Today I took Sidekick Sister, Little Linebacker and Baby Girl to the doctor's. I expected Baby Girl to have to get some shots. When the nurse who was going to give the shots came into the room I could see that she could barely hold all of the syringes capped with needles in her two hands. I thought it was odd, but figured she was going to do Baby Girl's shots and then go to another room and do some other kid's shots. So I put Baby Girl up on the table and the poor thing got her five shots. When the nurse was all done I grabbed up my red-faced, screaming girl and started comforting her. As soon as Baby Girl had put her thumb in her mouth, the nurse asked, "Who's next?"
And I said, "Next?"
And she said, "Yep."
"Do they need shots too?"
"Yep, she needs her four-year-old shots and he has one shot he needs." I was flabbergasted and the Sidekick was a panicky mess of tears and spastic limbs.
"I guess we better do her first," I said reluctantly. I had to set Baby Girl down which set her to screaming again while I helped hold the Sidekick down for the nurse. When the Sidekick was done I grabbed up Baby Girl in one arm and the Sidekick in the other and tried to talk them down from their misery while the nurse heaved the Little Linebacker up on the table. She had me hold his hands with my hand from the arm I was holding Sidekick Sister with. The Little Linebacker had no idea what was coming despite his sisters' hysteria. When the shot went in he felt so utterly betrayed that he couldn't make a sound for a second. Then he joined in the wailing. He came off the table and flung himself around my knees. I stood there with all three children clinging to me, getting misty eyed myself and barely able to keep my voice steady while I finished things off with the nurse.
Eventually we made it to the car and got ourselves to McDonald's for ice cream cones. That made things were much better although the Sidekick was still having a hard time with her tender arms.
At 5:30 I got a call from the nurse practitioner who had seen the kids that day.
"I feel like I need to be honest with you," she said.
I had no idea what she could possibly be talking about it. "Yes?" I asked.
"I accidentally ordered for Sidekick Sister to get her four-year-old shots today. She actually had already had them."
I couldn't believe I had forgotten she'd already gotten them. Although, even now I can just barely place the time where we might have gotten them before. The nurse practitioner went on to say how sorry she was and gave her sympathy to the Sidekick for having to go through the pain twice. She was completely sincere.
The nurse practitioner had seen the chaos that came from the Sidekick getting her shots. She had seen my heart-break and heard the screams of the kids. I think it would have been very easy for her to not call me at all, to not admit the mistake, to let everything go under the table.
But she was honest.
I totally want to be like her.
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