Missing in action

By LIA SPENCER

THIS morning while getting Isla dressed, I faced the same predicament I face almost seven days a week. Where is the matching bloody sock?
No lie, I took out 20 different socks, and not one had a partner, which is extremely strange as most of Isla’s laundry was done! I contemplated sending her to creche with one purple sock and one green, but I was adamant on finding at least one pair.
Hard work and determination paid off and I won the special sock edition of hide and seek. But this situation has let me to think about all of the things that go missing in our house.
The next disappearing objects are dummies. I know dentists everywhere are shaking their heads and groaning in disappointment, but dummies are a saving grace – when we can find one.
At any one point, Isla can have about ten dummies on the go, then with a wave of the wand and a flash of light, they’re gone.
There can be three dummies in her playroom, one in her cot, one on the change table, one in my handbag and one on my bedside table, but the moment Isla gets tired and squeals for her dummy, they are nowhere to be found.
I am convinced the dummy-fairy is having a lend of me – picking them all up and snickering when I am on the search for the little plastic suckers, and then spreading them around the house after Isla is fast asleep.
Next are tubberware (or tubberwhere?) lids. When we plan to head out to the park, a play centre or on a road trip, I always pack a lot of snacks – but I usually end up packing them in a plastic garbage bag or wrapped in foil because I cannot find the blasted lids to the tubberware! Even though I have a dedicated drawer to the tubberware, not one lid matches its counterparts. It’s extremely frustrating. I don’t spend a lot of money on good tubberware for this reason – but maybe I should. I used to snap all my cheap sunnies and the moment I paid a little more for them, I took better care of them – and they have lasted me years. So maybe the same would go with tubberware?
Lastly is hairclips and elastics. I rarely put a ponytail in Isla’s hair, because when I do it usually ends up in a fuzzy knotted mess anyway. But when I do decide to put her hair up, usually for a special occasion, all her hair clips and pony tail elastics have gone missing! I think they must be off partying with the socks, dancing on tubberware lids and sucking back dummies.
No matter what I do to try and combat the problem, I have been told this is a recurring issue in several household that doesn’t go away. I only have one child. In this modern day and age, with many kids living in two houses from split families, I can only imagine the sock and tubberware situation is out-of-control.
I feel for the confused sock-seeking parents everywhere.
I would love to hear your hints and tips on how to tackle the case of the missing bits and pieces.
Email your suggestions to lia.spencer@starnewsgroup.com.au and I will share them in our next Mum’s the Word!

Lia