I wanted to get this post into 12/27/02 because that is the day this happened.

I took the kids to see Lord of the Rings. About an hour in the movie, Jenny went to the restroom and did not return. After 15 minutes, I left the theater to look for her. We were in a 16-plex theater. She was not in the restroom and I look around the theater lobbies. No Jenny. I went to the Manager and asked for help locating Jenny. We went back into the theater and the one next door because it was playing the same movie. No Jenny. I got the two boys to leave the theater and to star looking around the property for Jenny. At this point, she had been missing more than 30 minutes. I called Dick and started to get hysterical. I asked the manager to call the police. Security showed up and tried to get a description of Jenny. The three of us described her clothing differently. We were not much help.

I talked to the police dispatcher who wanted a description so she could release an APB on Jenny. I got more and more frantic. Dick had said not to call Judy until we were sure she was not in the theater complex. The theater manager agreed. I sent the boys in the theaters near the one we were in. I wanted them to walk up and down the aisles looking for her.

The police showed up and started to question with description type of questions. He talked to the boys. Then, I saw two theater employees leading Jenny out of the theater we were in! I ran to her and grabbed her. I was yelling, "Where were you? We were so worried!".

The theater manager told me that he was pretty sure that Jenny was still in the theater. He has seen it happen many times. Kids get turned around and do not remember where they were sitting. They do not want to call attention to themselves, so they sit and get re-involved in the movie. That is probably why she did not see us walking up and down the aisles. Since she is short, she was not easy to see in the dark.

The theater employees were sent in again by theater management. Their instructions were to look for a lone, female child. They found her sitting near the front!

I told the manager that I was far too upset to go back to watch the remaining part of the show. By that time, we had already missed as hour of the show. He was very understanding and gave us four passes to see the show later.

Everyone was understanding. I apologized for being so hysterical. Everyone was just glad that nothing bad had happened. The police officer did give Jenny a little lecture about needing to ask for help is she ever gets separated from her family!

As I drove away from the theater, I thought that I would not want to take responsibility for the children anymore. I did not want to take them to the movies and Friday, anymore. Fortunately, by the time we got to the house, I was feeling clamer and able to see that Jenny was never in any danger. I was over reacting.I agreed to take the kids to see the show again next week. This time, I want to make sure all the kids know where we are sitting. Should I go with her to the restroom? Have to think about that. I do not want Jenny to become afraid.