Broken Arm

Thursday, April 27 started as every other day.  It was a nice day.  I dropped off Ellie at preschool.  I came home and took care of my final project for my grad class.  I am so glad to be done with that class.  It was more the time it took up than the actual content.  I went for a quick walk/run around Dalton before picking up Ellie.  Actually, I stopped to talk to a friend on Main Street about 1/4 mile from the preschool.  I didn't keep track of time and when I said good-bye and glanced at my watch it was 11:31!!! (already late for pick up!!)  I took off at a dead sprint, knowing I wouldn't make it, but thought it was worth a shot.  I did - almost - make it running the entire time.  I was hardly able to talk by the time I got there.  The good news was that, although I was the last parent, there were still parents walking out, so I wasn't too late.  Whew!  Ellie and I headed to the library to get books, movies, and play-aways for our weekend trip with Grandma Yoh to Gatlinburg.  The librarian asked if I had been to Florida.  I told her my face was just red from exertion; how out of shape am I?!?!  Anyway, we had just made it home from the library and set the books down when I heard my phone ring.  I couldn't locate it before it went to voicemail.  I saw it was a missed call from the school.

The first thought was, "Ugh, I hope Madison didn't break her bone or something.  That would be really inconvenient before vacation."

School: "We need you to come to the school.  Madison was on the monkey bars and fell.  We are not sure, but think she may have broke her arm."

And there it was - broken bone.

(Hindsight tells me that had she been sick with a fever, vomit, or strep throat our plans would have actually had to change and it would have been more inconvenient.)

I left Ellie with Jeremy and headed directly back to Dalton.  The assistant principal had wrapped it in a very nice splint, and the nurse had given her a school spirit sling.  Madison was scared.  But she was also worried that we wouldn't go on our trip; it was one of her first questions.

We drove directly to Wooster Hospital ER.  We made it before the rush and were helped pretty quickly.  X-rays confirmed that she had a fracture of her left radius on the distal end.  Translation: she broke the bigger bone on her lower left arm near the wrist.

The good news was actually plentiful: we would go on vacation; it is not her dominant hand; it doesn't look like it will require surgery; a hard splint will hold til a cast can be put on; she got a stuffed animal "Brave the Bear" from a church in Medina who donated them for kids in the ER

The bad news: broken arm; no swimming while on vacation; no more monkey bars for the school year; and no softball this season.

This is her second broken bone.  The last one was July 2013 on her right foot.  Hopefully, this will be it....