Just call it Wayne Manor

If you remember old cartoons (or happen to watch Boomerang, the retro-cartoon channel), you know what this post is about.  HINT: Wayne Manor was the name of Batman's house.  Of course you could have also read my status update on facebook.  But either way -- We had a bat in our house last night.  Oh yes, you read me right, a BAT.  Here is the play by play:

It was about 9:15, the kids were long-ago tucked in bed and I was quietly reading under the covers.  Ted had just finished up some work and was brushing his teeth in the bathroom.  All of a sudden, I see this shadow fly into our room and the cat goes crazy.  Was that what I thought it was?  Before I could really think (or even catch my breath as my adrenaline had kicked into high gear) I yell (quietly so as not to wake the kids, but loud enough to get Ted's attention) "BAT!" 

Ted kinda looked at me funny and seemed to be wondering what I was smoking. He asked me if I was sure about that (maybe it was a bird?) and I told him to go find the cat and he would find the bat.  He walked slowly down the hall (in his boxers) and then came back into the room and told me he didn't see anything.  I was not taking that as an answer.  I knew what I saw and I was not going crazy - not yet, at least.  I shoved him out of the door (I had locked myself in the room since I knew the bat wasn't in there - and don't worry my kids sleep with their doors shut so I didn't have to worry about the bat going in their rooms) and told him not to come back until the bat was out of the house.

Well, the next thing I hear is the swinging of something.  A couple of misses . . . and then, yes! contact.  The bat was hiding in the playroom (with the cat closely watching) and was hissing at Ted by the time the struggle began.  Ted used Ward's tennis racket (I am going to clean it very well, no worries) to smack that bat around for a little while.  Once the bat was down and stunned, I got Ted the dust pan and he scooped him up.  Although Ted placed the tennis racket on top of the bat-filled dust pan as a safety precaution, the little sucker somehow managed enough strength to try a stealth escape. But Ted came down with a grand overhead swing and popped him good - my hero.  Ted threw him out the hall window (that I had to open for him and then went squealing down the hall to our bedroom until it was out of the house) and that was that.

I only wish that we had some sort of big brother camera filming the whole thing.  Although I had a hard time sleeping last night, I am quite aware that the whole scene was rather comical and might have been able to win us some money on America's Funniest Home Videos.

When we got in bed Ted asked me what I would have done if he wasn't there (which is about 4-5 nights per month).  I didn't hesitate when saying that I would have woken up the kids and gone straight to my parents house.  Critter Control would have been called for an emergency removal.  Oh, and I that would have been one more thing to add to my list why he shouldn't travel so much.