Stolen Stroller - Beggars can't be choosers (Part - I)

So, here’s the deal. I tend to have a big heart most of the time. I also have a tendency to not say no. I feel like at one point in my life I slowly became de-sensitized to certain people around me and was able to say no more often and realize that I couldn’t be responsible for making everyone’s life all shiny and happy. But then I became a mom and my heart got all mushy and now I see a stray kitten and although I am allergic and don’t like cats I want to take it home, bathe it, give it milk and snuggle it forever, although my dogs and child would destroy it and my husband would be less than pleased. I am just a big softy these days.

I have tons of experiences I could share about helping people in the past or experiences of homeless people etc. I instead will focus on two of the more recent especially because they directly relate to my parenting journey and how they affect myself as a parent and my child.

We live in a small place and we do not have a garage so when we go on walks which is almost once a day we have to take the stroller from our hall closet carry it to the front door then assemble and by on our way. The same goes for when we get home, un-assemble and put back into the closet. This gets tedious and especially if I am going to use it twice in one day I have a tendency to leave it out the front door until we use it again. We live in a safe place (as safe as you can get I suppose without gates and guards). Anyhow I have never had anything taken from us here or any problems of that sort. Well low and behold this one particular afternoon about two weeks ago I was being lazy left the stroller out (one of two Britax strollers we own) and it was stolen. I was devastated. I was a very nice stroller that I anticipated using for a second maybe even third child and it was the stroller I pushed my sweet newborn it when he was just a week old, and now it was gone. As a mom, I tend to get emotional about things like this. You keep their “coming home from the hospital” clothes, you keep their first toy or blanket or whatever. But having something stolen and knowing it’s out there probably being sold makes you feel dirty and angry. Anyhow, I moved on and was pretty much over it shopping for and make plans for the new and shiny for one day when we have a second baby.

About a week after the stroller was stolen I was pulling onto our street and I saw a homeless woman pushing a stroller . . . OUR STROLLER. I knew it was ours, it wasn’t hard to tell and what happened next still blows my mind because it’s not like me. I pulled up next to her and rolled my window down.

“Excuse me but that is our stroller.” Me

“Oh, it is?” Woman with stroller

“Yes it was stolen off my door step last week, that is our stroller.” Me

At this point it was hard for me to even talk because I was unsure what I even expected from this “Stand-off” I was aware that I didn’t really want it back as I looked and all the trash and junk shoved in the cargo area and all her dirty and yucky belongings in the seat of the stroller. I kind of froze and didn’t know what to even so I just knew I felt I needed some kind of justice.

She was rambling on about how she bought it off some guy for $10 and that she would never steal especially not from a lady with a baby and that she was sorry and did I want it back?

I found myself saying yes, I did want it back but could I trade her for something? I didn’t want to just take it from her I am not a total witch. She said yes that she would go empty it out and be right back. I believed her! I drove to my place, ran inside loaded up one of our luggage pieced (with rollers on it) with waters, snack bags of nuts and pop tarts (don’t judge me it was an impulse buy).

Here’s where I decided I have completely lost my mind. I take myself and my toddler who is absolutely jazzed about rolling the luggage, back down to the street and wait. For forty-five minutes, I waited. Stupid.

To sum up; no, I probably didn’t really want the stroller back, it was probably dirty and been god knows where but my hormones and adrenaline were pumping and I hated knowing that a beloved item used my whole child’s life was out on the streets not being used for intended purposes. If she had a baby in that stroller: case closed. Please note I was never at any point rude to this woman and was wanting to help her and was going to offer her something in return. Long story short she never came back, I lugged us back home, put away the items and thought about how easily that woman lied to me and how relentless she was to get away with a stolen item. I also thought about how she probably thought I might call the cops or not actually trade her the stroller for something. We were both in fear of being duped and in this story, I was the sucker.

Thank you for reading, please stay tuned for my second story that is similar in ending and why although these things have happened to me I will continue to do my best to do good although it may not always be appreciated.