I CAN'T BELIEVE IT

The above x-ray belongs to the strongest and toughest little boy I have ever met. I simply can't believe it, this is Carson's collar bone. If you look in between the shoulder and the base of the neck you will see the bone is broken. A clean break and completely broken.

But the most amazing part of the story does not end there. Carson and Owen were wrestling together a normal daily event at our house. I should back up to tell you that this was last Friday, August 21st. Kerry and I were busy packing the camping trailer to get out of town. The boys were somewhere in the house playing. Carson comes outside crying telling us his shoulder hurt. I tried to comfort him and was worried because he was carrying on more than he usually does. When I say carrying on I mean the child cried maybe 20 minutes total. We looked at it and Kerry thought it wasn't broken or anything serious, (last time I let my husband give medical advice). He was still crying when it was time to leave. But we decided that nothing was seriously wrong and put him in the van and off we went. As soon as we got in the van, he immediately fell asleep. So I assume that he was tried and was overreacting to the injury. So we went camping for 2 whole days, he never said anything or complained or acted like anything was wrong. We even forgot he had got injured..

So we return and Monday goes by and I notice that it seems to bother him but he didn't say anything. I thought maybe he strained that area and it was still sore. Then on Tuesday I notice that he is very sore, there is discoloration and swelling. I call Kerry at work to ask what to do. "Lets look at it tonight when I get home" is the response I got. I notice he is guarding the shoulder area and using his arm and hand but not moving the shoulder joint. But Tuesday was also the first day in over three months that our nephew Dejan had come to our house to be babysat. So those little boys played hard, they even jumped on the trampoline. That night, the swelling at gone down and Carson really wouldn't let us take his t-shirt off to look. But now I could only imagine the pain that would cause to lift your arm up to do that motion. So we decided to give it one more day.

Okay so we are horrible parents after 5 1/2 days we decided that his shoulder should not still be bothering him. But no way did we ever think it was broken. I seriously thought if it was broken, would he not have cried for hours or days, wouldn't he had complained of constant pain and then how would he participate in his normal daily activity. Man, we were so wrong and I can't begin to explain the guilt we have as parents. You look back now at the situation and you think, I would have handled that so differently. I mean I feel horrible for all the time I caused him additional pain for the first 5 1/2 days. He would show signs of discomfort (not crying) every time he had to climb in and out of his bed and car seat. He showed pain when we had to change his clothes and when we lifted him in and out of the bath tub. I feel like the worse mom that I didn't know and didn't provide help and probably made it worse.

At Kids Care the doctor that treated him could not believe Carson's ability to deal with the pain. She was giggling out loud because she just couldn't believe how well he was managing the injury. She said that this is the number one broken bone in children and it is easily broken. When we asked Owen initially what he had done to Carson, he said he rolled on him. Owen is actually still sticking to that story. But the doctor said it was most likely to have happened when Owen jumped on him in that area. So for now Carson has to wear a sling for 2 weeks. They told us that little kids bones heal easily, basically where ever the bones touch they will start to grow back together. So if he wears the sling night and day it will help that process.

So for 2 weeks I have to try to have him take it easy. HAHAHAHA!!!!!! What a crazy 2 weeks this little boy has planned. First, our nephew is back twice a week to be babysat and they play hard together. Carson starts preschool and we are going to a cabin over Labor Day weekend. But I think Carson will be just fine, I don't know if mom will with all the guilt she is feeling. It scares me how strong he can be at age 3. I worry that if he is so physically strong and that he is that much more stronger emotionally. How closed off and private will he be when he is a teenager. If doesn't need me now and he is only 3 what is it going to look like at 13.