Mom Awards

I was in Kate's room last night and I noticed a note on her Bulletin Board.

Well, that was about a year ago when she broke her thumb but it reminded of the story behind it all. And how I know Dr. Greer was probably thinking he should turn me into DHR.

As you know, kids fall and get hurt all the time. A Ziploc with ice or a band-aid almost always makes it better. One day, while out shopping or somewhere and had forgotten to take my phone into the store with me (Mom mistake #1, I always try have my phone in case the school needs to call with an emergency), I have a voicemail from the school nurse. "Ms. Garrett, Kate has hurt her thumb in P.E., we just wanted to let you know so you can look at it when she gets home". Well it doesn't sound too serious but I call just so the school doesn't think I'm not paying attention at all. The nurse tells me she thought it was o.k., that she gave her an ice pack and sent her back to class.

So it comes time to pick her up after school and I have a car full. I carpool in this crazy neighborhood so I had atleast 5 or 6 kids in the car. Kate gets in first and goes all the way to the back of the van, where I can't see her thumb. So as we are pulling away and everyone is buckling up I say "Kate, how's you thumb?" She says, "O.K., I can't move it though". Okay, I know that should have been reason for concern, but I swear just 2 days before that she had hurt another finger and swore she couldn't move it, so I just figured it was the same kind of thing, plus, I had to ask, she didn't tell me anything about the thumb. So we get home, I drop off all the extra kids, I'm dealing with a sick cat...I forget all about the thumb.

At about 4:30, my college age niece comes over to help me with my cat and Kate comes joyfully bouncing into the living room, "Hey Jessi! Look at my thumb!" I am not kidding, that thing was black and blue, bent, and as big as my big toe! Jessi looks at me (budding doctor that she is) and says, "Have you seen this, I think you better take her to the doctor right now." So I call the doctor, they say come right in and when I get there of course the nurse is asking me when this happened and my answer is around 11:00 a.m. She barely looks at me while I'm fumbling with my explanation of why I just now bringing her to the doctor 6 hours later.

Well, because it is so late in the day, we had to sit in the doctors office for a long time, probably an hour in the patient room just waiting. About 30 minutes into sitting there, Wheeler crawls up in my lap, complaining that he's cold and that his throat hurts. I think he feels a little warm so the next time the nurse comes in I ask her to take his temperature. It's 102! They do a strep test, and it comes back immediately positive! I wasn't even there for him! Double whammy!

I'm thinking that Dr.'s office watches me closely everytime I go in there. I know they are thinking I deserve an award for such attentiveness to my kids.

And don't even ask me why the note to Dr. Godsil is on her bulletin board and not in the mail to the good doctor! Like I said, it was only a year ago, I've just been so busy!