Here’s one thing I love about social media.  The amount of parents I’ve read confessing how easy it is for their toddler to escape their grasp.  #runawaytoddler #couldhappen2anymom

We won’t get in to a long diatribe about the situation.  We weren’t there.  We don’t know who made the right decisions.  We know this.  Children, even under direct supervision, can slip out of your grasp.

I have multiple stories of Mini-ion #1 and #2 running away from me in public places.  Each time, I (or my husband or parents and I) were trying to manage them.  We weren’t on our phones.  We weren’t doing anything else but trying to keep them out of trouble, and they’ve slipped away.

Picture this.  We’re at Dollywood, which is surprisingly classier than you think.  The kids are having a spectacular time.  My parents and I are B.E.A.T. We tell the kids it is time to go, which makes  Mini-ion #1 ran away from me because he was mad (incidentally he was a bit tired as well).  My dad was helping my mom so I had Mini-ion #2 to take care of at the same time.  Mini-ion #2 and I did the best we could to chase him down.  I wasn’t on my phone, I wasn’t distracted.  I’d simply pissed off a four-year old and he was running away.

Nobody necessarily helped me except for an occasional comment like, “you’ve got a runner!”  or “you’ve got your hands full!”.  Imagine the spectacle as I clomped down a hill in my flip flops, hollering at my four year old while trying to pull my two year old along.  Alternating between running (with her in my arms) and speed walking and dragging her along.

I confess to this because it happens.  Maybe not to everyone (or those without long memories), but it did to me.  And I can’t stand to see this mom shamed.  Please share your #runawaytoddler stories.  Please share your #couldhappen2anymom stories.  Let’s stand together as moms and confess and acknowledge that as terrible as this situation is, it could have been any of us.  Michelle Gregg – could have been me.