First Trip to the ER

A few short weeks ago, I posed the question on Facebook, "which of my boys will end up in the ER first?"  Well, Andrew lost (or won?) that bet.

On Monday night (Aug. 11th) I was in the kitchen making the boys macaroni and cheese for dinner.  Andrew kept asking for his "mmum muum cheese"   which needed to be cooled.  Both boys were super wound up, per normal.

Ethan jumped onto the couch and stood along the back edge.  I promptly hollered these words at him for what seemed to be the 1000th time in the past few months.  "Ethan, you can't stand on the back of the couch like that.  You're gonna fall and get hurt!  Plus, Andrew watches every single move you do and, you know, he's always copying you."

Like a movie in slow motion, just as those last words escaped my mouth, Andrew hopped onto the back of the couch just as big brother had done.  I lunged forward to grab Andrew.  At that exact moment, the little guy lost his balance and went slamming to the ground behind him.  He screamed bloody murder.

I promptly picked him up off the ground (which I probably shouldn't have done given how he fell and how he landed.)  I checked his head, his back, his neck, everything seemed to be ok but he was still screaming hysterically.  It was at that moment that I noticed Andrew's right arm, bent at a sickening angle, pale, already swollen, and starting to turn black and blue.  I knew it was broken.

I yelled for Ethan to put his shoes back on while I quickly grabbed my purse.  Ethan starts crying, asking if Andrew was going to die.  It was mayhem.

I buckled Andrew into his carseat as gingerly as possibly, trying with everything I had to not move his arm.  The kid continued to scream...until his seat was buckled.  I kid you not, Andrew rode to the hospital in almost total silence, no cries, few whimpers, nothing.  Ethan on the other hand was a mess!  I'm driving as fast as I can while still being safe.  I repeatedly called Chris who was leaving work at any moment but was not answering his phone.  I text grandparents to let them know that we were headed to the hospital.

We arrive at Anderson Mercy's ER where they take x-rays.  I did not personally hear the results but it was clear that Andrew's elbow was, at the very least, dislocated and he needed to be transferred to Children's Hospital.  Apparently because of the risks associated with his injury, it was necessary to take us via ambulance.  Pawpaw Craig and Mimi Linda picked Ethan up from the hospital, Chris drove the van, and I rode with Andrew in the ambulance to Children's Hospital.

Around 10 pm we finally arrived at Childrens.  We were shifted from room to room, asked a million times to explain the incident, questioned in an accusatory manner, sat and waited.  After throwing around a few options, the doctors decided it was best for Andrew to have surgery to set his arm, insert 2 pins, and cast it.  We were admitted to the hospital at 4 am where we attempted to sleep until surgery in the morning.  Chris returned home to relieve the grandparents for the evening.

At 6:30 am, we were told it was time for surgery.  Andrew had to be cut out of his froggy shirt in order to change into the hospital gown.  Having barely slept and not having any food since lunch the previous day, Andrew was a bit fussy.  As soon as they gave him the sedative, however, he instantly smiled and giggled at me.  I cried as they wheeled him into surgery.  I returned to the waiting room, by myself, until Chris returned.

Soon after, we met Andrew in the post-op room where he was sporting a bright orange cast, the color chosen by big brother Ethan.  Andrew tolerated surgery and the subsequent hospital stay amazingly well.  You would've never known the kid had had surgery that morning.

We return to the doctor in 3 weeks to check the progress of his arm.  We're hoping, at that time, the pins will be removed, along with the cast.  Until then, Ethan is learning to be extra gentle with his little brother and hopefully, both boys have learned not to stand on furniture anymore!

2014 Summer Bucket List

1.  Splash Park
2.  Beach vacation
3.  Zoo
4.  Backyard camping
5.  Bowling
6.  Drive In Movie
7.  Farmer's Market
8.  Reds Game
9.  Putt Putt Golf
10.  Ride the Duck
11.  Beach Waterpark
12.  Blueberry Picking
13.  Juliff's Park
14.  Children's Museum
15.  4th of July Parade
16.  Play with sprinkler
17.  Go to Coney
18.  Nature Center
19.  Fishing
20.  Cookout
21.  Root beer floats
22.  Fireworks at Coney
23.  Library programs
24.  Smores
25.  Backyard fire
26.  Church festivals
27.  Loveland Castle

A Healthier Me

Shortly after New Years, I made the goal to become healthier.  I had heard about a program called Bikini Body Mommy and was inspired.  The program lasts 90 days and consists of daily strength training and cardio.  The girl who leads the program is very down to earth and, as a mother herself, realizes that time is very limited.  Most days, the routine only takes 20-30 minutes.

I'm now on day 13 and I'm so so excited.  On day 1 we did 8 exercises and wrote down our results.  We did the same thing on day 12 and compared the results.  I increased my reps in every single exercise!  I'm actually excited to work out each day and can't wait to see results!

Andrew's Words

Just a few months ago, I expressed concern to Andrew's pediatrician about his limited vocabulary.  At that time, he was really only saying "mama" and "dada."  I try very hard not to compare my children but I can't help it.  At that age, Ethan had a whole slew of words!  Fast forward just a few weeks and Andrew's a machine.  Here are just a few of the words he's come up with!

mama
dada
doggy
cat
kitty
yeah
yes
poop
toodles
duck
Mimi
Papa
Nonna
Gabba Gabba
cheese
shoes
turtle
banana

It's incredible what they pick up in just a short period of time!

2014 Goals

With the start of the new year, I thought I'd write down the goals I have spinning in my head right now.  I won't call them resolutions because, we all know, resolutions go by the wayside before the month is even over!  So here's what I'd like to work on in the coming months:

1.  RUN the Matt 5K in April.  

Now we all know that I don't run.  Not only do I not run, but I don't even work out.  That's going to end in the next day or so when the elliptical gets brought back into the house from the garage (it was moved out to make room for the Christmas tree.)  My plan is to work out 2-3x per week and start doing the Couch to 5K (C25K.)

2.  Work on our debt.

We were doing so great for awhile but our spending has gotten out of control again.  I want to pay off credit cards and pay for things in cash again.  I hate living pay check to pay check.  When our tax return comes in, I plan to pay for Ethan's preschool in full and use the remaining amount to knock out one credit card.  I'm not really sure where we go from there.  Baby steps.