Last night started off like any other.  Mom kissed us good night then headed upstairs, while Asa and I settled in to sleep.  However, sometime around midnight Asa woke me up.  Something was wrong!  But wrong in a good way, Mom left the gate open!  Due to Asa’s insomnia and “up all night, party every day” philosophy, we are forced to stay downstairs at night.  But not last night!

At first I gazed with disbelief at the opened gate.  Was this some sort of trap?  Asa, on the other paw, boldly walked right through, taking advantage of this rare opportunity to explore the other rooms at night.  I waited a few moments.  When nothing happened, I joined Asa wandering around the downstairs rooms that are usually off limits.  With each step I listened for Mom.  She’s a light sleeper, and I thought for sure she’d realize her error and come bounding down the stairs at any moment.  But nothing happened.

That’s when Asa struck gold!  In addition to shutting the gate, another part of Mom’s evening routine is to gather up all of Asa’s squeaky toys and put them beyond his reach until morning.  There, by the shine of the nightlight, he found his beloved squeaky toys piled on a chair!  Before I could stop him, he grabbed Mr. Alien, and gave him a good squeak!  Instantly I wrestled it away from him.  We stood there in silence.  Mom didn’t hear the squeak?  I explained to Asa that if we wanted to enjoy our rare freedom, we needed to be quiet and not wake Mom.  Asa agreed, found his Nylabone, and curled up on one of the forbidden chairs to enjoy chewing it.

I, on the other paw, realized this was my one opportunity to get a good night’s sleep without Asa glued to my side.  I was going to head to the one room I knew Asa wasn’t going to explore.  I was going to sleep under Mom’s desk in the computer room!  After all, we spend so much time there all day, I knew Asa wouldn’t be interested in exploring that room with so many other temptations awaiting him.  Slowly I crept upstairs, anxious not to wake Mom.

But then my conscience got the better of me.  What if something was wrong?  I better go check on Mom and Dad.  Luckily the bedroom door was slightly ajar.  Slowly I pushed open the door.  As my eyes adjusted to the dark room, I could hear the comforting sound of Dad snoring.  Quietly I walked over to Mom’s side of the bed.  She was sleeping!  She didn’t hear me come upstairs!  Just then Dad let out a prodigious snore, waking Mom up!  She groggily stared at me standing next to the bed.  I froze.  She blinked.  I panicked.  Foolishly I ran from the room, down the hall straight to my favorite spot under Mom’s desk.  Why did I check on her?  I could have been fast asleep under the desk and she would have been none the wiser.

After what seemed like an eternity but was probably only seconds, Mom walked into the computer room, and asked in a very confused voice, “Chuck Billy?”  I thought if I stayed still I could convince her she was dreaming.  But that’s when Asa unleashed a cacophony of squeaking downstairs!  He could no longer resist being surrounded by all those squeaky toys.  The ear piercing squeaking instantly roused Mom from her confused state.  She immediately headed downstairs, and I followed close behind.  As I ran, I made up a plan.  I was going to somehow convince Mom this was all Asa’s doing, and that I had come upstairs to alert her to his insubordination!

However, when Mom found Asa happily standing at the foot of the stairs, squeaky Alien in mouth, Mom couldn’t resist his cuteness.  As she quickly realized her mistake leaving the gate opened, Mom just cooed, “Oh Asa!”  What happened next blew my mind.  Mom didn’t get mad.  Instead she happily played a round of fetch with us in the kitchen, took us for a quick trip outside, then rewarded us with treats before heading back to bed, closing the gate behind her.  Thus ending our midnight escapade.  Oh and if you’re wondering, Dad slept through it all.  He misses all the fun!