Our 2 am Guest

Knock, knock, knock...
Wesley sits up and says Randol's at our bedroom door.
I get up thinking she had a bad dream, rub my eyes, glancing at the clock which reads 2:14am and tell him to go back to bed, I'd get it.

I open my door and there's Randol, wide-eyed and she says, "Mommy there's a roach in my bedroom. I can hear it and I can't sleep anymore!"

A ROACH? In MY house? At 2:14 in the morning?
....This was not my idea of fun....Why did I tell Wesley I'd get up again?
We turn on her light, look around and there it is...along the wall of her princess tent, staring at me.

We started to plan strategy, Randol's suggestion was to bump the side of the tent and when it crawls, trap it in a cup.
My strategy...get the Raid spray and not touch it or cause ANYTHING that will cause it to move.

In the midsts to talking hunting strategies,we also talked about other things. She told me all about the dream she'd just had and about how when she fell off her bike her, "leg felt like it was broken, even though I've never had a broken leg before so I guess I really don't know what it feels like!" We laughed and enjoyed our time together, buying our time to get the Raid and be done with the whole roach mess.


The whole time we talked, I sat in Randol's doorway where through the window of the tent I could see the roach and make sure it didn't go anywhere.
I finally went, got the Raid and sprayed it and it died an very undramatic death.

Then, what would you know...I started hearing scratching sounds on the OUTSIDE of the tent...another one?
No way, NEVER in all my life of killing roaches has there EVER been more than one in my house at a time (that I knew about!). Usually there was a good 2-4 months between roach sightings. Wasn't there a law somewhere that said they can only enter houses one at a time?

I go investigate, sure enough, my fears were realized. This one wasn't inside the tent, it was outside it, free to move where ever and whenever it pleased. I hear crying in my bedroom...Will's up...my son reminding me I can get reinforcements this time....Wesley! He can kill the roach...why didn't I think about this strategy earlier? I go get him, take the crying baby, trying to hush him before he wakes up his brother.

There we all are, at o'dark thirty, standing in my daughters room with the light on, going roach hunting on a Friday night. I tell you, I haven't had this much excitement in years!

Wesley takes cares of the situation in a matter of minutes and Randol says, "Roaches sure are fast, but thank goodness Daddy is faster!"

After all the excitement, I got to sit, flipping channels and feeding Will, by this time its after 3 o'clock. I sat there with nothing to watch but paid programming of people exercising on the beach so I let my mind wander.


Why on earth did God create roaches? Or ants or gnats or snakes for that matter? What is there purpose here on earth. There has to be one, He didn't create them by mistake or by accident. I wonder what Adam thought about these creatures compared to beautiful horses or roaring lions and bears as he got to name them all. Where did Noah keep two gnats on an ark? You know he must have asked God, "Can't we just leave these? We don't really need two roaches do we?" OK...maybe that's what I would've asked!


As tired as I am from last nights experience, I am so grateful for it. I know in the end, we created a fun memory. I don't think Randol will ever forget the fun time we had in the middle of the night. I know I won't!


PS~ The only reason I am sharing this funny story is because I know most of you have been to my house and you know I don't live in a mansion by any means...but I sure don't live in a roach infested shack either! I thought you could use a good laugh, I know I could!

Today's mission: To take down the tent and to make sure there is no food in Randol's room or anything to attract anymore unwanted 2 am guests!