Ex Marks the Spot, Vol. IV

The Jason Show. Touting guest posts from Claire, Jason's ex, since 2008.

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Editor's note: Since Claire and Dennis are soon to be officially adopting Elijah, and since Dennis has always wanted a son with his same initials (D. C.), they have given Elijah an additional name, Daniel. Therefore, when Claire refers to "Daniel" in this post, she's talking about Elijah.

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This is a post which will not surprise my children.

Last week something happened that illustrates this point so well.

I was sitting at my counter reading through some lesson plans for Rennen's coursework. It was very quiet in the house. Rennen had just left to go meet her friends as they got off the school bus. My reading was interrupted by Daniel's cooing. I glanced around and didn't see him. I got up from my chair and walked around the kitchen counter to look for him.

Since the house is well cordoned off with gates, Daniel isn't able to go far. He only has free roaming of the kitchen/greatroom. As I went around to the other side of the counter I was talking to him, "where are you baby?" He coo'd in reply, but as I rounded the corner he wasn't there. I quickly looked over to the couch and then walked to the other side of the L-Shaped counter to see if he was in the entryway to the kitchen. That was when he sighed and coo'd one last time and I looked up from the floor to find him...

In his high chair where he was eating a cracker. It was only then that I remembered putting him there about 4 minutes before. I had walked past him twice looking on the floor for him.
It is these moments when I question myself as to whether I am really up to the task of raising a baby again.

Everyone knows I am not quite the same since my big crash at Maine Forest Rally 2001. I can handle that. What I can't handle is that I feel like I am losing more brain power every day.
Last night after an exhausting flight back from Burbank and the baby not resting but being extremely hyper on the plane... I lost my keys. This too will not surprise my children. Nor will it surprise my husband. Every husband I have had knows I am terrible with losing keys!

I had located my car in airport parking. Then I unloaded the baby from the stroller after reclining his car seat with hopes of him resting on the ride home. I dropped my wallet and keys over the top of the driver's seat so that I would have them available to pay for the parking. I pulled both bottles from my bag and dumped them out and made a fresh one for him. I put the stroller in the trunk. I put the bag around in the passenger seat of the car. Then I took off my jacket and walked around the the driver's seat. I sat down and then remembered I was sitting on the wallet and keys. So I reached under my butt and pulled the wallet out from under me. I couldn't feel the keys.

Let me stop here and tell you that it was one single key. I hadn't brought the bigger set because I had simplified myself down for ease of travel. Smart move, huh? This isn't just a regular key like a silver toned house key would be. This is the kind of key that folds into itself that most German cars have now. It incorporates the alarm and door locks too. I say this because it's size is an inch long by about a half inch thick. The biggest problem I thought I had was that it is black and so is the interior of the car...

I panicked. I got out of the car and looked everywhere! I found crevices in my car I didn't know I had! My hands were chewed up from digging between the console and both front seats. I moved them all the way forward and looked. I moved them all the way back and looked. I emptied out the entire bag I had packed for the trip. I lifted the tailgate and looked where I had put the stroller. NOWHERE! And I do mean NOWHERE!

I got back in the car. I prayed and repented for all of my wrongdoings. I asked for help in finding the keys. I even plead my case for my faith in knowing I would find my keys just because I had prayed! Then I repented again. Then I begged again. The baby quit crying at that point. I felt hope.

I got back out of the car. I began my search again. I researched the door pockets thinking it had bounced when I dropped it over the top of the seat. I looked in the wallet change pocket to see if I had put it in there before I had dropped it. The baby began to cry again. I opened his door. Asked him to please allow me to think. I gave him his blanket and bottle which he had thrown on the floor. I re-situated him in his seat. And I found the key under his butt.

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