Any time we leave the house head counts become routine. Kids scatter faster than kittens if you don’t keep them in check.
Professional Mouser
I had just collected all the children from school. The next stop was Princess’s piano lessons. We pulled into the farmhouse, and Princess jumped out with her lesson books.
I parked the car next to a combine, waved to the cows at the feed trough, and settled in to do some reading.
Taz was in his car seat, munching on a snack. Dictator was hunched over his DS, and Speedy was deeply engrossed in a book.
A light mist had started to fall. I absorbed the peaceful moment with every cell in my body.
“I’m going to go shoot baskets. Okay?” Speedy asked, referring to the old rusty hoop next to the farm-house. We always have a ball in the van.
“Mmmm,” I replied, barely registering his departure from the van. I felt very zen.
The quiet continued. A few minutes later Princess ran out.
“How did your lesson go?” I asked as I put the van in drive and pulled away.
Hey, Lady...Shouldn't you be counting the kids?
Princess and I chattered all the way home…all the way out of the van…all the way into the house.
Before I had a chance to take my coat off I had a sudden awareness that something wasn’t right. ”Where’s Speedy?” I asked with a hint of panic. I knew the answer.
“He went downstairs,” Princess replied.
“No he didn’t! He never got out of the van!” I ran to call the piano teacher.
“I left my son on your basketball court!” I said, making no effort to disguise my horror.
“I know, Dear,” the sweet old lady replied. ”It happens.” She spoke as if people leave their children on her ball court all the time. ”I knew you’d come back for him.”
I pulled up to the farm and there Speedy was, sitting on his basketball with a big grin on his face. ”I’m so sorry!! I was thinking you were still reading in the back. I’m so sorry! Were you scared?” I was horrified. I knew he had to have watched us pull away without him.
“Nah, I knew you’d come back. And I got to shoot hoops longer!”
One boy’s delight, a mother’s nightmare.
Have you ever forgotten or been incredibly late picking your kids up from somewhere before?
I feel your pain! I did the same thing with my youngest son, Carter…. on Mother’s Day… at church! He was playing in the nursery (I think he was around 5 or 6) and I thought his dad had gotten him, his dad didn’t give a thought as to WHO was getting him… so down the road I went. When I got home I realized he wasn’t with either of us. When I finally got back to the church to get him, I asked him if he was scared. His response, “Nope. I was in there playing and people were coming to see me. It was fine, Mom.” {sigh} I think I actually left him there twice. Fail.
Oh my. It’s so easy to get wires crossed in this busy day and age!
A cousin of mine was taking his wife and kids, including a newborn, to see out-of-state kinfolks. As they were about to enter the security scan at the airport, he and his wife noticed that neither of them had the baby. Thank God he was still in the car unharmed when they ran back to get him.
Holy Cow! Scary. I bet their hearts flipped over a few times.
A Zen moment can turn sour so quickly. But as a Mother of little ones you
have to keep looking for those moments.
Definitely. I was more relaxed because we were at the farm. It was a bit like being at granny’s house. If it had been some place public I would have been on high alert.
It is hard to forget an only child.
You kinda have your hands full there, ladybug!
Sounds like Speedy was 100% fine.
He was good. Our piano teacher is a sweet old granny…and those cows are very trustworthy.
Love that Speedy was okay with getting to shoot more hoops. Wish someone would’ve left me there.
Ha! Exactly. I think he was probably smiling as he watched me drive away.
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I am unmarried and have no kids, yet I regularly think I’m busy. Then I consider the fact that I’ll likely have to do everything I’m currently doing and take care of children when I have them….that makes me feel not so busy.
I always laugh when I think of how “busy” I was in college. That was the life!
So glad you stopped by.