Vole-y Pole-y

Today was full of children. Bethany had no sooner arrived and set Jake's carseat down in the kitchen, then she started screaming, jumping about, and yelling something about Sofie. Sofie was running excitedly about the kitchen, kind of like she does when she sees a reflection of light flash across the floor. Bethany continued to hop about and Sofie continued to chase something small and furry. The small and furry object attempted to escape through a gap between two adjoining cabinets, but Sofie was quicker. Giving up on escape number one, the hunted made a futile effort to squeeze underneath the refrigerator, but Sofie wouldn't have it. By now the frightened and exhausted creature was letting out squeaks of pain and fright.

I grabbed an empty salad container and lid and scooped the pathetic creature from the floor. Now I had it contained and had to decide what to do with it. I deposited it outside where I am fairly certain it likely perished from it's injuries, at least I hope so. Upon my return to the house I found Sofie looking slightly bewildered as to what had become of her new toy, and Oreo, the sometimes mighty hunter, asleep on the back of the couch.

After a little bit of Google searching I've decided that the small and furry creature, which we originally called a mouse, was none other than a vole, which I have discovered can be extremely prolific and highly destructive when it comes to plants and gardens. "Hey, Oreo! No sleeping on the job!

PS. We are being infested with strange creatures. Rocky and her sister found a roly-poly pill bug on the rug this morning and carried it around in a plastic container for over an hour before I decided to toss it out into the garden.