Power Naps

Mom's kinda grumpy this mornin', an' has declared it a "no nap" day.  Geez, she just doesn't get it.  An' to be perfectly honest...I was snoozin' pretty comfortably up in my tower when Lexie sounded the alarm at 1 am.  In fact, I kinda ignored it....up until I heard mom come outa her bedroom at 1:30 an' have a very short an' terse discourse w/Lexie which invoved "no", "bed", "no"..."go to sleep"..."you're not goin' outside"....stuff like that.  I came down to see what was goin' on...an' who was gonna win this argument.  Mom did...she thought....as she went back to bed an' shut her door, leavin' me standin' in the livin' room an' Lexie layin' on her bed w/a stubborn look on her face.  I went back to my tower. Lexie musta just been givin' this all a "think".   2 am....Lexie sounds off again...first at the back door...then at mom's door, then back at the back door.....then I hear mom again goin' over all the same stuff...just maybe a lil' louder...endin' w/a "OUTSIDE IS CLOSED!!!".  Then everythin' followin' the closin' of mom's door got quiet......for about 15min.  Yep...Lexie was not givin' up...nope, nohow, no siree.  It was a cold, clear, an' still nite just prime for critters to be about.  An' the added enticement of the motion lite comin' on in the back...well, there's just no way it could be ignored.  Figurin' the "three times a charm" rule was gonna come into play, I came downstairs, again.  Sure 'nuff, there was mom in her pj's standin' over Lexie at the backdoor.  Mom was usin' that "look" on Lexie...but Lexie was just vibratin' w/anticipation (she knew she had won).....then mom pointed her finger at Lexie an' said the magic words...."ok"...and "you come RIGHT BACK!...RIGHT BACK!".   Then she opened the back door an' I think when Lexie raced out she actually touched the ground about 15ft away, as she bounced off the deck to hit the backyard. Mom gave me a "that means you, too..right back" as I ran out.  (Hey, I'm not gonna pass up an opportunity like this).  We zig zagged all over that yard. Mom was waitin' on us, doin' busy stuff like gettin' stuff outa the freezer to thaw for dinner, checkin' emails...I came inside in a timely fashion an' checked in w/her.  I know her "right back" is only about 10 minutes, 15 at most.  Naturally, I got a prize for bein' the "good one", a prime piece of cheese.  Then mom waited for Lexie, who was pushin' it for as long as she could.  At about the 15 min. mark...mom opened the backdoor an' called her.   Lexie was closeby, just enjoyin' lookin' out over the yard an' came inside waggin' her tail an' as pleased as punch (which made mom give her that "look" again, which Lexie didn't see or chose to ignore).  Mom asked her if she was ready to go to bed...finally...Lexie grinned an' plopped down on her bed.  Mom couldn't resist an' gave her a couple of pats as she headed back to her own bed.  Then gave me a hug an' a pat.  I headed back upstairs wide awake, now, to keep watch on the neighborhood....bein' the day the trucks come pick up all those bags on the street, I was anticipatin' some stray cat, r'coon, or some kind of varment checkin' 'em out.  Now, back to the problem of mom bein' a lil' grumpy....it's all in learnin' to pace yourself.  If you take power naps durin' the day, then you're ready for anything...24/7.  Mom just doesn't get this, no matter how many times I tell her.  Right now...Lexie's hangin' over dad's chair sleepin' (mom's already plottin' on wakin' her up)...I'm up in my tower restin' my eyes listenin' for those theivin' guys in that big truck stayin' outa her way...lol