Also known as The shrink, the hamster bite, and the cat scratch.  I know this is a long post, but I wanted to remember the whole day just as it was, so please read it all the way through. I promise it’s worth your time :)

The Shrink…

Nathan had an appointment this morning with a neuropsychiatrist to get tested for ADHD. I had a sheet of paper with the name and address of the office on it. I load Nathan and Kaitlyn into the car, drive to to address on the piece of paper, walk in to the office, and…I’m in the wrong place. My doctor’s office had given me a sheet of paper with an address that was three years old. Fortunately the phone number was still the same, so I was able to call for the correct address. Which was on the completely opposite side of the city.

I get Nathan there, I fill out a crapload of paperwork, and by 9:40 he was following a kindly-looking man named Dennis back into the office. Meanwhile, I sat down in the head doctor’s office with Kaitlyn to answer the same questions I have been answering for a year-yes, he has a hard time getting his work done at school. Yes, he has a hard time following directions. Yes, he gets easily frustrated. Etc. etc. I am then told to come back at noon, because the office closes for lunch from noon to one pm. Allrighty then.

I drive home, all the way back across the city, and tuck Kaitlyn into bed for a nap. Seeing as how I have come down with the killer cold from hell, I also get into bed, thinking I’ve got two hours to sleep. The phone rings. It is the boys’ school. They are wondering why I called to say Nathan wouldn’t be at school that afternoon when it is a HALF DAY, and they wanted to make sure I was home because Ryan was on his way. Great. So I get back up, meet Ryan, and then by that time, it’s time to pack up Kaitlyn and head back across the city to pick Nathan up for lunch.

We went to Cici’s Pizza, have you been there? It’s not the greatest food on the planet, but it only costs $2.99 for kids and $4.99 for adults to have all you can eat. I had spinach alfredo pizza that was pretty good, and a big salad, and the best freaking cinnamon roll I’ve ever tasted. Kaitlyn ate a ton and almost stayed clean, until she dropped a gooey piece of brownie right on her pants. Of course.

So, we drive back to the office and drop off Nathan for the rest of his appointment, and then the kids and I go to Volunteer’s of America to buy Kaitlyn some pants. I scored a cute little pair of overalls for her for $.99, and three kids’ books for only $.49 each, so that was a good deal. Something really cute happened while we were there-Ryan had gone off to look at books while I tied Kaitlyn’s shoes, and when I stood up I couldn’t see him, so I called out “Ryan! Ryan!”. Kaitlyn started turning around in a circle, calling “Rah rah! Rah rah!” It put a big smile on both my face and on Ryan’s! Then we drove back to the office to pick up Nathan, and so that I could get the verbal assessment from the doctor.

Nathan has ADHD. Definitely. His score was “very high”, whatever that means. I have to go back in two weeks to get the official report and recommendations, regarding medication, how the school should be handling it, what we should be doing at home. It sounds like we have quite a journey ahead of us.

Continuing where I left off, I then drove all the kids back home, and all three fell asleep in the van. It was about 4:30. I carried Kaitlyn into the house and laid her down and fortunately she stayed asleep, so I put Ryan in charge and went to lay down myself. The next thing I knew, it was 5:53 pm and Kaitlyn was awake. We had to be at the kids’ school at 6:20 for Parent/Teacher Conferences-crap! I had to rush to get everyone packed up and ready to go.

The Hamster Bite…

We get to the school, and while Chris, Ryan and I sit with his teacher, Nathan is watching Kaitlyn as she walks around the classroom. The class has a pet hamster, Squeakers. Next thing I know, Kaitlyn is screaming and Nathan is running up to us yelling. Sure enough, Kaitlyn had stuck her finger in the cage, and the hamster BIT HER. Chris picked her up and started walking her around trying to soothe her, and she is wiping her bloody finger on his shirt. By the time the bleeding stopped, he looked like he had been sprayed with blood.

But then we still have Nathan’s conference to do. Fortunately, nothing eventful happened, the teachers were expecting to hear that their suspected ADHD diagnosis was confirmed, and we talked about how that will impact the rest of the school year. We finally head for home at 7:15, only no one has eaten and I haven’t cooked anything, so I drive the kids to A&W for burgers and celebratory Root Beer Floats.

And the Cat Scratch…

Back home, we put in the DVD “Stranger than Fiction” and settle back on the couch to watch it and relax. And that is when my cat jumps up on the arm of the couch, and puts two of her claws RIGHT THROUGH MY ARM. Damn it, that hurts! And thus ended Monday, the day of the shrink, the hamster bite, and the cat scratch. Plus the 20 miles or so of driving, and Kaitlyn saying Ryan’s name for the first time, or at least making sounds to that effect, and really good cinnamon rolls, and Root Beer Floats. I doubt I’ll be able to top that next Monday, that’s for sure.