The Greatest "Over My Head" Moment in Parenting History

As a young mother of only 20, I had the rare opportunity to stay at home to take care of my baby. My husband and I had moved in with his parents and I quit my job in retail while his commission sales job was used to pay off our debt. We didn't have money to finance a car so he drove the car his parents gave him when he was 16 to and from work. In addition, I didn't have my driver's license and my husband wouldn't let me drive until I got one. This left me stranded at the house until he got home from work, most of the time.

One summer, my mother in law went to Canada to visit an old friend of hers. She left her car in the driveway and the keys on her dresser. My husband had gone to work and my father in law was out fishing. I was bored to tears and needed interaction that didn't involve chicken nuggets and Blue's Clues.

I knew how to drive, of course. When I was in high school, I didn't see the need to get a license since I didn't have a car and once I was older, my husband drove me everywhere so I never needed one then. Today, however, I was desperate. I took the keys off my mother in law's dresser and loaded my nine month old daughter into her safety seat. I just wanted to get out. So I was off to the grocery store.

I hit the boredom fighter aisles... magazines, stationary, and chips. I swung past the produce section and picked up a cup of fresh cut cantaloupe, watermelon and honeydew for my daughter to munch on for the short trip home. I paid and we were off like a rocket.

We got to the car. I unlocked the back door and put the keys on the seat in front of my daughter's safety seat. I put her into the seat and got her situated. Then I searched the bags for her fruit cup, popped the top and gave it to her; kissing her on the forehead. I locked the door and slammed it shut, like I always did.

My daughter sat there looking at me while cheerfully smacking on a cube of watermelon. I admired her adorable little cheeks dampened with sweet watermelon juice. She dropped a piece and we both watched it as it fell to the floor. My daughter laughed and went back to the fruit cup for another piece. Meanwhile, my face fell. I noticed the car keys sitting on the seat between her cute little feet and my purse sitting on the floor. The keys to the car that I wasn't supposed to be driving were locked inside the car with my baby and my cell phone! My heart sank.

It really didn't matter that my cell phone was locked in the car because who could I call? I couldn't call the police. No license. I couldn't call my husband or my father in law for help. They'd both be so mad. Even if I could call anyone, I'd have to leave my daughter where she was and search for a pay phone. I couldn't run back into the store for help for the same reason. I was in way over my head, though and had no other choice. I said "Mommy will be right back sweetie!" like she understood what I was saying. She was paying more attention to the melon cup than she was to her precarious situation. Thankfully, it was a clear but cool day outside.

This is definitely something that they do not teach in parenting books. I ran back inside the store and straight to the customer service counter. I gasped "My purse is locked in my car with my baby. Can I take a wire hanger now to jimmy the lock and when the car is opened, I'll come back to pay you for the hanger?" The man behind the counter informed me that they did not carry wire hangers and apologized for not being more helpful. "Is there anyone I can call for you? Like a tow truck or something?"

I figured that I'd have better luck with a tow truck driver than a police officer. I said "Let me go check on my daughter and I'll be right back." I ran back out to the car and my daughter was safe and sound, if not a little angry that I had left her there. She saw my face and started fussing. My eyes welled up with tears and put my head in my hands.

"Ma'am. Are you okay?" a deep voice came from behind me. I sniffed and wiped my eyes. I turned around to see a rough looking man with tangled hair and an unshaven face looking rather concerned. I shook my head. "My baby is locked in my car and I can't get the door opened." I whined.

He said "Is that all?" and smiled. "A friend of mine left his slim-jim in the back of my truck. Maybe I can figure out how to use it and open your door for you." I knew that slim-jims were illegal to own and so did he. He wanted to make sure that I knew it wasn't his and that he had never actually used one before. I smiled and said "Okay mister, whatever."

For someone who had never used an illegal slim-jim before, he sure did handle it with expert precision. He slipped it between the window seal and the glass down into the door. After fishing around for about thirty seconds, he pulled sharply in on the flat piece of metal and the door popped open. I squeaked a gregarious thank you and had to resist the very strong urge to hug this complete stranger.

My daughter was happy to see me as I reached in to get the keys. I drove home quickly, but safely and put the car back exactly from where I had taken it. My daughter and I got back inside and I played it off like nothing had happened. Years later, when I was hanging out with my daughter, I told her all about it and we had a good laugh. She's never told her father although it is an inside joke that he's never figured out.