Kimberly launched Foodie City Mom in 2011 where she shares her personal collection of recipes, highlights of her favorite NYC products and events, and shares her thoughts on being a parent in the city, including this piece where she reveals that no parent is perfect.
This week started off a bit rough. Both of the boys were scheduled to go for their annual physical after school on Monday. Sean had been coughing a lot since the wet day before, so I had kept him home from pre-K. I really don’t like the annual physicals anyway, because there is always blood drawn and/or immunization shots. Of course, the kids don’t enjoy them and I spend the majority of the time reminding them that a little pain now prevents a whole lot of pain later.
As soon as we entered the doctor’s office, Michael started acting up. “I don’t want a shot, “ he complained. Here we go. He was making such a fuss that he got Sean worked up about going next. After all of that, when it was actually time to get Michael’s blood drawn and one shot, he was all like, “Oh, that wasn’t so bad.” (Exactly, but by that point Sean had started with the whole, “I don’t want a shot” song.) Well, the good news is that Sean didn’t have to get any shots. The bad news is the reason why…
When the doctor asked me if I had any concerns about Sean, I mentioned that I thought that he possibly had a combination of allergies and asthma. (He had been coughing after physical activity and after wet weather. Reggie’s brother and my sister have asthma, so I thought that it was highly probable that Sean had a lighter version of it.) The doctor listened to Sean’s breathing and said, “It’s not bad…”
I (along with Sean and Michael) breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn’t finished though… “It’s horrible,” she continued. Okaaay. Basically, Seany does have asthma and he was only taking in about a straw full of air with each breath, so the doctor gave him a prescription for Prednisolone and Albuterol. She cut out the dairy (except yogurt) and instructed him to stay indoors under the air conditioner for the next couple of days until his follow-up visit.
Sean’s reaction when we told him that he needed to sleep in our room for a couple of nights made me laugh. “What about my relationship with Michael?” he asked. (The two love to chat for a bit when we put them down for the night together.) Suffice it to say, Sean AND Michael took over our bed.
So, here’s where the “Bad Mommy Moment” comes in…
As soon as we left the doctor, Sean reminded me that I had made him walk a lot earlier that morning and didn’t believe him when he was huffing and puffing along. I knew that he was going to say that…because I was thinking the exact same thing! Earlier in the day, we had gone to the grocery store after dropping Michael off to school. I was carrying 5-6 heavy grocery bags and Sean was carrying one light bag—bread and a couple of other light items—in his backpack since I didn’t have a rolling cart with me. He had started to complain that he was tired, but he was doing it in a funny way—going “Whew! Whew! Whew!” and smiling after every few steps.
I had said, “Don’t you want to be helpful like Thomas?” He had replied, “Thomas is a TRAIN.” (Oh well, I tried.) Little did I know that my sweet boy really was having a hard time breathing. Bad mommy indeed…hanging my head.
Oh well, thank God for medical insurance, family and friends. We were able to get Sean what he needed and to find people to drop off and pick up Michael from school for the next couple of days so that he could recuperate. Thankfully, he was much better at the follow-up visit. I asked his doctor if the medications that she had prescribed make kids a little hyper. “No,” she replied. “They make them A LOT hyper.” She is the master of the build-up, right?! Anyway, that’s good to know, because Seany was bouncing off the walls. (Next time, warn a mother!)
In any event, I have more than paid for my bad mommy moment this week. Sean has milked it for all that it is worth. In addition, Reggie and I have been kicked out of our room until the end of May. (The two air conditioners that we have are in the living room and in our bedroom, so Sean and Michael will be sleeping in our bed while we sleep in theirs…doctor’s orders. Thankfully, they have a large, comfortable trundle bed that fits both of us on top!)
Kimberly lives with her husband and two young sons in Queens. Try out her recipes and read more from her at foodiecitymom.com.
