Lot of punch for a little month

For being the shortest month of the year, February has raised quite a ruckus at our place.  It has been a busy month.  You would think I would just stop waiting for things to "slow down" but somehow I keep telling myself, "Once so and so is over, I'll be able to slow down." I've been saying things like this for, oh, around 2 1/2 years now.  In fact, I said the phrase, "If I can just make it through these next two weeks..." so many times, it became a joke amongst my sisters and myself.  Any time one of us is in a really busy place, we've been known to quote it to each other.

At the forefront of my mind this month was Mom's birthday. February 12th is her birthday, and for about two weeks beforehand, I had a pretty hard time. Thank goodness my life does not afford me the ability to hide under my covers!  There were a couple of days when I really wanted to.  I wanted to do something with my kids to commemorate the day.  Both of my kids talk about Grammy every day.  And that is no exaggeration. After we talked about doing something special on Grammy's birthday, Emily came home from school with a Valentine just for Grammy.  It took every ounce of power I had not to burst into tears right in front of her.  I'm fairly certain that was not the response she was expecting!

We decided to write messages to Grammy and send them to heaven with balloons. So that's what we did.

It was a really sweet time with my kids.  As the balloons took off, I was just hoping against hope that there would be no popping or entanglement in a tree/power line or other tragedy involving the balloons. I think it would've been more than any of us could handle. 

My siblings and I met for dinner that night.  We have been meeting for birthdays at this little cajun restaurant in a little town that is about half way between the two cities we live in.  We were all so distracted, that none of remembered that night was Mardi Gras! We got to the restaurant and it was bumpin'! It was quite a contrast to how we were all feeling.  When the waiter offered my brother a commemorative glass, we could hardly take it!  We refrained from bursting out laughing, because did we really want to explain the situation to the waiter? Nothing could have possibly made him feel any more awkward!

So. Cross another "first" off the list. 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Big Dan and I have spent some quality time at the Children's Hospital Radiology Department.

This happened.

"This" would be me pulling Emily's elbow out of socket at a birthday party. 

Listen.  I'm still so mad at this whole situation.  I'll tell you why.  It all started when we went to a birthday party at this new trampoline extravaganza place last month. For starters, we were 30 minutes late because I had no idea that with traffic it would take me AN HOUR to get there.  Following that, I had decided not to let Emily jump because she is little. Let me just say, she poured out her wrath. She caused a complete scene, and I'm sure my face/neck were red and splotchy for the entirety of the party. 

So, when we got invited to another party at the same place, I put my game planning skills into action. We would leave with plenty of time to get to the party, eating a great big protein snack on the way. I would pay for Emily to jump and I would supervise her while Drew played with his party friends.  It was an iron clad plan to avoid becoming the birthday party spectacle.

Oh cruel fate.

I should know better.  Somehow, some way, I seem to always end up a spectacle.  I believe it is just the tiny shreds of my pride that remain being obliterated for good. 

Here's how it went down. Emily was jumping from a small trampoline into a foam pit.  She had done it several times and had climbed out just fine. On the last time (foreshadowing...) she jumped in and was pretending to "swim" in the foam pit.  After a few minutes she was sinking down and was having trouble getting out, so I reach in to help pull her out.  I did manage to get her out, but about a second after her feet hit the mat, she was screaming.  I knew it was not good.  Emily has a SUPER high pain tolerance. She does not complain unless something is really bothering her.  And she was hysterical. I was stuck trying to figure out what to do. Most people at the party suggested it was an elbow out of socket. I tried to wrangle a nurse friend into helping me, but apparently they only teach the super secret three second move to put an elbow back in its socket to doctors. 

Miraculously, there was a cancellation at our doctor's office after hours clinic.  I had exactly 20 minutes to get across town. I had to make Drew leave before he had cake, and I did the walk of shame with two crying kids down the long corridor of Trampoline Paradise.

That place is dead to me.

People kept saying that once the doctor popped her arm back in the socket, she would be totally fine. No one said to me that she would be awake all night crying. But she was. I had to work the next day, so Big Dan stepped up and took her to the doctor that morning.  Because of the amount of pain she was in, the ped sent her to have x-rays.  Thankfully, her arm was not broken.

That's the good news.

The weird news is that there is a "foreign body" in her hand made out of some sort of material that would show up on an x-ray.  I know.  I wish I could make this make sense to you. But I can't. Because first, I would have to make it make sense to me. I've seen the x-ray. It's totally there. Like a shard of something. There is no evidence on her hand that would suggest HOW it got in there. WHAT??!!

Next Thursday we're off to a surgical consult. 

I've never typed a more unexpected sentence in all my life!

Snow-ish Day

Last night I rolled in from book club at 11:30 p.m.  This was after driving 30 minutes in the snow, and making a pit stop for a stapler. Don't ask. If you know me at all, you know that 11:30 is way past my bedtime, particularly when I still have things to do.  Like, you know, prepare for  parent teacher conferences.  It was well past midnight when I went to bed and I was already having anxiety about the next morning because I didn't make time to pack lunches and assemble belongings. My trusty weather source on the Twitter assured me there would be no issues with the roads, so I settled in for a little nap.

When my alarm went off this morning, I think I said a bad word.  I lay in the bed trying to will myself out and it dawned on me to check the news station's website.  Hoping against hope I clicked on the closings link and sure enough: Davidson County Schools: closed!!!

Now, I wasn't out of the woods just yet.  We have a new policy at the preschool.  It involves autonomy in school closing decisions.  But, at least I didn't have to get Drew to school on time.  This earned me a solid half an hour. Since the children were not yet stirring-which is miraculous in and of itself-I lay very still and maybe fervently prayed for my place of work to be closed. Don't judge. I love my job.  I love my class, but sometimes you just need a day off. Finally word came in-no school today!  Well, I was so energized by the news, that I sprang out of bed and bounded downstairs to tell my now stirring children.

Drew burst into tears.

Bless that kid's heart.  I love him so much.  He is one of the most earnest and intense kids I know.  He had gotten out of bed, put on his "standard attire" and put his pjs on over his clothes (just like the teacher asked) in preparation for "hibernation day". Drew's teacher is AH-MAZING. And Fridays are almost always special in her class.  Drew could not wait to bring his flashlight and his beloved Ribbit to school with him (we were especially relieved when we found out frogs do, in fact, hibernate).

It was a difficult moment.  My elation was difficult to hide. Drew was annoyed with me that I would in any way be happy about the situation. I promised fun and togetherness and a blissful snow day.

I did not deliver.

I've had some sort of crud brewing for a couple of days. When I sat down on the couch for snuggles and shows, I absolutely could not keep my eyes open. By midday I was barely coherent.  I managed to get my kids settled in for rest time just moments before I passed out hard core on the couch.  I was hoping to zip around and be productive and fun.  I was exactly the opposite of zippy. I finally took some serious meds laced with some serious caffeine and determined to save the day.  How did I do that? Simple.  First, I put new batteries in an old video camera and handed it over to Drew (BEST.MOM.EVER) and then we went to Target for dinner and shopping for Valentines paraphernalia.

I asked Drew if he had a fun day with me.  He gave me the "so-so" hand signal! Ha! And so now we're on sickness watch 2013. All manner of sickness has been plaguing the preschool this week including, but not limited to: pneumonia, bronchitis, stomach bugs and flu.  I am hoping for a good old fashioned cold.