The Foster Family Exterminators!!!

I'm seriously considering changing the name of our blog to just that.

Last night we had friends over for dinner. They had just left and I was shutting the front door when this thing shoots off of the wreath on the door, just inches from my face, and lands on the floor. "Stop!", I yelled to Wade and Kade as I turned and saw them walking out of the room, "There's a RAT in the house."

Yes, I was almost attacked by a rat. If that thing had jumped on me I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be here posting this morning. As it was, I picked up the closest object I could use as a projectile, Jake's tennis shoes, and took action. Wade saw it and ran to head it off from escaping the room. The rat saw him and turned back towards me. I took aim and let a shoe fly, missing. It headed back towards Wade who managed to take a huge swipe at it sending it flying towards the open front door. Sadly, he missed and instead the rat smacked into the wall right next to me just missing Daniel's face by a whisker's length. I took aim with the other shoe and stunned the thing, but not enough. It ran back towards Wade who got one more good swipe at it in sending it flying back towards me and Daniel before it took off towards Kade. Kade happened to be holding a drum stick from BAND HERO in his hand. THWACK!!! The thing ended belly up with it's tail broken off quivering on the floor.

Our friends who had left heard the commotion as they were getting in their car came running back in. Well, the husband did. I talked to my girlfriend this morning. She didn't come running back in. She was paralyzed with fear and was so glad that the rat didn't jump on one of them as they were walking past it. She said she would've wet herself if she had been in the room during the combat. In hindsight, she said she saw the entire episode from the window and it was pretty dang funny. She wishes she had thought to turn on her cell phone video to capture the moment. But, being paralyzed with fear, that thought only came later. One of their sons grabbed the carcass, Kade grabbed the quivering tail, and ceremoniously chucked the cursed thing into the bushes.

Daniel was quite traumatized by the whole event. Who wouldn't be after almost getting smacked in the face by a flying rodent? He was hysterically crying as we went off to bed and wouldn't walk on the floors. I had to carry him. Of course, that is all he can talk about this morning, but at least he is walking around on his own.

For the life of me, I can't figure out how the dumb thing ended up on the wreath. Our doors are 9 feet tall and mostly glass. I'm thinking maybe it was on the roof and jumped from there to the wreath? Argh. Who knows. I'm out of time, but I will write about our homes in Alabama and the rat and the chipmunk who honored us with dying in our walls when I have a minute. I'm off to attempt an 8 mile run in training for the 1/2 marathon that is quickly approaching. I wonder if I'll run faster if I visualize a large rat chasing me?