of broken arms and slow weekends
On a normal Wednesday last week he and his brother and their two friends walked home to our house. They tromped upstairs after asking if they could play video games (no). They went into the media room to build forts and play with the bean bag chairs. Which are plentiful. I think we have five or six. They stacked them on top of each other.
Grady fell off the top and landed with his hand palm side down. I heard him say "ouch" but ya'll kids. So when they came downstairs and he said "something's really wrong." I side-eyed him. But I have often thought his chronic issue means he doesn't feel pain like other folks. This is the child that had undiagnosed strep for over a week. He doesn't ever complain really. So when he said it hurt something about it made me believe him. But he was panicking a bit.
"You're fine!" It wasn't swelling. It wasn't even red. It did feel oddly warm to the touch (in the minutes after, not immediately). And in what made me know something was broke was when he tried to rotate his hand palm side up, his arm shook and he grimaced.
He didn't really cry at all.
But he was panicking. And his arm was shaking (think like shock). But when I mentioned going to the doctor he did start crying. Because apparently fear of needles trumps broken arm pain. If they ever go back to nasal sprays for the flu shots my kids will be very pleased.
Anyway. So I called our doctors office and asked them. I have heard awful things about going to ERs for broken bones. Stories about when you then see your orthopedist (which is always recommended) about casts being taken off, arms being rebroken and reset because the ERs "cowboy doctors don't know what they're doing."
And my first thoughts are always - WE NEED HELP NOW! CALL AN AMBULANCE! IT'S A COMPOUND FRACTURE HE'LL NEVER USE HIS ARM AGAIN!
So then grown up, logical, in-control, and "don't-freak-out-your-children" Stacy kicks in ... is this an emergency? no swelling. he's not crying. he's moving it some. no blood. no bone.
So the nurse and I settle on bringing him in to have the pedi look at it. It was 3:30PM in the afternoon after all. This is another moment when I am very glad I stay home.
So we see said doc. Said doc says "it could be broken. It could not be. Here's a sling and then go to the fracture clinic at Scottish Rite if it's still bugging him tomorrow morning." So this isn't an emergency? "This? No. He'll be okay."
Grady was less convinced. But he felt much better with his sling (Dumbo's feather). In hindsight, I should have given him motrin before bed. But I hate giving motrin when there's no evidence. He kept saying he was fine.
But the next morning he says he didn't sleep at all because he couldn't get comfortable. I think motrin would have helped.
So long story short it's broken. It's a very common break from landing on his outstretched hand. And it was so tiny I told him it wasn't broken and what was he going to do then? He didn't know.
But then doc came in and said "well it's broken." Well who knew. And I don't actually think it was a doc, I think it was an RN or NP. Which will lead me to the amazingness that is the facility.
Scottish Rite is brand new here. We have one downtown. For folks that don't know it is a hospital that specializes in orthopedics and sports medicine. I make a mental catalog of what amazing specialists we have in this area because I always like knowing where I would go "if" something happened. So anyway they told us to wait and try this fracture walk-in clinic. Which sounded amazing and also brilliantly placed in Frisco; large employed population that has a lot of kids.
And so we did. They opened at 7:30 but in grand tradition we had doctors appointments at 7 and 7:30 for our physicals. So I took everyone to my physical, rushed to make the bell for David at school. And then took J and G to this fracture clinic. Which is brand new and very nice and the hospital has free popcorn for kids. We didn't get any because it was 8AM and that didn't sound fun to me. Though they did ask.
All that to say, we did all that and Julia was at school by 9:40. We were still late for her. But we were checked in, xrayed, seen and put in a cast all before 9:30. I do not think we would have done so well at an ER. So this brilliant place being here makes me happy. And it's yet another reason I will not want to leave Dallas or Texas in general.
Being a child of terrible health care, the brilliance of the care my kids receive makes me grateful. Government provided care stinks. I never saw the same doctor twice. I was given antibiotics for everything. When I split my head open they refused to pay. For years my mom fought that battle. They just hoped she would give up. They don't know my mother. Might have been the age I grew up in (my mom says no and I still think her care is crap) ... but my kids certainly have it better.
Anyway. He was grateful to be confirmed as broken because I kept saying it wasn't broken so he got to feel like he was right. I knew it was broken when his arm was shaking. But if I said that he'd have cried. Me telling him he was fine was the right call. And he gets to lord to over me now. Fun for him.
I accidentally dressed us alike.
She is in a torture the dog phase again. The dog isn't loving it.
Also I'm always happy when we make it to church.
And I can't believe how big they all are. And that I have no babies. Feels like I had babies for forever and suddenly they just magicked themselves into big kids. They say it because it's true; don't blink. It's over before you know it. And for me I know these are the years I will miss. These are the years of my life I will want back so badly. The years when everyone is sleeping and everyone is old enough to do fun things and talk and tell me amazing stories and paint their own pinewood derby cars with sparkles and say things like .... "WOW! Sparkles make me soooooo happy!" in their really deliberate I'm almost four kind of way.
And the years I'm still able bodied and young. I'm going to do everything I can to remain healthy through my 50s too but I think you know what I mean.
There are things about our life that I would change a thousand times if I could. But there are things that are just fine. And as they preached on Sunday ...
Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? 26 Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? Luke 12:25
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