Little ones, big ones. Some chasing me. Some trying to catch me in traps. People wearing Mickey Mouse ear hats all over. It was really strange. I have truly been turning into captain ahab thinking about this mouse 24/7. I still have no idea where this thing was living, how it got in, and if there are more. I am leaving some traps around just in case, but i think i should sleep better tonight. Here some more pictures of family.

Memorial Day May 26th 2008

The 3 of us got home early this morning (about 2:00am) and there were no issues. It was a hectic few days in Ohio because we had to be so many places to go and see so many people. But it was quite worth it. This trip reminded us as to how lucky we are to have family and friends who care so much about us. Thank you for taking time out of your schedules at such short notice to see us! I will post some pictures from the trip every few days or so. Not all pictures taken came out so great, so if you do not see pictures of yourself, don't think that i am ignoring you. Just be happy that I am not posting a blurry, eyes closed, unflattering picture of you! We will start out today with pictures of great grandparents.

Sunday May 18th

It has been an interesting last week. Rachel had her 2 month checkup and she is still doing great. She got some shots and did not take them very well. She was mean, fussy, and cranky the rest of the day. Rachel is now just under 12 pounds and is a tick under 2 feet tall. The three of us are planning on coming back to Ohio this week, so you had better make your reservations early because supplies are limited! The plan is for us to drive back Wednesday night after work and stay until Sunday night or early Monday morning. This will give us a chance to take Rachel around to some of the family she has yet to meet. And this will give me a chance to go and see my Grandfather who is in the hospital. Here are some pictures that we have taken throughout the week.

Sunday May 11th - Happy Mothers Day

I want to wish all Moms reading this a Happy Mothers Day! Today was a gloomy rainy day in Virginia. Lisa had an uneventful first Mothers day. She had Rachel dressed up in a one piece outfit that had bunnies for feet. It was extremely cute. I have included a photo showing the feet. Rachel has her 2 month checkup Tuesday so I will be able to update her vital statistics then. Tomorrow morning (Monday 8:00am) my Grandfather is having emergency heart surgery. It is as serious at is sounds and he (along with my whole family) is in my prayers.

Thursday May 8th

My little brother AJ is taking his 8th grade class trip to Washington DC this week. My other brother Joe is chaperoning for the trip and they are currently staying at a hotel 15 minutes from where we live. So tonight Lisa and I took Rachel over to the Sheridan in Reston and introduced her to her uncles. It was a nice time and Rachel was the hit of Saint Mikes 8th grade. Here are some pictures of Rachel with her uncles.

Tuesday May 6th

Rachel has now gone 2 days with the babysitter while Lisa and I have both been working. Lisa has had some difficulties but has come out like a champ. Rachel doesn't seem to care. She has acted wonderfully during the days. Here are some more pictures that Lisa took.