"Wanna come out to play"

So after getting to bed at 12:05 on New Year's Eve--hey I made it to midnight and that is an accomplishment in itself, I was awoken at 5:15 by crazy barking and howling.  Of course the dog lover in me immediately is concerned.  I try to look out our upstairs windows but couldn't see anything, but the barking continued and sounded so close, so I ventured downstairs to get a better look.  I look out the laundry room window and see something behind the bushes--off to the mudroom for a better look.  I see the barking "dog" which is right by our driveway behind the bushes.  I decide to knock on the window to see if he will come out--of course he comes out and it is no dog but a lovely coyote just barking away wondering if Morgan and Madison want to come out to play.

My first instinct is to check to make sure the dog is locked because we all know that coyotes can turn knobs and walk into your house :)  Then, of course, I had to get Kevin up to verify that this "dog" was indeed a wild animal and I should not go out to try to rescue it from the cold.  Yep--after making the trek downstairs begrudgingly, he agreed we should not go out to pet our new friend.  Instead, he decided that in order to get the coyote to leave and stop barking--he would just open the window and ask the coyote to leave.  Who knew that coyotes actually do listen and away he ran.

Ugh,  I did not know that Morgan and Madison were running with some a "wild" group of friends.  I am definitely going to have to sit them down and talk to them about their choice of friends--and also that 5:15 in the morning is not an appropriate time for their friends to stop over for a visit.