Watch Out for Those Bees!

Some people think that staying home with the kids is a boring and mundane task.  I've always been of the opinion that if you have the desire and ability to be home with your kids, it is a decision you will not regret.  This time in all our lives is fleeting and the rewards of watching my children play, grow, learn and interact daily are infinite.  I also have never felt that being mom is anything less than a study in improvisation.  This is not to say that I don't sometimes wonder what in the world is going on.  It is like I am watching a movie of myself from a distance and am unable to determine how the plot took such a random turn into the absurd.

Case in point: today, as I was begrudgingly taking a heaping pile of laundry out to our detached garage where our washer and dryer reside (argh!), Clare made her typical attempt to go outside with me and I, for the BILLIONTH time, told her no because she wasn't wearing shoes and I didn't want her to step on a bee.  

Munich and I then left the house, leaving the door open as we normally do.  I got the laundry sorted and started the first load when I noticed that Munich was in the garage trying to get my attention, which is odd, but not alarmingly so.  Munich usually stays on the grass where she can watch the garage and the house.  We walked back to the house and I saw that Clare had closed both the screen and front doors - again, nothing alarming, but it did explain why Munich came to tattle on her.  The alarming part came when I tried to open the screen and discovered that it was locked.  I would soon learn that the front door was, too.

Before I continue, I'll say that I lock the screen door all the time.  I don't ever leave it unlocked for fear that Clare will open it and run out front without telling me, which I don't want.  Clare knows that the door is supposed to be locked and, although she knows how to unlock it, leaves it that way for my benefit.  So, when I realized that the doors were locked, I didn't freak out because Clare knows how to unlock them.  However, today she could not get the deadbolt on the front door undone.  I tried to guide her giving her as many tricks, tips, and pointers as possible, but no dice.  For a good 15-20 minutes Clare tried to unlock the door and could not get it opened.  In the meantime I could hear Laurel, who I had put in her crib to play (thankfully) since I was running out to the garage, screaming in the background.  

At this point a little fear crept in and I started knocking on neighbors doors to see if I could borrow a phone to call Jonathan.  Now, Jonathan NEVER takes house keys with him and it drives me crazy.  I have asked him to PLEASE take his keys about a billion times so that I don't have to worry about being around when he gets home from work, but he, for reasons unknown to me, won't do it.  However, this didn't actually occur to me until I found a neighbor who was home and willing to loan me their phone to call Jonathan.  So, as I dialed his number, my heart dropped with the realization that this would likely not be the help we needed .  It didn't matter anyway, Jonathan didn't answer the phone.  


Fortunately we have the WORLDS BEST NEIGHBORS, and before I had started dialing, they were already coming up with plans to break into the house.  We talked about some options, and before we tried Plan A: to locate a ladder that we could climb up in order to try to pry a window open; and then Plan B:  broke a window; I tried to coach Clare through the process of unlocking the door one last time.  This time after a couple of minutes it worked.  She finally got the deadbolt undone and Jeff, Jen and I agreed that I would leave keys at their house in case Clare decided to lock me out again. 

Once my heart stopped racing and I had calmed Laurel down, I was able to talk to Clare about why she can't lock the door if I'm outside.  I was trying not to laugh, because let's face it, this is funny, but I also wanted her to understand that this was serious.  So, of course, the whole thing ended in tears and apologies.

Keeping all that in mind, when I took her upstairs to talk about what happened, this is what I learned....

That was followed by an apology and explanation to Jeff and Jen our awesome neighbors who stopped working to help us...



And, finally, another apology and an assurance (after a little Laurel abuse) that maybe she can try locking the door again when she's "bigger"...

The lesson here is that the bees in Costa Mesa are extremely evolved and can actually open doors, so it's best to lock those pesky critters out, whenever possible.  Well, that and I should probably find another reason to keep Clare in when I want to do the laundry alone.  Apparently blaming the bees for Clare's inability to go outside with me has created a distrust in them that prompts her to lock them out.  Believe me, this job is anything but boring and mundane.  I certainly NEVER know what my day will bring.