We Need a Vacation!!

Long story short:

Working hard to pack and get the house ready to leave for 10 days (plane departs at 11:59pm Wednesday-- tomorrow!)

Happy that the kids are playing so happy together all day so I can get a lot done.

Come downstairs to answer the phone and am distracted for 5 minutes.

Kids in the kitchen asking for food, I tell them I'll make them dinner in a minute.

A minute later Cade says "Mommy, Brennan said you said he could have cough medicine."

I say, "No, I didn't say that! What cough medicine do you have Brennan?" Thinking maybe Brennan was joking with Cade.

I run into the kitchen asking Brennan if he had medicine. He goes over to a cupboard and opens it (not the medicine cupboard), reaches into the back of it and gets out an EMPTY Children's Tylenol Cough and Cold bottle. I ask him if he drank it all and he mumbles "yes"

I grabbed a bowl and shoved it in his hands and told him to throw up now!!! I think I scared him half to death, but I was scared half to death.... I actually gagged him 3 times by putting my finger down his throat, but he didn't throw up.

I grabbed the empty bottle (which I am sure was at LEAST half full if not three quarters full), shoved all three kids in the car (EmmaRay straight from her crib from her nap). No kids had socks, shoes or coats, and drove like crazy to the Instacare.

I stormed into the instacare, held up the bottle and said "My son just drank this. What do we do?" Then I burst into tears.... They said "Did you call Poison Control?" I said, "No, I didn't have their number available"

Get this-- the INSTACARE had to call INFORMATION to get the number for POISON CONTROL!!!!! Michael and I have decided that poison control needs a phone number like "922" or something easy to remember.

I expected Brennan to get his stomach pumped, but they don't do that for kids anymore unless they drink poison. The Instacare said "Well, poison control says that if he drank half the bottle he'll be okay, but if he drank 3/4's of it then it's a toxic dose. You'll have to go to the ER and have his blood tested when it's been 4 hours."

Michael came while we were there and drove us to the new Riverton Hospital. We got checked in.... and waited..... and waited..... until 8:45pm (Brennan drank the stuff at 4:45) so they could do the blood test.

Meanwhile Grandma comes and gets Cade and EmmaRay and takes them back to her house so they can have dinner and not be stuck in the hospital. Michael goes with her to go get his car from the instacare and bring back dinner for me. Brennan gets hooked up to an EKG and we're worrying about tachycardia and depressed breathing, and Brennan falls into a very drugged sleep and when he wakes up after an hour and a half his eyes are glassy and he's nonresponsive. Then he sleeps some more with an irregular heartbeat. Then he wakes up again and talks, but is goofy.

The dr tells us that if it was a toxic dose then he'll either need an IV for 24 hours or oral medication for 3 days (in hospital).... GREAT, we're supposed to leave TOMORROW for the BAHAMAS.

Blood test came back well within the safe range and we are home.... we just have to check Brennan every 2 hours through the night to make sure he's ok. He definitely overdosed, but his body metabolized it quickly. Hooray!

I think, I hope, I PRAY that Brennan has learned his lesson not to get into things. We hope we make it through his childhood.

We need a vacation! Grandparents who are so wonderfully watching our children for the next 10 days, please-- watch them like a hawk!!!