Two ER Trips in Two Days. WHAT?!?!

A subtitle to this post could be, "In which Lauren complains and rants, making for a possibly annoying read." You have been warned.

I'm pretty sure I've never been to the emergency room in my life, except for when I went into labor with Caleb. And possibly when I stuck a raisin really far up my nose when I was a toddler. My mom always referred to that as a "raisinectomy," but I'm not positive that is a real medical term.

But this week Aaron went to the ER on Wednesday for a dislocated knee, and Caleb went on Thursday for a broken leg. Now I am the only member of the family that can walk or drive competently.

Aaron was riding the T (the Boston under- and above-ground subway system) to work Wednesday morning, and it was really crowded as usual. He was standing in the stairwell and turned to let someone go by when his kneecap just popped out of place-- basically 90 degrees around to the other side of his leg (sorry, no one thought to get a picture). He couldn't move, so they had to stop the T while an ambulance came to take him to the hospital. Finally, two hours later, they popped his knee back in place.

Meanwhile, the paramedic called me and I thought I had to rush over to the hospital, so I grabbed Caleb and put his sweet little high-tops on over his footed dinosaur sleeper and drove straight to the hospital. It turns out they don't really want kids there (plus Caleb is in the peak of his button obsession, and that's not really a great obsession to have in the ER). So, luckily, I was able to drop him off with my friend and then drove back to the hospital. At that point Aaron had had all his X-rays so they let me in to see him. I think the worst of his pain was over, but he was still pretty pale and exhausted. They released him, with an immobilizing brace which he needs to wear for two weeks before moving on to a more flexible brace. They're trying to avoid knee surgery, so Aaron is going to do physical therapy for 8-10 weeks. We're counting our blessings that Aaron can still get his work done and that we have great health insurance, but it is kind of an inconvenient time with Aaron pushing to study for the GMAT in October.

Then, Thursday (as in the next day), cute little Caleb tripped over a kitchen whisk he had been playing with (he likes to mix things in bowls), and fractured his tibia. It didn't even look like a bad fall, but he cried HARD for half an hour. This from the kid that touched a lightbulb in a lamp and didn't cry when he got a second degree burn. He refused to walk on it, so after much denial, I finally agreed with Aaron that, yes, we did need to return to the Emergency Room. We took him back to the same hospital ER Aaron had been too, and the lady, after being surprised to see us AGAIN, sent us to the Children's Hospital ER, (which, in retrospect, I guess makes sense). We were in the ER from about 5PM to 10PM. Caleb was finally allowed to eat dinner at 9 while he was getting his cast on. Luckily, he only has to wear it for three weeks. But I can already tell they are going to be a LONG three weeks, given the fact that I swear that thing adds an extra seven pounds, and Caleb hasn't figured out how to walk in it yet. He is so frustrated to have it on. And none of his pants fit over it. We had to come home from the hospital with just his diaper on his bottom half. I went to Target today to pick up some sweat pants for him because those seem to work okay. And, as a personal favor to protect his dignity and mine, I would ask that nobody smell him in the next three weeks.

In the waiting room with his cool hospital gown.

Caleb finally gets to eat his vending machine dinner at 9PM!

His jeans wouldn't fit, so he had to go home with no pants. He didn't seem to ashamed, though.

I guess it is what it is. And when all is said and done, our family has become much more grateful for legs this month!