Fear

I am not a fearful person. It's not something I've worked on being, it's just come naturally to me. There aren't a lot of times in my life when I've even felt afraid, but when I do I try to be logical about it. Today I was afraid. Really afraid and not so much during the incident but after. Here's my story:

Kody and Issac were sleeping and I was on the computer working. Bella and Wyatt were playing outside. When Kody awoke I had Bella run up and let him out of his room. He was making his way down the stairs when Issac awoke running down the stairs to go out and play with the other kids. They love the outside.

Issac comes dashing back inside to grab something from Bella's room and Kody tails him in excitement. But just as quickly Issac comes barreling past Kody down the stairs and outside again. Kody is slower and I still hadn't heard him come back down the stairs to go outside. The sliding door was open and the screen in place and I could hear happy kid noises. All of the sudden I hear Wyatt saying to Bella that Kody pushed her screen out. Yes the screen to the window.

In my mind flashed a picture of my son climbing out the window. Call it the spirit, call it mom's intuition, call it what you may I had no doubt what my son was in the middle of doing. I jumped up yelling, "No Kody, Stop." I am screaming Stop the whole way up the stairs and to the back bedroom where I see Kody half hanging out the window staring back waiting for me feet off the ground teetering on the ledge. Below him lies a 15' drop to ground level and an additional 3-4' of a basement window enclosure. An 18' drop total. I have never been more grateful for one training my kids to be obedient to me, especially my crisis voice, two for the sudden flash that let me know exactly what was happening the exact second I overheard the screen had been pushed out of the window.

Once safely in the window with it shut and locked I felt total body shaking fear and a whole load of gratitude that a potential tragedy was escaped. I tried to explain to him why it was a no no, but I don't think his two year old mind grasps it. I honestly think in his head it was the quickest way for him to get his little body outside to play with his brothers and sister.