Denouement


Thanksgiving (Day 6 of Mother-Daughter Togetherness)


New bebe

The trip to Oklahoma was generally pretty subdued, but we did have a bit of drama towards the end.

On Friday afternoon A and I drove my dad to the airport in Oklahoma City. I then drove to my friend Susie's house. Susie has a May 05 kid also (we knew each other from a birth club board on Babycenter). Her son was so hospitable towards my daughter, who in turn was pretty much a pill. She played with his toys and pretended like he wasn't there, while he did everything he could think of to engage her. Susie and Mark also have an adorable one-year-old daughter.

As we sat around chatting, my mother called me on my cell. My reception was bad - I had about half a bar at best. She told me she had fallen and thought she might need an ambulance. She stumbled after waking up from a nap and smacked her arm and her head on the edge of the nightstand. My mother lives in a town about five blocks wide, surrounded by cows on all sides. There are no traffic lights and no stores - I felt reasonably certain that an emergency facility (or even a kindly family doctor) was out of the question. I suggested she call my sister, who was closer than I was at that point.

By the time I got back to my mom's house, she had contacted her neighbor, whose sister is a nurse. The nurse confirmed that my mom hadn't broken anything and didn't need stitches. She was a mess, though.

The next day was my wee baby sister's birthday. She turned 27. I picked up her and her boys and took them "into town." We went to lunch and did a little shopping. I tell you, wrestling three kids in and out of car seats reminds me of why I just have the one kid.

When we got back to my sister's house, her husband was walking outside just as we were pulling in. I rolled down the window and said, "Hey little boy, want some candy?" He looked at me and asked me to come inside. "Oooooh!" I said to my sister. "Maybe he has a surprise for your birthday! Or maybe he wants to have an affair!" My jocularity ended quickly when I saw what had happened. Their Bluetick Coonhound, Dan, had someone sliced his back open. The cut was around four inches long and nearly an inch deep. I guess Jason wanted me to take a look because he knows I volunteer for rescue and have seen my share of gross stuff.

I took a look at Dan's owie and knew there was no doubt that stitches were needed. The problem was that it was Saturday night on a holiday weekend in a very rural area and there was no veterinarian within reach. I gave my brother-in-law and my sister some tips for keeping Dan's wound clean and wrapped until the nearest clinic opened on Monday morning.

No one knows how Dan cut himself. He was probably hunting something on the property (while I was there he spent a full day baying at the woodpile because he's convinced something lives in there) and attempted to get into an area where he didn't actually fit.

The next day, A and I drove to Oklahoma City to catch our flight. We had three flights on Sunday, and I had been dreading it all week. The layovers were very short and I was worried that we'd miss a flight somewhere along the line. Also, I had reached Maximum Mother-Daughter Time a few days before that.

We did catch all three flights and landed in a snowstorm at home, so I guess I can't complain. The biggest challenge I faced was that my daughter literally cannot stop talking for thirty seconds. I was desperate for a few minutes of solitude so that I could read a magazine. Even with her DVD player running Peter Pan, the questions did not stop. "Mama, why is that man sitting next to us? Why is the plane shaking? Can I have a sucker? Is Father at our house?"

I challenged her to a game called: Keep your lips together for five minutes. She lost.

Anywho . . . that's the story of our vacation.

The good news? I didn't need this coupon I found in a local phone book:

Comments

Susie said…
Oh Claudia! I just love your post (well, all of them actually)! I'm glad your mom wasn't seriously hurt, and glad you made all of your flights. I don't believe for one second that A can't stop talking. She was a perfect angel when I saw her! hee hee Matthew saw a P one a sign yesterday and said "A's daddy's name starts with P!" Hilarious--I hope we can get together again next time you're down.
Anonymous said…
OMG - I gotta git me one a dem t-shirts!
Anonymous said…
You have to send the coupon into Letterman. Or Leno. Have. to.

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