Monday, August 04, 2008

Panic

This morning we joined a friend and her kids for an outing to the Boston Children's Museum. I haven't been there with the boys in a year or so, mostly because it's expensive and my membership expired 2 years ago. Plus it's hard to chase after two of them, particularly when one likes to linger at exhibits and the other darts around from place to place like a pinball.

Well, all was going well enough. We were all in the bubble room, a large space with a variety of bubble-making objects, when Rowan asked if we could go to the construction area. (A favorite of my boys - two skid steers, hard hats, reflective vests, and a variety of construction vehicles they can play with.) I consulted with Julia, an dwe began the process of rounding everyone up. Kemper was desperate to try the bubble thing where you stand inside and pull a rope that raises a soapy hula hoop around you to make a giant bubble, so Rowan was standing with us while he waited. Julia had her two kids doing an activity in the next room while they waited for us.

As soon as Kemper's turn was over, he wiped his hands on his pants and he and Rowan ran out of the room and literally disappeared. I mean, it took me maybe 5 seconds to follow them around the corner of the doorway, and they were nowhere to be seen.

Now, I am not prone to panic, and I wasn't all that worried as I knew they didn't run toward the exit and that eventually they would find someone if they were worried. But in my pregnant and very slow condition, I was having a hard time figuring out the best way to search for them.

Luckily Julia found them fairly quickly - she had a head start on me, as I went to inform the Information desk that they were missing.

But this is why I'm so reluctant to take them places alone now - they're just too darned fast! This is also why, when visiting a busy place where I can foresee being separated from them, I write my cell phone number on their hands. I also often take a picture of them with my phone camera, in case I need a description of what they're wearing. At least it ended well.

1 comment:

-d said...

And here I was thinking that when my twins get to be 4 or 5 I won't still have these problems of taking them places. I just want to tether them together!