Where have I been? or do they have a frequent flyer card for Children's emergency room

• 11/5- Hand-me-down Hand-me-down Hand-me-down washing machine finally gives up the ghost in the middle of a dirty diaper cycle with a very sad whining sound followed by an ominous whirring sound followed by a loud thunk followed by very loud silence.
• 11/6- Max pukes in his bad at 2am.
• 11/7- Oliver pukes in his bed at 3:30am
• 11/8- Kate transports 8 loads of laundry to the laundromat where it costs $17 to wash only.
• 11/9-Kate spends day drying and folding the 8 loads of wet laundry. Fiona pukes in her bed.
• 11/10-Bob pukes in the bathroom but all over the bathroom.
• 11/11-Kate transports 9 loads of laundry to the laundromat where it costs $16.50 to wash only.
• 11/12-Kate spends day drying and folding the 9 loads of wet laundry. Eleanor pukes all over Kate. Kate pukes back.
  
• 11/13-First puke-free day. Bob gets call from Conor's high school asking us which hospital the ambulance should deliver him to. Bob goes to school to pick him up. He was horsing around with buddies and managed to dislocate his elbow. At Children's Hospital they discover Conor has also shattered his growth plate and broken another bone in the joint. Goes in for surgery where they put two pins in his elbow. Stays night at Children's.
• 11/14-Conor comes home from hospital at 1:00p. He goes with me to Sam's and Target to do some shopping. At 2:30 Bob calls to tell me to return immediately because Oliver has split his head open. Bob takes Oliver to Children's emergency room where it takes 5 hours to get 3 staples put in the back of Oliver's head. (My mother scolds me for allowing my children to roughhouse too much. I explain that Oliver split his head open while sitting at the dining room table coloring when he reached for another crayon slipped off one chair and hit his head on another. But I promised from now on I will make him wear a helmet while coloring.)
• 11/15-Kate transports 12 loads of laundry to the laundromat where it costs $23 to wash only. Spends rest of day and evening drying and folding.
  
• 11/16- Quiet. blessed quiet.
• 11/17- purchase new washing machine and practically wet myself with the excitement of it all.
• 11/19- Washing machine delivered.
  
• 11/20 Kate washes everything in the house.
• 11/21 Oliver gets staples removed brings them home proudly in a ziploc container. Rosie finally succumbs and pukes in her bed at 2:15am.
  
• 11/22- Friend's Thanksgiving. I cook 22lb turkey (it was scrumptious! If I do say so myself.) for 16 adults and their children. Bob rearranges 3 rooms in house 4 hours before guests are to arrive. But, the changes are good ones.

Eleanor sleeps from midnight to 8am. Kate cannot accept this gift because Fiona wakes crying at 3am and then Oliver comes barging in at 5:30am and Rosie at 6:45am. Kate finally gets up at 7:00am and weeps quietly to herself.

• 11/23- Eleanor is baptized at community ecumenical Thanksgiving worship service. Bob preaches amazing sermon and Eleanor gazes thoughtfully up at Pastor Jackie as she pours water over her head, then coos knowingly as she is introduced to the community. 22 people come back to our house for drinks and snacks.
• 11/24-Conor goes in for cast removal, more x-rays and other tediousness. Nora gets check up which means immunizations which means crabby baby.

Astoundingly, this was our family's first trip to the Emergency Room. And Bob and I were able to giggle and snuggle through it all. I love that man. Thanks Grandma for all your help this week!!