This afternoon I was thinking how boring it was going to be to simply say, "We had an uneventful trip to Anchorage" on my blog - and then we ended up in Urgent Care.
We went to the "mall" for an "Easter Egg Hunt." (I am not "quote" happy - it is more of a mall than we have here on the Kenai peninsula, but still not a mall like the rest of you know. Also, the hunt was, well, let me tell you...) There were a bunch of people in line with little kids, so we lined up too. After standing in line for a while we discovered that each child was allowed to choose 5 eggs from a basket and open them and claim the prize inside. Where's the hunt in that? Mostly it was candy, but there were a few that said, "Go to ____ store and claim your prize" (which was also just candy) or the occasional "10% off at _____ store." I guess that's what you get for going to a mall for an Easter egg hunt - advertising.
Ethan was walking through a store holding Doug's hand. Nolan was in the stroller (you know, broken leg and all...), so Ethan had the rare occasion to saunter his way through the store. Attempting to flee from Doug, he yanked his arm, which Doug was holding around the wrist, and started to cry. Then he sniffled his way through the store staying, "Ouk" (translated as "ouch"). We noticed that his left arm was being held limply at his side. He cried when we touched it and wouldn't use it for anything.
Now, how does one find an in-network provider while in a different city? Insurance customer service was closed, so we went back to the hotel we had checked out from hours earlier and borrowed a computer. Long story short, I called around until I found a place that said yes they took walk-ins and yes they took our insurance.
Short side note: Here's another little problem - on Friday I received a letter from our insurance stating that they had enrolled us in the incorrect plan and that they were enrolling us in the right plan and would reprocess all of the claims from January 1. These are the claims I have spent HOURS 2-3 times a week correcting over the phone. Now I don't know how they are supposed to be processed - OR what providers are actually in network.
Luckily, Ethan's elbow was only dislocated. It is called "nursemaid elbow" or "toddler elbow." I guess it happens to a lot of little kids, but we all know it had to happen to mine. I had to laugh at the name "toddler elbow" because I also have a toddler with a broken tibia, which is referred to as a "toddler fracture." Go ahead, ask it... what's with all the toddler abuse?
Other than that, it was an uneventful trip to Anchorage. See? I got the phrase in there anyway.
Brenden's new implant was mapped. He was pretty naughty for most of his appointment, but ended up working hard after a motivational speech from the audiologist. He was very cute when he saw the audiologist at the beginning of his appointment. She has been out on maternity leave and asked if he remembered her.
He said, "Yes, how is your baby doing?"
She seemed shocked and pleased that he knew or cared about anything in her life. I was so proud to be his mom right then.
She said, "Thank you for asking. She is doing well and getting so big."
He said, "How old is she now?"
"Three months."
"Imaginingly." (We took that to mean "That's hard to imagine.")
The audiologist told me it must be so hard to raise such an intelligent little boy. Some days he is a challenge, but I'll take him just the way he is.
Ethan's hearing was tested and his hearing aids are now both functional. The one he broke
last visit was returned from being repaired and the one he disassembled while
Nolan was getting his cast was put back together while we were in the office.
We all enjoyed the drive. The roads are thrashed from the winter, so they are more like a roller coaster in some places than a highway. Ethan enjoys yelling, "Whee!" over the bumps. The boys always love staying in hotels, but they are getting so used to it, they treat it like a second home now. Nolan calls all hotels "hotellos," which I can only assume comes from staying in a hotel in Pocatello last year.
I haven't had time to do anything for Easter this year. It is 11:00 p.m. and I just finished decorating - at Brenden's request. It was brief. We will make time to decorate eggs tomorrow, but for the most part, I failed my children in the Easter department this year. Priorities... (rolling my eyes)
Below is the final result of the last cast. Mandi, Nolan's favorite pharmacy tech, wrote her name and I wrote Mom and Ethan. Brenden came home from school and I told him he could write his name. And then I made the mistake of walking away. By the time I got back, there was no room for anyone else to write their name. All the way up the side it says, "get will soon" and then Brenden decorated ALL over the rest of it. I really rather like it though.
I took Nolan to have his cast removed today. He kept telling them he wanted to keep it on. The nurse looked at me and said, "So, what do you want me to do?" I figured, he can't keep it on forever, so we might as well take it off whether he wants to or not. I guess maybe I should listen to my kids more often.
