Another First

This stage of our life is defined by a long string of "firsts". First day of school, first time riding a bike, first sentence, first haircut, etc. Tonight we had an unwelcome, but inevitable first- First broken bone. Ironically it wasn't the child that we expected to first visit the ER with. Little Cullen is timid, cautious and restrained. He is never far from mama and certainly is not the dare devil that his brother D is. But tonight at O's soccer practice, Cullen took a fall and landed the wrong way. He was standing on the bottom bleacher, less than 2 feet off of the ground, six inches from me, when he tumbled off. The fall was so slight that I almost said my typical- You're Ok, Hop up! But what I looked down and saw is an image that will stay with me. Cullen's arm wasn't right. It was turned the wrong direction. I am not the sort of mom who freaks out easily, but let me assure you that I freaked! His little arm, from about halfway down the lower section, was hanging completely limp. I scooped him up and started yelling. The other moms only needed to take one look and they reacted quickly. I'm telling you, the arm was scary messed up! So one mom, who I had never met before, grabbed the keys to her mini van and D and I jumped in. I left my car, my purse, my cell phone, my diaper bag....and my oldest son.....behind. She drove us to Baptist East in the 5:00 traffic while I frantically dialed the only 3 cell phone #s that I know from memory- Chad's cell, his work, and Anita's cell. In the mean time this sweet lady was trying to say reassuring things while Cullen screamed his head off and thrashed around in my arms. I think I must have said Oh God, and Oh My God about 3 dozen times. I guess I have a little explaining to do with Dawson. The other time that it is OK to scream the name of the Lord is when you don't know who else to turn to and your brain can't even process anything but his name!
I will save you all of the long ER details, but the 2 bones in the lower part of his arm are broken clean in two. Interestingly enough, by the time we saw the orthopedic on call, his arm already looked much straighter. I asked the Dr. about this. He explained that immediately following the injury the bones would "bleed", causing swelling that helped align the bones back in to place. The Dr. gave God the credit for this natural healing process and said that , at his age, we could have tied a stick to his arm and it would probably heal perfectly. Isn't that awesome that God's perfect design was already healing my babies body before the medical profession had even surmised his condition! We thank God that Cullen is resting nicely at home and that they do not think that he will need surgery. Please pray for the continued healing of his little body and for patience in what is sure to be a trying few weeks with a 21 mo old in a cast!