Can you smell that smell?

After almost four years of mommyhood, my nose has become quite sensitive. I can pick out a full diaper from half a room away, most of the time before anyone else (ie the Hubby) even has time to notice. 

It's a blessing and a curse.

Sometimes a particularly odiferous diaper gets stuck in the schnoz and I am smelling poo all day. But it's nice to nip the stench in the bud before my kids have a chance to offend too many people. I really do try not to scare my guests off, but usually the kids playing human pinball off my couches is enough to do that.

So my nose should be helping me out right now. We are missing a sippy cup. One of Leah's. With milk in it.

EW.

I noticed it gone more than a week ago. We were one down in the cabinet, but I figured it was in the dishwasher. It wasn't. By the time I had the dishes away and accounted for, I couldn't be sure when the cup actually went missing. 

We checked the living room. The basement. The van. Her bedroom. The van again. The garage. The basement. I checked with my friend who hosted playdate last week. No sign of a princess sippy.

A friend assured me, "Oh don't worry, you would smell it by now."

Exactly. That's what has me worried. Where in this house has my little Godzilla hidden her cup that my Mommy nose can't find it?!

I thought the mystery was close to being solved today. The rugrats got tired of squishing ladybugs outside, so they wanted to play inside. But it was post-nap/quiet time, which means they do nothing but drive me bonkers, so I sent them to the basement to play. The first time I descended to referee a screeching match, my nose gave me pause.

I stopped on the stairs. I sniffed. It was wet, almost musty. I walked in circles, sniffing. It was strongest near the stairs, but non-existent next to the obvious culprits - the sump pump, well tank, window, anything that normally has water. I was confused.

As soon as he got home from work, I sent the Hubby down to investigate, waiting for him to tell me I was crazy and he didn't smell anything. But he agreed and started a search for what he was sure was causing the smell - The Missing Sippy.

We turned the playroom upside down and STILL could not find the cup. And the longer we stayed down there, the weaker the smell got. When we checked again after dinner, the smell was gone.

And apparently, so is the Sippy. Forever. 

Note: If I have been to your house and you find a princess cup with a pink lid, I am not coming back to claim it. That is not mine. Grab a clothespin for your nose and call in the Haz-Mat team.