Karen and Gary were home with Baylee on Wednesday. They were staying with her since she had strep throat and couldn't go to school. I was in a conference on Wednesday--Thank God because I never have my phone on me in the classroom. I noticed that Eric was calling around 1:00. He never calls during the day, so I was a little concerned. He told me that Karen and Gary had taken Baylee to Dr. Martin's office (our pediatrician) because her leg was swollen. Of course, we immediately thought of an allergic reaction to the amoxicillin. I quickly packed up my stuff and headed to meet them. I was freaking out. That was the longest drive ever! I was shaking so badly. I didn't really know what I was going to see when I got there. By the time I got there, they had already seen Dr. Martin and his nurse pracitioner. They were waiting in the waiting room for me to get there. I asked to speak with the doctor just so I could hear what they had told Karen and Gary. The nurse pracitioner explained that it was likely a fracture in the femur and briefly explained what to expect at the hospital.
So, we were sent to Cook's Children's to the specialized xray unit. They did the xrays on the legs. It was terrible watching her scream and not being able to do anything about it. I felt so bad for her. As soon as the finished, Eric made it in! Thank goodness for him! He is my rock! I would not have made it through that day without him. The radiologist told us to wait in the waiting room and to be "gentle with the right leg." I knew what that meant. Dr. Martin called and told us it was a fractured right femur and we should go down to the ER. So, we went to the ER got signed in and identified as "trauma". This allow us to be quickly taken back to the rooms in the ER. We were there for ever! Luckily, I ran into a good friend from high school, Sarah Deeds Riley. She was a life saver. She made it so much better for us and explained everything that was going to happen. I can't thank her enough being in the right place at the right time. (I don't think that was a coincidence though---definitely a God thing!).
During our many many hours at the ER, (I don't even have a clue what time everything happened) we went down for a full skeleton survey. Eric stayed in the room with her, while I stayed outside and just cried listening to her scream. It was horrible. They also took her for a cat scan just to make sure there was no head injuries. The orthopedic surgeon was in surgery for several hours so we had to wait for him to finish to figure out what to do next. He was finally able to see the x-rays and decided he would have to take her to surgery to put the cast on. So, they decided to admit her. But, before she could go to her room, they had to get an iv in. HORRIBLE!!!! They tried everywhere to get an IV. Eventually having to get the IV in her head! OH how hard it is to see your child with an IV in their head! Then, they had to put no-nos (braces that kept her arms from bending) on her arms so she wouldn't mess with the IV. Then, we went upstairs to our room. We had the greatest nurse there. Her name was Jessica. She made us feel so comfortable!
The orthopedic (Dr. Kennedy) finished his surgeries and came by to check her out. At this point, it was about 12:30 am. We had been there since about 2 that afternoon! EXHAUSTION does not even describe what we were feeling. He said that we could wait until Thursday, but we might get pushed down the surgery list. So, he offered to do it right then. So, within 20 minutes, we were up in surgery getting the details about anethesthia and saying goodbye to our precious little one. As hard as it was, we felt so comfortable with Dr. Kennedy. We knew it would be okay. But, waiting in the surgery waiting room by ourselves after the hardest day ever was so hard. We took turns falling apart and lifting each other up. What would we have done without each other? The surgery last over 2 hours. The nurse called us every hour to let us know how it was going and how she was doing. She did fabulous, of course! After recovery, we were able to see her and go back up to our room. There she slept good for several hours and Eric and I were finally able to close our eyes for a while. Everything was pretty simple from there on out. We just had to learn how to take care of a spica cast and a baby in a spica cast. The diapering part is definitely the hardest part. But, we have definitely gotten our routine down with it. We were released on Thursday about 3:30 and home by 5! We were all so glad to be home!
Here are a few pictures from the hospital. Some are very sad, so don't scroll down if you have a hard time with this! Just remember she is fine now! And, she won't remember all this---that's what I keep reminding myself!
Waiting in the ER with ice on the leg. Eric came straight from work so he was in scrubs. Everyone kept stopping him to ask where things were at the hospital. Ha! Not that kind of doctor!
After getting the cast. That is a bottle cap in her mouth. We didn't really come prepared with toys so the bottle cap became a toy! On her arm is the no-no to keep her from messing with the IV in her arm and on her head.
Sleeping after surgery.
Yea! Feeling better! No more no-no on my arm!
Leaving Cooks in a red wagon! She wanted to sit up to see where she was going!
First time at home! Getting comfy!
