Epic Mom Fail

I mentioned in yesterday's post that we had a big night ahead of us.  I didn't know that my greatest fail as a mom (to date) would take place as well.

Last night Ned's family threw a surprise birthday party for Ned's grandfather, who will turn 90 soon.   Ned surprised me by saying we needed to leave 15 minutes earlier than I thought, and with 15 minutes to go, I was taking chicken nuggets out of the oven, Ned needed a shower, and no one was dressed.  Rushing is putting it mildly since you can't really be late for a surprise party.  My mom brain was racing to make sure everything was ready at that we had everything we needed.

We made it out the door just a few minutes late.  It has been SO hot here, and my car was parked outside.  I thought Ned had started it inside, but he didn't, so as I strapped Avery in, I used the remote start to start the car and cool it off.  Meanwhile, Ned and I were discussing whether or not he was riding with us since I would have to bring the kids home early.  So I'm rushing, strapping, sweating, and discussing at this point.  I threw our bags in and went around to climb in the driver's seat.

The door was locked.  All the doors were locked, with my children inside the (thankfully running) car.

To use remote start, you have to first look the doors.  I start it often in parking lots when I'm putting Avery in the car, and I'm vigilent about unlocking the doors as soon as the car starts.  I'm also very careful not to leave the keys in the car when Avery is in there because I've always felt like you just never know.  There have even been times that I've gone outside while the kids were sleeping, and I've taken keys to make sure there is no chance of me getting locked out.  But, in all my rushing, I forgot to hit unlock, and I put my keys back in my purse, which I then put in the car.

Long story short, we immediately called OnStar as we knew the car would run for 10 minutes.  Unbelievably, OnStar was unable to send a signal to the vehicle even after trying 6 times.  The car cut off and Ned immediately broke a front window to unlock the door and get my babies out.

Avery and Sam were fine.  Sam was fussing simply because he needed a cat nap and the car wasn't moving.  Avery never even asked what in the world we were doing.  I wanted to just keep them home at that point, and we made it all the way back to the garage door, but Ned convinced me to go ahead and go with him.  We stayed at the party as long as we could and then I brought Avery and Sam home.  Everyone went to bed with no further incidents.

When things like this happen, I never know if I'm more upset about what's happened and what could have happened, or if I'm just upset with myself that I let it happen.  Life is crazy right now.  Are we falling apart?  Usually not, but life is crazy none the less.  I've been meaning to blog about it for awhile now, and really wanted to after this post from Kelly's Korner.  But, that crazy, wonderful life has gotten in the way.  I don't need to blog about all our particularly low points, because in the future, I'll remember just enough about the tough times to realize how good the good ones really are.  I do try to throw enough real life into my posts so that it's not all sunshine and roses, because, well, that's not how life is.

I stumbled upon this post today, The Tired Mother's Creed, and I was particularly drawn to "I shall do my best to admit to my people my “unfine” moments."  Yesterday was certainly an unfine moment, and I share today because I always feel a little better after people share theirs.  Not because I suddenly feel better about myself at their expense, although I know there are those who will use this post for that purpose, but because it makes us all relatable in this crazy adventure called motherhood.  I feel not so alone in this journey when a mother who I think is doing a fantastic job admits that life is tough or she's frazzled.

This post is not a request for a lesson in safety or a pat on the back (my mom was quick to remind me that I jumped out of her lap at 14 months onto a concrete floor, giving myself a "ping pong" fracture on my head, and I'm just fine).  Fails happen, and luckily this was one where everything turned out fine, and we knew it would somehow be fine all along.  Maybe you'll read this on a day that you've experienced a fail, and if not, consider this my PSA that OnStar doesn't always work and you've got to be smarter than your car.