My Little Explorer/My Panic Moment

If you've ever spent much time around my son, you know that Aiden is a quite independent and self-confident little boy.  You may know that Aiden never went through separation anxiety.  You might have heard me tell about the time I lost him in the Mothercare store and he went out the front door into the mall only being noticed because the children's display toy trolley he was pushing set off an alarm.  And if you and I have a conversation at a play group you know that I am listening to you though mostly keeping my eyes on Aiden.

And this is not because I am a hovering mom who is prone to worry and micromanages her kid.  Aiden disappears in a flash and is quick to go off looking for new places (instead of playing with the toys and other children in the room).  Here are two very good reasons I can't lose sight of my child.  Last week, a mum (probably) absentmindedly left the front door of the hall open at a play group we regularly attend.  Because I was washing up the tea cups and did not know the door was open, I presumed Aiden was somewhere in the building.  Wrong.  Fortunately, my friend saw Aiden leave and caught up with him at the road as he excitedly said one of his favorite words, 'Cars!'.

Yeah, that's probably reason enough.  But in case you aren't convinced yet... Today, I visited a friend that I regularly meet up with at her house.  They live in one of several row homes that share a large communal garden with a gate.  I sat down to eat lunch in her kitchen (with the back door open) while Aiden played both in and out of the house.  I checked on him every so often and he was fine.  After finishing my lunch, I popped my head out of the back door to see where he was and, not seeing him, began checking the garden sheds and around the gate area.  No Aiden.  I checked the road, even though the gate was locked.  Still couldn't find him.  I was sure he had not come past me into the house.  Just starting to panic, I realized a few neighbors had their back doors open as it was a nice, warm and sunny day.  I knew immediately he would definitely have gone into an unfamiliar home just to explore.  Not timid at all, I found him playing with a set of trains at the kitchen table inside a neighbor's home.  As I walked in the back door and he saw me, he said, 'Choo, Choo!'.  I was so relieved and at the same time very disturbed.  The neighbor didn't seem to be around - just a cleaning lady who was totally ok with some random kid coming inside to play.  Maybe she didn't know the people who normally live in that house.  Maybe she thought his mother must know where he is.  I'm just happy he didn't go up the stairs and play in someone's bedroom before I found him!

Now, I am really proud of his confidence in himself and his trust in me (that I will always find him).  It is great that he likes to explore, but Aiden is still so young - how can I get him to understand that some of his explorations are not safe?  I really wonder if he did get 'lost' if he would even be worried about finding me?  I pray I never have a truly scary experience of not being able to find him for more than a few minutes.  Recently, my dad told me about a GPS locator watch for children.  Maybe that's not a bad idea.