urgent cared {still + life}
Thursday, April 25, 2013 at 05:00AM 
Last Wednesday was already one of those days. I'd had this post all set to go, and then there were more explosions (West, TX) and after that we were all caught in the grip of watching the manhunt in Boston. I pulled my post after that. And I almost didn't repost it. But I have to remember. This blog is, as much as anything, the story of my family. I don't want to forget about that as I take pictures and test recipes. Sometimes our day to day is everything. It's all we have.
So Wednesday. Last Wednesday. Met a friend for coffe in the morning. Ran home to meet the pest control and do some work for a client in the afternoon. We already knew the evening was going to be a juggle. I had a meeting, and Neel had extra work to do to get ready for an event he has today. At the last minute we decided I'd pick Cal up from school, so before I left I threw our sausage and bean go-to dinner together for Neel to warm up as we were on our way home. The plan was I'd dash in the door with Cal after baseball practice, snag a bowl of supper and dash out, and Neel would either head back to work or try to work at home. All good, right?
It's often true that sitting in carpool is one of my favorite times of the day. It's weird. I get to school early to get Callum. To miss the worst of the traffic, I have to. It's either leave later, sit on the freeway and zoom in late or at the last minute to grab him, or I leave a bit earlier, actually drive my car (rather than sit in it on the freeway), get to school a bit early and sit there. Sitting there, I can catch up on twitter, flip through a catalog or magazine or read a book. You can see why I choose the latter. By 5:30 all the practices are letting out and the kids come streaming past me. Baseball is always last, and soon enough Callum's capped head appears in the passenger window. He's always peering into the passenger seat to see what kind of snack I've brought (Cliff bars, usually.)
Today I could tell right away that something was wrong. "I think I have an ear infection," he told me. It had been clogged all day and started hurting in baseball practice. Ear infections are not uncommon around here, and my boy knows his symptoms. Right then I made the decision. The pediatrician was closed by that time, so we'd head straight to urgent care before going home. Not worth messing around. I called Neel, who was already home and ready to light a fire under the soup, and as soon as Callum grabbed his backpack we were off. Mentally, I kissed my meeting good-bye. Mwah. Bye.
Three hours, one very nice doctor, three attempts to take his temperature because he kept accidentally drinking cold water, a whole host of meds, and one clearly innacurate measuring thingy (since it said he's taller than me) later, and we headed home. Ear infection. While we were there he got numbing drops, antibiotics, nasal spray and a strong suggestion to see an allergist. Once he got home he got dinner, a bath and a cozy bedtime. Still my baby. Even if he's officially taller than me (totally demanding a recount).
Reader Comments (5)
And he will ALWAYS be your baby. That's a good thing.
Channel your best Al Gore and demand a recount! I'm sorry about Cal's ear infection, those things are such a pain. I had a bunch growing up, usually brought on by swimming, which I guess makes them swimmer's ear and not a regular ear infection? I don't know. I like that you are able to adapt to any sort of crisis as well as you do. I'm a mess if my plans go even s a tiny bit off course, but I guess having kids will take that away from me. You have that whole 'grace under fire' thing down to a science.
I hope he's feeling better by now - allergies, infections, all that stuff should not be getting in the way of an active boy enjoying the spring time
So, Cal was right, he had an ear infection. Strangely enough, reading this post is giving me hope that someday in the future my kids will reach an age when they'll be able to tell me exactly what's ailing them. For now, it's a lot of guessing. Is he already taller than you?! I feel like he was just about to pass you when we all met almost a year ago. Well, hope Cal is back to feeling better. xo
yep, always our babies when they are sick (a part of me loves that they need us still). glad he is now feeling better; ear infections are horrid and painful. maybe you could both benefit from seeing an allergist? much love and good health to you both xx