Ethan's ER Trip & Preschool Begins

Two weeks ago, Ethan stuck his finger all the way into a soda can and got it stuck.  In his panic to get it out, he sliced the base of his finger pretty deeply and had to get 3-4 stitches.  As if that were not traumatic enough, we get to the ER, follow all the signs towards the Children's ER, and end up in a drive-through with no adjacent parking.  An attendant comes out and offers me directions to a nearby parking garage.  I've got a bleeding 4-year-old in the backseat, and this girl is giving me directions to a parking garage a couple of blocks away!  I was MAD.  And boy did I miss my Children's ER in Birmingham, which has free valet parking.  But, having no choice, I drove to the parking garage, put Ethan in the stroller and pushed him while carrying a very angry Lydia.  And that umbrella stroller I was using was NOT made for one-handed pushing.  But, regardless, we made it to check-in, and were promptly taken back to a room where we waited for almost 3 hours for the cryptic and dismissive pediatrician to stitch him up.  It was not a great day.  In fact, I'm getting a little mad again just thinking about it all, so I should probably change subjects...

Ethan's been in school for over a week now, and he absolutely loves it!  He is going to a non-traditional preschool that employs a lot of real-life objects in lieu of toys, and uses a very child-centered educational approach, encouraging the kids to follow their curiosity towards learning.  He's doing so extremely well here that I really wish the school went past preschool into early elementary.  Up to now, Ethan has always gotten into trouble for stirring up angst in a group setting, but this new environment has kept him so engaged that we have heard nothing but positive reports so far.  I realize he's only been to school for six days, but, still, he's been there for six days with no problems!  And he loves going!  He runs to put his shoes on and get his bag when I tell him its time to go to school.  He had to miss one day last week for allergy testing, and he was distraught.  I couldn't console him with the promise of any other place in town: the Discover Center, the Aquarium, Chuck E. Cheese, the mall...none of his favorite places could compete with his "super-cool" new school.

Well, I wanted to write some about Ethan's health problems as well, but I think I'll save that for another day.  It's late and this Mommy is tired.  Until next time!