It definitely wasn't a milestone I wanted her to reach but 5 year-olds aren't always accommodating. I'm really hoping is was a first and last event.
Nana called me at work last Thursday (July 17th) about 10:40 in the morning. I could hear Maggie crying in the background as my Mom told me about a playground fall and an arm that hurts whenever it's moved.
Seems our fearless Girl was on the child's zipline at Tumbleweed Park and let go too early, reaching out for her Nana. She landed face down with her right arm under her hip bone. Elbow, wrist and fingers were all just fine but her forearm hurt whenever she moved it. I left work and met my parents at the ER (Jorde met us there, as well), where we spent the next few hours.
All things considered, Maggie did really well. There were lots of tears, and many scary looking things to see (x-ray was particularly difficult) but she made it through and had a smile on her face by the end of it (thanks, Nana, for the balloon glove people!). A quick trip to the Disney Store to pick a gift from Nana and Papaw didn't hurt things, either. (Retail Therapy works at all ages.)
Maggie slept fairly well that night. She woke up three times but I was able to help get her comfortable and back to sleep without difficulty. I was expecting it to be a long night for me and I was right. If only I could go back to sleep as quickly and easily as she does! All the emotions of the prior day coupled with having my Mommy Ears on 'High Alert' all night created a walking zombie the next day. I was beat by the time we got home from the D'backs game that evening with Grandma and Grandpa (we won!)
The Girl continued to do well throughout the weekend. There was some complaining of pain and achiness in her arm (she only had a splint on at this point), but she was a real little trooper and managed well. There was lots of extra snuggling, which I will always be happy about regardless of the reason.
First thing Monday morning was Maggie's appointment with the orthopedic doctor, Mr. Joe. I was so thankful to have as a resource a friend that Maggie is familiar with from church. She chatted everyone up as went through the process, and did much better with the x-rays Mr. Joe took after her cast was on. We discovered then that not only did she fracture the one bone we knew about, but she cracked the one above it as well. Disappointing news, but Joe assured us there should be no growth or healing issues.
Maggie will have another x-ray in two weeks to check how her bones are healing, and two to three weeks after that she will have her cast removed. It's very likely she will start Kindergarten with a cast which bums me out a bit, but I have been assured by parents who have "been there, done that" that Maggie will end up getting extra attention because her classmates will all want to know what happened to her. Basically, I shouldn't dwell on it because Maggie sure won't!
For the record, Maggie is looking forward to getting back on the zipline once her arm is healed. When I asked her what she was going to do when she got back on, Maggie replied, "Not let go." I guess we can file that under 'Lesson Learned'. :)