Now I hate going to the doctor

So, today pretty much was nuts. Today's events were not typical for us, but not the first like it, and I am sure not the last.
Here are the cliffnotes, because it is too long for even me.

5:30 am - Woke up because Bella was so excited to take the dog we are caring for this week out for her morning walk. Bella! Dressed and ready at 5:30 AM!!

6:00 am - Checked emails, read 6, sent 2.

7:00 am - Got everyone ready for the day.

8:35 am - Had a disagreement with Shaun on my way out the door to an appointment with Anthony regarding our "tone" with each other. Still gotta fix that.

8:45 am - Went to Minnetonka to see Anthony's Down syndrome specialist with Anthony and left the girls and the dog home with dad.

9:15 am - Arrived for our 9:30 appointment, thought it would take an hour at the most because we didn't have any "issues", so I made my grocery list and menu plan in the waiting room.

During the appointment found out some "issues" I wasn't prepared for, to hear, or to deal with.

• Anthony gets blood draws every six months to check for different things common to DS. Thyroid, zinc levels, IGA antibodies (for celiac disease) and other common things. Turns out his IGA levels are low and need to be closely monitored. Unfortunately, he may have a false reading so now we have to keep testing, and watch for symptoms of Celiac in order to warrant the conclusive results through an endoscopy.
• Anthony's speech concerns are heightened with his lack of social interaction and intense frustration levels and we are increasing speech therapy 2 times a week. I now need to check with insurance to cover a fancy computer that helps him communicate with others. The signing just isn't cutting it anymore. I also need to go to speech too, to be trained on how to use this thing on a day to day basis and attend a parent workshop for it. I just hope that the "cool toy" he thinks it is now, he actually uses to help himself and his connections to others.
• Because of his communication barriers and intense frustration levels, we are getting connected to an in-home behavior therapist that I need to meet with, fill out forms for, and schedule to make weekly visits to my home.
• On top of it we might need to look at "medications" for his aggitaion and irritability issues, like anti-depressents or ADHD stuff.
• Since we need to do all this, we "really should" get a county social worker - which is code for get it done before our next visit because I will be checking. FYI- The paperwork for this person to "help" our family is why I don't have time to write a real book. They want all his evaluations, his school records, birth certificate, medical history, and want to know who he lives with, when he first crawled and took his first steps, said his first word and sentence, among a million other things. Talk about time consuming.
• Oh yeah, my favorite - we now need to add physical therapy once a week to help him with his legs. Apparently his gait is quite affected and she thinks PT and new orthodics for his shoes may help. This is all in an effort to avoid a possible surgery to "correct" the problem.
• After we go see what the Orthopedic surgeon says in October when we have the x-rays done on his hips, knees and feet to locate the problem areas.

12:20 pm - We FINALLY leave the doctor's office. I have cried through most of it. Just was too overwhelming all at once. No time to get groceries. Take Anthony to lunch at McDonalds' and feel guilt over the nutrition issues with that one, but he is super happy.

1:30 pm - Stop by the house to clean the kitchen from breakfast and now lunch from Shaun and the girls, make everyone go potty, grab the coupons I clipped and forgot on the desk, and head to speech therapy. Shaun leaves for work and closes tonight. On the way, I call and get an interview for a job lined up for tomorrow.

2:00pm - Finish the grocery list, and start writing a funny tidbit as the girls look at a magazine I brought for them to keep busy with while we wait for Anthony at speech therapy.

2:45 pm - On the road, forget to stop by the PT clinic (the one we already go to for speech has no openings for PT at this time), turn around and go back, and send all the kids to the bathroom again while I set up the eval for next week.

3:30 pm - Finally get to the grocery store, I have lots of help from the little ones, peeling corn on the cob, throwing tomatoes in the cart and everything on the bread. I end up paying full price for everything because I forgot the damn coupons in the car. The kids do great, except at the end when Anthony gets slap-happy on the girls and they are all running around, fleeing and chasing. I corral them all, pay, and the bagger asks if I need help getting my stuff to the car. I thank her for her offer, let her know i can handle it, and then ask if she could come home and help me there? No go.

5:30pm - Finally get home. I have 9 voicemails and 5 emails, and 3 very hungry children. I then realize how precious they were in the store and ever so helpful, on empty stomachs during snack time and a half an hour past dinner time. I am totally whipped, and we have pizzas. I go to slice them and realize I cooked them with the cardboard still on the bottom.

6:30pm - I muster up some left over energy, and I clean all the bathrooms, vacuum and wash all the floors and do 4 loads of laundry, get the kids to bed, talk to my grandma, my mother-in-law, and dear friend from Iowa. I stay up to make a pasta and vegetable salad (that I pray doesn't suck) and cut fruit for Bella's little family birthday party with my parents and grandparents, and us which is tomorrow night. Can't bake the cake because I didn't buy the ingredients I didn't know we were out of. So I will have to do it in the morning before the little girl I do day care for shows up.

1:20 am - Call it a frickin' day and go to bed.

Gotta laugh - otherwise I'll cry.