Family - Marriage - Parenting

Confusion then Chagrin

Everywhere our children go, they turn on lights. And don’t turn them off. Whenever we are getting ready to leave the house, I have to build in an extra five minutes just to go around turning off lights that they’ve left on.

Last night, before bed, Chris went downstairs and noticed that our youngest child (the last one to set foot down there) had left EVERY SINGLE light on. Chris turned them off and we had an exasperated laugh together about it.

This morning, after I’ve gotten the boys off to school and long after Chris has left for work, I head downstairs. And realize that all the lights are on. I send him a text.

If just the main light had been on, I would have assumed Chris went down there to grab something from his home office before heading to work. But the laundry room, especially, puzzled me. Even if a child had gotten up in the middle of the night, they’d have no reason to go in there.

I was starting to get a little nervous.

It only took me about 2 hours and some frantic searching through every closet and hidey-hole for some unknown intruder whose only aim in life was not to steal from us but to rack up our electric bill before I realized:

The kids had wanted to play a game of hide-and-seek this morning, and I obliged. It took them a while to find me in my hiding spot, OF COURSE they checked the basement, and now it makes absolute sense why the laundry light might be on.

First I was confused, then I was worried, and then I was… chagrined.