Stitches and Stupidity

Have you ever had one of those parenting moments where you wish you had the power to just reverse time and do a better job!?! Where you know that if the circumstances would've been just different enough you may of trusted that internal voice that warned against your initial decision??

Yeah, tonight was one of those for me and unfortunately, it took a sad toll on my eldest.

Let's set the scenario:

I taught until 7:45pm.

Wednesdays are my current workout nights, which one of my best-friends (and neighbor) has recently been doing with me--so at around 8pm, Kristy (said friend & neighbor) texted me about whether or not we were 'still going.'

I responded 'yes', changed into my workout clothes, packed up the boys and headed to my husband's clinic--where he has a gym set-up.

We did our full workout and headed home around 9:30pm.

We put boys in the bath around 10pm (late night for us means late night for them, unfortunately.)

As you have read so far...it was late, we were all tired and COMPLETELY off the normal schedule...and as you may have assumed, we were all starving!

In an attempt to curb the whines and sheer torture of the whole situation, I gave the boys a little, mini pyrex bowl of goldfish crackers to munch on while they took their bath, while Aaron and I threw together a quick, planned chicken recipe.

Shortly after starting on the chicken, Aaron decided that he needed to run to the store for an ingredient that, in hind-sight, we really could've and should've just used what we already had, in it's place.

While Aaron was gone, I was busy cooking in the kitchen, when suddenly, horrible screams came from the bathroom.

I dropped everything and went running in to find Lincy, on the far side of the tub with a scared expression on his face, just staring at Gray. I look at Gray and realized that I could see the tissue on his left leg! Within seconds, I grabbed his leg, applied pressure, scooped him up out of the bath and started screaming for Aaron (who had thankfully JUST walked in the door), for help. After getting a quick glance at it, Aaron confirmed we had to take him to the emergency room. 

OY.

The whole way there I couldn't help but think about the if-only's.......what in the sam-hill was I THINKING giving them a glass bowl, albeit small, for their snack! How easy would it of been for me to put that same snack into one of their little plastic bowls and have completely avoided this whole situation!

True, I didn't know that my sons would finish their snack and use it for their little bath animals 'house' on the edge of the bathtub. True, I didn't think that a thick bowl like that would ever break against our tub. In sad actuality, my biggest 'concern' was that they'd spill their crackers into the tub and the 'worst' I'd be dealing with were squeals and complaints that 'soggy fishies' were 'swimming' in the tub with them. 

(Yes, it's happened before.) ;P 

Now, I only wish that would've been the case.

At least soggy fishies wouldn't of left a 2-inch scar on my beautiful little boy's perfect little leg.

OY. Again.

Perhaps the most excruciating part of our night though was watching my little man's face as I sat at the side of the bed, 'hugging' him and saying ANYTHING I could to keep his mind (and mine) off the fact that his leg was being stitched up. Staring at the sprinkler on the ceiling of the hospital room...watching for the blinking light on it to blink. Lord knows, that 'trick' only worked for so long.

How brave he was, though. What an amazing job he did, initially trying to make himself laugh---yes, I said LAUGH---and even once the big elephant tears appeared, trying sooooo hard to breathe with me and talk to me about happier things. 

Lord knows, I did enough crying OUT of his presence for the both of us.

What a stupid lesson and what a STUPID reason for stitches!

Yes I will forgive myself and yes, I know it could've been worse...

but I will still never forget having to watch those beautiful little eyes wince and well-up as I sat there with him.

I NEVER want to be the cause of that for him, again.

I know there will be other boo-boo's, I know there will be other scars...

I just pray that God protects him and keeps those other things from being any worse than this was.

Of course, I suppose we could look at it as his nurse so adorably put it...

CHICKS DIG SCARS. 

And no, he has yet to let me forget that 'advice' and I'm sure he never will. lol. ;)