Another First {The Ordinary Moments}

It was bound to happen at some point. LP broke her leg at 15 months and, as much as I hoped Little Man would be break free for life – like me – it seems he has followed in his Daddy’s more accident prone footsteps. At the grand age of four and four days Little Man fractured his elbow.

I didn’t write about his birthday celebrations as, after his garden party the weekend after he turned four, he fell over on his bouncy castle once everyone had gone home. He must have landed badly or something and cried out in pain. I took him to A&E and it pretty much cast a shadow over the day for me, leaving me not really wanting to write about it.

But, the x-rays apparently came back clear and we were told to go back if there was no improvement after a few days or longer if we had any concerns. Well, Little Man was fine. He didn’t use his arm much for the next few days but at some point he went back to normal. He had his swimming lesson, climbed up bunk beds, played at the park. He was fine.

But, there were a few times when he would complain or cry out – if we put the other arm into his coat first he couldn’t get the hurt one in and we had to start again. He also found it hard to sleep on that side and would still call his left arm his ‘ow-ie’ arm over a week later.

The cherry on the cake really was when I was helping him put his shoes on and I held his hands to pull him up to standing and he screamed like he had that first day on the bouncy castle. I had really hurt his arm so unintentionally by doing something that I had done so many times before. So I took him back to A&E.

The whole time at the hospital I thought I was wasting their time. Little Man looked fine, he was playing, he was using his arm. Then when I saw the triage nurse he prodded and poked Little Man’s arm and there wasn’t a hint of pain, I even started to believe it was in my head.

But then we saw a doctor and she asked Little Man to put his arms up in the air and he couldn’t – as he knew it would hurt. She admitted that she thought a crack had been missed on the x-ray and sent us for another – that showed the same result, a fracture in his elbow.

We were sent straight to the fracture unit where Little Man was put in a cast and he was so little and so brave. The only time he got upset was when we had to go back to the A&E reception to make a follow up appointment and he thought he had to walk home – he cried and cried. But, we had the car and after paying for parking and manoeuvring him and his cast into his five-point harness we were glad to be heading home.

I can’t say the last few days have been easy. We have had to change the clothes and pyjamas that Little Man wears to accommodate his cast. He has been quiet at nursery and he finds it hard to get comfortable to sleep. But, he has got on with it, he has kept smiling and he knows that the cast is making his ‘ow-ie’ arm better.

Little Man’s first broken bone – I hope the first and last. This isn’t a milestone any of us want to repeat in a hurry but he has dealt with it so well – and still does so many of the things he loves to do – like using the swings at Nanny’s house.

If you have an ordinary moment this week, come and link up with myself and Katie – we love reading your posts each week.

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