Like I Have Time For This?

I stand before you this morning, and admit to eating Chicken McNuggets yesterday.

You see, yesterday was my 5-year-old’s well-check appointment. And it was the first real well-check at our new pediatrician’s office, which made the visit that much more stressful.

Back in Colorado, we had the greatest pediatrician to ever walk the face of the earth. I just LOVED our pediatrician. So, finding a new pediatrician proved to be one of the most traumatic (and most avoided) parts of this move. Not that I didn’t try. All through the past year, as I met new moms and their kids in our various clubs and scouting groups, I’d always at some point casually ask them: “So, who’s your pediatrician?” or ”I’m in ______ County…. Who’s the best pediatrician in the area?” And inevitably, I’d get one of the following two responses. Either they’d say: “oh, we never really go to the doctor.” Or, even more alarming: “Oh, whoever you pick, don’t pick mine! Mine’s TERRIBLE!”

Ohhhh-kay….

So, unable to successfully get a decent referral or reference, I did what any mom would do: I picked the largest pediatric practice that was closest to my house, and hoped for the best.

At first, it didn’t go so well. Last year, I had to take my youngest in because she developed this odd rash that looked a bit like chicken pox. We saw an older man in the practice who didn’t seem very personable. He hardly talked to the kids and after a quick look at the rash, determined that it was NOTHING, and sent us home.

I didn’t go back there for almost a year. I continued to ask moms around me who the best doctors were, and they continued to tell me that their doctors were terrible, and that the best way to really pick one was to determine which hospital they affiliated with. If they affilitated with the children’s hospital, then they were okay. If they affiliated with the local county hospital, I was to grab my kids and run screaming in the other direction.

(sigh)

Anyway, after a lot of pretending that we didn’t not have a local pediatrician, I found myself forced to once again make an appointment for my older daughter who was complaining of ear pain. So, I called this large practice and made an appointment, and then went ahead and made various well-check appointments that were more than a year overdue, and then went through that extra-special hell known as GETTING MEDICAL RECORDS TRANSFERRED ACROSS 2,000 MILES and took my kids in to see another doctor there.

And this time, I got a doctor who was really nice. She made eye contact with my kids. She talked mostly to THEM. She knew the names of all the Care Bears and My Little Ponies. And she reassured me that the ear pain was nothing to worry about but gave me a recipe for a gentle ear drop to use after my daughter swims.

Now, don’t get me wrong. She was, by no means, PERFECT. Upon hearing that we were homeschoolers, she did put my kids through a sudden pop-quiz. Did they have any friends? Yes. Did they like school? Yes. What was their favorite subject. Ancient History — especially the part where Julius Caesar gets assassinated, and Nero — what a nutcase HE was!…. And they just couldn’t wait for Sunday when they’d be going to their friend’s house for an all-day barbeque…. And they just started karate lessons and they were so looking forward to fall when girl scouts would start up again….

And that pretty much ended the pop-quiz part of our visit.

Anyway. That ear-pain visit happened about a month ago. Yesterday, it was time for an actual check-up. So, in we went, and we saw another doctor, and she also was quite nice. She didn’t know the names of the Care Bears, but she did have a terrific sense of humor. When the kids told her that they had to eat green stuff every night at dinner, she said: “Green stuff? You mean boogers and grass?”

That was when I decided that I really like my new pediatricans.

She did put us through another pop-quiz upon hearing that we homeschool. And I guess we all passed the test, because she eventually stopped asking us stuff. I watched her write on the file that my child “was just great and healthy and happy”. But then it was time for the shots. (Now that I think about it, the fact that I wasn’t a homeschooler who also opted out of immunizations was probably what made the doctors stop pop-quizzing me. For those of you who homeschool and also don’t immunize, I can’t imagine how you get through these doctor visits. My hat goes off to you.)

My 5-year-old needed 4 immunizations yesterday. It could have been worse. She could have been unaccustomed to seeing people stick needles into other people. But, luckily, I have pernicious anemia, and once a month I go into a doctor’s office with my kids and get an injection in my arm. And the kids watch this happen and watch me Not Flip Out, and so they are used to the whole shot experience.

Not that my baby didn’t cry. Four injections is a lot. She was sobbing by the time it was over. And even the thought of ice cream alone wouldn’t soothe her. Nope. It took the idea of lunch at McDonald’s, including time to play in the play area, plus little ice creams on our way out, and THEN a trip to the dollar store where they each chose four dollar-priced items (one for each needle) before she was really over it.

So, yes, I’m working on changing our diets. But I also know that there will be times when you just need to get your kids a Happy Meal. Not that I pressed her to finish the damn thing, that is. She nibbled at some fries and ate maybe three McNuggets and then announced she was ready to play. And I swept all that “food” into the trash without a second thought.

In the play area, we met another mom with two kids the same age as mine. The kids played and I chatted with the mom, and it turns out she takes her kids to the same practice, and she said that the pediatricians there are considered to be quite good. Even that first guy we saw last summer. Apparently, he’s not as playful as the others, but if your kids get really sick, you definitely want that guy around. He’s that good.

So, one more thing that’s been haunting me has now been put to rest. This move is really almost done now.