Not a creature was stirring....well, maybe a mouse.

Generally speaking I don't like rodents. Sure I'll bust out a smile for a bunny every so often, or take a picture of the white squirrel that lives in our neighborhood and post it on Facebook. Other than that, I'm not a big fan. And I especially don't like the little critters taking up residence in my home. Yeah. You read that right. We've had mice. I'll admit it. Apparently everybody who lives in this part of Missouri has had them at one time or another. The first time I discovered that mice were moving into our rental home I freaked. FREAKED OUT! Never once in my entire life have I ever cohabited with a rodent. Is this a "southern" thing? (Yes, I realize that I am technically living in the Midwest, but it feels south to me). Do the mice die of hypothermia back home before they have a chance to find a way into your house? Why is it that they are nowhere to be seen up north, but nobody bats an eye with you confess there are rodents in your house down here? Anyway, it's just gross and I hate it and I obviously could never live anywhere any further south because I don't even want to think about having to deal with mice AND giant bugs. Bleh! 

So here's what I've learned about mice...

Why there might be mice in your home:
They don't like to be cold or wet.
They will move into your house if they can find a way.
They will find a way.

How to know if you've been invaded:
Mouse droppings (about the size of a grain of rice, black, pointed on the ends....ewwwww)
Noises (scratching in the walls and other mousey noises)
Greasy looking marks along your baseboards
Acorns in your basement (yeah, that happened)

So you have a mouse. Welcome to my world. Here's what you can do:
1. Don't be too hard on yourself.  
You don't have mice because you are a bad housekeeper (or maybe you are...I don't know). They just get in. Now if you see them setting up tents and having bonfires in your living quarters you should probably consider cleaning more frequently so as not to encourage the little guys to get real comfortable.
2. If you find their entry point, fill it with steel wool.  
They can't chew through it. It works! We've done this in the house we are renting and have had success.
3. Buy traps.
If you are a mouse lover, use a live trap and release the mice far, far away from your house and do everybody else a favor and release far away from their houses too. Good job. Now you can live with yourself.
If you are not a mouse lover buy kill traps and place them in areas where you suspect mice are present. Place traps along walls. That's where they run about. Bait traps with cheese, peanut butter, or chocolate (we've used cheese and peanut butter successfully - I haven't tried chocolate because why would I waste chocolate on a mouse?). Set 2 or more traps within 10 feet of each other. Check traps daily. Don't be surprised if every once in a while you come across a mouse that (how shall I put this?) is still a mouse. It's happened to me twice. Both times my husband was on a 24 hour shift at work so I had to man up and take care of it. (P.S. I do not like being a man). Obviously keep traps that could be harmful to children and pets out of reach. There are options available if you have mice and children/pets in the same living space. Lucky for us we have not had this problem. 
4. Buy poison?
Many people we've talked to use poison to get rid of mice. We do not. It scares me with the kids and the dog. I have also read on the warning label that there is potential for secondary poisoning (meaning you poison a mouse, it dies, your dog/cat eats the poisoned mouse, they get poisoned). If you do not have pets this may be a good option for you. There are child safe options available. 
5. Release/dispose of mice and WASH YOUR HANDS FOR GOODNESS SAKE!
6. Clean and disinfect area....and if you're like me you will do this step twice.
7. Recheck area for new evidence of mice periodically
8. Secretly long for the day when you can move back to North Dakota where the frigid arctic temperatures keep out the mice....and the riff-raff.

You don't have mice? What should you do?
1. Good for you. Be thankful.
2. Gloating isn't nice. Judging isn't nice. Don't do either of those things.
3. Have a good day.
4. That is all.

And now here's a little clip to show you how to bait and set a good old-fashioned snap trap without getting snapped. I'm scared of them. What if I lost a finger and couldn't play the banjo anymore? (That is a rhetorical question...no comments from the peanut gallery, please.) So I always chicken out and use a cheat to set snap traps. On a side note, holy cow, do I sound like a North Dakota girl or what??? Now that I don't live in the area anymore it is painfully obvious to me in this video. Uffda!