Praise the Lord our Simon is home! Since many of you have asked for the story, here it is:
On the morning of Saturday, July 17 we had been running errands. We returned home early afternoon with one child asleep and one extremely cranky and ready for a nap. I told Kevin to get Emmie and I would get Luke. I carried him in and left the door ajar for Kevin to bring Emmie in. Unbeknownst to us, it was during this time that Simon walked out the door. I suggested to Kevin that he go lie down in Luke’s bed with him since Luke was not really wanting to nap. He did and turned the sound machine on (so that you can’t hear anything that is going on outside of the room). I was rushing back out the door to go run more errands. I told Oscar bye on my way out, noticing that Simon was not with him and assuming that he had jumped up in the bed with Kevin and Luke. I ran my errands and came back home. As I walked in the door, my first words were, “Where is Simon?” Panic immediately set in as we realized he was absolutely not here. The next 16 days involved many, many trips to the animal control centers, rescues, vets offices, as well as putting up hundreds of fliers, posting on Craigslist daily, and running ads in the papers.
Meanwhile…
On the day in question, Simon apparently walked out and disappeared just long enough for me to not see him as I left to run errands. I imagine ke came back shortly after I left because he is a homebody and hates being outside for too long. He probably came to the door and whined and scratched while Kevin and Luke were snoozing to the sounds of the rainforest via the sound machine. Apparently there was a yardsale and Simon heard people. He went toward them and found a woman sitting in an air conditioned car and made himself at home. She took him home to play with her chihuahua and four little girls. A couple weeks later they notice some of the hundreds of fliers and craigslist listing. They said, “we have your dog. We are going to be gone all day. You can come get him in 10 hours.” 10 hours of torture ensues. Kevin goes to retrieve the trouble maker. Nice family refuses our vacation fund…I mean, reward money. My bed is way too crowded once again. That’s okay with me 
I’m so glad he is home safe & sound! What an adventure! Miss you guys!