A Boy and his Pig

Well, after last week's hide-and-seek fiasco you'd think I'd have learned something. But once again someone hid from me and drama ensued.

I think everyone knows about Connor and Piglet. As a little baby, Connor wanted to hold onto a stuffed animal in bed and Piglet was the only one tiny enough to tuck into his blanket without fear of suffocation. Since the age of about 3-4 months, Connor has adored Piglet.

Unlike a lot of kids and their "lovies", Connor never takes his animals anywhere. He sleeps with his cat "Meow", Piglet and a stuffed turtle.

When he wakes up, he drags them out and enjoys cuddling them on the sofa. He sometimes plays with Piglet in his cars, stuffing him into a trunk for a ride. But mostly Piglet & Co stay safe.We often have to round them all up at nap time and bedtime, but that is okay. They're always in plain sight.

Then one day, It Happened. We spent morning out and about and arrived back home just in time for lunch and a nap. At nap time, Connor grabbed his cat and turtle and ran into his room. But where was Piglet? Connor had no idea. I spent the next 15 minutes searching in all the normal places: the potato bin, the vents, the couch, the trunk of Connor's car. No Piglet.

Finally the hour grew so late I had Connor take his nap without Piglet and promised to find him. I spent all of Connor's nap looking. Everywhere. Yeah, we've heard that line before.

I knew I'd seen Piglet that morning with Connor on the couch. I looked behind all the cushions but no Piglet. Not under the couch, not in any closet, drawer, cupboard, or toy. I looked outside and in the trash cans. Does this sound familiar? Yeah I looked in all of Connor's hiding places.

After nap, I asked Connor what he did with Piglet but got no answer. Feeling like an idiot yet again, I finally called Nick at work and begged him to see if Piglet was in his car. Maybe Connor did sneak Piglet along on our errands that morning? Nick swore he didn't, but promised to look.

Connor had to go to bed that night sans Piglet. He looked so sad over it. He clutched the cat and stared up at me as I explained Piglet was probably in Daddy's car and we'd get him back. For tonight did Connor want his dog? His bear? His lamb? No...each animal was inspected and tossed aside. Connor started to fall asleep and his little hands kept reaching out for Piglet. It killed me. Killed me! Connor always so sweetly holds Piglet as he falls asleep, caressing Piglet's ear. It's a comfort thing that he only does with Piglet and I was so upset for him that for the first time ever, he had to do without. He whined in his sleep and cried for Piglet. Connor is a big sleeper so eventually he was off for the night, but it still just killed me.

I'm a stuffed animal person. I always slept with mine as a child and I'm really sentimental about stuff like this.  I couldn't relax but sat on the couch fretting, waiting for Nick to come from work to see if he had Piglet. I kept reassuring myself, picturing him walking through the door as our hero with Piglet in hand. But no, Piglet wasn't with him.

I was sick over it, imagining a world for Connor without Piglet and I almost cried. Nick stared at me in disbelief as once again I couldn't find something/someone I had looked "everywhere" for. He helped me look. We discussed seeing Piglet on the couch that morning and stared at the couch. I had looked behind the cushions and in the cracks. The seat cushions were smooth, perfectly flat with no gaps between them and the couch bottom. But I had not looked there. We threw off every cushion and there was Piglet, totally flattened beneath the seat cushion. I almost cried again and hugged and kissed Piglet while Nick rolled his eyes. Yeah, I am a real dork. I have no idea what is wrong with my brain these days, but I haven't earned any brownie points between not finding Piglet and not finding Connor.

I tiptoed into Connor's room and tucked Piglet under his arm. So relieved!

The whole thing could have been an episode on a sitcom. Harried wife and mom messes up again, but all ends well.

The next morning, Connor was thrilled. As usual, he hugged Piglet over and over and said "aw, Piggy!!". He is so sweet. I promise to never lose Piglet again!