Last hurrah ended with a (literal) bang onto the cobblestone in Fells Point

Saturday got off to a ROUGH start - it ended pretty rough too but the middle was enjoyable.  I needed to get my pre-op blood work done in the morning.  Knowing that Labcorp turns into a zoo on the weekends, I set off to arrive just prior to their opening.  I pulled into the parking lot and was beyond pleased with how empty it still was . . . yessss.  I walked into the building AND got to the office AND tried to open the door AND they aren't open on Saturdays.  FAIL.  I wasn't totally discouraged yet.  I pulled out my trusty iPhone and found that there was another Labcorp just FIVE minutes away.  Pure elation.  I could still get to the next needle stop mere minutes after they opened.  I was so unbelievably incorrect in that belief.  When I pulled into THAT parking lot I could barely find a space.  It was so packed I almost decided not to go in at all.  Had I not already received a threatening(ish) phone call from someone at the hospital I probably would have just skipped out.  Sadly, I knew this doom could not be avoided.  I found a half parking spot next to the dumpster and, very satisfied with my proximity to the building, hopped out of my car and strolled into the waiting area.  I had a restored energy and was ready to face the situation head on.  

Uhhhhh until I looked around the waiting room for a chair . . . that's ok I could stand in the corner by the water cooler.  Everything was going to be alright.  I went to write my name on the sign in sheet.  I didn't have time to adequately count exactly how many names were ahead of mine because two more people had walked in since I started writing my name, but my best guestimate was about thirty.  What an awesome way to spend a Saturday morning.  Anyway,  I tried to stay busy on my phone that now only had 16% battery life and every once in a while looked up at the local news.  Most of the waiting room was in a very audible rage at the new contract Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco had just signed.  Finally, after about an hour and twenty minutes, I heard my name called.  GLORY!!  I went around the corner to give the receptionist my order form and insurance card when just like that, I was told that my new insurance is NOT accepted by Labcorp.  But really not to worry because a Quest Lab was right across the street.  DEATH!! This was HORRIBLE news.  Trusty iPhone out yet again to find out where my third stop of the morning would be.  By this time I would certainly not be one of the first patients at this other office.  It ended up not being that bad.  I waited for about 40 minutes in a way less crowded waiting room (where I did see some of my fellow comrades from Labcorp) and, four test tubes later, was out of there.  This was not how I had intended to start my Saturday morning, but we had fun plans ahead of us so I couldn't let these minor setbacks get in my way.  

I called Dave on the way home from my lab nightmare to make sure that there was still coffee in the pot for when I got home.  I was desperate but he assured me that there was.  I couldn't wait to relax on the couch and drink some coffee after my inconvenient morning.  I got home, walked into the house, said my hellos and grabbed a mug for my hot, relaxing beverage.  As I tilted the pot I could tell that my mug would not be filled to my satisfaction, however, my disappointment actually reached a boiling point when the amount of remaining coffee barely even covered the bottom of my cup.  It was the cherry on top of my so far, super Saturday.  Just as quickly as I said "hello" to the family, I said "goodbye".  I drove straight to Starbucks and threw back a $4 latte instead of my Maxwell House.  Things were looking up.  How could they not be?  That really is the end of my depressing morning.  When I arrived home, I took a long nap before preparing for a night out on the town to celebrate the engagement of some close friends.

Dave and I rarely get out but our favorite babysitter was available (thanks Katie!!) and we knew it was our last hurrah before the surgery so we were determind to have a good time.  We got dolled up and even got out of the house without a big scene from the kiddies.  The engagement party was a nice cocktail party and almost all of our close friends were in attendance.  The company was great, the huckleberry lemonade was flowing and the playlist was legit.  As the party came to an end most of our friends were planning on continuing the celebration at a bar downtown.  Because we had our trusty sitter and rarely left the house on a Saturday night, we decided to go.  We were having a great time and my upcoming surgery barely crossed my mind.  Until I started talking about Dave's birthday with his friends.  It is the day after my surgery.  That's right ladies and gents, he will wake up on his 29th birthday in the hospital, to a wife that will be a little less whole than she was when he was 28.  Oh man.  His friends assured me that they would make it special for him even though I won't be able to.  I do not get too worked up over the surgery but I get very emotional at all of the support people have offered us.  It is really amazing.  So there, in the bar, in my fancy cocktail dress, I got very teary.  Dave was out getting the car from the parking garage and his friends were offering endless support to my family and I was responding in a completely irrational manner.  Luckily (for me, not him) one of Dave's friends offered to walk me out to the car.  I must mention, before I go any further with this story, that the streets in Fells Point, where we were, are mostly cobblestone.  Nate gave me a hug and assured me that everything would be ok.  Side note: I know that my little boys will be taken care of by both of their sets of grandparents, etc. but I worry about who will make sure my husband is really ok.  So when his friends get sentimental it really makes me feel like Dave will be taken care of as well.  The rest of the story seems to take place in slow motion so bare with me.  As Dave pulled the car up I heard him alert me to the fact that if I stepped off the curb, towards the car only a few feet further up the sidewalk, I would miss the cobblestone and step onto silky smooth asphalt.  Nate had also pointed me in that direction, yet, for some reason, I brazenly stepped off the curb where I was and promptly landed on my face in the middle of the crowded street.  I am soooo out of practice in heels and when you add booze, cobblestone and emotions to the mix, it can only end in disaster.  At least there was a stranger there to awkwardly pry me up off of the sidewalk and I hurridly took one slight step over, onto the smooth ground before stumbling into the car.

So there it is.  My last night out.  It was great.  I really thank everyone that helped distract me from this somewhat hellish/purgatoryish week leading up to the surgery.  We had a great time.  Let's please pray that the snow gods do not dump too much of the white stuff on Baltimore and that everything else goes off the way we want it to.  I have the rest of my pre-op tests on Wednesday and my surgery begins at 8am Friday.  I will try to update often but thank everyone for their help ahead of time.  Also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY ROCK.  I AM SOOOO LUCKY TO HAVE YOU, DAVE! XOXO.