Ouch!

One of the things I love about being a mom is experiencing all of the "firsts"... first smile, first teeth, first words, first steps... it's so much fun to watch and celebrate as Avery achieves those milestones. A couple of weeks ago I learned that not all the "firsts" are fun. First trip to the Emergency Room and first set of stitches... not my idea of a good time. And definitely not Avery's.

Twice a month Avery and I go to MOPS, a local mom's group that meets at our church. The kids get to play in the church nursery while the mom's enjoy a couple hours of hanging out, hearing a guest speaker, eating great food, and connecting with other women who are in the same stage of life. Shortly after the meeting started, a staff member from the nursery came up and put her arm around me. "Sarah, Avery got hurt." Thinking she just needed her mommy to kiss her boo boo, I calmly got up and headed towards the child care area. I think my response wasn't as urgent as expected, so she said, "No Sarah, she really got hurt. She'll be okay, but she's bleeding a lot.". I picked up the pace and quickly found Avery crying in a volunteer's arms with a big gash on her forehead*. It was clear that we'd be making a trip to the hospital so I called Erich, packed up our stuff, and headed to the ER. Erich wasn't able to join us at the hospital because he was very sick and was actually headed to get a chest x-ray at the same time (thankfully it was clear and he is healthy now!).

Waiting 4 hours in a hospital room with a one year old who is missing lunch and missing her nap isn't my idea of a good time. Avery behaved exceptionally well, all things considered. A steady stream of graham crackers, apple juice, and cartoons on tv made things bearable. The actual part where she got the stitches was horrible. She was terrified and in pain and it was excruciating to watch. Thankfully that whole ordeal lasted less than 5 minutes and then we were on our way! We called Daddy and he said he would meet us at Wendy's for a reward of french fries and chocolate frostys for all. I'd say she earned it!

Happy to be out of the hospital and waiting for her ice cream

Thanking God for her french fries and frosty

*For the record, we love our church nursery staff and volunteers! They take excellent care of Avery and the other kids. She was playing, tripped and fell, and hit her head on the corner of a toy. There's nothing they could have done to prevent it and it could just have easily happened at home. She was happy as a clam to return to the nursery at church that weekend!

Pigtails

Our pretty girl doesn't like to have her hair touched. She doesn't want me to brush it, comb it, put a bow in it, or style it in any way. Her hair is naturally curly and crazy and a little out of control. That's why she's always walking around looking like she just rolled out of bed. I was so excited a few days ago when she had a sudden change of heart and let me give her pigtails! (after bribing her with promises of cheerios and sesame street if she let me do it) She didn't like the actual process, but seemed proud to tote her new hairdo around and surprisingly left them in for the rest of the morning. We are making progress! We tried to get a picture, but Avery doesn't sit still much these days which makes it difficult to get a photo that isn't blurry or of the back of her head as she's running away. This is the only picture I got with a clear shot of the cuteness. She was sad here, but I promise within seconds she was running around happy and proud.