Avery's 1st visit to the ER

So, we go from crawling yesterday to the ER today ... A very exciting week to say the least! :)

Towards the end of our day at school, Avery started crying after being innocently pacified by one of her favorite buddies in our room. At first, we blew if off as just being sensitive and maybe hungry since it was that time. So, I took her, sat down and began feeding her a bottle. The crying continued, though nothing big. She continued drinking through a few tears, but then she stopped and started crying a cry that told me she was in some kind of pain. I immediately noticed that her left arm seemed a little limp. After comparing both arms, I definitely noticed a difference, not to mention the pitch of her cry which became louder during my quick "examination." Her elbow seemed to be dislocated which has happened to our nephew a couple of times and to our niece. Panic mode! I didn't know what to do first. (Kinda hard listening and seeing your child cry out in pain and not being able to help!!!) Thank goodness for co-workers who reminded me that I needed to call our pediatrician. Of course, the phone in our room was down this afternoon and my cell was about to die, but it had enough juice to reach a RECORDING at the ped's office. Tried calling Brett and he wasn't answering. Did I mention that I was in PANIC mode, people?! :) I had one of my co-workers holding Avery while making sure that her arm stayed bent and close to her side while I made all of the necessary phone calls. Thankfully, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta is only a couple of exists from the church. So, after I stopped by the front desk to call Brett, the girls and I met him at the ER where the doctor confirmed that her left elbow was, in fact, dislocated. She had nursemaid's elbow. After a quick and painful (by Avery's reaction) manipulation of her arm, everything popped back into place. A few tests were done to see if she would reach with the hurt arm ... bubbles, nope ... her paci, nope ... favorite rattle, nope ...  It wasn't until the doctor held her to a standing position on the floor that an electrical cord caught her eye and all was right in Avery's world again ... And in Mommy's, as well.

There is a chance this could happen again, but it's unlikely that it'll be an ongoing problem. We'll just be extra mindful not to swing her by her arms, pick her up by her arms or drag her down the street by her arms (jk!) in the midst of playing in the future. It was just crazy seeing how very painful it was for her up until the quick adjustment and then everything was okay ... I'm just so truly thankful it was a simple fix.

It's been a long night. ;) Going to bed now ... Nite!