Alana is cheering- “You’re the B-E-S-T BEST Mommy!” But, I certainly don’t feel like it at this moment!
We had a fun time during our family game night. Extending the moment, we decided to have part two to allow Dad the opportunity to steal the title. Unable to do so, the girls and I immediately began our victory dance when we won the game for the second night in a row. In our excitement, we jumped, cheered, and screamed in celebration. All of a sudden, Alana slipped and fell smack on her face. I immediately shifted into mommy mode and ran to pick her up and comfort her. Taking her in for a warm embrace to calm her cries, it took me a few moments to realize that I was covered in blood.
Yep…she knocked her tooth loose during the fall. Yowzers! I quickly responded by trying to remember all of the steps I learned for treating tooth trauma. I did the following: 1)get a cold compass to apply to the bleeding; 2)gave her Motrin for pain; 3) prepared a warm salt water solution for her to gargle and treat the gums; 4) had her bite down on a cloth to secure the tooth in place; and 5) let her suck (not bite) on a popsicle. After getting her calm and settled and completed the first round of care, I called the after-hour number to the dentist to report the emergency and also called two friends who are dentists to get their professional feedback. They both FaceTimed to take a look at the injury and reassured me that I did all of the appropriate steps for in-home care. Now, I just had to wait until I could schedule an appointment. By this time, it was 10 pm so I scheduled it for 9 am the next morning.
Watching cartoons and sucking on a popsicle, my daughter was happiest knowing that she was going to be able to sleep in the bed right next to mommy for the evening (secretly this probably made me feel better than her when she asked if she could). After getting both girls ready for bed, I grabbed my hubby and went to the next room and cried. Why couldn’t I prevent this? Why didn’t I remember to give her the grip socks to wear? Why didn’t I notice that she lost her balance? Why didn’t I catch her or break her fall? So may what ifs and why nots dominated my thoughts for the rest of the evening. I was extremely sad for not being able to protect her from this hurt and pain. I was comforted by the words of a great friend who said; “We can’t always [protect them] but they’ll appreciate our efforts for always trying!”
The next morning, I woke up anxious and nervous for the visit to the dentist. This feeling was completely abnormal for me as I’ve always loved my bi-annual appointments since childhood and try to share that love with my girls. Dental health is very important in our household. My husband nor I have ever had cavities, faithfully go to our routine appointments, and began the girls’ dental office regimen as soon as they were old enough to schedule their first visit. I didn’t want this incident to plant the seed of fear to visit the dentist nor did I want her beautiful smile to be damaged forever. I then questioned myself for not taking her to emergency care last night and waiting so long to have her seen (yes, those nearly twelve hours feels like forever when you can’t sleep). My hubby said that it was important to give God that time to do His work. He was absolutely right!
After arriving, the dentist checked her teeth and took X-rays. Her report was positive and the images showed a a beautiful picture of healthy teeth without any internal damage. I was so relieved and grateful for God’s healing and covering. I’m particularly thankful for family and friends who took the time to check on our baby, offer love and support, and assured me that even in the midst of not being able to fully protect or prevent harm to our children, we can still be the B-E-S-T BEST mommy!
We returned home and began another family fun day of games. This time…we played them on the floor. Stay tuned to see how we are spending our time during this period of quarantine.
Until then,
Xoxo