Whew! Nothing like the adrenaline rush of protecting your kids and dogs from perceived danger. Today, our fire alarm went off in our apartment building. Sadly, this wasn't the first time. It has happened before and it's usually a false alarm. Again, sadly, I didn't act right away. Then I heard a knock on the neighbor's door, then the other's and I looked out the peephole and maintenance was knocking on doors. To me, that meant one thing: get out. I quickly grabbed my phone, a reluctant toddler who did NOT want to walk outside, my 6-month-old and my dogs followed us. My legs felt like noodles going down the stairs.

I stood on the grassy area with the kids and dogs and other residents. I called my husband. I conversed with some neighbors as we all tried to figure out what was happening. Luckily, and to my annoyance, it was a faulty heat sensor in one of the units. I finally corralled the dogs and my son, with the help of a neighbor.

It has been a little over 4 hours and I'm STILL catching my breath.