Shhhh!

This is the blog post that never happened. . .as I am "working" so hard that I actually just asked Kyle to run to the store for me (don't worry, he has been home alone all day getting in good study time). Maybe he isn't the only one who gets sidetracked. I vow to not make fun of him for ESPN.com.

For 24 hours.

So, the main motivator for this blog post is that I had thoughts on the brain and want to get them down before I forget, and nothing makes you forget about your own life faster than transcribing for hours on end, typing about other people's lives.

Yesterday started like any ol' average day. As Kyle's schedule wasn't so helpful, I drove the kids to school, came home, ate my second breakfast with Sullivan, worked for a few hours, yadi yadi yada. Sully started a little fussing (okay a lot) around noon, so I fed him quick lunch and dozed next to him for a few minutes to get him to sleep. Kyle came home for lunch, so we left the napper home with Joanna and grabbed a torta ahogada for lunch. Afterwards, I woke Sully, buckled him in the car and left to go get the kids.

Fast forward five minutes and ta-dah!!! Car crash + me = OH S#$%. I actually think I did say that. And I also hit the steering wheel really hard 'cause I was TICKED. I called Kyle and said, "I just hit someone right outside the community - come FAST!" I tried to call the insurance company but all of the phone numbers were saying "no existe". This was just a teeny fender bender, but I kind of had a clue that we were going to be sticking around for a while as I have heard rumors before about how much fun this could be. (I'm a sucker for first-hand experience).

The short version:
Kyle showed up quickly.
He called insurance company. They estimate 30-40 minutes until the adjuster arrives.
All occupants move to the side of the road (including the three small children who were riding unbuckled in the passenger seat of a two-seater nissan pickup).
We wait.
Police officer shows up and uses a can of spray paint to mark the lines on the road where each of our cars was located, thereby allowing us to all move them to the side of the road to clear the road for the miles of traffic that are jammed up behind us now.
We wait some more.
Insurance adjusters for other two cars show up after about 20 minutes. They start talking and trying to figure out who was at fault. Is anyone missing here?? Oh yeah - MY insurance adjuster.
We wait some more.
My insurance adjuster shows up after 50 minutes. . .meaning we have all been sitting out on the side of the road for an hour now. And my kids are still at school. And Sully will NOT stop crying. :(
Adjusters read all the written statements about who is at fault. My car is the only car undamaged, which means that if it IS my fault, I would be the only person who did not have to pay any $. I know it is not my fault - but tell the guy that I will take the blame if it means we can all go. He says I can't take the blame now because I already handed over my written statement and I cannot change it now.
Adjusters cannot agree on whose fault it is. They have to call the "Peritos". I have no clue what the American equivalent of this would be, but he is baiscally a mediator who has the final say as far as who is at fault in an accident. He comes down, looks at the position of the cars, assesses the location and degree of damage and makes his ruling.
We wait some more.
I call Brooke and ask her to PLEASE pick up my poor kids from school and take them to her house.
After 30-45 more minutes, the Perito arrives. He begins his assessment.
We wait some more.
He finally decides that it is my fault. His reasoning basically sounds like it is because I have the biggest car of the three. Whatever - can we go now??? (3 hours at the scene and counting.)
Paperwork must be signed. Show me where to sign! Paperwork cannot be signed until they fill it all out, by hand, on the hood of the car.
We wait some more.
3 hours and 45 minutes later we are signing the paperwork and told we can leave.
I climb into the car, turn the key and . . . NOTHING. Did you know that if you leave your hazard lights on it will drain your battery??? Yeah, me neither.
It takes Kyle and the police officer 10 minutes to hold up traffic enough for him to bring the truck around, facing oncoming traffic to help me jumpstart the car.
And we go.

That was SUPER fun. Kyle and I both felt like we had been assaulted (emotionally) by the time it was all over. I really appreciate the system in the USA. In the end I got the blame anyway. . .at least in the USA it would have been quick (if not painless).

AND - our old cell phone broke a few months ago and we recently replaced it. I forgot to give the school our new number. Poor G was sick at school all day and they had no way to call me. He laid down in the classroom for seven hours. Do I win an award for that kind of parenting?? I hope so because I pretty much felt like the biggest loser (and not in the 'I'm skinny and I used to be fat' kind of way). Is it Friday yet??? :p