the hardest day.

Wednesday evening the girls asked if they could play outside. Of course, I said yes. Kevin had just mowed the back yard (ie~picked up all of the dog doo-doo) & I was trying to make dinner. They asked if they had to wear shoes (it was hot & they didn't want to), I said no. Then, Elly stepped on this...

Let me just tell you that I could hear her screams inside the house (which was closed up b/c we had the air on), over the music I had on in the kitchen, and over the trimmer that Kevin was using along the back yard fence. My poor little sunshine. I ran outside and picked Elly up to carry her inside demanding for Madalyn to tell me what had happened. I looked at her little foot and put her in a warm bath to soak. Her little feet were so black it was hard to see what had happened.

After a bath & dinner, I had our wonderful neighbor, Sharon, look at her foot to see if we should take her to the ER. Sharon is a nurse (and most recently, looked at Maddy's tushie when she did a cartwheel in the house & landed on the corner of her wooden book "basket.") Dear Lord, I think I owe her $ or flowers. Maybe both. :)

Elly looked like she had some wood still in her foot but would not let us touch her to really get a good look. By this time, though, Elly was exhausted, and I did not want to wait hours in the ER.

We put some hydrogen peroxide on it, some neosporin, & a Dora band aid (which makes everything feel better, right?) We figured it would get us through the night. Elly slept in her bed the whole night. :) I was so proud of her but, quickly discovered why she stayed in her bed all night. She would not put any weight on her foot and cried whenever she tried. :(

I took her in on Thursday morning to see Dr. B. He looked at her and right away said that he thought she had some leftover wood in the wound. He would need to give her a shot of Lidocaine (in the wound, mind you) to numb it...so he could pull the piece out. He said she would be in pain for about 5-10 seconds until it went numb.

I put on my brave mommy face. It was my job to keep her upper body still & talk her through it. Nurse J. held her feet & Dr. B. did the dirty work. I have to tell you that it was the hardest thing I have ever had to do...hold my baby down, watch her sob in pain, & tell her it would be okay. She was so brave. Even when she ended up having 3 (yes! THREE!) shots of Lidocaine in the wound, and even when they had to make the wound bigger b/c it was so deep that they had to make sure no wood was left behind.

Let me tell you that when she was sobbing for me to "take her home!" and that "she was all done with this work!" I started to get really emotional. I had tears in my eyes when I told her that I would NEVER let anyone hurt her and that I trusted Dr. B. and Nurse J. and that they have known her since she lived in my belly. That they loved her & cared about her little foot and that we had to do this so she could walk & run & play with her friends again. It was the hardest thing I have ever had to do.

But, she made it. And, afterwards, I took her out for chocolate custard for lunch. :)

Dr. B. thinks that he got everything out. Time will tell & I need to call on Monday to give them an update. If it becomes infected (she runs a fever, it has pus coming out of the wound, etc) then she will have to go back in for an antibiotic & they will decide if she needs to see a surgeon. But, I am praying that all is well. She started walking a little by Thursday night and did a little more on Friday (when grandma Vicki came down to stay with her! Thank you, Vicki Lou!). Today, we accompanied Maddy on a zoo trip with the Brownie Scouts and she climbed & played. She walked and ran! :) Yay, Elly!

Tonight, we instituted a new rule at the Wade house...ALWAYS wear shoes outside! :)