Wherein the wrong lesson is learned

As is her usual custom, S-Boogie refused to eat her dinner and excused herself from the table. She came back a few minutes later looking rather downcast and wiping at her nose. She announced "I have something in my nose" (at least she's an honest little soul), and my heart sank because I remembered the string of beads that had broken earlier today. I thought I had picked up all the beads, but apparently I missed one. Don't worry, S-Boogie found it and discovered that it fit perfectly into her nostril. With the help of a flashlight, we were able to see it and realize that it was a little t00 far up there to attempt safe removal ourselves. After a phone consultation with the doctor's office, we were sent to the emergency room at Children's Hospital (just up the road from our house, thankfully). Our ER visit was nice and low-key, and the staff really is good about catering to children. We were only there an hour or so total, which isn't bad at all. They had snacks for parents and lots of crayons, paper, and Cars on TV for the kids. When the doctor did appear, the procedure only took less than a minute and he didn't even have to do anything. Tonight I learned "The Big Kiss", which is the secret to preventing ER visits for foreign bodies in the nose. You have someone hold the child's head steady and plug the nostril that is not affected. Then you take a deep breath, seal your mouth over the child's mouth, and blow in very hard. The bead popped right out (so did a lot of snot all over my cheek). It was a little weird, but I'm still grateful I didn't try tweezers or anything at home.

Unfortunately, I'm afraid that the only thing S-Boogie learned from the whole experience is that sticking things up your nose means that you get to go to a place where they give you juice and stickers, let you watch TV, and reward you with a brand-new Beanie Baby when you are done. Now that I know the secret procedure, she won't be so lucky next time.