November in Utah is a changeable thing. You never know if your going to have balmy fall weather or snow or something in between. The sunsets are gorgeous though and the nip in the air makes you think of the holidays.
Braces!
JJ's Ordination to Teacher
I can't believe how fast the years have flown and here we are with a 14 year old. We were very grateful for all the support from the Zellers, Jeppson, Price and Madigan families. We are incredibly grateful for the wonderful priesthood examples that JJ has in his life.
Asher's Broken Arm
One lovely fall day Asher asked to go play at his friend Ben Smith's house. He rarely wants to play with anyone other than Taylor Price and Hannah so I said yes and encouraged him to go. The Smiths said he could play over there so he walked over. Not long later I got a call from Bro. Smith (Ben's dad) that Asher had gotten hurt but that he wouldn't let anyone get near him to examine his hurt arm.
Now I know as Asher's mom that he doesn't like to be the one getting all the attention and that he doesn't tolerate pain super well so I didn't think it was too big a deal but I told Mark that I would be right over. I hopped in the car (later I was really glad I drove and didn't walk) and headed over. Asher was in their living room on their couch. He wasn't crying but was white as a sheet and holding his left arm close to his body. I could tell he wasn't faking and was in a serious amount of pain. He wouldn't even let me get too close to him. I told the Smiths that I would just take him in the car home, thinking that while at home I could help him get his long sleeve shirt off so I could see his arm better. I had a time just getting him into the car at the Smiths because he was in so much pain and any movement made him cry out.
I drove home and rather than getting him in and out of the car (because I was pretty sure it was serious enough to warrant a doctor visit at this point) I ran into our house and got a pair of scissors and cut his sleeve so I could see his arm. His forearm had a lump that looked pretty clearly like he had some kind of a compound fracture. I tried to decide what to do - pediatrician's office, insta care or ER. I've never had a broken bone and none of the other kids have broken bones (other than Hannah's broken nose) so I wasn't really sure what to do. I called the pediatrician and talked to someone there who said to bring him in. I'll admit I was thinking of the cost of an ER visit as apposed to a Dr. visit.
I called Lance around this point and he knew he wouldn't be able to get home very quickly because he rode the train to work but said he would try to come as soon as possible. I got back into the car with Asher and headed out to Alpine Pediatrics. Every little bump in the road was painful for Asher and I felt so bad for him. When we got there I pulled right up to the door and I walked him really slowly in. I got checked in and then we had to wait, and wait and wait. I was really getting frustrated because the pain was making Asher really faint and nauseated.
Finally they took us back and I tried to get him to lay down on the bed because I was afraid he was going to pass out. I tucked pillows all around him to try and cushion his arm but nothing really helped. Then we waited some more. I'm sure it wasn't that long but it seemed like an eternity because Asher was crying and and in so much pain. Finally the PA came in and at first I thought he didn't believe me when I said I was sure that his arm was broken but after he looked at it he said he needed to go out for a minute and came back with our regular (and favorite) doctor Dr. Knorr. He came in and was immediately saying this is a bad break and he needs to be treated by an orthopedic doctor. He tried to get us into see a pediatric orthopedic doctor but he wasn't available so he said to just go right to the ER. Hindsight is 20 20 but I really regret not just taking him to the ER to begin with. I was a little frustrated that the nurse we spoke with at the pediatrician's office on the phone and even in the waiting room didn't just take one look at him and say "you should go to the ER" or at the very least have him seen in a more timely manner. I think she was new though because I had never seen her before.
One of the nurses who works with Dr. Knorr helped us walk out because Asher was in major shock at this point and almost collapsed. She ran and got a wheelchair so I could get him to the car. On the way to the ER I called Lance to tell him what was happening and to meet us there. He had been able to leave right after I first called and the time we took in the doctor's office meant that he was only about 20 minutes away.
The pediatrician had called ahead to the ER so they knew we were coming and got us through the paperwork very quickly and Asher onto a bed. Around that time Lance came and my memory gets a little blurry because I think I was in shock too and really stressed out. Lance had stopped at home and Hannah insisted on coming with him. She really was wonderful at trying to distract Asher from the pain and helping him feel better. Asher is massively terrified of needles so when they said they needed to do a IV he was really upset but Hannah talked to him of nonsense things and kept his eyes on her while they did the IV.
One of the most traumatic parts of this whole ordeal was when they needed to try and turn his broken arm to get an x-ray of it. The x ray guy had to have Lance hold Asher's arm at a painful angle so that they could get an good shot of both sides of the bones. Sure enough it was a compound fracture. He had some how managed to jump, slip and land on his forearm on to some wood border that the Smiths have around the area of their trampoline. All of which caused the two bones in his forearm to snap and push up.
We were grateful that one of the best orthopedic surgeons was walking through the ER on his way home and he was willing to go back and put his scrubs on and set Asher's arm. Asher was knocked out for that portion of the event, thankfully. Lance, Hannah and I left the room during the setting part but it was still horrifying to see Asher totally knocked out being lifted by the ER people like a wet noodle. They put a temporary splint type cast on him and put a sling on his arm. After he was awake enough to walk we headed home. We had to wait a bit for the swelling to go down before we could take him to get a real cast on. Asher was pretty darn brave considering the amount of pain he went through.
Now I know as Asher's mom that he doesn't like to be the one getting all the attention and that he doesn't tolerate pain super well so I didn't think it was too big a deal but I told Mark that I would be right over. I hopped in the car (later I was really glad I drove and didn't walk) and headed over. Asher was in their living room on their couch. He wasn't crying but was white as a sheet and holding his left arm close to his body. I could tell he wasn't faking and was in a serious amount of pain. He wouldn't even let me get too close to him. I told the Smiths that I would just take him in the car home, thinking that while at home I could help him get his long sleeve shirt off so I could see his arm better. I had a time just getting him into the car at the Smiths because he was in so much pain and any movement made him cry out.
I drove home and rather than getting him in and out of the car (because I was pretty sure it was serious enough to warrant a doctor visit at this point) I ran into our house and got a pair of scissors and cut his sleeve so I could see his arm. His forearm had a lump that looked pretty clearly like he had some kind of a compound fracture. I tried to decide what to do - pediatrician's office, insta care or ER. I've never had a broken bone and none of the other kids have broken bones (other than Hannah's broken nose) so I wasn't really sure what to do. I called the pediatrician and talked to someone there who said to bring him in. I'll admit I was thinking of the cost of an ER visit as apposed to a Dr. visit.
I called Lance around this point and he knew he wouldn't be able to get home very quickly because he rode the train to work but said he would try to come as soon as possible. I got back into the car with Asher and headed out to Alpine Pediatrics. Every little bump in the road was painful for Asher and I felt so bad for him. When we got there I pulled right up to the door and I walked him really slowly in. I got checked in and then we had to wait, and wait and wait. I was really getting frustrated because the pain was making Asher really faint and nauseated.
Finally they took us back and I tried to get him to lay down on the bed because I was afraid he was going to pass out. I tucked pillows all around him to try and cushion his arm but nothing really helped. Then we waited some more. I'm sure it wasn't that long but it seemed like an eternity because Asher was crying and and in so much pain. Finally the PA came in and at first I thought he didn't believe me when I said I was sure that his arm was broken but after he looked at it he said he needed to go out for a minute and came back with our regular (and favorite) doctor Dr. Knorr. He came in and was immediately saying this is a bad break and he needs to be treated by an orthopedic doctor. He tried to get us into see a pediatric orthopedic doctor but he wasn't available so he said to just go right to the ER. Hindsight is 20 20 but I really regret not just taking him to the ER to begin with. I was a little frustrated that the nurse we spoke with at the pediatrician's office on the phone and even in the waiting room didn't just take one look at him and say "you should go to the ER" or at the very least have him seen in a more timely manner. I think she was new though because I had never seen her before.
One of the nurses who works with Dr. Knorr helped us walk out because Asher was in major shock at this point and almost collapsed. She ran and got a wheelchair so I could get him to the car. On the way to the ER I called Lance to tell him what was happening and to meet us there. He had been able to leave right after I first called and the time we took in the doctor's office meant that he was only about 20 minutes away.
The pediatrician had called ahead to the ER so they knew we were coming and got us through the paperwork very quickly and Asher onto a bed. Around that time Lance came and my memory gets a little blurry because I think I was in shock too and really stressed out. Lance had stopped at home and Hannah insisted on coming with him. She really was wonderful at trying to distract Asher from the pain and helping him feel better. Asher is massively terrified of needles so when they said they needed to do a IV he was really upset but Hannah talked to him of nonsense things and kept his eyes on her while they did the IV.
One of the most traumatic parts of this whole ordeal was when they needed to try and turn his broken arm to get an x-ray of it. The x ray guy had to have Lance hold Asher's arm at a painful angle so that they could get an good shot of both sides of the bones. Sure enough it was a compound fracture. He had some how managed to jump, slip and land on his forearm on to some wood border that the Smiths have around the area of their trampoline. All of which caused the two bones in his forearm to snap and push up.
We were grateful that one of the best orthopedic surgeons was walking through the ER on his way home and he was willing to go back and put his scrubs on and set Asher's arm. Asher was knocked out for that portion of the event, thankfully. Lance, Hannah and I left the room during the setting part but it was still horrifying to see Asher totally knocked out being lifted by the ER people like a wet noodle. They put a temporary splint type cast on him and put a sling on his arm. After he was awake enough to walk we headed home. We had to wait a bit for the swelling to go down before we could take him to get a real cast on. Asher was pretty darn brave considering the amount of pain he went through.
Holiday Decorating and Thanksgiving!
Hannah was asked to play her flute during the Primary program at church. She worked really hard to learn the extra notes required to play a simplified version of I Am A Child of God. She did great. This video was of the Saturday practice.
Snow!
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