Missing Teddy

Last night I watched our friend's little girl, Sophie. Isn't she a doll!?

Everything went well. I took her for a walk (in her stroller) with both dogs. They did surprisingly well walking on either side of the stroller. I did laugh to myself thinking about what people must have been thinking.....a 12 year old with a baby no less AND having to walk the families dogs (since being 12 I must still live at home). haha

I had grabbed a blanket for her just in case the wind was worse than I imagined (it was in the 60's) and when I did she noticed "Teddy" in her diaper bag. Teddy is her one and only security blanket that she has slept with since birth. She tucked him away in her arm when I put her in the stroller so I didn't think too much about it. Fast forward to after the walk.....I'm taking her out of the stroller and don't see Teddy, but her blanket is more bawled up beside her than on her at this point so I figure he must be in there.....nope! I look all over the stroller....still not there. I'm freaking out! This is the one and only thing that gets her to sleep at night...it's the "golden ticket" to stop any sudden outburst when she is upset.....and I've just lost it! How could I not notice it fall when I'm behind the stroller and have a dog on both sides of it! Surely between 6 eyes noting could possibly come out of the stroller without notice!!!

I was hoping that John would get home from work before Jeremy (both work at Thrivent) so he could watch Sophie while I re-traced my steps, but as luck would have it, they both walked through the door at the very same time. Jeremy thought I was playing a joke on him at first & the panic went across his face when he realized I was not. We all (dogs and Sophie included) retraced every step I took on the hunt for Teddy....no luck. Some snot-nosed kid must have picked him up! There is a camo winter glove that has been in the same spot by the park for 4 weeks now & it's still there, but 1 hour later someone has already taken Teddy! Jeremy called his wife at work and said, "we have a situation." I think it would have been better if Sophie would have had a busted lip.

I'm going to re-trace my steps again today...hoping some mom told her child, "put that back where you found it!" I know you're thinking, "buy another one" b/c I thought the same thing, but Jeremy sadly informed me that they've already tried 5-6 other Teddy's to get her off this one, but she wants the real McCoy. I wish you all could all realize how terribly awful I truly feel....it's not fun.

I just pray Sophie slept ok last night and didn't cry for Teddy, keeping them up, but those are just hopes and prayers.....the reality is I'm prob. not so lucky. I will now always be referred to as "the friend that lost Teddy".....that is if I'll be called "friend" at all. All I can say at this point is it was great having the Hunze's as friends...I'll miss that bunch!