Field trip surprise

Nothing quite like starting off your morning like this...

And ending it like this....

Fortunately, Elisa's trip to the Queens Botanical Gardens was perfectly balmy and beautiful on this fall morning. And we toured the gardens a bit before making sachets of potpourri from the dried herbs and flowers they have. We were just about to head back to school around noon and I could tell it was nearly lunch time because I was starving. I texted Nacho to say I would be heading home soon and then said my goodbyes to Elisa at the front door of the building on our return. And not more than 5 minutes later, Nacho called while I was driving home. I didn't answer it but when he left a voicemail, I decided to ring back at a stoplight. He was at the park with Carolina and she fell and hit her head. She was bleeding and it wasn't stopping. I couldn't get there any faster, but I was on my way. In probably 5 minutes more, I was pulling up and she was calmly sitting in the stroller covered in blood smears that soaked through her hair and clothes. It looked bad, but what looked worse was the nasty gash on her hairline on the left side. This would need stitches, so off we went to NY Presbyterian Hospital in the city. It was the only pediatric ER I've heard good things about and I trusted them with making her head wound heal properly.  

Getting there was a breeze and within minutes we had a wristband for her and were seeing the triage nurse who gave her some numbing gel and Motrin for the pain.  Then the wait began. At first she was almost in shock, but then little by little she started to talk and get more animated. By the time Nacho parked and found us, she was almost acting normal. And then it was time for the sedative. She drank it like a pro and within 10 minutes her words started to linger and she started fading out.  They lead us to the exam room and she cuddled with me in the chair. I sang and she laid against my chest. She was absolutely calm and sweet. Then she got the giggles and started asking weird questions. Nacho and I were giggling too. She wanted her friends to come to our house. Okay, sure. The stitching didn't take too long and the doctor and nurses were really great with her.  Of course it helped that Carolina didn't flinch at all. Instead she watched "Sofia the First" with me and we tried to keep her hands from roaming around with the new rubber ducky they gave her. I can't even imagine doing this with Elisa. I mean, this kid was the most serene child under duress. And true to her nature, the minute Elisa saw her after school, she started crying and screaming and refused to sit next to her in the car. Oy vey. Yes, it's all about her. Still is. 

But we made it home and I spent most of this evening monitoring Carolina and making sure she wasn't running around. The sedative made her really uncoordinated and scarily so. I just kept thinking about her falling again against the tables or hitting a toy. Ouch. Everything looked sharp and deadly. Making it to bedtime was kind of a marathon after such an active and stressful day. And the beer and potstickers I made to reward myself for another parenting job well done never tasted so good. So yeah. Our first ER visit with Carolina is over. First stitches ever are complete. Now let's hope this scene doesn't repeat itself any time soon. I'm glad Nacho was on duty if only because I think he handled it as calmly as anyone could. And I was extra glad we were there together to take her in. Sometimes you just need that little bit of support as you manage these firsts. And we did it with grace and humor. Not bad. But really, the gold star goes to Carolina. What a champ. Love that kid. Love her even more tonight.

Party crashing

So far July has been a busy month for birthdays and celebrations and this weekend was no different. On Saturday morning, I was honored with a brunch along with my fellow pregnant friend Jessie by our playgroup mamas. It was a nice way to kick off the weekend and get a little fun time away from the kids, and I appreciate these ladies more and more every year. Being the next one up is a little daunting, but as I've seen over the past couple of months, each second time labor has its own unique story and challenge. Some have been easier, but mostly, I think they're just different which is something I'm trying to keep in mind as the days dwindle by. Later that day, we were off to celebrate another milestone for a playgroup family: Monica and Humphrey's one year anniversary at the Douglaston Club in Long Island. It was during their son Bix's birthday party last summer that I learned about Humphrey's colon cancer and the swift treatment he would begin to beat it. He and Monica decided to marry right away which didn't leave lots of time to organize a party obviously. But this summer, they more than made up for it with a gorgeous celebration of their life together and the news that Humphrey is cancer-free. In fact, he will soon be taking part in the PAN-MASS challenge, a bike ride across Massachusetts to raise money for cancer research. I can't think of a better reason to toast them and eat some fabulous cake...

The club was a beautiful setting for the whole affair and the kids had the run of a game room downstairs, complete with an old fashioned three-lane bowling alley and video arcade. Of course, mostly they just wanted to dance in the entry hall where the speakers were set up and so we did lots of that to keep the party going. The atmosphere was fun and lively and Nacho and I both enjoyed chatting with the couple's friends and family. It was a perfectly relaxing evening until the sound of a loud crash jolted me out of my seat in the dining room. I'd been sitting there winding down from the long day while Elisa and her friends paraded in and out of the room with toys and left again to dance. There were lots of parents around with kids so I didn't feel that she was bothering anyone and lately, she seems to hold her own with conversations so I figured she would come back to us when she needed something. But the epic boom from the hallway just sounded like disaster and by the time I rounded the doorway, I could hear a familiar wail beginning. Another mom was scooping Elisa up and looking frantically around for someone--anyone--to take her. I was there in seconds, but still there was that pang of guilt for not being there. I didn't see what happened and as I took Elisa into my arms and tried to assess the damage, it was hard to tell with the shards of glass everywhere and the overturned radiator cover what exactly had hit her in the head. But there it was: the goose egg bump to set my pulse racing and Elisa was inconsolable while people rushed to and fro getting me bags of ice that she wouldn't let me get near her head. It's the worst kind of helplessness to know what needs to be done, but to have a child who won't cooperate for fear of more pain. It's heartbreaking really. But within minutes it was clear there were no other lesions or bumps so my only problem was assessing the one staring back at me. It was giant and purple and I really didn't know if she would start vomiting or have a seizure or what. But thankfully, by the time we called an ambulance (our first!) both of us were calming down and the decision to go have her checked out at a nearby hospital was made.

It's never easy to know in the heat of the moment if you are doing the right thing medically when it feels like there are a thousand choices and still doing nothing would probably turn out okay. Why is that? Yet part of me was also reflecting on the sudden passing of a thirty-something coworker of Nacho's that died last week after hitting her head in the shower. She fell into a coma and died 4 days later. Stuff like that just snaps you out of your life for a second when you realize how absolutely devastating something so trivial can be. Still it's always good to be the parent of the most jovial child in the ER which we definitely were last night. Elisa was a champ through the whole thing and didn't fuss at all through the exam. She really impressed me by listening and doing exactly what was asked which was a small silver lining to the entire ordeal. We were in and out of LIJ in just over an hour (a miracle by any standard) and the doctor was very reassuring that he didn't feel anything to indicate a fracture under the swelling. So we kept a close eye on her last night and today she woke up with a much smaller purple bump and nothing else. Considering how much fun she had dancing the night away at the party, I'm sure it was much less traumatic for her. But for this pregnant momma, I think I'll take the rest of the week to recover from the adrenaline rush and just hope that the next hospital I'm in gives me a new baby to take home!