Ah, Motherhood! Toothpicks & Barbie's Clothes

Years ago, I was scheduled as the after-dinner speaker for an organization. We were almost through with the meal, when I got an urgent message to call home. Since this was before the widespread prevalence of cell phones, I excused myself to find a phone and make that call.
I quickly learned one of my daughters (Tiffany) was on the way to the hospital; she had a toothpick stuck in her thigh! Yes, a toothpick stuck in her thigh.
As I headed back into the meeting room, I wondered how this explanation would sound to the group. Well, it didn’t really matter because it was the truth, no matter how far-fetched it sounded. So, I apologized to the group and said I had to go to the hospital to meet my daughter who had a toothpick stuck in her thigh.
As it turned out, there had been a toothpick hidden down in the carpet. The children had been playing when that toothpick and her outer thigh somehow “met.” She couldn’t get the toothpick out; a neighbor tried and couldn’t get it out either. He said it appeared the muscle had tightened around the toothpick, making it impossible to remove easily.
The doctor deadened the area and did whatever necessary to relax the muscle, then removed the toothpick. There was no permanent damage.
This had to be one of strangest “emergencies” known to motherhood, I thought. I was wrong. Later that night, one of the women who had been at the meeting called to check on my daughter. We were talking about the strange story when she said she totally understood. When her daughters were young, she got a call at work one day to come home because a daughter had gotten Barbie’s clothes stuck up her nose.
I don’t know if I ever heard the explanation on that one. Quite frankly, I’m not certain I want to know how that child got Barbie’s clothing stuck in her nose.
Ah, the joys of motherhood!

Copyright 2008 Sherry Shealy Martschink