End of March- start of all our troubles :) AKA- Tommie's skull fracture

March 2014- written in August 2014

After coming home from California, and feeling tired and exhausted. I started feeling sick again. 2 mornings in a row of feeling just plain horrible, I knew I was pregnant again. I didn't even need to take a test- although I did. I couldn't believe it! I thought for sure it would take longer this time, but, my plans aren't always the Lord's plans. And boy was I reminded of that over and over. :) I'll admit i was stressed. I felt incredibly nauseous and Dallin was still so little.  James seemed way stressed the day I told him and just left to work. So, I went walking with Julie. Poor Julie listened as I said "Really? This is what Heavenly Father wants me to do?" But, it didn't take me long to decide that I really am incredibly blessed. I can't imagine my life any other way. I already knew it was another boy and just after we celebrate Dallin's 1 year birthday, I'll have a baby the next month. I am due Nov. 8, but I am pretty sure this baby is coming in october. So crazy! :) 

After finding out about being pregnant, we also discovered the hall closet was getting really mildly. Turns out when the elders were living with us, the shower head broke. No one told us, and between them and spencer, too many showers were taken with a broken head. The water would spray back behind the wall and it wasn't long before the mold took over. We filed a claim through the home insurance, but sure forked over a lot of money and a long repair to fix the walls. 

The end of the month always means we eat sunday dinner out in gilbert. Sundays, James (as ward mission leader) goes to ward council, then the ward missionaries and sister missionaries come over  for a correlation meeting, then we head to church, come back and leave for family dinner. Well, that morning, while I was hurrying to shower, tommie was sitting on the bathroom sink washing his feet. He had plugged the sink and it started to overflow. I was rushing to get out the shower when he stood up, slipped on the wet counter, and fell straight backwards on the tile. He was still screaming when the ward members knocked on the door for the meeting. I was still in my towel and james was running late, but Jackson let everyone in. :) I couldn't get Tommie to stop crying, so carried him and dallin out to the meeting. Eventually tommie calmed down and I held him all through church. I thought all the crying had just worn him out. But, that was one of his first sundays to try nursery. As we went into nursery, someone slammed the door open, hitting him in the head, and the crying started all over. We went home from church, I went to get him a snack and he climbed up next to me not he kitchen chair. He slipped and fell back on the wood floor- starting a whole new round of crying. Well, I rocked him, he fell asleep and we headed out to becca's. Right after eating, little stephen went to play with Tommie and charged into him. Tommie fell yet again back on the tile, smacking his head. This time, he started crying really hard and throwing up. It was then it hit me all the falls he and really had that day and how he hadnt been acting normal at all. We knew he was really hurt and James gave him a blessing. We took him to John Lesueuer's dad- a dr and he recommended we take him to the emergency room. I was sick inside as i realized Tommie didn't have any health insurance that night. When I switched companies, I entered the dates wrong and tommie had a lapse in coverage. Of course, it had to be that night that we didn't have any coverage on him. We took dallin and jackson to my mom's and took tommie to the hospital. He was acting really weird, and I was getting really sick. Both of us kept throwing up in the waiting room, but we were taken in late that night. Through out the night, he had CT scans that showed a severe skull fracture and concussion. But, we were charged with abuse and neglect through the Child protection services. So, all night we had several interviews and questions "why did he fall so many times in one day?" "why didn't we take him in sooner", "where are our other kids", etc. I am sure I looked so sickly. My favorite part is when they asked me "is this your normal appearance?" I looked at myself, 3 am, in pajamas, but hair still kind of nice from church, and said "ya, normally my hair probably looks better, but ya, this is it. :)" I laughed and then the man said. "what about the food on your face?" as I felt my face, I realized that tommie had thrown up (purple gatorade and ritz crackers) on my face and i ran to the bathroom to throw up myself, but and never cleaned off my face! Ha! It was crusty and hard- as I tried to explain to the man he said "you forgot? I am positive i would never forget vomit on my face!" And, then, i forgot that i was pregnant when the skull X-rays started, I saw the sign, and made them stop while I left the room. So ya, I probably did look like a terrible mother. :) They also interviewed jackson the next morning. They asked him if his dad hits him. he said, "uhh...sometimes... but mostly he flicks me in the head..like this..." and then he flicked the interviewer in the middle of his forehead! They also asked him "what do you like to do with your dad?" Jax says "go camping". "Oh fun," the interviewer says, "do you do that a lot?" "No," Jax responds, "we've actually never gone. My dad is always working!" Oh I just about died! 

The whole night was way stressful. Tommie ended up being released from the hospital with instructions that he absolutely can not run, fall, climb, or jump for several weeks. They told me not to let him sleep for longer than 2 hours, and to keep a constant watch on him. The CPS worker followed me home, to see the house, and couldn't understand why Spencer was living with us. i guess saying your inlaws do church work in the dominican republic also sounds suspicious! :) So poor spencer was interviewed to see if he had a "relationship" with me. 

The next few weeks were really hard. Tommie didn't want to sit still and I didn't have tons of energy to follow him everywhere. He slept on a mattress next to our bed and I got up with him and dallin constantly. He would get tired easily, and seemed to get headaches when he played too hard. He had doctor's appointments and the bills started coming in for thousands and thousands. 

Looking back now, I can laugh at the CPS interviews (all charges were dropped) and I am amazed at how the whole thing turned out. I have been fighting with insurance companies to get coverage and bills are somehow getting paid. SO many people stepped in and helped. Little gifts would come to Tommie of things to entertain him for a day, even an hour! Meals were brought in, cards came in the mail. I felt so blessed to have so many great friends and neighbors. My testimony was strengthened that Heavenly father knows ME and knows my own struggles. As Tommie started feeling better, he started getting more active so we moved a lot of the furniture, kitchen chairs, and put several things away so he wouldn't climb. I still wish I could have gotten him to watch a TV show or something- but nope, he still remains my active, wiggly little boy! :)