The smell by the couch

I know pregnancy enhances ones sense of smell, and I have experienced this in a whole new light over the past few days.

It started by the love seat. As I sat relaxing and watching the boys, a putrid smell wafted up into my nose. I called James over: what was that smell? He sat beside me, and pronounced there was no smell.

I let it go. It seemed to come and go, and so I figured it must just be my over-sensitive pregnancy nose, picking up on something from somewhere else, maybe the laundry or the kitchen or outside.

But over the next couple of days that smell would meet me when I sat on the couch. My initial instinct was that it was due to an "accident" from Colin, who is still working (although getting much better) at toilet training. I figured he must have been sitting on the couch and some pee dried up beneath him. After three days of smelling it, I figured this must be the case.

I started with the couch, that being the easiest thing to clean (gotta love bi-cast leather!) A few minutes with a soapy cloth should do the trick.

Nope. Somehow the smell was still there. Okay, must be the carpet (no love for carpets!). Sprinkle with baking soda, scrub with soapy water, rinse with a wet cloth. Well, at least after all that work the putrid smell had to be taken care of.

Nope. Somehow still there! Down on all fours and nose to the carpet (not so easy when your 7 months pregnant!), the smell was definitely still strong on the carpet in front of the couch. Just as I was contemplating if I should have another go at scrubbing it myself, or if I would simply call in a carpet cleaner (drastic and expensive, I know, but I'm pregnant and not feeling so "do-it-myself" right now!), a grey lump caught my eye. A grey lump under the couch.

I shut my eyes. I opened them, and the lump was still there. I shut my eyes and pushed myself up to standing. Then, taking a deep breath (and praying it was just a toy), I heaved the couch back three feet. And there it was, decomposing and radiating a smell that was now beyond putrid, was 3" of dead mouse. Gross.

This is the area in my life that I claim girliness. James laughs at me, because I tend to be more of a rough and tough and tumble, camping and play in the dirt kind of girl. I'm not "girly" in very many areas. But dead critters give me the willies! Of course it's 12:30pm, James is at work for another 5 hours and the boys are 10 feet away playing, and so there is nothing left but to buck up, hope I don't throw up (pregnancy), and scoop it up myself.

So, victory for me that there was indeed a smell, victory for Colin that it was pee on the carpet, and victory for the mouse that the carpet/couch still smells disgusting even now that the body is gone. I'm guessing I will have to pull the couch out again and give the whole area a good scrub. Sometimes I hate being right.