My house appears to be at it again, and by IT, I mean eating shoes. Clearly there is no other explanation because we have looked and looked and looked, and once again, a Little’s footwear (and a complete set, mind you, not just one in the pair) has gone totally, without reason, missing. So have two library books (gah!), countless socks, and my paper cutter (that one is a little concerning, don’t you think?). And there is no way to explain any of it other than our house must be hungry because where else can these things be disappearing to so randomly?

Has this happened to you? When you, for the life of you, just cannot find something you know you just had the day, hour, or minute previously? What am I thinking? Of course it has! People lose stuff all the time (including glasses on top of our heads and water bottles in our hands – true story).

I know some of this might be sleep deprivation. It’s possible that my husband and I are so tired at seven years in to this parenting gig that we no longer see well, much less think clearly. We will own that. 

However, I also know that our dear, sweet, and totally all-over-the-place, constantly-moving FOUR young children could be the root of the problem, because no matter how many times I tell them to leave their shoes by the door or throw their clothes down the chute or put their books in their bags, they somehow manage to not hear me because, well, who knows why kids can’t hear their mothers asking (telling, pleading, nagging – take your pick) to do things that would ultimately make life so much simpler the next time you all need to leave the house fully dressed and shoe’d to return library books. 

Or perhaps this is just our season of life – the one in which we have all the children in the not-so-many of years and acquire all of the things needed to clothe, contain, and entertain our collection of wee ones, and so some things (thankfully, none of the wee ones) just get lost in the shuffle. That’s normal, right? Right. 

Another question for you: do others out there see the random shoes on highways, streets, and in parking lots and wonder WHEN? HOW? WHY? I went through a phase where I saw these lost strays all the time in a wide variety of road-related places, and every time it seemed so baffling, so silly. 

And then I had children and realized, yes, yes you can very easily misplace not just one but two perfectly decent shoes (they may belong to your children or they may be your own – it’s a crazy world out there) and they may have left you via a window, for all you know or ever will. Life is just that bizarre sometimes. 

The best way to cope with this Losing Stuff/House Eating Belongings  phenomenon? Teach your kid(s) that mismatched socks are totally awesome, and that in a pinch, two different shoes is a totally A Thing, too. Just call it creative and resourcefulness training.