Scary Moments with My Children

So with three children you can imagine how many scary moments I have had as a parent.  Although there have been many different incidents that we have experienced only a few have really been gut wrenching to me.  There are just some experiences that stay in your mind and some of these my children remember as well.  Here are my top five scary moments in no particular order.    

1. CAR DOOR – One day our family decided to take a quick trip to the mall to get some new shoes and stuff for the kids.  My kids were probably about 2 years old or so. To get to the mall we could go surface streets or hop on the highway for one exit to get there quicker.  We decided for some reason to hop on the freeway, even though we usually drove the side streets.  We actually try to avoid the freeway unless absolutely necessary.  During this ride my husband was driving our car and my son was sitting directly behind my husband. I was in the passenger seat and my girls were directly behind me in the middle seat and behind the passenger seat.  While we were going down the freeway my son somehow managed to open up the car door.  Luckily for us he was strapped into the car seat and the car seat was securely strapped to the car.  Regardless I was still in shock as I was trying to figure out what to do but there was nothing I could do because I was so far away from the car door.  I started to unbuckle myself thinking I was going to crawl over the kids to close the door. However before I could climb out of my seat my husband with one hand still on the steering wheel reached back and grabbed the door which was swaying in the wind as we were driving down the highway.  At first he could not get the door but then he grabbed it and shut it hard and we pulled off to the side of the highway. I was amazed and thankful that my husband was able to drive and shut the door while staying completely composed it must have been those tactical driving lessons he had in the military. My lesson learned child proof locks are made for a very good reason, use them.
2. BEACH – One summer when my kids were two years old my high school was having a picnic reunion at a park on the beach.  The park was huge and the kids loved going to the water.  We actually had gone to that particular beach several times before.  The kids would run and play in the water and also through rocks into the water.  When we first got to the park we all went straight to the beach and played in the water for a bit.  Then we went back up to the park where my husband and I were watching the kids play on the equipment with other children we were also talking with other parents and old classmates while standing there.  All of a sudden we both noticed that one of our daughters was missing.  My heart immediately went into my throat.  Because it was a hot summer day and there were probably thousands of people in the park and hundreds of cars moving back and forth through the parking lot.  My mind immediately went to the worse possible scenario as I and my husband began to panic and we started to look for her.  Luckily for us there were so many alumni there at the park that they were able to split up and comb the area quickly for her.  It still took 10 minutes for us to locate her and that was way too long for me to even handle.  She had gone back to the beach and was standing by the water throwing rocks and when one of the alumni approached her to take her back to us she refused to go (smart girl).  My lesson learned I have to keep my eye on this one.
3. SICK – When my boy was 2 he got really sick.  Completely normal for kids, in fact I have suffered through a few 103 and higher temperatures with my children.  However I knew that this was really different.  My son became sick really fast and did not have a temperature; there were no real signs except that his breathing had become very labored quickly.  I immediately called the doctor, a process that I sometimes think is ridiculous but something you have to do whether or not your child is going to the doctor or the hospital.   When I called the nurses asked me to bring him into the doctor’s office even though I wanted to take him into Emergency.  Against my better judgment I took him to the doctor and they brought him in immediately.  While at the doctor’s office they did what they could to try and get his breathing under control for well over 30 minutes when they decided that it was time to send him to the hospital.  We rode to the hospital in an ambulance an experience he can still relate especially when we see or hear an ambulance. My boy was immediately admitted into the hospital for a few days where we learned that he had asthma. My lesson learned always trust your gut instinct no matter what anyone else says. 
4. STUCK – When my daughter was about 3 or 4 she was playing around at her grandparent’s house.  I was not in the same room with my kids at the time and they were just quietly playing games in another room.  (Note to all mothers: When kids are quiet check on them because they are doing no good.) All of a sudden I heard a commotion and could hear that one of my daughters was in pain.  I went into the next room and she was lying on the ground half of her body was under the couch so I was going to pull her out and see what the matter was.  But when I first tried to she started screaming. I could not figure out what was going on.  Her sister was trying to tell me that she was stuck under the couch, but that was impossible there was tons of room.  So again I tried to pull her out and then I noticed exactly what was going on.  The couch frame was wood and the wood had split in the middle, where the gap was my daughter had gotten the skin on her thigh stuck in the wood; it was pinched tightly.  I had to pry the wood apart and pull her out in one quick motion. Even though it was a huge struggle somehow I was able to do it on the first try but not before the damage was done.  Her leg was scraped and bruised horribly but she was ok. My lesson learned same as with #2, I have to keep my eye on this one.                           
5. ZOO – On one occasion my girlfriend and I took my children to the zoo.  They were very young having just turned two years old.  What was I thinking taking them all with just me and my friend? I still don’t know why I thought I could handle this but it was a learning experience that I will never forget. We had only gotten to the third or fourth animal habitat when I turned around to see that my boy had actually crawled through the gates and was on the other side, the animal side of the habitat.  I was freaked.  He was close to a drop off and if he fell down I would not be able to help him.  So I walked slowly up to him without him seeing me and grabbed him by the nape of his neck as he was struggling to get away.  I felt like I was tussling with an alligator as he tried to get away and I was trying to pull him back over the fence.  When I finally got him back to human world I was relieved and I think my friend was too.  The funniest thing about this incident is that my son spent most of his early years trying to break him and his sisters out of “cages” that we put them in and the first thing he does when we get to the zoo is to break into one.  My lesson learned ummm my son wants to be or is an animal?

Fortunately for everyone involved we are all doing just fine and can laugh at some of the incidents looking back. My kids like all kids have always been very curious.  Probably the only difference with my children is that they are able to use the buddy system especially when being bad. Yes these experiences were very scary at the time and some still are looking back, but these experiences made us all stronger and learn very valuable lessons.  I am just very happy that everyone is doing fine and that we were able to overcome these small challenges.