His voice choking with tears, Hans called from school Friday afternoon to tell me he didn’t feel very good. Mrs Lambert, his teacher, jumped on the line to tell me that he was quite green and should probably go home. I ran over to the school to collect my now white-faced little boy. He cradled an ice bag on his left arm. Hans regaled me with the story of a recess football game where he had the ball, and ugh, thump crash he burst through the line heading toward the endzone only to be stopped by an opposing player and a crack to the wrist.
“Was he a big kid?” I asked.
“Well, mom. Everyone is bigger than me, but no, he’s not that big.”
Good old dependable Stefan babysat the little ones while Hans and I headed to the doctor’s office. Although he was in pain, Hans charmed the entire office with his jokes and questions: “Do bones float?” “Will these x-rays make me glow in the dark?”
We measured and weighed him and he is now in the 9% percentile– a big jump up from 3%. Hans doesn’t mind being small and often uses it to his advantage. When a boy at school called him a leprechaun he said, “I guess that makes you the Jolly Green Giant!” They’ve been friends ever since.
Hans is simply blessed with a cheerful, funny, loving temperament. Even at nearly 11, Hans is willing to hug and kiss me and sit on my lap(being small helps!). He constantly tells me I’m beautiful and the best mom in the whole world. He does have a fiery, astonishing temper; but is happy-go-lucky most of the time.
It turned out that Hans has the best kind of break you can get. It’s a buckle fracture in his wrist. It’s so common that they have splints made for it right there in the doctor’s office and he doesn’t have to have a cast or even go back for a follow-up appointment. Woo hoo! Ice cream, sympathy, and no washing dishes for a month! He even played in his soccer game yesterday.
Friday night Erik and I went to his missionary reunion(um, it would have been fun if they didn’t make us sing 30, yes THIRTY, old Finnish folksongs). Two hours later we came home to see Hans walking around the house with his arm straight above his head. “Mom, my arm is really hurting.”
“Well, why on earth do you have it up in the air?”
“Oh, dad told me to keep it elevated.”
Poor little guy. I laughed until I cried.
katherine
That was really scary when you were turning green! But i am glad you are alright.