Another lie in

When you share your life (and bed) with someone else, the fact that they are not there occasionally will always mean that you don't settle or sleep as normally as you always do. So, with that fact in mind, I was wide awake at 6am, and after an extra early dog walk was comfortably tucked back into bed with coffee mug, LBC on the radio and the usual heap of dogs.

EVERYTHING was peaceful !

UNTIL.....

Albert appeared!

After a night's work culling the rodent population of the field, Albert wandered into the bedroom with the relaxed nonchalance of Cary Grant. He jumped onto the bed just as I was taking a gulp of coffee and in the darkness I didn't quite realise that he was sucking on the body of a large brown mouse.

Albert gently dropped the mouse in the centre of the eiderdown and obviously pleased with himself stepped back to watch our collective admiration for his gift.

The mouse squeaked loudly

And all hell let loose.

The dogs all reacted as though they had been electrocuted,

in a fraction of a second, dogs,coffee,duvet,netbook,Albert, digital radio,mouse and me went for a burton. The noise was deafening (I am yet to apologise to the neighbours!) as the scramble became more frantic, with the mouse diving under the bed.

As the growling and barking intensified, (I was yelling too as if that would help!) Maddie darted out and with a satisfying "crunch" finished off the poor mouse in one go.

The fight continued however, as each dog wanted the body, so after a brief struggle, I dragged the corpse free (I am naked and covered with hot coffee at this point) and ran into the bathroom still chased by all four dogs, to throw the mouse out of the open window....

so much for a lie in