Mandy M.
I know that winter is just around the corner and decide to keep a blanket and a bottle of water in the car as well. I already have a charger for my phone plugged into the cigarette lighter.
You would think that living in Montana all my life I would have snow boots as well, but I don’t. Every year I say I’m going to get a pair but never do, and this year getting a pair is pretty low on my list of priorities.
Cheryl had a dresser delivered to me and I have gotten a crib mattress—the crib still isn’t put together but I have one.
The girls at work threw me a baby shower, and I got so much stuff—a swing, stroller and car seat combo, clothes, diapers, wipes, sheets, and Edith made the baby a beautiful blanket.
I have enough clothes that I don’t really need to buy any until she turns one. Her little dresser is full already.
She is growing right on track, and my doctor seems to think she will be here the second week in December. I’m counting down the days, believe me.
Although, I have to admit that the one nice thing about being pregnant is I have yet to turn my heat on. Normally, by now it would’ve been on for the last couple weeks.
The temperature in October can range from the twenties at night to almost sixty during the day—we’ve also been known to get snow. My electric bill is barely above fifty dollars and I love it.
My winter coat doesn’t fit right now, so I just layer a couple sweatshirts over my lab coat. The nice thing about shopping at the thrift store is that I can get a bunch of sweatshirts and yoga pants for cheap.
I also have built up my savings account pretty good with all of my home health paychecks going straight into it.
I also add four to five hundred a month from the hospital to it and feel pretty confident that I’m going to have enough to last my entire maternity leave.
Although, I did recently splurge on one item: a vibrator, my fingers just weren’t doing it anymore. My hormones are going crazy and I’ve never been this horny before in my life.
I swear everything turns me on lately and I’m using it more and more, daily now. It’s nothing like the real thing, but it serves its purpose. What I wouldn’t give to feel a man between my legs again.
I pull myself away from my dirty thoughts as an ambulance crew comes bursting through the door—an SUV had pulled out in front of a semi. Two adults and two children were in it, one of each was ejected.
I hear the chopper landing as I assist the ambulance crew. A four-month-old baby is strapped in his car seat on top of the stretcher, screaming his lungs out. “He’s screaming, that’s a good sign,” I say, relieved.
“Let’s get some x-rays of him to be sure,” Dr. Whitley says.
Carefully I get him out and lay him on the table. Once the x-rays are done and he is clear, I settle him down and hand him off to the pediatric nurse.
I turn my attention to the woman who was just brought in; she was ejected as well but was conscious when the ambulance got there and didn’t feel she needed to be airlifted.
The driver of the SUV and the other child were in the helicopter, the man coming to us and the child going to the children’s hospital in Helena.
We send the driver and his female passenger to surgery.
She has a fractured pelvis and he has a massive head injury, broken ribs, collapsed lung, and an open femur fracture. He’s going to be in surgery for a while, and it honestly doesn’t look good for him.
Accidents involving children are always hard on all of us, especially those that could’ve been easily prevented. This one for instance.
If the little girl would’ve been in her car seat—rather than just sitting in the seat—she would’ve been fine, as the impact was on the opposite side. But now she’s at the children’s hospital with a fractured spine.
Yes, the emergency room staff know more about your accident than you think. We communicate with the EMTs and police. See, it’s more than just the impact that we’re told.
We know what the vehicles look like, who was involved, and what appears to have happened. It all plays a role; it helps to assess your injuries better and can treat you accordingly.
And yes, seat belts really do save lives.
This was a shift I was glad was over. I sit in my car and cry for a few minutes before gathering myself and heading to my first home visit of the day.
I have lost a few patients and now only see one a day. It’s nice though, I’m able to rest more and work on getting things ready for baby.
I can’t seem to decide on a name though. I don’t want one that you hear all the time, but I don’t want it to be anything crazy.
A nun at the church named me Magdalynn after Mary Magdalynn in the Bible. Although I like my name, I was picked on a lot in school because of it, and that’s primarily why I go by Lynn. I just want it to be different.
I stop by the bookstore and pick up a book of baby names. Hopefully, that will help me. Setting the book on the couch, I fold my laundry, put it away, and turn on the shower.
Once steam starts to fill the bathroom I step in—the hot water feels amazing on my sore body.
I slip on a shirt and crawl into bed, and as soon as I do, the baby starts moving and kicking.
“Come on, little one, let me get some rest.” I rub my stomach, and the kicks lessen. Her soft kicks lull me to sleep and I’m happy.