The Mrs was sick, Sarah's fever had shot up overnight and Johan got his new nickname, "Grumpy Bear".
All alone and awake, after everyone has had their drowsy medicine, I decided to check in on Sarah in her room, to see how she was doing.
I opened the door and a careful glance told me she wasn't in her bed or mine. Since it was very dark, I entered the room silently and carefully explored the beds with my hands...
"Just a bunch of pillows and blankets," I thought. "The Mrs must have picked her up into her room. Or she got up and wandered in."
Knowing that the Mrs was in no state to take care of Sarah, Johan and herself that night, I went into her room with the intention of "kidnapping" Sarah back. The night light in the room was on. The Mrs was sleeping soundly with Johan beside her. There was no sign of Sarah.
Concerned and puzzled, I stepped into the room for a closer look. As quietly as I could, I searched the room. Johan was there. My wife was there. Asleep. Looked at the corners of the room: nothing. Checked the master bedroom bathroom: nothing.
Fought the urge to wake my wife up and ask her where Sarah is.
Went out, closed the door behind me and went back to Sarah's room and turned on the light. No Sarah on the bed.
Went into the hall, checked her play area. Nothing. Into the kitchen. The bathroom. Nothing. Opened the front door and checked her shoes. All accounted for. And the gate was locked.
Earlier in the evening, Sarah finally managed to open up the unlocked gate by herself, put on her slippers and wandered out. A small scare, but I caught her just in time.
A small lightbulb went off over my head.
I went back to her room, climbed into bed and examined the tiny gap between my bed and the wall.
There she was, face down and quiet, almost halfway under the bed.
Always fearing the worst, I checked her body temperature and for signs of breathing. She's alive!
Somehow, I managed to carefully pick her up from the cramped space without waking her up and settled her into her own bed.
Then I settled into my own bed and blogged about it.