How Was My Day, You Ask?

Are you sure you really want to know?

Well, all right, but only because you insist.

I'm not telling you about today because it's not over yet; however, this is how yesterday's chain of events transpired.

I woke up. It was raining. I kissed Drey and sent him off to school. It was raining. I got my coffee. It was raining. I kissed Sage and put him on the bus. It was raining. I sat down like I do every single morning at the computer to check my emails, read the paper, and catch up on my favorite scrapbooking site with my coffee in hand, still listening to the rain.

I got a shower and showered the girls as well. We got dressed for the day and decided to head to Walmart to pick up some things for Ty. So I trudge out into the rain with flip-flops, sweatpants, an old T-shirt and a baseball cap on my head and no make-up on. I looked like dog crap, and frankly, I didn't care. We purchased a few items at Walmart, including Dramamine for myself because I've been nauseated on an on-going basis since Ty left and frankly I'm sick of it -- and NO, I'm not pregnant. I assure you that because I checked this morning.

We leave Walmart, bags in tow, the girls giggling because the rain was cold and tickling their little faces. I was not amused. I just want to get home, take a Dramamine and lay down.

It's close to lunch so I decide to swing by Burger King, grab some lunch for the girls and head home so I can simply feed them and lay down because I was feeling terribly miserable. Sound simple enough, right? Yeah, well, that is where the fun began.

I got their lunch and headed home in the pouring rain. It was pouring cats and dogs by this point. And I'm crying. I'm crying because I'm so tired of being sick. I pull into the trailer park and decide to grab the mail quick. It should've gone by now. This little voice in my head is telling me at this point to just drive up to the trailer and get the mail later, it's not that important to get out in all this mess. I decide to get the mail anyway; after all, it'll only take a second.

My friends, let me stress something to you that is very important. When that little voice in your head says something to you, LISTEN TO IT. I didn't.

I pull up, jump out, leaving the van running and my driver side door hanging open, and I run to the mailboxes to grab my mail. No mail. Lovely. I run back quickly to find that my van door had swung shut. Hmm, how did that happen? I left it open. Oh well, I just have to open it again and jump inside quick, no biggie.

I grab the handle, the door doesn't budge. It's locked. I look in the window to be sure. Yep, it's locked all right. All the doors at this point are locked. And there sit my little 2 and 4 year old girls in the back seat, strapped in their car seats with their lunch on the floor, my van is running and I cannot get to them.

Okay, deep breath. I'll just instruct Zoe to get out of her car seat and she can climb up front and pop the locks and we'll be on our merry way. Not as easy as it sounds, my friend. I stood for 30 minutes trying to explain to Zoe exactly what to do with her hands and how to get out of the car seat and how important it was for her to listen to me because Mommy can't get inside of her van with the doors locked. By the way, did I mention yet that it is pouring down rain??

At this point I want to cuss. I don't usually cuss, but this was beginning to look like a situation where they wouldn't be all that bad. I want to scream at my 4 year old because she can't figure out how to escape her car seat, and then I realize how pathetic that is when I suddenly remember all the parents who have complained over the years that their children discovered how to unlock the car seats and get out and they couldn't figure out how to make them stay in. Here I am yelling at my 4 year old daughter in the pouring rain through a foggy window for 30 minutes on how to get the heck out of hers.

And she can't. And she's crying.

Rylee's not though. She's sitting there reading a magazine. For the time being.

So, maybe Zoe can unhook the latch and push the window out, I can reach in, unhook her myself and then she can unlock the door. Well, it was a thought anyway. She can't do it. I knew she couldn't, but it was wishful thinking. All our efforts were to no avail.

In the midst of my yelling and my brainstorming, I'm walking away just far enough to see if any neighbors are home without leaving the van. Of course they're not. Why would they be? They could help me. We wouldn't want that to happen.

What on earth am I going to do? I can't leave them alone in the van with it running. Even though I can't get in, I'm pretty sure with my luck, some idiot would be able to and steal my kids. So I'm praying of course for help because I'm at a loss of what to do. I have a cell phone. I have AAA. The cell phone's laying on the front seat of my van taunting me the whole time and my AAA information is inside my purse...inside my van.

Here comes the mail lady, at least I'm not alone now. After telling her what's going on, she tells me about a man that's always home behind the mailboxes and I should go in and call the police. She had to call them once when her dog was locked inside her vehicle and after all, kids are way more important than someone's dog, they'll come for sure.

I walk over to the neighbor, knock on his door, explain my situation, all the while the mail lady is now keeping the girls company and somehow thinks she can instruct Zoe on how to break out of her car seat. Yeah right, lady, good luck with that one. The girls can no longer see me at this point, I have disappeared behind some trees and Rylee starts to freak out. She has no clue who this lady with the big, frizzy hair and her face shoved up against the glass is and she can't see Mommy. She's crying. Zoe's crying. Keep in mind, they still haven't had lunch and the food was three foot in front of them on the floor with the aroma filling my van, just taunting them like my cell phone kept taunting me.

I go inside the neighbor's house as he asks me, "Don't you have a spare set of keys?" "Well yeah, actually I do, but I figured I would traumatize my girls have to death today and stand out in the pouring rain until I'm soaked to my underwear, thanks for asking." Duh. I swear I'd like to smack people stupid when they ask questions like that.

But I don't, I'm nice. After all, the guy's letting me use his phone. I call the state police. They can't help me. They don't carry slim jims anymore. The only thing they can do is call a locksmith for me or come and break out my window. Thanks, but no thanks, you idiot, I can break out my own window and save myself some tax dollars.

I explain I have AAA, but I can't get to my information. He explains that Abe's Auto Service works through AAA and gave me their number, tells me to call them. I call Abe's Auto Service and he tells me I have to call AAA in order for them to be dispatched to me. That way AAA gets billed, not me. He gives me AAA's number and I call them. They'll put me on the priority list right away and send someone out. Whew. Finally.

I thank the neighbor, go back to the van and tell the mail lady what happened. She's absolutely livid that the police cannot help me, and goes about putting the mail in the right boxes. By this point, Rylee is screaming and reaching for me, Zoe is crying because she has to pee and can't hold it anymore. I just calmly told her to pee in her pants because there's nothing I could do and she wouldn't get in trouble. She looks at me mortified as if I've lost my mind.

The mail lady finishes up, walks over and says, "I called the post office to see what I could do and they told me to call the town cops. You are outside of their jurisdiction and yet they are sending someone to help you. I know you called AAA, but we just want someone to get here first, it doesn't matter who." She then proceeds to hand me an umbrella. Thanks. And you're giving me this now, because why?? I'm soaked through to the bone by this point, what good is this? She just says that she has to get on her way since help is coming for me and I can give her the umbrella some other time.

I'm not alone. Another neighbor had pulled in and the gentleman who left me use his phone was standing down there with me as well, all in the rain, bless their hearts. A gold-colored car pulls in and out hops a lady with a big smile on her face. Our conversation went a little something like this,

Me: Hi, are you AAA?
Lady: No, ma'am, I'm with the fire department.
Me: Really? Who called you guys?
Lady: The Greencastle police. Are the girls okay, is the van running, etc.?
Me: Yep, and you betcha.
Lady: Well, they should be here any minute.
Me: Who? You mean you aren't going to help me? ...wait a minute, PLEASE tell me those sirens are not for me.
Lady: Yes, ma'am, they are.
Me: Why? My goodness, how many are there? Could you tell them to tone it down a bit, please? I mean, really?
Lady: Ma'am, when the cops call us and tell us there are children locked inside of a running vehicle, we consider that an emergency.
Me: I understand that, but do they need to bring in the cavalry with the lights and the sirens blaring???????

She laughs at me. Oh yeah, I bet it's funny...to you.

So in pulls a firetruck AND ambulance with all the lights, sirens, and hoopla that goes along with it. That was the only thing that shut the girls up and settled them down. They were now enthralled with the big red truck that was surrounding them with lots of blinking lights and it was making noises, yippeeee!

Ten minutes later, (and a total of about 1 hour and 30 minutes altogether) they pop the lock. Thank goodness my van was running because they could actually push on the power window button with the instrument they were using and put my window down, giving them the ability to reach in and unlock the door, and chat and play with the girls.

The one firefighter looks at me and says, "Ma'am, why didn't you just call 911?" "Well, because I figured that's what I pay AAA for." "Next time, do not call the state police, do not call AAA, not when your kids are locked in your car with it running. You call 911, we'll get here quicker than anyone." And they did, I'll give them that much. It only took about 3 minutes from the time the mail lady made the phone call to the post office until the fire department showed up.

Then Abe's Auto Service pulls in. You have got to be kidding me? I forgot I called them. The guy looks at me a little confused so I walked over and said, "Um, my mail lady called the post office who called the town cops who called the fire department who got here in two minutes, thanks anyway. Sorry for the inconvenience."

Not only am I still nauseated, but I'm soaked and I have splitting headache. I get the girls inside to eat their cold french fries that they didn't complain one bit about, and I hit the toilet, heaving away. I took one Dramamine, an Alleve and four Ibuprofen and hit the couch for the rest of the day.

Ty did call me after that, which was nice, I felt like I was getting a great big hug from Iraq.

Awe....I love that man.

That was my yesterday. Aren't you glad you asked? Now please, don't ever ask me again. And if you haven't figured it out yet, the song that plays when you open the blog "Praise You In This Storm" by Casting Crowns was very fitting for this particular post I thought. LOL

FYI: You can scroll down and click on other songs to listen to on the playlist if you want while you are reading or you can pause it altogether.

So....how was your day? :) ........oh, and Zoe didn't pee her pants.