Well, what is a week in the Meissler household without a little drama....I voiced to my momma that I was feeling a bit like Job, and she gently pointed out that that is how every parent feels when bad stuff happens to their babies! Ours just seemed more prolific on account of our family size :-). She's right (of course) and we are extremely blessed, but I really am craving a little reprieve...
Yesterday was Memorial Day, and we decided to host some families at our home as we LOVE spending time together and yet, in the hustle and bustle of life, which includes Dad's school schedule in addition to the kiddos, we hadn't all had a chance to get together since LAST year! In any case, we were long overdue. The 'perk' of being in church work is access to any additional tables and chairs needed to host shin-digs, and Craig had the truck loaded with chairs, 1 folding table and a cooler of ice. FABULOUS!
David was keen to help out, and after being praised about how strong he is (truly - he lifted a cooler I would have difficulty with w/o a problem!) he was eager to please. So, when Mom & Dad weren't looking, David took it upon himself to 'help' by moving a chair from the tailgate of Dad's truck, unaware that it was firmly attached to a stack behind it, and oblivious of the difficulty in moving a chair stacked in a truck, out. So, after some effort he pulled the chair free, only to have it land metal-top down onto his big-barefoot-toe in the street! His poor little-big-toenail (I just decided his Indian name should be 'little-big-toe') popped right off his nail bed and he somehow hobbled into the house crying, whereupon Natalie let out a scream and the parents were alerted to something 'amiss' in the household.
My first vision was David crying and Natalie screaming (it took a while for her to come to grips) while a HUGE pool of blood was forming under my little boy's foot. I swooped him up while Dad calmed Natalie down, (the 3 remaining girls all decided to take flight and solace in each other while the rest of us dealt with whatever had happened), and I attempted to rinse David's foot to see what was causing all the bleeding. It was then that I deduced we were in for a trip to the E.R....the absolute WORST scream I have ever heard sprung out of the lungs of my quiet boy while a weird looking hole on his toe started spring-gushing blood all over the sink. I grabbed a towel, my boy, and left with Ella & Natalie in charge (ceasing to take into account my 'house-dress', Craig's torn 'work' shorts and the most impractical pair of wedge heels ever - they were the first shoes I found!) and Craig took the wheel while I tried to calm David down as we drove to get some help.
The clinic near home was closed, so we then headed for the nearest E.R.. We arrived there at 9:40pm, and didn't leave until 2:40am. During that time, David had an xray, 4 shots in the skin upon which a nail had once laid, 4 stitches and one Popsicle. We kept David from seeing the stitching, telling him (okay, lying to him, but it was a necessary evil at this point) that the doctor was "making a band-aid" for him. A dressing was applied to the wound and we were discharged LATE because (I'm convinced) I rang the 'call' button to let the staff know his wound care was complete and all he needed were his discharge papers and prescriptions (Tylenol w/ codeine & antibiotic). After all, it had been over 1 hour since the last person was in our room! The nurse who took the call (male) informed me that the night was a busy one, and they would find our nurse as soon as possible. By the time our nurse finally checked back IN with us, she was expecting to find the room empty, and then realized OUR CHART WAS LOST!!!!! Infuriating, especially since the Mama-Bear wanted only to hold, cuddle, comfort, drug and get her poor boy to sleep (he really and truly couldn't because of all the noise and gear in the hospital room!). After some searching and profuse apologies (though I'm sure it was the 'call' switchboard guy who deliberately 'lost' our folder, as everything was running smoothly until then) we finally headed home, only to wake our brood upon our arrival (except for Grace, who is blessed enough to sleep through anything!).
After getting everyone settled, finding David's lost nail for the 'nail fairy' in the street-w/o a flashlight (mommy rocks, if I do say so myself:-), we finally collapsed into bed at 4am! Upon waking at 8 & 9am, Dad and Mom set to task preparing the food trays and yard for entertaining on Memorial Day. This is the point where God truly provided beyond comprehension grace, stamina and devotion to getting the family, house, outdoors and medical needs for David met (aka Walgreens) in the 'crunch' hours before party time. We had a FABULOUS time with our guests, and managed to stay awake and functioning through the day - ALL Glory To God.
God Rocks....enough said!
I'll post more as soon as my body recovers from all the sleep deprivation and adrenaline driven entertaining....
Love Much,
The Meissler 7
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