Gimme a Break

Violet broke her collarbone this weekend. Just thought I would get that little tidbit out of the way. No need to leave you in suspense. Not my finest moment as a parent. And I'm sure half of you are now saying "how could you?!" while the other half murmur sympathetically "it happens, don't worry". I've been switching my allegiance between both these camps. But the fact of the matter is, one moment Violet was whole, and the next she had broken more bones than either Matt or I ever have. So cross this one off the checklist.

Allow me to set the scene. It was Friday evening. After a long week at work, neither Matt nor I felt like cooking so we decided to go out to eat. We were uninspired as to where to go, so settled unenthusiastically on a nearby Mexican restaurant (which shall remain nameless) known (by us) for their mediocre food and lackluster service.

We look the first available table. Violet got a booster seat. It was the kind of seat that you place on top of the chair. No straps to keep it in place, no straps to keep your child contained. Just a molded piece of brown plastic resting atop a red vinyl chair cushion. So you see where I'm going here...

Of course, having sat in seats like this plenty of times, tonight didn't seem any different. The restaurant was its usual, mediocre self. We waited too long for our food, waited too long for our check. And it was during one of these moments in waiting, while Matt and I were both looking at something else in the room without really seeing it, that Violet somehow fell out of the chair and onto the tile floor.

It took me a second to register why my sweet girl was splayed out on the floor, booster seat clattering to rest under a nearby booth, screams of pain echoing over the crappy music. It probably took me a good three seconds to even react. When it was clear Violet wasn't calming down anytime soon, I took her out while Matt paid the bill.

She couldn't stop crying. Even promises of a popsicle did nothing to help. But at the same time, I couldn't find any evidence of injury. No blood, no bruises, no lump, nothing to even tell us where she was hurting. And (parenting confession number 254) part of us wondered if she was really hurt or just scared and embarrassed. A teeny hidden part of my brain was beginning to go to a dark and scary place involving permanent brain damage or revelation of bone cancer and such crazy thoughts (I've been reading way too many sad parenting blogs lately) but I told that part of my brain to shut it. So we gave her some pain medicine, turned on Word World, tucked her into our bed, and finally we all fell asleep. I figured, if she was still in pain the next day, it was probably legit.

Waiting for the doctor at urgent care. It was at this point I started to resign myself to our possible diagnosis.

The next morning, after a restless night punctuated with whimpers and tears, Violet could finally vocalize and locate her boo-boo for us. It seemed to be focused in that tender place between shoulder and neck - the collarbone. And as she still seemed in pain, we took her to our local Children's Healthcare of Atlanta urgent care center.

Totally broken.

They were wonderful. I can't say enough about the nurses and doctors who were working on a Saturday morning. They were gentle, good humored, helpful, calming, exactly what I would have hoped for. The doctor had us diagnosed within two minutes and into x-rays to verify. Sure enough, the verdict came in clear as could be. Collarbone: broken.

Nothing a little popsicle and Violet Baby can't fix.

Oh, the shame. The horror. Here we were, the parents who not only let their child suffer this injury but then waited until the next day to do anything about it! Fortunately, there was a total lack of judgement from the caring staff at Children's. (Seriously, we are so lucky to live nearby such an excellent urgent care facility.) The doctor was full of reassurances and stories of other (worse) parents who waiting a full two weeks before toting in their broken collarbone kids. Apparently since Violet's bones are still growing, her collarbone will fix itself nicely in no time. Three weeks in a sling and wrap and she should be fine. Violet was pretty brave through the whole ordeal and cheered up immensely when the nurses brought her a popsicle and three stickers for her fancy new bandage.

A little tv therapy to get us through the day.

Look ma, one hand!

Violet has adjusted remarkably well to only having the use of one hand. It hasn't seemed to slow her down at all! That afternoon she was climbing up the ladder to go down the playground slide and even insisted on painting a picture for her BFF Emma. Emma, in the meantime, sent Violet a get-well video that we delighted in playing over and over.

Of course, there are a few casualties. We had to cancel our family picture session. Which probably means you'll be getting Christmas cards with some random candids instead of a beautifully staged portrait. And Violet's cute Dorothy Halloween costume will be slightly less cute with a sling over it. But there's a potential for a huge haul of sympathy candy.

And speaking of sympathy, as soon as the news was out there, the sweet messages, calls and prayers began rolling in. Thanks, everyone! Hopefully healing will be a swift, easy process and I can file this entire incident away under "laugh about later".

It's the Great Pumpkin!

This is what a perfect fall day looks like.

Our weekend of fall perfection continued when we took a spin up to our favorite family farm to pick out a pumpkin. Because that's what you do in fall, you know? We discovered Kinsey Family Farm last October, went back for a Christmas tree that winter, and once more made the pilgrimage this year. Here's to continuing traditions!

On the prowl for a perfect pumpkin.

Violet picked out her favorite pumpkin, just her size.

Waiting for the tractor to pull us on a wagon ride.

We were out running errands when we decided just to keep going up to the farm.Which means we arrived rather unprepared - no snacks, no cash, no lunch. Still we scraped together enough change for  wagon ride tickets. Violet's big impression of this adventure - "it's bumpy, mama!"

Making fish faces in anticipation of feeding the catfish on the wagon ride.

Violet has this annoying new habit of refusing to look at the camera. Hopefully this will be cured by the time we take our annual family photos.

Can't say enough about this beautiful day. Blue skies for everyone!

Our wonderful family day was capped off by a little girl who refused to take a nap when we got home. So an extra early bedtime meant Matt and I could indulge in his newest obsession - watching "classic" movies. We took in John Wayne's Rio Bravo. It was... okay. I'm not much for Westerns. I'm more of an Audry Hepburn kind of girl. Still, it was interesting to watch something so far out of my usual genre.

It's amazing what a difference an extra day in the weekend makes. I feel much more relaxed than I have in a month. I knew I was feeling pressure from work, but didn't realize how much until it was suddenly gone. This long weekend has been such a gift. Add to that the cool fall weather, brilliant blue sky, sunny days, sweet girl, and I'm one happy mama right now.

Where the Wild Things Are

Rawrrrr!

I can't tell you how much I have been looking forward to this Friday. After a week of report card madness, followed by a week of parent-teacher conferences, I really needed a break. Fortunately, my hard work was rewarded by a day of no school. Couple that with a recent Atlanta Zoo groupon and some picture perfect fall weather, and we had ourselves a wonderful day!

Animal-gazing...

Boo at the Zoo - such a fun time to visit!

Violet is at an ideal age for the zoo. She was excited to see the animals, but just as happy to play on the playground. It was so much fun watching her take it all in. There's nothing like experiencing something through your child's eyes. We took two spins on the carousel and I finally fulfilled a childhood fantasy of riding the train around the children's zoo.

I haven't been to the zoo in ages, but so much of it was just as I had remembered, albeit smaller. Isn't it funny the way the world appears on such a larger scale when we're spending most of our time looking up at it. I still remember my elementary school field trip to the zoo. We spent weeks leading up to the trip drawing our favorite animals. Usually everyone had a new favorite every day, but I always drew a peacock. Don't ask me why, I don't remember having an obsession with these proud birds before or ever since, but that was my animal at the time. Every time a peacock wandered across our path (because back then they just roamed freely) my classmates would excitedly point it out to me. I loved the attention - it was like the peacocks were my own special animal. (Also I was secretly amazed that my classmates even knew who I was - I was a pretty shy kid back in those days.)

On the train!

Finally getting to ride the train at the zoo.

On the carousel.

This expression pretty much sums up our day. My feelings exactly.

What We've Been Up To

Just in case you thought all I do these days is complain about how stressed out I am at work, here are a few random events to prove I still have a life. A life that includes sweet new babies, family, fun with the neighbors, and puppies. Really, what's not to love?!

My newest little friend! (Courtesy of proud parents Travis and Wendi.)

Hanging out with my best girl.

Birthday lunch for Aunt Dani.

Getting ready for picture day at school!

Hot date at Publix.

Tucking the puppy in for the night while dog-sitting for the weekend.

Help Thanks Wow

I can't wait until this book is released.

If these are the three essential prayers, I'm currently wearing out "help". Report card/parent conference season is upon me. Help, indeed.

Dressing Room Malfunction

Did I ever tell you about that time I had to be cut out of a dress?

True story.

Just as embarrassing as you imagine.

A couple weeks before the Charleston girls trip wedding extravaganza, I finally found time to sneak out and look for a new dress. I headed straight for White House|Black Market, one of my favorite places to splurge. (And by splurge, I mean - spend more than 20 bucks on something I'll never wear in every day life. I can't bring myself to shop there for real life stuff. My first graders just don't appreciate the finer things.)

The store had just opened and I was the first customer. This means I was swarmed by bored, helpful sales people who immediately began throwing their most expensive outfits at me while I rifled through the sales rack. (Because nothing says splurging like the red-lined clearance rack.) The sales women held a brief but serious skirmish over who would get my attention, and the woman who finally beat out the others was working it, loading me up with sexy heels and blingy jewelry and compliments galore. I'd disappear behind the curtain, clothe myself, fling open the drapes for the big reveal, and bask in the attention. Literally, this woman was buckling my shoes and slipping the jewels onto my wrists.

Anyway, we were having a grand old time. I tried on a few dresses I discarded immediately, picked out a winner (obviously one of the clearance dresses), and fell hard for a mod little black full-priced number that I just couldn't justify (but hating walking away from). My chirpy sales lady kept popping in with accessories and opinions, we were getting comfortable and chatty, I was on a child-free high and feeling pretty fabulous in my dress-up clothes.

I had things narrowed down pretty well by the time I got to the last contender, a strapless, black, tight little cocktail number. I knew I wasn't going to like it, but decided to give it a proper elimination round, so as not to hurt its feelings. I struggled a bit with the zipper, and had to do some major suck-in and shimmy moves to even bring myself to a decent state. I pulled and yanked until I could at least get the thing to stay up by itself, and then parted the curtain at the behest of the sales woman. We all agreed, it was a no-go.


But when I went to take off the dress, I realized we had a problem. The zipper wouldn't budge. Not down. Not up.

I started sweating. This wasn't the kind of dress I could extricate myself from easily. There was no way to wiggle it over my hips. It wasn't going over the head. This thing was skin-tight. Quickly, my sweaty fingers were struggling to even hold the zipper. By this point in the shopping trip, my hair was growing bigger by the minute (did I mention it was raining that day?) And to make matters even worse, I hadn't bothered to shower before slipping out of the house that morning. And now my sweaty, unwashed body was trapped in what was naturally the most expensive dress in the store. Awesome.

Finally, reluctantly, I stuck my head out of the curtain. "Um, I've got a bit of a wardrobe malfunction..." I stammered. The sales woman bustled over, apologizing and assuring me that zippers got stuck all the time, she knew just what to do. Of course, I apologized right back for being the dirty, sweaty, stuffed sausage that I was. But after a few moments, sales woman extraordinaire was forced to call for back-up. Now I was clinging to the door frame of the dressing room while they discussed their extrication tactics like army generals and went to work. "You grab here and I'll pull down... okay, let's try up... tighter, hold it there... nope... almost... [grunt]... [inaudible]... [probably some cursing]..." Imagine any movie scene when the southern belle is getting her corset laced tighter as she hangs onto the bed post holding her breath and you'll get the idea.

Finally one of them threw in the towel and called for scissors. At which point I apologized some more. Their reassurances felt a little more forced this time, but a least I was finally free. Which is how I ended up buying not only a new dress (with no zipper), but a pair of 120 dollar shoes (gulp!) and the snazzy accessories I'd been modeling. It's amazing what some guilt and embarrassment will make you do!

(Although I did return the shoes two days later. When I was sure the sales woman wouldn't be working.)

Please read this story

We live in an amazing, beautiful, brutal world. I'm reminded of it often, but most recently, when reading the story of one little girl and her battle with cancer. I'm brought to my knees by what her family went through. It is unimaginable. And yet, grace and beauty flows through it softly. Please read it.