Home Alone
Last month I had to make an overnight business trip, my first since Colin was born. For many of you I realize that this will sound silly, but it was the first time I'd be away from Colin for a whole night and I wasn't thrilled about the prospect. I originally tried to schedule the trip to be in-and-out in one day, which would have been exhausting (up at 4AM, not home until after 11PM) but I was going to make it work... right up until the client changed the time/date of the meeting. Since I didn't have any other options, I had to roll with it.
H was a real trooper and actually said he preferred this schedule because, while it would be harder for him it would be easier on me. What a guy! He also casually mentioned how he knew I'd help get things ready, but I reminded him that wouldn't be possible since I'd be leaving directly from work on Thursday, and wouldn't be back until Friday night. He was truly going to be flying solo.
I'm sure you've heard the adage about the best laid plans of mice and men... well, poor H had no idea what he was in for. Normally I prepare Colin's food for school (breakfast and lunch), pick him up from school, and handle the evening routine. Not to say that H doesn't help - he does, a lot! But he isn't accustomed to having to deal with the school schedule, deadlines, etc.
Two days prior to my departure, I got a call from H asking me what time my flight got in on Friday. I replied that the flight wasn't due to land until 6:30, so I should be home by 7:30, 8:00 at the latest. I detected a note of concern in his voice as he quickly told me he had to go and hung up. Apparently he had a client appointment scheduled for Friday night at 5:00, not remembering that he would have to pick Colin up... and since he had already rescheduled this more than once he couldn't move the appt. Oh boy! H then began the frantic calls to see if one of our registered alternates would be available to pick Colin up from school that day. (They were and did.)
The big day came: my flight was uneventful and after we landed I retrieved my luggage, picked up the rental car, and was half-way to the hotel when the monsoon hit. I eventually made it to the hotel, checked in, and after a quick call to H to see how things were going (fine) I headed down to the hotel restaurant for a late dinner. When I got back to my room I got a call from H, and heard that while I was sitting down to a good book and a mediocre dinner my boys were having a bit of an adventure.
It went something like this...
On Thursday night H picked Colin up as the school was closing (they had the little guy dressed in his jacket and waiting for daddy at the front door) and the boys had a nice night. When they got home H let Sydney out behind the house but she refused to "go" (in spite of being home without a potty break for over 8 hours!), so he let her back in and decided he'd try again later.
Colin had a yummy dinner of scrambled eggs, a squeezy tube (mixed vegetables and fruit), and a nice big glass of milk. Then H tried to let the dog out again. He put on his jacket (it was freezing), gave Colin the iTouch to play with, sat him in the armchair next to the back door, then opened the door to let Syd out. Unfortunately one of the neighborhood cats happened to be lurking just outside the door, and Sydney decided to play a merry game of chase taking off like a bullet into the dark.
Now keep in mind, we have a cat, so there was no worry that Syd would actually do anything... the dog just can't resist a good game of chase, so off she went. H was standing on our back patio, pulling his jacket closed against the frigid cold, shouting for Sydney to come back. He couldn't chase after her because Colin was inside, and was at a loss since she never runs off like that. "Sydney! SYDNEY! SYYYYD-NEEEE COME!" Poor H continued to shout for our runaway dog, not realizing what was happening behind him.
Colin heard all the shouting, and decided to look up from his game to see what was going on. He toddled over to the back sliding door and looked up at Daddy, then flipped the little lever on the door. Locking H out of the house.
At this point Sydney decided to come back, as she was quite interested in the activity around the back door. H was desperately trying to get Colin to unlock the door. Colin kept flicking the lock, but only in the "lock" position. Then he got bored and went back to playing with the iTouch, ignoring his father. H tried knocking on the door, which made Sydney bark like a maniac but Colin only looked up briefly before returning to his game. H continued to knock, but the only reaction he got was from Sydney who at that point probably had the entire tri-state area on alert. (H was so frustrated and concerned at this point that he was shouting at Syd as well, which had no impact on her since she was having too much fun barking every time he shouted or knocked on the door.)
H was very worried, so he ran around to the front of the house (through the muddy back and side yards, over the black ice, and up our front walk) to the front door. He went to grab our hide-a-key and... OH NO! It wasn't there. (The cleaning lady had used it and accidentally took it with her.) That's OK - we also have a keypad on the garage so he tried that... but it has been so incredibly cold lately that the battery died and there wasn't even a tiny flicker of light from the keypad. So both of our backup systems failed, he didn't have his cell phone with him, and the house was locked up tight as a drum with our little guy inside. Alone.
Thankfully H didn't panic, but he wasn't making much progress either. He kept running to the back door (to try and get Colin's attention) then to the front of the house (to try and find a way in). Nothing was working so he finally resolved that he would have to break a window. He first planned to break the kitchen window, then decided it would be better to break the car window and use the garage door opener in the car (that way the house wouldn't be freezing). He began looking for a rock or other window-breaking-implement, but (thankfully!) couldn't find anything. After another trip to the back of the house to check on Colin, who was still happily playing with the iTouch and watching his movie, oblivious to his plight his father's worry. H then sprinted back to the front again, and tried the garage keypad a few more times.
On what he estimates to be about the 30th try, the keypad flickered slightly, and miraculously came back to life for a moment. Just long enough to get the garage door open and let H back into the house.
When H started telling me this story I had to sit down because I was laughing so hard I was crying, but he was outraged. "IT ISN'T FUNNY!" And in a way, it wasn't... my tiny son was locked in a house, by himself without adult supervision for probably close to half an hour. Which really isn't good. But since everyone is fine (aside from H's mental scars) you have to admit... this was a scene straight out of the movies. You just can't make this stuff up!
Friday was thankfully uneventful: Colin got to school OK, our friends picked him up, he played with his pal Shray, and as I was driving home from the airport H picked up our little guy and our little family was eventually reunited. I don't travel for work often, but have a feeling H may not be so understanding the next time I have to leave for an overnight... I can only imagine what might happen when Colin begins coordinating his efforts with LN2!!
H was a real trooper and actually said he preferred this schedule because, while it would be harder for him it would be easier on me. What a guy! He also casually mentioned how he knew I'd help get things ready, but I reminded him that wouldn't be possible since I'd be leaving directly from work on Thursday, and wouldn't be back until Friday night. He was truly going to be flying solo.
I'm sure you've heard the adage about the best laid plans of mice and men... well, poor H had no idea what he was in for. Normally I prepare Colin's food for school (breakfast and lunch), pick him up from school, and handle the evening routine. Not to say that H doesn't help - he does, a lot! But he isn't accustomed to having to deal with the school schedule, deadlines, etc.
Two days prior to my departure, I got a call from H asking me what time my flight got in on Friday. I replied that the flight wasn't due to land until 6:30, so I should be home by 7:30, 8:00 at the latest. I detected a note of concern in his voice as he quickly told me he had to go and hung up. Apparently he had a client appointment scheduled for Friday night at 5:00, not remembering that he would have to pick Colin up... and since he had already rescheduled this more than once he couldn't move the appt. Oh boy! H then began the frantic calls to see if one of our registered alternates would be available to pick Colin up from school that day. (They were and did.)
The big day came: my flight was uneventful and after we landed I retrieved my luggage, picked up the rental car, and was half-way to the hotel when the monsoon hit. I eventually made it to the hotel, checked in, and after a quick call to H to see how things were going (fine) I headed down to the hotel restaurant for a late dinner. When I got back to my room I got a call from H, and heard that while I was sitting down to a good book and a mediocre dinner my boys were having a bit of an adventure.
It went something like this...
On Thursday night H picked Colin up as the school was closing (they had the little guy dressed in his jacket and waiting for daddy at the front door) and the boys had a nice night. When they got home H let Sydney out behind the house but she refused to "go" (in spite of being home without a potty break for over 8 hours!), so he let her back in and decided he'd try again later.
Colin had a yummy dinner of scrambled eggs, a squeezy tube (mixed vegetables and fruit), and a nice big glass of milk. Then H tried to let the dog out again. He put on his jacket (it was freezing), gave Colin the iTouch to play with, sat him in the armchair next to the back door, then opened the door to let Syd out. Unfortunately one of the neighborhood cats happened to be lurking just outside the door, and Sydney decided to play a merry game of chase taking off like a bullet into the dark.
Now keep in mind, we have a cat, so there was no worry that Syd would actually do anything... the dog just can't resist a good game of chase, so off she went. H was standing on our back patio, pulling his jacket closed against the frigid cold, shouting for Sydney to come back. He couldn't chase after her because Colin was inside, and was at a loss since she never runs off like that. "Sydney! SYDNEY! SYYYYD-NEEEE COME!" Poor H continued to shout for our runaway dog, not realizing what was happening behind him.
Colin heard all the shouting, and decided to look up from his game to see what was going on. He toddled over to the back sliding door and looked up at Daddy, then flipped the little lever on the door. Locking H out of the house.
At this point Sydney decided to come back, as she was quite interested in the activity around the back door. H was desperately trying to get Colin to unlock the door. Colin kept flicking the lock, but only in the "lock" position. Then he got bored and went back to playing with the iTouch, ignoring his father. H tried knocking on the door, which made Sydney bark like a maniac but Colin only looked up briefly before returning to his game. H continued to knock, but the only reaction he got was from Sydney who at that point probably had the entire tri-state area on alert. (H was so frustrated and concerned at this point that he was shouting at Syd as well, which had no impact on her since she was having too much fun barking every time he shouted or knocked on the door.)
H was very worried, so he ran around to the front of the house (through the muddy back and side yards, over the black ice, and up our front walk) to the front door. He went to grab our hide-a-key and... OH NO! It wasn't there. (The cleaning lady had used it and accidentally took it with her.) That's OK - we also have a keypad on the garage so he tried that... but it has been so incredibly cold lately that the battery died and there wasn't even a tiny flicker of light from the keypad. So both of our backup systems failed, he didn't have his cell phone with him, and the house was locked up tight as a drum with our little guy inside. Alone.
Thankfully H didn't panic, but he wasn't making much progress either. He kept running to the back door (to try and get Colin's attention) then to the front of the house (to try and find a way in). Nothing was working so he finally resolved that he would have to break a window. He first planned to break the kitchen window, then decided it would be better to break the car window and use the garage door opener in the car (that way the house wouldn't be freezing). He began looking for a rock or other window-breaking-implement, but (thankfully!) couldn't find anything. After another trip to the back of the house to check on Colin, who was still happily playing with the iTouch and watching his movie, oblivious to his plight his father's worry. H then sprinted back to the front again, and tried the garage keypad a few more times.
On what he estimates to be about the 30th try, the keypad flickered slightly, and miraculously came back to life for a moment. Just long enough to get the garage door open and let H back into the house.When H started telling me this story I had to sit down because I was laughing so hard I was crying, but he was outraged. "IT ISN'T FUNNY!" And in a way, it wasn't... my tiny son was locked in a house, by himself without adult supervision for probably close to half an hour. Which really isn't good. But since everyone is fine (aside from H's mental scars) you have to admit... this was a scene straight out of the movies. You just can't make this stuff up!
Friday was thankfully uneventful: Colin got to school OK, our friends picked him up, he played with his pal Shray, and as I was driving home from the airport H picked up our little guy and our little family was eventually reunited. I don't travel for work often, but have a feeling H may not be so understanding the next time I have to leave for an overnight... I can only imagine what might happen when Colin begins coordinating his efforts with LN2!!
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