April Fools

First off, here is the fat lip. It is long gone now but when it was here... it was bad. Again, call me Cindy LooWho. My stitches are out and I got the go ahead to brush my teeth. However I am still waiting on the approval to bite into anything. So I am having to cut up everything I eat and stick it back. I can eat whatever I want, it is just a pain! So I have been carrying around a knife and fork with me for a few weeks.

while sitting relaxing between Conference sessions today, the two older kids were playing in the back yard. I noticed that it was unusually quiet outside, so my mom (who is visiting) went out back to check it out. The yard was empty. So we went around the house and checked every room. It was empty of the 2 kids. I ran over to the 3 neighbours houses that they may have gone to and noone had seen them. We checked all of their backyards and around their houses. No kids.

Now was the time I was starting to panic a little. I started to cry and my mind went blank. I ran inside the house to wake up my dad, and Brian and I just looked at my mom crying, "what do I do?!" I grabbed my keys and ran out to start driving the community. Brian got in the other car, and the 2 neighbours got in their cars. We all drove around the surrounding blocks, checking between houses, on the roads, and at the parks. I was stopping at anyone walking along the sidewalk or working in their yard if they had seen 2 little kids around. Noone had seen anything.

Now I was in a full blown panic. Natalie knows better than to wonder off and so there was only one thing that could have happened. They must have been taken. I was praying, bawling, and hyperventilating while trying to drive and see through my tears as to the houses around me. All the drivers were still out and about and the Neighbour had now called the police, and she was also in tears.

I have never in my life had those feelings and fears come to mind. I thought my childeren had been kidnapped and it was the scariest moment of my life. Finally I was passing our street and one of the neighbours was waving me down. As I drove up, I saw my dad holding his arms out, like he was saying slow down Jeni, its ok. After shouting out the window to him, he said "The kids are in the house." I was wondering who found them and brought them home. He then explained that he had the feeling to check the house again. He was looking under beds and all around. He peeked inside of Boots dark room, and into his closet. There in the corner of the closet he saw the two kids squatting watching the IPAD.

I had called their names in the house and searched everywhere, but the closets. Boots usually is never still that long and quiet enough to hide from me that long. NEVER! I went in sobbing still, unable to think of anything else. I pulled them out and talked to them about how we only hide when we play hide and seek and that taking the ipad is fine, but when you hear mom call you...you come and tell me where you are.

Brian told me that he thought I was playing an April Fools trick on him, even when he saw me crying. After seeing people outside were involved he finally believed me. Turns out the kids were the ones playing the April Fools trick on us, and they didn't even know it!

I love my Kids and Family so much and if anything ever happened to them, I would be devastated. I learned a few things. Check the closets, put a lock on the gate outside, and I suck under pressure. They continued watching the IPAD, but I made them move onto the bed. No more closets please!