Mother of the Year

Again.

I am under a deluge of awards as of late.

The latest is Mother of the Year.

G'head. Clap for me. A salvo or two, if you will.

The reason for this illustrious award? Read the following transcript from my latest telephone call to Butter's pediatrician.

Me: Hello, I'd like to make an appointment for a physical for my son. He will be attending a 4-year old preschool in the fall, and the enrollment paperwork includes a full physical with documentation of his vaccination record.

Lady: Did you get his 2 and 3 year old check-ups elsewhere?

Me: No. I wasn't told I needed to come in for those because he wasn't up for more shots. (I feel like I'm talking about my dog here, but I digress.)

Lady: So he never had a check-up?

Me: He had PLENTY of check-ups with his immunologist. You know, surgery, post-op, quarterly or more appointments. But nothing with you guys. Guess that makes me Mother of the Yeah huh?

Lady: *silence*

Me: *silence* (I wasn't about to let her off the hook with this one.)

Lady: I didn't mean to make you feel bad.

Me: (Wanted to correct her poor use of grammar but let it slide.) Oh you didn't make me feel badly. Not at all. It take a LOT more than that to make me feel like a shmuck. So when can I get an appointment?

************************************************
See? I may appear to have my shit together but had NO IDEA I was supposed to take my kid for checkups every year. Let's add this to my pseudo-chagrin: I stopped going there on a regular basis as soon as I was referred to Butter's immunologist. For more than a year I was regularly told that he either had a virus or allergies. When I finally asked to have allergy testing done, I was looked at as though I was an idiot. I told the doctor that I wanted to find out what was causing all of these "allergies" so that I could help ease the suffering my kid was enduring day in and day out. Her first answer? "It's because he's in daycare. I told you to expect him to be sick 3 out of every 4 weeks each month if you were going to have him in daycare."

Hello? Fucktard? Don't attempt to guilt-trip or punish me for having to work full-time and employ some people to provide care for my kid. It's that or live on the streets. I'm certain that he'd be a hell of a lot sicker if we were homeless and destitute. And WITHOUT insurance.

Hello, again? When we went to the immunologist, the guy diagnosed my kid with THREE different infections, all of which were resistant to various antibiotics. He had masses blocking many of his sinus cavities. He also had to endure a CT scan so we could see how far the infection had traveled. He then had surgery to remove bones from those cavities and to power wash the caves of the cavities with a mixture of various antibiotic washes.

He's currently on two nose sprays, one nose ointment, and one pill EVERY day. Additionally, he had a nebulizer with two different medications to help treat his asthma. The same asthma you said didn't exist.

So.

If me taking him to someone who was going to be an advocate for his health, proactive in his treatment, and able to put his ego aside and ask for consults with fellow doctors in an effort to heal my kid makes me mother of the year, I will accept the award with gratitude.