Look! What was Josephine drawing?
Oh! Look what Josephine was drawing!
Josephine is drawing a rat! Look ! Josephine's daddy drew a rat too! Why? Why is Josephine drawing another rat?
Because! Because there was a rat!
A rat in their house yesterday.
Josephine's mommy saw a rat in their house yesterday.
Two contractors working in their house saw the rat too!
Not a mouse.
Not a cat.
Not a bat.
A rat! Yes! A rat!
Josephine was very excited about the rat. Josephine thought the rat came in the house to be friends.
Josephine's mommy and daddy did not want the family to be friends with the rat.
Josephine's mommy wanted the rat out! Out, out, rat!
Josephine was excited. A rat! In the house!
Josephine told all her friends at daycare there was a rat in her house.
Josephine told all her teachers at daycare there was a rat in her house.
Josephine told all the people on the streetcar on the way home there was a rat in her house.
Josephine told her next-door neighbour there was a rat in her house.
The rat came in the house yesterday and hid. The rat hid and hid and hid.
The rat hid under all the things from the basement that have been in the dining room for three weeks. Three weeks! For three weeks, there were basement things in the dining room! The rat hid under them.
Josephine's mommy was already cuckoo in the head. See the cuckoo mommy? And then a rat came!
All day while Josephine was at daycare, and Josephine's mommy was at work, and Josephine's daddy was at work, the rat hid in the house.
The two contractors worked in the house, and sometimes saw the rat.
The dog barked and barked at where the rat hid all day. All day the dog barked. The dog got tired from barking all day. The dog was very tired from the barking at the rat.
The family came home. The dog barked at the rat some more.
Josephine's mommy and daddy found out that no stores nearby had rat traps. They worried. Josephine's mommy worried a lot. The dog barked at the pile of stuff in the dining room.
Then the house grew quiet for the night. Ssssh. How nice! A nice quiet house!
See the dog? See the sleeping dog?
The sleeping dog was tired from all the barking and barking.
Then, while Josephine's mommy watched America's Next Top Model, the rat ran under the sleeping dog's chair.
The sleeping dog woke up and barked and barked at the rat! And barked! And barked!
Josephine's mommy shrieked! And shrieked and shrieked!
Josephine came downstairs and shrieked!
Josephine's daddy came downstairs. He said "I will get that rat!"
Josephine's daddy put on gloves. Josephine's daddy got a plastic container. Josephine's mommy always has containers for things around.
Josephine's daddy moved the chair. Josephine's daddy moved the dog. Josephine's daddy moved some toys out of the cupboard behind the chair.
Look! Look! There was the rat!
Josephine's mommy shrieked!
Josephine shrieked!
The rat ran out!
Josephine's daddy slammed the container over the rat!
The rat shrieked!
The rat's tail was caught under the edge! The rat shrieked and shrieked!
But LOOK! Josephine's daddy caught the rat!
See! See the rat!
The rat was big. The rat was NOT small.
Josephine thought the rat was cute! "Look how cute the rat is!" said Josephine.
Josephine said "Look! The rat pooped! Look at the rat poop! Look!"
Josephine's daddy slid the rat along the floor toward the door.
There, the hallway floor was lower. This had always bothered Josephine's mommy. But now it helped.
Josephine's daddy slid the box onto the lid.
"Bark Bark" said Molly, the barking dog.
"Why can't we keep my new friend!?" shrieked Josephine.
"Bark Bark" barked Molly the barking dog who barks all the time.
"We can not keep the rat." said Josephine's daddy. "The rat would be happier outside with his friends."
"We can not keep the rat." said Josephine's mommy. "The rat carries diseases that could make us all very sick. And he poops. Now there is rat poop I have to clean up! We do not want another pooping pet with diseases that could kill us."
" I will take..."
"...him... to the park to be with his friends. I will take him to the park far away from the house. I will take him there and let him go to be with his rat friends."
"Good-bye rat!" said Josephine.
"Good-bye rat!" said Josephine's daddy.
"Now I've got to find everywhere the rat might have pooped." said Josephine's mommy.
"Bark Bark zzzzzzzzzzzzzz" said Molly the barking dog.
