Plague and pestilence.....

I have spent some lovely, long afternoons this week with Paul and the kids. Kitty seems to have broken through the ‘no eyebrow’ alarm barrier and I think, has got more used to daddy looking a bit different. She has been lounging on his lap watching cbeebies and eating crisps and today she stroked his head asked about his hair. Cassidy seems not to care at all about Paul’s physical difference and he sat with Paul today and they constructed a toy he bought at boot fair this morning and things seemed as ordinary as they can be. God, what a difference being in UCH makes to the whole experience. I just can’t imagine having the ability to have almost normal family moments like this if he was still in Whipps X.

As predicted by the Docs he has not felt as sick as the last time – in fact the moments of nausea are fleeting so far. He will be neutropenic again by around next wed so I will have to cram a few visits in before then. His mood is good and the positive news has given him the boost we hoped for.

So on top of everything like; he is good at answering questions, making roast potatoes, making me laugh, mowing the lawn, doing the lottery, pushing swings, there is another reason he HAS to come home: I’m not very good at pest control. We have mice, moths and the bloody ants are taking over. They have discovered the kitchen and are turning up in random places like out of my purse in supermarkets because they have obviously been hiding in my handbag eating crumbs. It’s not a good look at the checkout I can assure you. I have even taken a couple in to visit Paul too, much to his amusement/alarm/incredulity.

The moths always turn up at this time of year – they seem to peak at the same time the first lavender starts to flower. I have always thought there has to be a link to this and the fact that Lavender is supposedly a moth deterrent, but I am going off on a tangent. Paul has always been the driving force behind the annihilation of all pests he would deal with mice with no mercy - killing them with one flick of a newspaper ‘karate kid’ style, poisoning ants before they took up residence and spatting moths with gusto. And while I have even killed a couple of mice myself I am not keeping on top of the whole exterminator thing - I know this because, as I type, I have seen two mice brazenly scamper across the floor.

Do you think there is significance in the fact that a cat has been sitting outside my conservatory door for three nights in a row just staring in? Do you think it can sense the mice within? Can it see mice that I cannot with its extra sensitive cat eyes and is happily sitting outside my window watching cat TV? Or is his presence just a cat way of trying to befriend me and make me give it food? Whatever the reason it’s a bit disconcerting.

So has anyone got any tips on pest control?.........