Getting it Done

OK, I'll say it... we have roaches and mice. It's humiliating. It's not all my fault. We do live in an apartment building so we're sharing critters with everyone, but I will admit that lately I'd become a little slack about picking up after my kids. I've put down roach poison everywhere my kids can't get near, and have sticky traps everywhere else my kids can't get near. But it doesn't seem to be working. The final straw was this weekend when a friend of mine watched a little mouse run across the kitchen floor. That's it! It was time to do something more. So I woke up Monday morning and got to work on my kitchen. I pulled out the refrigerator and cleaned under it, over it, and around it. I used a Q tip to clean the door crevices Then I pulled out the oven and did the same thing, getting under the burners and in the broiler. Next the chest freezer and the portable shelves. Then everything came out of the cabinets and drawers and I cleaned and organized and threw away. I was ready to trash anything that didn't need to be there. I bought a bag of caramel to make caramel apples with right before we moved to Virginia. We just didn't get around to it. I saw it when we moved two years ago to this apartment, but i told myself we would still make the caramel apples. I found it yesterday. Enough is enough. I threw them away. They found their way to the dumpster with two other bags of garbage. I found multiple bottles of the same cleaners that I was able to combine and make more room under my sink. I found little toys under the refrigerator. I took half of my cookbooks that I've never used and gave them to Salvation Army; along with a few appliances I will never use again. It was like Christmas! I was cleaning the top of the kitchen cabinets when I found a hole in the wall. It's above the cabinets above the refrigerator. You'd never be able to see it unless you were standing on your counters. I'm hoping that's the only entrance the mice are using. I've got a sticky trap sitting in front of it until maintenance can get here to plug it up. Just in case I think I'm going to go invest in a ultrasonic rodent repeller. Has anyone heard if these work? I've heard one success story using them. After putting everything in it's place and scrubbing the floors first with a magic eraser and then mopping it, I finally stepped back and looked at my hard work. It was wonderful. I think I'll tackle my bedroom next.