MamaHill

Oh I just cleaned out my pantry last week since we had a little invader (praying it was only ONE invader). I have such a hatred for mice, really I do. Just wanted to say I could relate. *sigh* I had no idea they didn't like peppermint!!

I hadn't seen either of those articles - great info for the beginner! I thought I'd add a note about safety: My husband and I have 3 (with one to come!) children, 5 years old and younger - so we are definitely still in the 'baby' stage with gates at the top and bottom of our stairs. The gates we have are the kind that screw into the wooden post, not the plastic kind with a pressure hinge. Before going to bed at night, we *always* put up both gates. There is no way that you can undo the gate at the top of the stairs without waking us up. It's pretty loud to get undone! And there is no way that you could get up our stairs, just by stepping over the gate - unless your legs are 5 feet long. It's practically impossible to step over the gate going UP the stairs. Even if you could, it would jar the gate and make noise. I realize that this is a last-ditch measure at hearing an intruder inside your home. However, hearing that gate open still gives my hubby plenty of time to reach over and get his gun beside the bed.