A LONG night of firsts...and hopefully LASTS!!!

Last night, around 8:00, I had finished giving Madison her bath and we were walking back to her bedroom. I didn't realize Barkley was laying in the hallway, and I tripped over him and we both fell. Eric helped us up, and took Madie, because I was really upset. It seemed like it took her a while to calm down, and she would almost be asleep and then wake up crying. This just isn't like her, and my motherly instincts told me to have her checked out.

At about 12:30AM, we headed over to the new Lee's Summit Medical Center, which is just a few blocks from our house. Fortunately they weren't very busy, and we got right in. The nurse checked her over, and the doctor came in to assess her, and decided to get some x-rays and a CT scan of her head. Once again, since I am pregnant, I was left out in the hall, while Eric tended to her in the x-ray room. She was a real trooper, and the nurse and doctor tried to console me while they finished up. The doctor was surprised to see she had a buckle fracture on her left femur, and they wanted to ship us to Children's Mercy.

Eric road in the ambulance with Madie since he could lay on the gurney with her on his chest. I followed behind with our car. We arrived at Children's around 3:30AM, and they had a room waiting for us. The nurses checked her over, and started an IV in her arm. The orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Anderson, came in and discussed some options with us, and we agreed to try a long leg cast and give her some pain meds. The nurse brought in some morphine, and the surgeon came back with materials for a pink cast! Eric really wanted a Chief's one, but both Dr. Anderson and I quickly vetoed that! They put the cast on, I'd never seen this done before, and it was pretty slick. They took one more x-ray, gave us some pain meds and discharge instructions, and we were on our way. 6 hours, 2 ER visits, an ambulance ride, and several tears later we were home! I actually didn't think this was too bad, considering you can spend 6 hours in 1 ER.

I called my supervisor at work, and our babysitter, to let them know what was going on. I decided to go into work for a little while this morning because one of the girls asked for today off, and they didn't have help coming in until the afternoon. Plus, I was so amped up, I thought it might do me some good to get my mind on something else for a while. Eric stayed with Madison, and I came home around 12:30.

The whole thing seems like a blur now, especially since I've been up since 5:00 Thursday morning. Madison has been doing well. She doesn't seem to be in much pain, and we're controlling that with Motrin because the pain medication made her sick. I think right now she's more frustrated that she can't walk around anymore, and that just breaks my heart. She is a very strong, and brave little girl, and I know that she will quickly bounce back from this. Dr. Anderson believes she shouldn't have any problems in the future, but we're following up with the orthopedic clinic at Children's over the next few weeks.

Eric did a wonderful job of trying to console both his girls ALL NIGHT LONG, and I can tell that Barkley feels bad because he has been following me around all day with his "sad eyes". I don't feel like it is his fault, I could've tripped over anything, including my own feet! Uncle Chipper came over tonight, and Madison was very excited to see him. He can brighten the gloomiest of days!

I am feeling fine, just a little stiff, and dog tired. My eyes feel like they're on fire, and I'm hoping to get some good naps in tomorrow. We just ask that you keep little Madie in your thoughts and prayers, and we'll certainly keep you posted on how she is getting along with her knew pink leg.

Madie relaxing, watching the Wiggles