"The Phone Call" - Oh, it's a good read... wait for it.
11:51 PM Monday, October 06, 2008I am a guy who loves his family very much. I would pretty much do anything for the 3 chicks and a dude that live in our home in Herriman. Yeah, so I go to work everyday to provide for them and buy my kids popsicles... that's just what it's about.
Come take a ride with me on my way home this evening.
- KBULL 93 jamming on the radio - I respond to the Rascal Flatts Fly Away Contest by sending in a text message.
- I get a call from one of my sales reps who wants to chat about a deal he's working (yes, it's 6:30 and sometimes the phone never stops ringing)
- Another text message comes in confirming my entry to the fly away and well wishes for success in the contest.
- A text message from one of my managers asking me about one of the other sales reps that works for him.
- KBULL plays one of my favorite songs and I sing on the way home.
- After our recent storm the weather leaves the sky so clear thatI can see China to the West and think to myself, wow, this would be great light for some photos tonight.
The Phone Call
Jill: "I need to take Charlotte to the hospital"
me: "What? What happened?"
Jill: "She fell and hit her head outside, by the trampoline"
me: "Why do you need to take her to the hospital?"
Jill (crying now): "She has two holes in her head and she's really smacked her eye."
me: "Honey, I'm 90 seconds away. Everything will be okay, I'll be right there"
I arrive to find my sweet little Charlotte Rose crying and in mom's arms. Emily has Charlotte's blood on her shirt, and Charlotte has blood all over her hands and across her forehead. Her eye is a little bit swollen and with a significant amount of gashing on it. Needless to say, Dad wished that he had a popsicle that he could give his little girl.
5 minutes later... we're in the van driving to the emergency room. Mom is sitting in between the two back seats of the car, trying to comfort the little girl, who is still crying. At the same time, Charlotte is crying and at the same time telling the story of how she hit her head.
"And I just tripped and I fell down and now my head hurts. I don't want to get a shot"
I reached back and rubbed her little foot because that's the only part of her that I can touch. I said to her, "Charlotte, do you think we could say a prayer and ask Heavenly Father to bless us on our way and to bless the doctors to make you feel better?" It took a moment to convince her, but she consented to having mommy say the prayer.
My dear wife said the prayer (with some tears from both mom and dad). Charlotte calmed down until we were pulling into the hospital parking lot, when she asked: "Mom, are we almost there, my head really hurts."
Fast forward past the check-in part because it was pretty boring.
In the exam room:
Charlotte: "I don't want to get a shot."
Dad: "It's okay Char, everything will be fine."
This last part is difficult to remember exactly, but she said something about dying and not seeing Emily or William anymore. I looked over to Jill and saw the redness around her eyes. She kept it together.
Needless to say, after some derma glue and a good soap washing, Charlotte will be okay. She's going to have a black eye and a headache, but we managed to get her home and in bed with her bankely.
Oh, by the way, when we left the hospital, Charlotte got herself two grape popsicles. My work today is done. Here is some art for your viewing pleasure (I'll apologize for the quality - I didn't come prepared with my go-go-gadget Nikon - so the Blackberry phone will have to do). She fell asleep after sitting on my lap for about 15 minutes. But, when the orderly came in to wash her forehead, she woke up and was not too happy about the whole thing. I'll say this for her: She is one brave little girl. She didn't fight and only cried when the doctor pressed her little head back together. I am very proud of her.
P.S. - I'm going to wake her up now because the doctor told us to. We need to make sure she's "acting normal-whatever normal is for her" and check to "make sure she hasn't vomitted all over herself." What if vomitting all over herself is normal? And, frankly, I don't know how to judge if Char is normal at this hour. She's liable to scream at me for waking her up...that's probably what I would do.
Ah, nothing like a good head wound ... Ashton had to get staples in her head once (no anesthesia ... Steve didn't want to wait for it since they'd been there so long) and Kendyl had her stitches in her chin last year. Good times. Glad to know Char will be okay and that you were able to get home just in time - like any superhero would(not that Jill was not a superhero in her own right)!!
Kari 3:24 AM
Poor thing. I hope she's feeling better today. I hope you are only looking at those text messages at stop lights....
emily a. 5:59 AM
Oh poor Char, Hug her tight. I just love that girl! I am so relieved that she is okay. Scary!!
Windy 6:53 AM
Thanks for the replay, it made the story even more vivid. And I got a little tear when I read about the prayer. I hope she is doing ok. I did almost the same thing when I was little.
Me in a nut shell 7:35 AM
OUCH!! Poor little thing, hope she feels better today!
Jessica 7:41 AM
So sadd! I almost cried reading that. I am glad she is ok. Poor kid. Jill the crafts are super cute and I love the latest Vinyl! Good job on the 5K!
The Balls 8:22 AM
Poor Charlotte, this is a time when the old saying "it hurts me more than it hurts you" really comes to life. Feel better soon.
Nana Bette 8:25 AM
Oh, poor Char....feel better.
Sally 8:28 AM
OUCH! I told Kylie and she was very concerned especially after seeing the pictures! Give her a squeeze from us!
Unknown 10:35 AM
Oh poor Charlotte Rose! She looks like she got in a pretty bad fight. But she sounds like a tough cookie.
Kate 12:44 PM
Poor, poor Charlotte. What a little trooper. All the talk of dying and not seeing her brother and sister again would have just killed me. Hope she's feeling better soon.
Staci 1:27 PM
Holy crap! I am just reading this and DYING!! Jill - how did you handle that? I am a mess when it comes to my kids getting hurt. My hugest fear in life is that one of my kids will die or something and to hear Charlotte talk like she was going to would have sent me over the edge of insanity. I am so glad that she is OK - she must have some really good guardian angels. Just like Alex. WOW! What a crazy story!
Tammy 2:25 PM
She is the cutest, funniest, bravest littlest thing ever. I am so sorry. There is nothing worse than seeing your little one hurt.
Jen 6:25 PM
How did I miss this until now! I'm so sorry! Poor Char! What a little sweet heart. . . poor thing. That is so scary. I hate it when our kids are hurting. It hurts us as parents more than it is hurting them by far I think. Ohhhhh.......
The Dalton Family 3:00 PM