Oh poor Caden!
His mouth met Teagan's head yesterday after swim lessons.
We were leaving and Teagan was at the front getting a lollipop. So he has a lollipop in his mouth and he starts running for the door. Teagan is running back to us.
It's a little curve around the front desk to the left. They don't see each other, but I do. I see it all happening and I can't do anything to stop it.
Crash and they meet and the both start crying immediately. Blood is already on Teagan's head and dripping from Caden's mouth. My first thought was the lollipop stick got her head and he bumped his mouth.
We head to the bathroom to stop the bleeding. Right now I'm thinking, these poor people have to think we belong in the zoo, our second day there, Teagan threw up in the pool because she was so upset. I had to then rush her to the bathroom, because once any of my children start throwing up, they don't stop still they are empty.
I wet one of our towels and have him hold it to his mouth. Then I decide to take a peek.
It only took one look and a no doubt decision that we were getting stitches. His tooth cut his upper inside above the lip SIDEWAYS. And it was an inch long and so deep that I'm still surprised it didn't go through.
Taryn, the owner of our swim school, came in with gauze and looked at it too. She agreed it was a stitches job. All this time Caden is more upset, because he thinks he's getting a shot and I don't have the heart to tell him that he is. Teagan is crying mostly out of the shock of it all. I have to ask her two times if she's okay and she says yes. Then I say, "Sweetie stop crying we need to take care of Caden." She does. Riordan is just amazed by what all is going on and still eating his lollipop.
I can't find my cellphone, and it seems to be going on for a week now. So I ask to use their phone. I call Mike.
"Hey it's me, I can't talk long and I can't find my cell phone. I need you and Aislinn to meet me at the ER at Mercy-Gilbert, because Caden needs stitches." This was all said so very calmly and as if it were an every day occurrence. He of course wants to know details. So I say, "Caden and Teagan collided and Caden has a busted lip on the inside." He then goes, "Okay, okay. Where is Mercy-Gilbert?"
"It's where we just had a baby 6 months ago." I'm looking at Piper, who works there and she is trying to hold back laughter. "Ohhh, right" says Mike, "see you there."
He actually beats us there and he had to wake Aislinn.
We walk up to the window, Caden still sobbing, because he doesn't want a shot, and they take a look and then put a bracelet on him. We are triaged quickly, again one quick look and then taken to a room. We had the BEST treatment and staff the entire time.
Mike and I were so unorganized and out of sorts. We have never had the whole family in the ER before. He had the insurance card, I was trying to gather things before we went back, I had nothing though, not even my cell phone, which I had found in the car on the drive. So once we were settled in a room, I called him and confirmed that we were here to stay for a bit and we were getting stitches per the doc in triage.
So I ask him if he wants to go home with the kiddos, who just visited the snack machine, because they were upset for Caden and wanted to come with us to triage. He said that yes he would go home. So I ask him to give my wallet and such to a nurse.
Five minutes later he's at Caden's room with the zoo. Riordan and Teagan are frozen in their tracks just staring at Caden. Teagan is holding an open Sprite and M&M. Mike goes, "They can't pass it off, so here you go." I'm feeling like I'm in a vortex, because not that I don't want them to see Caden, but the rooms are full of people with issues and I'm thinking germs especially for Aislinn. So I'm like, "See Caden in the bed (he's watching Sponge Bob that we don't watch at home). He's doing great, we just have to get his boo boo fixed and then we will be home. So daddy is going to take you home."
They both start to cry, the twins I call them these days. Teagan then drops her sprite and m&m's. It's okay, you can really laugh now. ;-)
Mike some how gets them to leave, I'm on the floor cleaning up and a nurse is telling me to stop they have someone for that. I tell her, no biggie, I'm already done, it's such a habit just to get it up immediately. Plus not to mention a little embarrassment!
So our awesome nurse asks Caden why he's crying, does it hurt? He says no that he doesn't want to get a shot. This awesome nurse says we can use a gel number on a gauze pad but he has to hold it there and not move it. For an hour. Don't you know he did! He didn't have to get a shot! NICE!
It was perfectly numb! The P.A. in the meantime comes and takes a look at it. She goes, before looking at it, "We don't do stitches on the top." We have already been here an hour. I simply say, "Well it's pretty deep and long, everyone before yo thinks we need them, so you may want to look at it first before you make that decision."
She takes a look, I can't read her, and says she will get the doctor. A new doctor comes in, she takes one quick look and goes oh yeah we are doing stitches, but just one. Nice!
Caden just stares at Sponge Bob and I'm thanking whoever invented it because he would still be crying right now. He also shares that his mom doesn't ever let him watch this at home. We get a few giggles.
So after an hour the gel is on, it's showtime. The P.A. , hmmmmmmm, goes, " Usually we have a bunch of people hold him down, but I think the humane way is to wrap him tightly in a sheet so he can't move." I look at her and go, " I don't even think we need that. If it were my younger children, I would say wrap and sit on them. But I think you'll be surprised by Caden. If we tell him what to expect, he will trust it and not move."
Now Caden has been wrapped before when he was two for a piece of glass in his foot. It was sheer torture for both of us, and he remembers that experience. So she said, fine we will do it your way, but just prepare him.
So I explain to him that we are going to sew his mouth, like I have to sew Nemo when he's stuffing is coming out. "With a needle?" he says. "Yes, with a needle, but you shouldn't feel it, but the pressure of the touch."
He then asks me, "Have you ever had stitches in your mouth?" I tell him yes, I've had four when I had my wisdom teeth taken out. Now I leave out the part that I was unconscious! He asked me if it hurt and I could honestly answer that no it did not. He seems really at ease. Asking a few more questions.
They lay him upside down on the bed. Have him hold his shorts, oh yeah we had a potty break right before too to help in comfort!, and turn his head. He wants to watch, but the nurse sitting next to him has him look at him. I'm at his feet and just lay my hand on his legs. They are all comforting, another nurse is standing on his left and one is behind the P.A., telling him how brave and great he's going to do.
She inserts the needle. I feel his legs twitch just a tiny bit, but no one else knows and he doesn't move. And then she ties and she's done and we are all praising him on a job well done! I was so proud of him, because I know he wanted to cry, scream, and run as fast as he could!
So we are back watching t.v. waiting to be discharged and he turns to me and says without prompting, "Mommy, I think next time when I'm at swim that I won't run, especially with a lollipop in my mouth."
Lesson learned, the hard way! I say, " I think you have a great idea, and we should share it with Teagie's." The t.v. had turned off too at this point, so we were looking for Nick again and crossed the Red Sox game, which he said for us to go back to, so he could watch it. I know that made his daddy so proud!
I asked him if it hurt and he goes, "Well not really, just a little bit, but it wasn't bad at all Mommy." I just want to cry at this point! So relieved that it was so minor and my goodness it could have been so much worse!
We were there a total of 2 1/2 hours. Oh yeah when I'm on the phone with Mike the first time, I ask him to call and cancel my appointment with Joe my trainer too. I double check at this time that he had called, because I would hate for him to be sitting there waiting for me. Yep, he had called them!
Caden is still thinking of what he wants as a reward for doing so well. In the meantime, he really wanted to hit the snack machine, so we got funyuns, twizzlers, and Fanta Orange.
Oh and at swim lessons, Teagan cried for one minute total ( I think because I told her 15 times that she can't cry with Joel anymore and even when I left her in the pool) and had a good swim! Caden went under and got scared again like he has down twice and he couldn't come up so he needed help. Joel tells me that he has a huge fear of the water. I'm like yep, he doesn't want to go under, just stay on top. He asks me if it's okay to push him more, I'm like definitely. Riordan rocked at his lessons. He is just blowing me away with his communication with Joel and how at ease he is with him. So I need to make sure that we stay with him now that we are all used to him, and no one is crying. ;-)
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