Stuck

With six children, I am only surprised it hasn't happened before now. We've had broken bones, good sized lacerations, head wounds- all the normal stuff except the foreign object up the nose. Until last night, that is.

Shortly before 9 o'clock last night, an hour after she had been tucked in, crying commenced in the farthest bedroom. This isn't really an abnormal happening. It can mean that a shadow flickered on the wall, that a precious blanket has fallen off her bed, or that she just realized she didn't get a last drink of water before her nightly imprisonment. In other words, no one jumped to her rescue, poor thing.

Bryan and I sent an older child to recon the situation. The report came back, "Mom, Sadie really needs you." Which I interpreted to mean, "Only Mom can banish the feared shadow, retrieve the lost blanket or deliver the desired drink." Rolling my eyes, as only loving mothers do, I walked down the long hall to play restorer of the peace.

I was surprised, dismayed and just a little bit annoyed to hear, "There's a bead stuck in my nose." Why? Why would anyone at any time stick a hard object into their nasal passage? Aargh.

She climbed out of bed while I mentally prepared for the worst that the evening might offer. Get the child dressed, find my coat, book and checkbook. I hate hanging out in emergency rooms in the middle of the night. Is urgent care still open? Would I be a terrible mother if I waited until morning?

I sent for Daddy and headed for our bathroom, where a small hemostat (clamp) lives. Investigation found a clearly visible yellow bead in the right nostril. Palpating it externally caused pain but no movement. I washed the hemostat, preparatory to trying to grab the blasted thing when Daddy walked in and suggested the farmer napkin trick first.

So I helped her plug the open nostril and instructed her to blow her nose hard...


...and the little yellow bead, lubricated by the effects of an autumn cold, came flying out of that little nose as easy as can be. Whew.

This morning I asked her why she put the bead up her nose. "I wanted to see if it would fit." Gotta love curiosity.