That Sneaky Little Thing!!!!

  I grew up with in a family that had a family owned and operated Pest Control Company for over 30 years. So when I run into anything that I would deem a pest the first call I make is to my dad.  While my sister enjoyed crawling under the houses and getting her hands dirty with the family business I would say I was more into the marketing side of things. Now don't get me wrong I am not scared to get muddy. It was more less the creatures that were going to be in the mud with me that I wanted to make sure I had a ten foot pole distances from anything to do with creatures and crawling in the mud. 

So I tried to always come up with the ideas for dad on how we could grow bigger, coming up with cute postcards, I even have him on facebook now with a page. Check him out - Lowes Lawn and Pest Control.  So when a mouse showed up without me noticing until it was too late in my new home. Staying calm was what I wanted to do, but I gave this sneaky thing a hillbilly redneck Howdy! I mean I think I handled it not too bad. I am not to sure he enjoyed my welcome because he took off running like he had seen a one eyed grizzly bear or something. I went to doing the TN two step with a leap and a turn and a dosi doo square dance move onto the sofa.  Then had a little bit of the Chicken Dance and Pep Ralley moment all tied up together. To say I flipped out well that would just be to nice.   

Most people would just go out and buy a mouse trap and say that is that, but I was ready to launch a full out battle attack  on this little thing that I had now named Ralph the Mouse. I was going to be holding nothing back. I was launching Mission Ralph Goes Bye Bye.  I wanted the nuclear bomb of bait, and wanted to make sure I had the gorilla war zone boo bee traps laid correctly, and everywhere.  I knew the one man that would understand and give me the best attack plan and understand what Mission Ralph would need to look like. I was ready to take my house back  at all cost. 

So I called Dad and said, “Daddy, I have a mouse! I need it gone.”   Because my Dad respects my husband and the authority he has in our home he said well where is Cort?  I said, “Dad he is at work and I am going to have to catch this thing, and then Cort can get rid of it. So where and what can I get to show him he sneaked into the wrong house.”  

Now let’s pause a moment. Before the girls spotted this little stinking creature running across the floor he came into our home unannounced and probably was in the middle of setting up house, and hanging up his Mouse Family Portrait just like Jerry did in his mouse hole on Tom and Jerry, when we discovered we had an unwanted guest.   After the fact, I started to chuckle a little because that is so how the enemy will sneak into our lives. Unannounced without drawing attention to himself and just begin to set up a corner here and there. Now I would love to say we did not give this little sneaky booger an invitation into our home, but we did.

Like a true professional my dad began to assess my house. I laughed because I had heard him do this hundred times I mean my sister and I could do this questionnaire to the tee growing up. After we discovered that when the girls had their friends over Monday for a party, they all had gone to the garage and they had gotten into the chips and left a bag or two on the ground opened while leaving the garage open for several hours. Now I can promise you now they all understand the importance of keeping food and following the rules of the house No food but in the kitchen.  But what was done was done and  we learned that the most innocent action gave the invitation to this creature.

Isn’t that so true in our lives. We have good intentions of not wanting to let the enemy have footholds in our lives. However, the most innocent way for him to have an invitation in our life is through OUR WORDS!

The bible teaches us that our words speak life or death.  I can’t tell you how many times in a day with three girls and myself I have to remind us that we will not be negative.  Wait!  It would probably be more true to say this.... I can't tell you how many times with living in a home with four women that Cort tells us not to be negative. We have a little rule in our house that Cort established when Rielly was little. This little rule in the past year or so has re surfaced on a more frequently in the Bethmann Home. 

 Cort is a man that has wisdom beyond his years and knows how to say something to a child that will stick and stay, and yes... to me as well. He truly is that iron that sharpens me. The rule that   Cort established  is The PP Rule. The PP Rule basically means: IF it is not POSITIVE  or POSSIBLE  you don’t say it. I would love to say I don’t get reminded about the PP rule, but probably once a week this great man will say, “Honey, is that PP?”  and of course everything in me wants to smack him silly and say OH I will show you some PP boy, but  instead I normal begin to laugh inside because of the silly name he gave it. I am honestly glad he does that because it truly has changed my way of thinking.

Well, as far as that little rodent goes! VICTORY WAS OURS! Sunday morning my night in shining armor arose victorious and whacked that little booger over the head.  While yes it was only a 3 inch  tiny mouse. To me Cort had conquered the dragon that was hissing at me and keeping me scared to death to walk around my house.

So just as Cort whacked that thing over the head, we also have to watch  the way we are speaking negative over our lives.  We must make sure and whacked those negative thoughts out of our  heads to ensure that we do not give any invitation to the enemy in our lives, homes, marriages,  and jobs.

So my two cents worth tonight is:

A positive wife  breathes life into the home.  We must purpose that we have to keep our tongues from evil and lips from speaking lies. I don’t know maybe it is time to establish the Cort Bethmann PP rule! Who knows what little sneaky boogers you could keep out!

Love you ladies,

Tiffany Bethmann