Adventures in the Med Center

S2 had been sick at home for three days before I thought to look down his throat. It was at four in the afternoon on a Friday that I realized we had a case of strep on our hands.
How could a mom of four boys miss this?

Well, for starters, I just plain old fashioned didn't believe him. He complains he is sick all the time. If he hears there is anything at school, if he feels he didn't do his homework well, he is suddenly very ill.

For instance, Pink Eye was in school. His exact words were “Moma, I think I am sick.” He falls on our bed dramatically. “My throat is sore so I know I just have to have Pink Eye.”
“Pink eye is IN your eye.”

“I know, that's why my throat is sore.”

So when he complained he was dizzy and that is all, I figured he was just over tired. And he hadn't read his book all the way for the next day. But he did seem pretty miserable so we decided to let him stay home. He had been getting up with hubby at 5 in the morning to eat breakfast just to spend some daddy time so it made sense he would be over tired.

But Friday afternoon I knew he was really really sick. Perfect timing, as the pediatrician's office closes for the weekend. I called anyhow, dreaming wildly that they would say, “why, yes, we agree that must be what he has, six kids out of his class with the same thing and all. We will call in the medicine for you, bring him by Monday if you feel he isn't getting better. You try to have a good weekend, you sweet mom, you!”

I didn't think that would happen, but I dreamed it would.

I just LOVE LOVE LOVE my pediatrician and the office workers there. Truly. I would go there just to chat with them all if they weren't so busy. But I got a call back from the one person I didn't know who did not appreciate the humor of the moment, half an hour before the office closes I call in about a child who has been sick for three days.

So we (four boys and me) headed to the med center, my thought being it wouldn't be so bad if we were there early.

Moment of silence to brace ourselves for what we are about to encounter.

To even further appreciate the situation keep in mind that I have not showered since the night before. I put on make up to hide that fact. I wore sunglasses on my head to hide the getting greasy hair. Rarely ever do I miss the morning shower, it makes me feel all itchy and icky. S1 is carrying school work and books that must be kept in a very serious order. S2 is sick, wearing the same clothes he has worn for the last two days, his pants are his favorite so they are well on their way to be considered capris. S3 had pajama day at school, he dressed accordingly. S4 is carrying a coffee can with a lid covered in stickers filled with matchbox cars with Mac's trailer (CARS being his favorite movie of all time and the can carrying about five Lightening McQueen's) on the top staying precariously there.

We are a sight, even for the walk in clinic/med center.

There are not five chairs together so we are all the waiting room, S2 sitting on the floor with his head back on the couch, S1 leaned into a corner lost in a book, S3 and S4 seem to need to comment on EVERY PERSON there and who was acting naughty and why it was taking so long.
An hour later we are ussured into a teeny tiny room where there is one chair, one tiny desk and one med worker who's eyes get bigger and bigger as we all file in. “These are all your boys?” she asks incredulously.

I nod. “Yes, ma'am, they are.”

S3 smiles. “We, we all of us, we are all brothers.”

It is at this moment that S4 decides now, for the first time, to take out every blessed car out of the coffee can and line them up on the floor.

The cold woman begins to drill us with questions. I answer them all for her. She visibly begins to soften. She warms to S3 leaning in on her desk pushing his glasses back and sniffing at the same time as he asks some question about the computer she has in front of her. When we walk out, she says “They'll call you when they can see you but I just have to say that these are some of the most well behaved boys I have seen in here and you are a Mom who has it together.”

I find this sweet for her to say, since I have totally missed my son's excruciatingly painful sore throat for three days and told her so when she asked why were there.

Half an hour later, they called us back to a room where we waited another stretch of time until a nurse walked in and exclaimed “Goodness me, this room is full! Are these ALL your boys?”
“Yes,” I answer, “They are all mine.”

“Oh, my, wow, we will try to get them to hurry up with you!”

She swabbed his throat that was covered in icky disgusting goop and left us to count the pictures on the wall, tell S3 to stop riding the wheeled chair next to the door, read the twelve days of Christmas (it was the ONLY book there), remind S3 to stay away from the door, flip thru a magazine to see I like the Bohemian style bathroom, inform S3 if he goes near the door again he will be off the rolling stool, continue answering emails from a friend who is cracking me up, kick S3 off the rolling stool. The doctor walked in.

“Wow. These are a lot of boys. Are they all yours?”

“Yes, they are.”

“Wow. Well, he has strep. We are going to write up some medicine for you and get you on your way!” She checked S2 over a bit more, her personality oozed sweetness and energy. “Okay. All set!”

We waited for the medicine script to be written. Have I mentioned there is only ONE chair in the room, the bed, the wheely stool that had now been banned and five of us?

The next girl walked in. She sized us up. “Here is your script for medicine. Follow me to get the final paperwork completed.”

S2 sat up. “Can we all get some gloves, please?”

She laser looked at him. “Gloves. Are. A. Choking. Hazard. This way. Please.” She turned on her heel and walked out of the room. We rushed to gather up and follow after her.

I heard someone at the desk say “That IS a lot of boys!”

We waited amongst 2 chairs for someone to say 'next' and then every one of the boys hovered around the one chair in front of the desk where the woman gushed “oh my! Are these all your boys?”

I just nodded.

She chatted away with them as she quickly filled out our paper work and we headed out of the med center to the darkened parking lot and towards Walmart to fill the prescription.

I handed the prescription over where the woman said “Goodness, you have a lot of good looking boys there.” the boys took this as an invitation to tell her who has strep and how long we had waited and the fact we had not had dinner and all sorts of information.

The check out girl gushed over the boys. “And they are all yours? Oh my! What handsome boys they are! They look like you! Well, a handsome version of your mom.” She was told how old they all were, when their birthdays were, the fact they all had blonde hair by the one son who doesn't have blonde hair.....

We ordered pizza. “Two pizza's?” the lady asked. “I have four boys.” “Oh wow, yah, two pizza's coming up!”

I do believe everyone in town will remember us all. I am happy to be home, alone, with all four of my boys, where I promptly fell into bed to sleep the night away.