My Eddie Bauer Booster Seats Were Stolen!

I was so excited to finally be able to transfer my twins to booster seats. No more lifting them into their seats--they're heavy now! After doing research I settled on two Eddie Bauer Deluxe carseats. I like the straight seatbacks. Many of the other ones had curved seatbacks. I'm thinking that can't be good for my kids' backs.

I bought them on a Sunday, and by Wednesday they were gone! I dropped my kids off at preschool then went to Valley Fair Mall (I know it's new sexy name is Westfield Valley Fair, but I still prefer to call it Valley Fair) to have my Apple Powerbook looked at. I went back to my car and noticed that the front passenger seat was full of my kids' stuff and garbage. I knew I didn't leave it that way. I turned to look into the back seat to see if there were any other messes and to my horror both carseats were gone! I could not believe it! (No, I didn't lock my car....)

I sat in stunned silence for a few minutes trying to take in what had just happened. When you're the victim of a crime, no matter how small, it takes your mind a moment to adjust to this new reality: "I've been violated!"  Once the reality sunk in I felt scared. I started looking around. I mean, what if the "guy" was still around?! But there was no one around.

My next thought was "What if my kids had been with me? Where would they sit? And what if the person was had still been around when we got back to the car?" Then I felt grateful for what didn't happen.

After I pulled myself together I realized that I had to pick up my kids in 1/2 hour and where was I going to put them? I had to run out and get new carseats! I started calling around and couldn't find them because, of course, I needed 2 of them. In the end I had to call my husband to go and pick them up since he had carseats in his car and I eventually did get the same two carseats (I took the last two at the Cupertino Target!).

As I began telling people about what had happened, I started hearing stories about gas being siphoned from cars around their neighborhoods, the news that day reported that Costco was rationing rice and that many people were being forced to make a choice between buying groceries or gas because it has become so expensive just to afford the basics anymore. And to top it all off, my neighbor told me about how she went to our local Walgreens the previous morning and watched as a little old lady was run out of the store for trying to shoplift some eggs!

Has the recession in this country become so bad that people who wouldn't normally steal are now seeing it as an option just to get the basics, like food and gas? Are we heading into a depression? Suddenly I had a new fear.

The world looked a little darker, as if I had put dark sunglasses on.  Suddenly I was suspicious of everyone and began looking behind me when I got out of my car, especially when I was with my children.  I mean, if a little old lady is stealing eggs for her breakfast something is very wrong in this country! 

I have settled down since then, but I still wonder how this country is going to "get back to normal" if the cost of basic items like gas, food, energy, and water continue to rise so quickly. In my opinion, capitalism has run amok and I only hope that we can pull the reins in before we plummet into a depression.

And from now on I will always lock up my car.

Original post for Silicon Valley Moms Blog.

Cheryl also writes for: New Mom Central 50-something Moms Blog Betty Confidential Type-A Mom Mad About Multiples