stitches and a sob story

*this happened on Thursday- it's taken me a day or two to get it together enough to post it)

(Photo taken before the incident)

The stitches

in the precious face of my 24 month old son, Preston.

yesterday

at a consignment sale

he wanted a Thomas Train

I was already holding the same said train in my hand, (only 50 cents cheaper)

and trying to reason with a 2 year old . . .

that the Thomas i am holding is the same but better , he stands up in his stroller

(yes, he was buckled in)

turn around (while buckled in???) and flips it face down

SPLAT

on the filthy hard tile floor

nothing

nothing

SCREAMING!!!!!

oh yes,

I've already dropped (literally dropped and probably broke)

everything I was holding in my arms and scooped him up.

Checked his teeth, his tongue- no cuts no bleeding.

Whew!

then GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!

Red E V E R Y W H E R E

The cut, no I mean gash in his chin was about 2 inches long and -

I kid you not- at least 1/2 inch deep.

I saw tissue, stuff, the inside of my screaming son!

Of course mothers everywhere stop their bargain shopping

bringing me Kleenex, ice water,

shouting directions to the nearest children's emergency place . . .

guilt

judgement

horror

HEART BREAK

I cannot describe the next portion of the story, the part where they strap him down, and sew him up, (e v e r so s l o w l y ) all the while he is calling out for "mommy?" I'm stuck" Mommy?' Mommy" I'm stuck"

(no help from mommy)

"daddy? Daddy?? DADDY!!!!!!!"

(daddy does not come to save him)

"Gommy!!!!!!!!!!" (that's granmommy)

It was pure torture to hear. I was NOT allowed to touch him, get near his tear smudged face and they keep saying "Sing to him mom- But be strong for him- no crying mom!"

ARE THEY SERIOUS???

So, in silence, I stood there and prayed it by . . .

faster Lord, faster lord!!!!!!!!

The sobbing

Preston is fine!

I am still not really okay . . .

still sobbing!

I cried all the way home ,

(while poor baby was passed out from sheer exhaustion in the back seat)

woke up up every other hour last night just to torture myself and relive it again.

Still sobbing

His sister has taken her permanent position as his band-aid nurse!

He has no fewer than two bandaids on his body at all times.

(not always on his face or anywhere remotely close to the 8 bright blue chin stitches)

but still Leah is concerned!

His two year photos are scheduled for next Friday his birthday! And I guess it's fitting that he should be adorned with a standard toddler boy battle scar- all for a Thomas the train!

It's a rite of passage, I know.

But Leah was almost 3 when we bought her the first set of stitches! I thought I had some more time! I was NOT prepared for the screaming and pure torture that was watching . . . hearing my son beg me for a rescue and I had to just stand near by and allow it . . .

I'm still sobbing!

But again, he's fine!

PS-because I COULD NOT get my screaming, bleeding, and wounded son in the car seat . . . I ran back in, slapped the whole $3 on the counter, shouted my intentions not to steal the train but buy it at full price b/c my son and I were headed to the hospital and THIS (&^%@#&! Train was the cause . . .

I handed him the Thomas and he smiled (still spewing blood all over my gorgeous green Seaside sweatshirt) and said "zanks mom" . . . sweetest sound ever . . . he stopped sobbing