Our "Righty" is Now a "Lefty"!

We experienced our first ER visit last night. The kids and I decided to go with my parents to their cottage for a couple of nights in Michigan. As the kids were getting ready for bed, they were having a great time exploring the cottage, playing with the toys, and just hanging out.

As my dad was setting up the pull out sofa bed, Maya was on the bed and Kai wanted to join her. He tried to climb up from the corner and must have mis-stepped. He tumbled feet first a whopping 1 and a half feet and must have landed just perfectly on his right arm to break his distal radius. He cried more than usual and grabbed his right wrist with his left hand. It's odd because it didn't hurt him to touch his arm. He even brushed his teeth with his right arm not too long after. I had a bad gut feeling when even 30 minutes after the fall, he would still place his left hand over his right wrist. It was so unlike him to be fussy for that long. So it was off to the ER.

Now remember, we're in a very small town in Michigan...the kind of town that has one pizza place, one ice cream place, one restaurant, and a local grocery store that also houses the video store. My mom and I carried a screaming Kai to the car to head to the ER while my dad stayed back at the cottage with a screaming Maya. It was about 10:00p.m. as my mom navigated our minivan through dark, curving, country roads to the nearest facility.

After arriving at a very small hospital, we then waited almost 2 hours before we were lead to x-ray. Kai was so brave as they pulled at his poor little arm to take 4-5 pictures. I knew it was bad news when the x-ray technician lead us to our room that had an entire wall lined with casting materials. My worries were confirmed when the doctor showed us his x-rays. A complete and fortunately "clean" break at his distal radius. The doctor said that this is a very common break for young children since their bones are still so soft. She also said that it will heal quickly and with no long lasting effects.

The cast tech was great with Kai. She let him feel the cotton and casting materials before putting them on his arm. They made him a temporary cast to allow for swelling and to keep him immobilized until we can see an orthopedic specialist this week. She mentioned that they now make water-proof casts. Hooray!!!

I am now on a mission to find an orthopedic specialist in our area who works with this new casting material. We want Kai to have a fun-filled summer. He absolutely LOVES water. We can't imagine restricting his water play for the next 6 weeks.

Here's a couple of pics of his temporary cast. It's big and very heavy. He's already learning to eat with his left hand but is very messy as you can see.

He's been so brave and continues to amaze us with his smile and good spirits through this whole ordeal.