If a Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words...

Then this picture deserves a rather lengthy post...


Look closely...what is this?  I know it looks like the Wicked Witch of the West's feet...HAHA...but in actuality it is Brynn's baby hiding behind her changing table...it fell all the way to the bottom, got stuck, and landed like this.  How it got here exactly is STILL a mystery to me...

Now that you know the baby has been safely found, let me back up.  Today, Tuesday, Ryan was off work so we decided to take a trip up to the St. Louis zoo.  My mom normally works on Tuesdays but had the day off as well, so she and my dad went along as well.  We had a GREAT day at the zoo (blog post coming soon...don't worry, I'll delete Ryan's one million pictures of the monkeys and tigers) and made it home safe and sound.  We took "baby" along but she stayed in the car the whole time.  Brynn really hasn't been very attached to her the last month or so (other than us putting baby in Brynn's bed for naps and at night) but I just figured we'd take her "in case."  When we got home I remember getting her out and setting her on the back of the car...why I put her there I don't know.  But we have been sitting out there in the evenings to play in the leaves and draw with chalk, so I guess I just got it out and then we started playing??  Fast forward to bedtime.  Brynn took her bath and got her PJ's on.  I realized I didn't know where baby was, so I told Ryan that I thought she was outside sitting by the car.  He checked and said he couldn't find her.  I had a mini panic attack, but realized we didn't have enough time before bed to find her.  I then decided maybe we had enough time to go out and look so I asked Brynn..."Did we take baby outside to play?"  She says "uh huh."  Sometimes she really does know where things are, so we take Brynn outside in the dark in her PJ's and I'm saying "Where did you put baby?"  "Do you remember where you put baby?"  She walks around in the leaves and I'm like "oh my gosh...she either thinks we are out here playing or she really put this baby in the leaves somewhere!"  Well...we couldn't find her so I brought Brynn in, got out her little stuffed owl and talked about how "pippy" (the owl's name) is going to sleep with her tonight.  We read books and she goes to bed just fine with the owl...didn't hear a peep out of her.  I, on the other hand, am a wreck.  I feel like I've put this baby somewhere and I HAVE to find her.  Even if Brynn never needs/wants baby ever again, I want to keep her because she is so special.  I never shed a tear but I was close.  I got back outside with Ryan and we start raking and looking through the leaves WITH A FLASHLIGHT because we have to find baby!  Yes, we were those people.  Just picture us at 8:45 at night...it's pitch dark, we are raking leaves with a flashlight and looking for a baby doll.  Then one of our neighbors comes over and offers to bring over a METAL DETECTOR because clearly people probably only look for car keys or something like that at that time of night.  We told him we wouldn't need a metal detector because we are looking for our child's doll...HAHA!!!!!!!!  But he has two girls so surely he understood?  =)  I'm going to tell myself that.  We continued to look outside everywhere, around the car, in the garage, etc.  CAN'T. FIND. BABY.  We look inside.  I finally decide to give up, and am literally on the couch praying "The Lord gives and the Lord takes away...blessed be the name of the Lord" (yes, I know that sounds dramatic, but I'm just telling the whole story people).  Ryan decides to go check in her room while she's asleep.  He comes out and SHOWS ME THE PICTURE.  Somehow I guess we took baby inside after we played and she fell down the back of the changing table.  PRAISE THE LORD!  He took the picture because he thought it was funny, then put baby in Brynn's bed while she was sleeping.

Oh the JOYS of parenting!!!!