Unexpected Mother's Day Trip....to InstaCare!

What a crazy & fun weekend - each weekend seems it could have this label, but this weekend in particular was seriously crazy/fun.

Bryson returned home late last night from his business trip to Guatemala, so we woke up a little later than we wanted...but with enough time to get ready for church...and Bryson made pancakes and eggs for breakfast.  We were running a tad late, so I finished up my breakfast quickly and turned on the computer to print out something for the Primary song I was to teach.  I went over to the printer - I moved the glass piece that had survived a frame falling from a shelf this week...the wood had split, but the glass was in tact.  Crazy - yes.  I should have taken that as a sign!  I had saved the glass as it actually fits in another frame that had fallen last year....but the glass on that one had broken and the wood had stayed intact.  A merging of the frames seemed a natural choice - but I hadn't the time right then to pop in the glass, so I just laid it on the copier.

As I came over to plug in the computer, I moved the glass piece over to a chair right by the bookshelf.  I went to reach down to turn on the copier, and felt a huge burn and pain in my right arm.  I looked down & that's when I realized....that was the most stupidest place I had chosen to put the glass!  I had just sliced my arm open - a fairly big gash - and was trying to stay calm but at the same time was a bit panicked as the blood was starting to come out & of all days - I had chosen to wear my white skirt.  Murphy's Law one might say - but the amazing part is that not speck of blood ever got on my clothes....Bryson and I worked as a team and did our best to pull the skin together and put some adhesive tape on.  Poor guy - he had just gotten out of the shower when he heard me gasp and I called out that something was not right!  I walked down the hall and showed him the wound & I told him that I thought maybe we could just get a butterfly bandage & pull it together.  He looked at the arm and told me that I would probably need stitches.  At this point, my brain started to race & I was thinking of the kids, our schedule for church and how we could make this all work.

While we were taping my arm, I asked Madeleine to bring me my phone, and dialed our friends who were going to ride to church with us.  They are the couple that lives on the island and watched the kiddos for us for our pre-anniversary trip and Dana (the wife) went to the gardens with us last week.  I called and couldn't get through, but left a message that an emergency had come up and to call me...quickly!  I was then taped up, and I moved out to the living/eating room - we had needed to write up Jacob's talk, I needed to call the other chorister in Primary and ask her to lead today as well, and then still figure out the kiddos situation.  I did not want to take them with us to go and get stitches!

I called another family on the island - they are here this year for the husband's rotation in some specials for Orthopedic care.  He is actually the nice person who helped move my toe back into place after I dislocated it last fall...yes, I am a klutz.  Bryson and I talked about that today, and besides having me live in a bubble - not quite sure what to do about the fact that I get hurt rather frequently.  It's almost as if I am back to being a gangly girl who is getting used to longer limbs and feet and not sure how my body works...I seem to get hurt weekly!  Not to this extent - but I have got to take my time so I don't get hurt so much!

Anyway, the wife said her husband was in the hospital working for a few hours, otherwise he could have stitched me up at their place, as she thought they had everything we would need to do stitches.  I had just called to see if he could give his opinion on whether I needed stitches or a butterfly bandage...I kept holding out hope that this might actually be an option!  She said that she'd call her husband and see if he could give me a call to take over the wound and see where things were.

We finally heard back from Dana and her husband, and they were happy to come and get the kiddos and off they went to church, while we found out it would be necessary for me to go in to an InstaCare and get stitches.  Bryson found one that was over on the East Side, so we went out and got the car and drove over and thankfully there wasn't a crazy long wait.  My arm was hurting, and it was hard to hold it together to keep the pressure there so that it wouldn't start bleeding all over.  We were called back and the Dr. told me that since I didn't have a current tetanus shot, that I would need to really watch the wound and be sure that it was healing without any infection.  He also took my arm and just ran it under water to clean out the wound, which was the absolute worst part of the entire process!  The Dr. told me that he didn't think that some shots were needed, and we had a little side-conversation about vaccinations, shots, and choices.  It helped me feel better about our choice, and that those in the medical field were also keeping eyes open to the situation and that choice was important to have in any situation.

After I was stitched up, we drove home, and I settled in for the afternoon.  My arm was sore and the pain was starting to really set in.  The kiddos came back from church, and we had a laid-back time together for the rest of the day.  I will have the memory of this Mother's Day forever - all I'll need to do is look down at my arm to remember the crazy events of this day!

 

 

 
*not one picture of the arm - before or after!  There are certain things I don't think to take pictures of in the moment....wounds are on that list, but now I wish I had some pictures of it all!

I'm the mom....

Today I had a moment where I realized the type of mom I'm not...and the type of mom I am.

I realized I'm not the cupcake mom.

And definitely not the Easter Bunny cupcake mom.

Let me back-up a bit.  I was working on a project up in the school library - one of two big ones at the school this week.  A friend of mine called and offered to take Jacob to the park with her twins who are in the morning Pre-K class.  She said they could play outside and have a picnic lunch and then bring Jacob back for his class in the afternoon, so I could get things finished up. I told her it would be perfect - and she said to come down in a few minutes as they were just finishing up the cupcakes that a mom had brought in to celebrate Easter.

I didn't think much about what she had said, besides how nice it would be for Jacob to get outside and run around instead of doing more computer games while I worked on my different projects in the library again.  He is becoming quite a pro at the Lego games, as he has ample time to practice them each week!  We walked down the hallway, chatting about the day and I told him how excited I was that he was going to have a picnic with his friends!  I had a tiny bit of a wish that I could be outside to enjoy the beautiful sunshine, but the moment was fleeting as I really wanted to get these projects checked off before we left for Spring Break!

We met the little friends downstairs and watched as child after child left the morning pre-k class holding onto a precious decorated Easter Bunny cupcake

I kissed Jacob goodbye and waved to his two little friends and gave a bit thank you to the mom & then ran back up the stairs and started to breeze down the hallway.

It was then I thought about those Easter Bunny cupcakes.  How cute they were, and how the little faces of those preschool students lit up holding their precious treats!  I realized with a swiftness that I'm not the mom that is called on to bring treats.  I don't think of it on my own either.  If there is a sign-up, I'll put my name down to bring something in for a class party and there were times in the past when I did some fun decorating of cakes, cookies and such.

I was feeling a little down - that I wasn't fulfilling some mom role that is set out there in how many cupcakes I have made for my children's class.  And as I walked along feeling a little overwhelmed with how many things I thought I should be doing, I glanced up and saw the school.  And then saw into the library with the projects I was helping with.  And that's when it hit me - I'm not an Easter Bunny cupcake mom --- but I'm a mom that does other things....and those things can be cool in their non-pink marshmallow ear sort of way....

....I worked on picture frames, mosaics, modge-podge murals on just about any object you can think of!...and so much more {these are the art projects with the 15 classes for the Silent Auction....ta da!}

I'm also a mom that is an impromptu costume designer!  I received a call 4 days before 50+ children from the school are in a performance....and suddenly need costumes!  The 3rd graders were part of a Columbian Music Performance & the musicians that we hire through a company to work with the students are quite talented....however, they are definitely unorganized!

What was I to do when the thought of all those students would go on stage without "real" costumes?  Well, I called 4 other moms and during a school day we cut, and we cut and we cut - until we had 25 ponchos, and 25 sashes with little flowers on them for the girls, 30+ colored sashes for the boys, and 25 tissue paper flowers to put into all of the girl's hair.

And the performance was fabulous!  Singing, dancing and music galore --- and the costumes were not perfect (there was not one piece of sewing we did!  If we couldn't glue gun it, we didn't do it!), however the children kept saying that they felt like "real professionals" because they all matched and had their own costumes.  It was the cutest thing to see their faces light up when we were helping them get dressed!

And I'm the type of mom - that takes on another step of the Beautification at school.  It was started last year when we did the flags representing all the nations that the children are from....we have over 60 nationalities in our school (that are reported).  The Beautification has continued this year, with finally taking art that the children have created with the new art program - and framing select pieces and hanging them around the school.  It sounded rather simple and something that would be fun to work on --- however, as many projects go, it becomes a little more complicated and a little harder as you get into the work.

This all was going on the week that Jacob got Strep Throat after Bryson already had it last week.  The week that I was supposed to be getting ready for our trip, and getting an apartment rearranged yet again (after buying something from a friend that was moving, I've had to rearrange the place....again!  It's hilarious how often this place gets redone, because of space factors and as it is small I get tired of the same view after only a very short time!).

And amazingly enough - it all got done to some degree.  It was done to the wire on Friday after school, when we finally took one grouping of framed art and went to work on the wall....4 hours later, 5 active children, 2 PTA moms, 2 pizzas and 2 custodians --- we were finally finished (and I can't believe I didn't get a picture of it!).  That is when we realized that all 60 other framed art, will continue to go up - but only one wall at a time.  It took so much longer than we anticipated....but we loved the end product so much more than we thought we would as well!

I'm so happy with the projects that I worked on this week and other weeks at the school.

I also realize that it's okay to be happy that I'm the type of mom that doesn't do Easter Bunny cupcakes.

At least right now.  And maybe for some time.

Because there are other projects.  The ones that I do for my children and their school - and when they see me at the school each time and their faces light up....I believe that they know I am doing this because I love them.  And I love being part of their life.  I love being back in a school setting.  I love projects...I just don't think of cooking projects as much as I do the other projects that fill up my days.

And hopefully - just hopefully - that will be just as good as making Easter Bunny Cupcakes & won't put them in therapy because I never made them cupcakes --- because goodness knows we'll need therapy for all the other mistakes I'm making as mom!