Just Another Manic Monday

There is a first for everything, and today was our first visit to the Emergency Room. It seems like we've been due for something like this for a while.
This morning, Benjamin and Peter were playing with blocks, when tempers flared and Benjamin hit Peter with one of them. I immediately went for Benjamin's "cuddles" (his blanket that disappears for punishment) to put it up on the shelf. Before I knew it, I had two screaming boys, and I could tell that Benjamin was not just screaming because he was mad at me. After consoling Peter, I went directly to Benjamin, who had blood coming from his mouth. He had hit it on the doorway, and there was a gash on the side of his lip that sure wasn't going to be fixed with a band-aid. I put one on anyway to keep it together, packed everyone in the car, and headed out, not really sure where I should go. I called my pediatrician on the way, who sent us directly to the hospital Emergency Room. We were admitted and examined, and finally they determined that sutures weren't going to work since the cut went through the lip line. So they started calling plastic surgeons to see who was available.

About two hours later, we were back in the car, headed to another Surgery Center where a plastic surgeon was available for a short window of time. I called a friend at this point, and dropped Peter off at her house on the way. We got to the plastic surgeon's office, filled out a few forms, and waited. They told us we had to wait another hour, so we went and got some lunch before coming back for the procedure. Even though his lip wasn't bleeding much, it was still really painful to look at. The staff was really nice, and helped him feel comfortable in their office, up until the point where they ripped him out of my arms without warning to carry him back to the room. I was a little upset by it. He was being very cooperative, and would have gone with them no problem if they had explained to him what was going on. So I think that was harder for him than getting the actual local anesthesia and stitches. Poor guy. But they did a fabulous job, and there shouldn't be any scar when it's healed.

Benjamin got an ice cream cone when we got home for his bravery, and I finally got a shower. We made it through our first Emergency Room incident, and I am exhausted! And so, good night.