Baby Toot and the Lost Boot

Plump pumpkins assumed their seasonal positions in every available corner of the 66 acre Arboretum just minutes from our house. Mondays at the Arboretum have become a fall tradition for the Smith girls, complete with a myriad of photo attempts, face-painting, a musical sing-along session and a delightful trip to the petting zoo portion of the pumpkin filled masterpiece. So many miracles occurred on our first trip of October, including the large feat  of finding three coordinating pumpkin outfits and shoes and bows that not only fit all three of the girls but also met their expectations of what they wanted to wear (reminder my girls are 5, 3 and 1), that I should not have been surprised by the end of the trip. We even managed to get a shot of everyone looking at the camera and had enough snacks to last us for the entire experience. The activities were wrapping up, and the baby was rubbing her eyes, eager for what appeared to be a fabulously long afternoon nap, and we embarked on our stroll to the parking lot. By the time we got to the car, everyone was a bit needy for water, rest, more snacks and just to be home! I unloaded each girl, buckled the littles into car-seats and manhandled the double-made-triple stroller into the back of the car as the whines and cries started to intensify. We may have stayed a few minutes too long. My nerves were rising, but we were only 8 minutes from home and all would be well soon. Or so I thought until I heard that Avonlea, the baby, was not just crying for sleep but was crying out one word “shoe, shoe, shoe!” I looked down, and sure enough she was only wearing one of her boots. I searched all over the car and under the car for any chance that we would not have to unload everyone back into the stroller to search for the boot. What did I find? Avonlea’s paci under the car and NO boot. Great. We were going to have to get everyone back out WITHOUT a paci! . I mustered up what little strength I had left and got all of the girls back in the stroller and headed toward the entrance. On our way back, we ran into a friend who offered to look for us, but she did not find the boot and only left a number with the lost and found. I debated going home, but by this time the baby was sleeping in the stroller, so we just went in and took one last look. As we scoured the area to no avail, Lorelai, my five- year old, said “I think we should try that praying thing.” Why did it take us all of this time to realize that we could just ask the Lord for help? I am so thankful for her faith and her reminder that God cares about everything that is important to us, including our lost boot and need for naptime. So, we prayed and walked back to the car, buckled in and headed home. Before we even made it to the driveway, I got a message that the boot was found and being held for us at the information desk. The Lord answered Lorelai’s prayers, but the thought of going back to the Arboretum on that day made me want to cry, so we went home and planned to go the following day. However, during the next day, I could not find a time to go pick up the boot. I kept planning to head out at different points and then something would come up and derail our trip. It was late afternoon before we were able to squeeze in a quick trip to grab the boot on our way to pick up Lorelai from Kindergarten. Upon arrival, we found the kindest lady who led us on a very long trail to the lost and found, housed in the back of the offices of the Arboretum. While two other women searched for the boot, the first lady told me of all of the different things that have made their way back to the lost and found, including a baby doll that she had found earlier that day. Finally, the women walked over to one more clear plastic tote that contained a very “loved” baby in a blue outfit right next to our black boot! “There it is!” I pointed excitedly. The lady brought us the boot, and we surprisingly had 10 extra minutes that we could spend playing among the pumpkins before we needed to head to Kindergarten car line. We had a great time, and started back toward the car when I saw a frantic mom with two toddlers. I overheard her saying “I don’t know where else to look! We might have to leave without the baby!” I walked over to her and asked if she had lost a baby doll. The look on her face was priceless. “Yes! YES! We lost a baby and have been walking around all afternoon asking everyone if they have seen it! Have you seen a baby doll???” I asked her if the baby was wearing a blue outfit, and she looked like tears of joy were going to start rolling any minute. She turned to her children and exclaimed, ” This lady has seen Baby Toot! I think we have found Baby Toot!” Oh my goodness.  This was already an exceptional moment, but the rhyming put it over the top. My writer’s mind was going wild with the possibilities, come on, Baby Toot and the Lost Boot? No way was this real. I directed her to the lost and found where she connected with the kind lady from earlier who then led her to Baby Toot while my daughters and I headed towards the car. As we rode along, we talked about how incredible it was to be a part of finding the missing baby for that family. We even decided that it was worth it to lose Avonlea’s boot and all of the stress that went with that ordeal just to be the ones who were able to deliver the good news of Baby Toot’s whereabouts to her owner. Then an amazing conversation flowed about how sometimes God allows difficult things to happen so that we can be a part of helping other people who might go through the same things and that the joy of being a part of sharing His good news is totally worth any hardship we may endure. He knew all along that this family would need some help directing them to their baby doll and that we would find so much joy in being a part of that process. He knew what time to send us back for the boot and that we would be grateful for every obstacle in the end. This is true for all of us. God invites us to join Him in His work, to seek and save that which is lost, and it is a joy to do this work with Him. Now, when I find myself in a season when hardship is setting me up to help someone else in the future instead of the more preferred moments of witnessing someone rejoice at receiving good news, God can remind me of His promises to work all things out for good by whispering our new catch phrase straight to my heart , “Baby Toot and the Lost Boot.”