Emergency Room

 Today was Valentine's Day. I had thought I'd wrap up my writing and clean up the house, make dinner and put out the good dishes and light the candles for a romantic evening with my wife. She works a day shift in the ER and would appreciate some soothing music while the boys played in the basement out of the way.
 It was my best option for having no money since July when I lost my job. I fantasized about flower arrangements and boxes of chocolates, but had to settle for a few home made cards and a home cooked meal.
 The older three boys would be coming home from school soon, and I was with my youngest. Eighteen-month-old boys are summed up in one word: ACTIVE! He climbs up on everything now. I was putting final touches on my novel around 3:20 p.m. and suddenly he'd fallen off a chair I didn't know he'd climbed. He had to have gotten up there in five seconds. Anyway, he fell and hit his eye on the chair leg and his head on the concrete floor.
 I scooped him up and held him as he cried. Poor little guy!
 Then he got sleepy. Oh, no! That's a sign of a possible concussion. I called my wife, who is an EMT and works at the ER. Her shift was just ending, so she advised me to meet her at the ER at the other hospital where we have our insurance.
 I had to borrow my mom's van since I have no gas and no money and no job...
 Then I got him a snack and a drink and took off. I had a makeshift car seat (not the "good" one, but it would have to do) and I talked to him to keep him  awake during the 35 to 40 minute drive. His eyelid and forehead were turning purple, but he was in good spirits.
 We got to the ER, and the sign said it had been moved to another part of the building and to follow the signs. I called my wife and she directed me to where she was waiting.
 Waiting became the operative word. With a little guy, the minutes were ginormous. And the longer we waited, the fussier he became. Dinner time came and went, and the sun set. We walked with him, held him, chased him, talked to him, read a book over and over to him... at one point I was letting him stick his fingers in my mouth... although I don't like that because I've seen the nasty places those little fingers have been!
 Two and a half hours later, as I was holding my not so light little guy in the entrace to entertain him with the three automatic doors (that's three directions he has to look to keep up!) my wife had had enough. It was Valentine's Day, and I had all the plans of a romantic homemade dinner for two with candles and music.
 I texted my wife a couple times, even though we were in the same ER, just to let her know I was also thinking of her on this day of romance.

 But romance wasn't in the  ER. And our little man was screaming his hungry head off by now. Mercifully, the RN announced his name, but at that point I was halfway across the hospital on a sightseeing tour to keep the little one happy.
 I huffed and puffed it back to my scolding wife, still in her scrubs from work and looking like she fit in here too.
 After checking his symptoms, the RN obviously decided since he didn't throw up or black out, he was low priority. So back to the waiting room to bother all the sick people again. He was going in circles, weaving through the crowd. Since my wife worked all day, I took him 90 percent of the time.

 After two and a half hours, my wife asked if she could just sign a waiver and keep an eye on him. After all, he was tired and hungry (and so was she!) and Valentine's evening was become a drag.
 I hurried home ahead of her and got things spruced up with the help of my 12-year-old son who already almost had dinner ready... table set, candles lit (one candle was dripping on the table, but it was easily cleaned up before mom arrived) and everything ready except the potatoes (he'd put eight potatoes in the microwave dish for six minutes... not quite long enough there, son, but I appreciate your efforts!)
 By the time mom and baby arrived, we were ready for the as perfect as it's gonna get meal and it went all right.
I'm just glad our son didn't have a real "emergency" with a wait like that... we skipped the bubble bath and chick flick and my girlie hit the sack and sent me away as is her custom these days.