Missing: Three pairs of shoes and one belt

I have spent the last couple of weeks completely baffled as to the whereabouts of three pairs of my shoes and a belt. They were last seen lurking amongst the usual pile of clothing and accessories which have taken up permanent residence in a corner of my bedroom.

I was truly puzzled. Where on earth could they be? I retraced my steps – were they in a different pile of stuff on the floor? Had I somehow had a moment of orderliness and actually put them away properly? Apparently not.

My suspicions were then drawn to the children, who are often to be seen clip clopping around the house in one or other of my shoes. I checked all their usual ‘secret’ hiding places: under the beds, in toy baskets and down the loo. Still no sign. Even the four-year-old under interrogation wouldn’t confess to any knowledge of their whereabouts. He alleged that he hadn’t seen the small red head with them either. I had come to the conclusion that I must have put them in the charity bag by mistake when, this morning, the mystery was finally solved.

In an unexpected burst of Sunday morning energy, I took it upon myself to empty the laundry basket, and I mean empty it. Wash everything in it until I could actually see the bottom. Brave, I know.

And would you believe it, several loads later - lo and behold - there, among the Triassic period of the family laundry, were my missing shoes and belt. The moral of the story being, keep on top of the laundry and one shall not lose one's posessions. I still suspect the small red headed one, although he’s maintaining his silence on the matter.

Missing: Three pairs of shoes and one belt