To the ends of the earth...for a bear.

Does your kid have some kind of favorite toy, fluffed animal (that's what Alex calls them), blanket that he or she NEEDS? Not just enjoys or loves, but truly needs.
Lilia has a blankie. She's 6 and still has to sleep with it every night, cries when mom forgets it for a sleepover at Nannie's and bring it along on car rides.
Alex has stinky bear. That blue bear has earned it's name!
If you've ever been with Alex for more than a few hours then you've met stinky bear. Somehow around 5-6 months old he became attached. He sucks on one ear and rubs the other as a comfort and to fall asleep. You could say Stinky bear is a crucial member of the Brindley family.

A couple of weeks ago the kids and I did a Target run. You know, a few groceries, new shoes for school and then tons of other stuff you didn't intend to buy!
As we were almost home, Alex wanted Stinky bear. He wasn't in the car. "Alex, where's Stinky bear?" (Alex has an insane memory for details and where he places things.) He was left in Target...somewhere in that big, big store. However, his memory wasn't able to remember exactly where he last put him down in that big store.
We get home around 4:30 and I send Dave back to the store in search of a beloved blue bear. Dave rounded the store and called me. No bear has been found. "You CANNOT come home without that bear," I said gruffly. He knew that, but I had to say it out loud.
Forty minutes later there he was...

...on the shoe shelf, just taking a nap! 

At one point during Dave's search the workers asked him, "You're still here?" What a parent wouldn't do, where a parent wouldn't go to search for that beloved bear.