Subtitled: C is for Crazy, Crying, Chips, Crowns, Caps, Cuts, and my Children taking the Alphabet Path Completely too far…. They better Cut it out, if they want to Continue! 😉
Thursday night was crazy… I’ve definitely had some traumatic moments in my life, but nothing has ever affected all our children like what happened on Thursday. The day started out completely normal. I posted about our Kindergarten activities for the letter B, I spoke with a friend on the phone, my kids worked on their schoolwork, we picked up the house, and then the tutor came from 1:00-6:00. She actually even took the boys to their Lego Robotics class for me, where they had their picture taken for the local paper! However, just after 7pm I posted on Facebook that “We could really use some prayers right now…” before heading to the ER.
After the tutor left, I started making dinner while my children completed a couple science experiments left over from the last couple chapters of their science course.
After completing our 2nd experiment, we headed back into the house and into the kitchen so the kids could all add the results and conclusion to their journals, just as Dad/Hubby arrived home from work for the day. The kids and I continued to discuss what we had just learned. I was sitting on one of the bar stools talking to the kids. Captain was holding the baby on one side of the island, Twinkle Toes was standing at the end, Chiquita had skipped off to the school room to find a pencil, and Rascal was standing in between the island and the sink. (In the very spot, I will add, that I had *almost* purchased a rug for a few days before, but didn’t want to spend the money… Still upset with myself for not buying it!)
Of course, even when they are talking, boys don’t hold still for very long… Lifting himself up between the sink/counter and the island, Rascal swung his body forward. As he swung back to “land” he slipped and went down, face first, onto our hard tile kitchen floor. He had been looking at me and talking to me at the time. I was about to say “Don’t do that.” but by then it was too late… Blocked by the counter and totally helpless, I saw his face hit the ground as a tooth flew out of his mouth, his head bounced before coming back down and hitting again, this time chin first, while the remaining dagger of a tooth tore through his bottom lip.
His initial response, grabbing his mouth and trying his best to shake it off, was “Ooh, that hurt!” before noticing the blood gushing everywhere.
By that time I was around the counter and praying that he was okay and that I had imagined the tooth bouncing out… I kept thinking “Are there any baby teeth left in the front??? Please let it be a baby tooth!!!”
Everyone came running to the kitchen. I had him open his mouth while my husband went to get a rag to help with all the blood, and, sure enough, he was missing more than half of his top front tooth. I told him to open his hand, there was the rest of the tooth, which he had somehow managed to catch! I couldn’t help it, I started crying. “Oh, NO! Your tooth!” which set everyone else to crying… He was crying, saying he was “so sorry…” Captain who was already holding Bud started crying along with the baby… Twinkle Toes and Chiquita started crying… Snuggles started wailing… and Rose must have thought “enough of all this” since she just looked around at everyone crying and headed back to here room, climbed into bed, and went to sleep without dinner. It was traumatic to say the least!
I called our dentist who asked a few questions before telling me to put the tooth in some milk and take Rascal in for stitches. He would see us in the morning…
We drove in to town and instead of stitches they ended up glueing Rascals lip back together. Apparently stitches would have been too easy to mess with and pull out right there on his lip, and glue is working much better for these sorts of injuries. He was also given a prescription for antibiotics to prevent infection from the “Human Bite” and his lip should heal in about 2-3 weeks.
By the time we got home everyone had calmed down… It did make me smile when Captain told me that Snuggles laid in bed, while we were at the Doctor’s, and cried, “I just NEVER wanted this to happen to ANYONE!!! First it happened this summer to Big Michael, and now it has happened to (Rascal)!” All of the kids were so sad for their brother. ♥
*Big Michael is the 14 year old grandson of our friend/swimming teacher, who broke both of his front teeth this summer doing a back flip off the diving board… I was surprised Snuggles remembered, but he loved meeting “Big Michael” who was up visiting.
Friday morning Hubby took everyone to Mass, while I headed to the Dentist with Rascal and the baby. Rascal, being the good sport that he always is, decided to wear his new “Hockey” shirt. (So much for me worrying about the boys losing teeth playing Hockey… It happened anyways, while doing schoolwork with me!)
We did discover that one end of a nerve was exposed and it will take time to tell the extent of the damage, and whether or not the tooth can be saved. (Basically his tooth could possibly start to turn black within 3 months to 3 years.) He will probably end up needing a root canal and/or a cap or crown. The dentist was able to glue the tooth back together for now. We also found that there was still another piece of the tooth missing, which we then x-rayed his lip to make sure it hadn’t been embedded. (Thanks be to God, that it hadn’t!) The dentist told us that in a couple days the tooth would hopefully be rehydrated and blend in (better) with the original tooth.
Of course, we still don’t have dental insurance (we are in the process of applying but it won’t take effect until January, and we had already managed to wrack up a ridiculously huge bill between the Orthodontist and Dentist the past couple months, before this) but it will all work out somehow.
Jessica: I have been there and had the same PTSD experience afterwards. My daughter knocked out her front tooth in a bizarre kneeler accident at mass during the consecration when I closed my eyes for one second. She was only 18 months old and was toothless until she turned seven last month. My son also fell off an examination table in our pediatrician's office onto the hard cement floor and fractured his front teeth. It is the most helpless feeling in the world but they both recovered and while we don't laugh about it as people said we would, it was part of God's plan and helped us all grow in the virtue of fortitude! I will pray that life calms down and you all can go back to your day-to-day routine which I love to read about! Thank you for this beautiful blog. I don't know what I would do without all of your inspiration!!
God bless you,
Kelly
Praying for you Jessica! What a brave boy!
Dear Jessica, I can't tell what I fell about your storie (I'm french and don't have the words). We just have the same sort of accident in April with our son!!!!!! I live in the moutains (the french alps) and he had a head trauma, I was so miserable when the fireman and I go to the hospital. Thank 's God it wasn't terrible!!!!!!!! I will pray tonight (yes it's night here) for your lovely son and You.
Be all blessed
Sandra from France
Poor little man and SO very brave!! Sometimes I think it is harder on the mama. One of our kids had a similar accident only it was a bike accident and the face hit the road. Hubby and I were both outside to witness it. It took me a long time for the very vivid image to subside, but it did subside. Moments like that need an Irish coffee!! Hang in there. Prayers and hugs to all involved.
My eyes got so teary reading this..These things are sooo scary! I'm so glad you have such a tough family Jess. You have enough things to worry about without accidents like this! I'm so proud of how you are as a mother, and influence for me! Good job with everything! Love you!
How scary! I'm so sorry your family had to go through that. It's a miracle to me most days when one of them doesn't come up with such an injury as much as they are bouncing around and playing all day. I can still picture the blood pouring down my little one's face when he needed 4 stitches. He only cared about the cookie he dropped during the fall, I will never forget all the blood! They heal quickly, though, and then it's a scar story. 😉 So now you have a really good excuse to go out and buy a nice cushion-ey rug!
Prayers and thoughts for your family, from me,
Olivia
Tears in my own eyes, too; I hope all will be well soon; praying for you all.
Love from Valerie.
How scary and sad! Praying he heals!
I'm so sorry Jessica!! That is so upsetting indeed! God will give you the grace to get through this. You are a wonderful mother and have a beautiful family! We all love your blog and you give us such inspiration. Following yor lovely catholic home on your blog is a little corner of happiness for all of us. Unfortunately these awful accidents happen sometimes. Luckily children are more resilient than we are. Time will heal this wound. With prayers for you all!!
Oh, you poor sweet Jessica
How scary for all of you, please do not blame your self ,
you were so brave , both of you !
Love and prayers, Emma
That is hard to see your little guy get so hurt. You are such a good mama with all the worrying. I want to put bubble wrap around all my children…for life!
Jessica, I'm a wreck just reading through and looking the pictures! Deo gratias that you're pulling through and he is feeling and looking better. Ugh, that kind of stuff really is upsetting. Have your meltdown, it's normal!
Jessica I am so sorry that is so sad, Praying for your family!!!
Oh gosh, that's terrible! I lost half of my front tooth when I was in 2nd grade on a waterpark slide. It was a poorly designed slide where you could get stuck and wait for the next riders to run into you from behind and use their momentum to go down really fast. Anyway, that's what my cousin and I did, and to make a long story short, my mouth hit the edge of the slide and bye, bye tooth! The lifeguards shut down the pool to look for my tooth but never found it. To show how sorry they were, the people at the waterpark gave me a free pass to go back! The dentist ended up putting a cap on the tooth. That tooth sticks out a little more than my other front tooth, but only if you look at it from the side. Other than the initial pain and shock of losing my tooth, it hasn't been an issue since it happened. I still have the original cap and the dentist says it is still in good condition. I hope that gives you a little encouragement! Maybe it won't be as bad as it seems right now.
If, in the future, you think he'll need a root canal, I would advise you to do your research first. I've read that root canals may not be the best procedure. Here's an article to get you started.
http://www.westonaprice.org/dentistry/root-canal-dangers
Also, go to mercola.com and search root canals. He has a lot of articles about why to avoid them. At least, if he does need a root canal, you will be going into it with more information than you will likely get from the dentist. With that said, I will pray that he just needs a cap so you don't have to make any difficult decisions. God bless!
Oh Jessica, I am so sorry you had to go through this, but I think you handled everything so well! It is the worst feeling in the world watching your child suffer and being unable to to anything to stop it!( It brings flashbacks and tears to my eyes thinking about the trauma of our own sweet boy)
Now…Terramin clay ( food grade) does wonders with tooth problems and might help the healing of the tooth in this situation. It is a mineral supplement powder you can order online. I got mine from here:
http://www.californiaearthminerals.com/products/terramin.php
St Apollonia…please pray for Rascal as his tooth heals!
Oh no! Oh my heart goes out to you!
Poor poor guy!. I am so sorry!
I'm so sorry for your pain! I'm always waiting for something like that to happen!
Jessica, I am so sorry for your family tooth trauma. As I have learned the past year with my family traumas, God has always a plan to heal in His time and we learn so many lessons from that. I know as the other moms above testify that when your baby (at any age) gets hurt, it feels like you are being put through the same exact pain. We suffer along and wonder if we could do a better job. I think in this case, like I have learned in my own family traumas with 5 little ones, is that we can't control our future. And as you eloquently right all the time on your blog, it's the Love of God that protects us from that fear as a mom, to trust our Hearts always on God. This evening as I go to bed I will be praying for you and your son and your entire family, along with the other moms above as well, for grace, patience, love, mercy on ourselves, and compassion in times like these when we feel that we are quite exhausted. Praying for St. Apollonia and her intercession will be given to your son. He will get better with your familiy's love. God bless you always!
Ow, ow, ow! 🙁 I'm so sorry…my four year old did a more minor version of this a couple of years ago. She tripped at the park and felll against this metal bar. Her tooth is still chipped and gray, but so far hasn't abscessed and we are just biding our time until it falls out. Please don't blame yourself, these things happen to us all! Besides, they will all pass these stories around and laugh 20 years from now at your Thanksgiving table! 🙂 Every childhood needs a couple of war stories. I'm sorry too about the dentist bills, ouch. We *have* dental insurance and these things still cost way too much money!
Jessica, It's going to be okay. You are a fabulous mom and truly love your children. When you get some time go and check out Sarah, the Healthy Home Economist, she is the Weston Price Chapter Leader in Florida and she has a lot to say about dental health. Here's the link: http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/save-a-damaged-tooth-with-no-root-canal/ Holly
Jessica, I am so sorry that this happened to your family but what a blessing that your dear hubby was home! I am not sure how you would have done it if he wasn't. I love that you are already praying to a saint who will help to heal his tooth. You are inspiring to our Catholic faith. This started me thinking about how you incorporate and live your faith out everyday and in every way. I wondered if you could describe a typical day and how you incorporate that into your life with homeschooling. I am especially curious about your evenings. Do they include t.v.? Do you pray the rosary in evenings? Does the whole family pray to the saints? Etc…? I am wanting to do more to incorporate our faith into my boys lives. They are older 10, 13, and 17. I have tried many of your ideas but now that they are older crafts are out however food is always a motivator! Lol! I would be grateful for any advice. I will continue to pray for your family. Blessings! Michelle
Oh no!! Poor Rascal!! 🙁 Looks like he was such a trooper through it all…and you, too!! You had me tearing-up AND smiling through your story – it's so sweet to read about your kiddo's reactions, esp. Snuggles, lol. Sure hope Rascal's lip is feeling better soon….and you, also! I know how hard it is to see your one of your children get hurt 🙁
Saying an extra prayer for you & Rascal today! Hope you all have a Happy Tuesday!
Oh! This brought back memories of when my daughter got a concusion on vacation. I opened my mouth to say, "Stop running on the tile in socks, or you'll fall." and in the split second that it took to open my mouth and actually speak, I saw her legs fly out from under her and her ehad slam onto the hard tile and cement floor. She was just about to turn 3. We didn't know what to do and I was so upset that i couldn't grab her before she fell. But, really it only feels like you could stop it, everything heppens so quickly there is no time to intervien. She screamed non-stop for 2.5 hours, her pupils were getting bigger and smaller as I was looking at her and she started to vomit all over the car. We took her to the emergency room and they basically just sent her home with a sheet (we ran out of clothes for her) and an ice pop. I was so upset and we were 4 hours from home. It was definitly traumatic but she made it through. She had quite a track record with ending up in the emergency room, especially when we were out of state. Now whenever we go away I ask the kids, "What's the goal of this trip?" and they say,"Not to go to the hospital!"
I prayed for you at the Kateri shrine on Sunday. It was a beautiful day there, will have to tell you more about it another time. Take care and give that brave boy a tight squeeze.
I'm so sorry this happened! We had a similar incident while we were on vacation this past summer. My daughter (9) fell and broke her tooth (same one) on a bed frame. It was crazy trying to figure out what to do and where to go in another state. Long story short we all lived. She did get a root canal/experimental regenerative treatment. Did you know there are stem cells at the very very top of the the tooth?! We are praying for a miracle but because of another horizontal crack higher up on the tooth its not very likely she'll keep it. Honestly I'm still upset about it. I also think to myself if only I had done something different. I was also rather irritated at her Guardian Angel at first but then I realized how much worse it could have been! She apparently she hit her little mouth super hard, what if that had been her nose or her eye? I keep telling myself its just a tooth, its just a tooth. But its hard. Mothering is certainly not for the faint of heart!! Hang in there!
Poor dear. We are all continuing to pray for him and for your peace of mind. God bless you all.
Oh, my, poor little guy! My 14-year-old daughter broke her front tooth a few years ago while riding in a wagon, and bonding was used as a temporary fix until she turns 18 and can have a crown. My 10-year-old daughter hit her front tooth while playing monkey in the middle in our pool; it began to change color, so she had to have a root canal (just a couple of weeks ago). The tooth did not whiten back up, so tomorrow she is getting some type of bleaching tray for the tooth. Again, no crown until she turns 18. What is funny to me is that my very rambunctious boys have all seemed to keep their teeth intact! 😉 +JMJ+
i've been praying for your little Rascal, but it migth have backfired on me. Today as we ran for the bus, my second youngest son (9) tripped and fell, hitting his head into a stone step. Like you I could just look, not reach him in time. His chin was bruised, as was his forehead and lips, and his nose was bleeding. I thougth, Oh, no, It's just like "Shower of Roses", I looked into his mouth, and sure enough. His left front tooth had a big chip missing, I could not find it amidst fallen leawes in the street. A nice lady from a nearby shop came and took us inside, I had the youngest brother (6) there as well, and offered us a wet towel. I ran for a popsicle – our remedy for all ills (and one for little brother as well). I decided to visit the dentist at once, as a big bit was missing, and it was 2 pm Friday. The shop lady offerd to drive us there. And at the dentists he had an X-ray and the oldest, most experienced lady working there said it was rigth of us to come straigth ther as the nerve was exposed. Then she continued doing a big job of building up the tooth with plaastic.
And as you I can't stop the blame game. If only I'd let him take that crate from the shop, then it migth have softened his fall, if only I had not taken so long deciding what to have for dinner …
As I recount this story, I feel that grace has been given to us. Daddy was at home with the rest of the kids, so I could concentrate on my wounded soldier, a chain of nice people helped us, the right dentist was in, he did not break his jaw or have a concussion. The tooth is very likely to grow back in, the repair is almost invisible already, and the smaller brother behaved like an angel all the time, and he normally is drama queen #1.
I'll continue praying for Rascal and your peace of mind.
Thanks to saint Appolonia, and Christ, and His Mother.
Oh NO!!! I know exactly what you are going through and will pray for you and your son!!!
I just can't believe all the stories of similar accidents that I have been hearing, I had no idea just how common these sorts of injuries are for children… SO many people have told me about their crowns, caps, and own childhood injuries (or those of their children), and I would have had no idea otherwise. Dentists really are able to do so much now!
And, thank you for the prayers! I'm so sorry they seemed to backfire on you! :/