Safety 101

Carver is 11... soon to be 12. As he grows older he is entrusted with more responsibilities. Which is good for him, but worrying for mama. Every day when I look at him, I see the 2 year old boy who spent his day giggling. It's hard to keep up with how fast he's growing.

We live on a beautiful, secluded street. It's a loop, so the kids have the freedom to ride their bikes around the loop (if they're together). Carver has the option to ride his bike by himself around our neighborhood. We've talked about what to do if you get hurt or lost. We've talked about not talking to strangers or getting into their cars. We've talked about calling home if you meet a friend and want to play. But we've never talked about what to do if you meet a bear. Which turns out to be the one thing we should have talked about.

Who knew?

The other day Carver rode his bike around our loop and stopped at a neighbor's house. He rang the doorbell but no one was home. He turned to go but stopped when he heard a rustling sound. A bear (Yes, a bear. I did not say squirrel or fox or rabbit or raccoon or hedgehog or big dog or giraffe or flamingo or beaver. I said bear.) walked out of the bushes and stood between Carver and his bike. The bear sniffed Carver's bike and rooted around for a little bit, then strolled on down the driveway and across the street. Carver then picked his jaw up off the porch, wiped the cold sweat off his brow, grabbed his bike and booked it out of there.

He was shaken up. I was floored. I tried not to overreact but praised him for his cool head and quick actions. Then I went inside and fainted. I've said it before and I'll say it again. This motherhood stuff is not for sissies.

The bear is a bit lost. Yes we live in Colorado and yes we live in a woodsy area, but we also live pretty far from the foothills and are smack in the middle of a city. I'm hoping he finds his way back to the mountains to hibernate. Since Carver saw it, the bear has been on our back porch twice. Now, when anyone wants to go outside, we have to do a bear check. It's reeeeeeaaaaallllly fun.*

(*that's me being sarcastic.)