Imagine: going shopping and looking up after two seconds and not being able to find your child. It is the worst fear I have as a mother to lose my child, this happened to me on Friday and it can happen to you.
So here’s the story. I needed to run a few errands this Friday, one of the errands included going to the mall. I love the mall and shopping, however my three year old son does not love it as much as I do. I dread taking him shopping with me, he throws tantrums, cries, and in this case takes off and leaves my side. Shopping with a toddler is not as much fun as shopping alone, that’s for sure! So I needed to go into sears to return a few items I had bought a couple days before. My son started playing with a few items he found in the same area I was, he was literally right next to me. I didn’t think anything of it and let him continue playing. My daughter was fast asleep in her stroller, she moved her shoes fell off and I went to pick them up and place them in her diaper bag in the basket below her stroller. I didn’t hear my son’s voice anymore, looked up and he was gone. I panicked. So I called his name once, twice, and finally a third time. Nothing. I walked around the store calling his name. Still nothing. I was already panicked, at this point I am FREAKING OUT! I head over to the customer service center to inform them that I cannot find my son. The employee immediately went on her phone and a few seconds later the entire store was on lock down: ADAM CODE BLUE is what I heard over the intercom. I am still searching and calling his name, and I thought he left the store entirely. I showed a picture I had of him and had everyone searching and calling for him. Finally, I knew that this situation was now out of my hands. I sat down, bowed my head, and prayed to God to return my son to me. Seconds later, I hear my sons precious voice and I run to him. It was such an emotional feeling that I had I cannot even describe it. I was overwhelmed with joy that they found him and that he was in one piece. I felt like a terrible mother for losing her child, but I knew that God had him in his hands. He answered my prayers, immediately. I still do not know where he was or where they found him, the store clerks told me, “he was here”. I think he drifted between the racks of clothes or went into the fitting room. I was yelling for him all over the store, if he had heard me he would have came running towards me.
So here’s what you can do to possibly prevent this from happening.
1. Remain calm. Understand that by freaking out you are not doing anything good. If you are a breastfeeding mama like I am, stress and fear can sour your milk. If you are scared and upset just make sure to extract or pump that milk from your body before feeding your little one.
2. Ask for help. When you are in shock chances are you are not thinking clearly. Talk to the employees and have them help you. You can also call 911 for help, it’s better to be safe than sorry. You can show them pictures and give them a description of your child so they can better assist you.
3. Think positive. I know that it’s hard but if you start thinking the worst possible scenario you just freak yourself out even more. Say a prayer and remember that you are not in control of the situation and that God will help and guide you.
Thanks for stopping by and listening to my story. Share with me your stories if you have any. We can relate and learn from each others experiences. Together we can keep striving for mommy success.