it's more than a mouse in the house

Home ownership is a blessing and a curse. We love building equity with each mortgage payment, but miss picking up the phone to call the landlord when something goes wrong. There is so much responsibility that goes along with owning a house. 

I mention it last week, but there's a little problem plaguing this old house lately: mice. It's kind of funny because I teased my Granny for years about mice. We'd usually buy her birthday cards with mice on them or give her a stuffed mouse of sorts. When I went to college she mailed me a mouse Beanie Baby and I brought it to her house and would hide it in various places as a joke (thankfully she has a great sense of humor).

In reality, mice are not that cute. They pop up in the most inconvenient places and terrify me with their sudden movements across the kitchen. I get anxious every time I enter the kitchen in the evening, pausing to do a little dance in the doorway or make noise, giving them time to disappear before I see them. What's more amazing is how they can seemingly disappear into the smallest crack.

Yesterday, my friend posted this photo on Facebook saying she it was such a cute treat from a friend. I quickly scrolled down the page so I didn't have to keep looking at it. If someone brought me such a "cute" holiday treat, I don't think I could bring myself to eat it. Or maybe I would, just so I wouldn't have those eyeballs staring at me! 

As much as I don't want to admit my fear of a tiny little creature like a mouse, I think we all have fears, whether they are rational or not. And even more so, I don't want to admit my house has mice living in it. I don't want to admit it to myself or a friend and I really don't want blogland to know. 

Perhaps, my fear lies more in being judged for not being able to rid our home of mice (we caught two of the suckers this week alone)! I share all of this to say, being a homeowner isn't always easy and as much as I may want to show off pretty photos of our home looking ready for Christmas or tell you how we solved the mouse problem, I bring you the truth.

What irrational fear(s) do you have?!