I Think My Arm Is Broken

On the 4th of July we were at a BBQ with friends, when Alex walked up to me, very calmly, but a little teary, and said, "I think my arm is broken".  Based solely on his demeanor, I wouldn't have believed him, BUT his arm looked like this.

Yep, it was broken.  The very FIRST broken bone anyone in our family has had, including Joe and I.  A friend quickly took us to the ER (his son had been to the ER just earlier that week, so he knew all the ins and outs - yay for friends who know what they're doing).  Even before we got X-rays the doctor was talking about surgery, and sure enough, later that night Alex had surgery to put a pin in.

Before Surgery

 After Surgery

He stayed for 8 hours observation (which was overnight, given the late hour of the surgery), and Joe stayed with him, because I figured he could understand a little more German than me, which came in handy with nurses who didn't speak any English.  The next day I took him back in to get his cast on.

Yesterday, which was 3 weeks later, we went back in to get a shorter cast put on, which will stay on for 1 more week.

In three weeks from now, Alex will have another surgery to remove the pin.  I didn't even know they did that.

Alex has been a trooper through the whole thing, and all of the German doctors and nurses have been great.

Two things that were very different with our experience here in Germany, as compared to how it would have been in the states: 

First, in American hospitals, pain management is taken very seriously.  For the most part, they really try to stay on top of the pain and make you comfortable.  If you go into an ER and you're in extreme pain, they're going to take care of that fairly quickly.  At least, that has always been our experience in the past.  That's not the way it is in Germany.  Alex broke his arm at 8:30 and had his surgery shortly after 12 midnight.  During that whole time he was never given anything for the pain.  Nothing.  He was crying the entire time.  Broke my heart.  They gave him something after the surgery, and when they sent us home they said we could just use Tylenol if we had that at home already.  I know that ours was not a unique case.  My friend said that when her son had his appendix out, all they wanted to give him was Tylenol too, and I have heard similar things from other friends as well.

Second, German homes and buildings do not have central air conditioning, and they do NOT use fans.  In fact, similar to Koreans (but probably not has bad), they don't think using fans is good for your health.  We were in the middle of a heat wave when this all happened, and it was rather warm in the hospital.  The morning after Alex's surgery, when I came to pick up Joe and Alex, I walked into the room where they had spent the night and I about died - it was SO HOT!  I felt terrible for them, and Joe said it was one of the worst nights he had ever spent.  It seems to me like that kind of heat would be much worse for the health of sick people than a fan, but to each his own I guess.

The same day Alex broke his arm, we had gone to a splash park earlier. 

Here Alex is, pre-broken arm, enjoying a Bratwurst, dripping wet from frolicking in the splash park - not a care in the world.

4 weeks in the summer time without being able to go to a splash park or pool is a LONG 4 weeks.  Poor kid.  We told the kids that they were all going to have to sign contracts that they would not break any bones, or have any other serious injuries that would send them to the hospital - AND that there would be stiff penalties for breaking the terms of said contract.  I don't think they took us seriously....at least, nobody has signed anything yet.

Coincidently, my nephew broke his arm the VERY NEXT DAY after Alex. 

I couldn't believe when I saw my sister's post on fb about it.  That is her second kid to have a broken arm.  She obviously didn't have her kids sign any contracts either ;)

Maddy

I'm late posting this, but we DID celebrate Madelyn's birthday.  Actually, back at the very end of May we had a COMBINED birthday party for Alex and Madelyn.  Remember how we were supposed to have a party for Alex, and it kept getting later and later, and Madelyn kept reminding/bugging me about it?  Well, I finally suggested that we do theirs together, and they actually thought it was a good idea.  Phew!  And then I got even luckier when they decided they wanted a Messy Party.  I thought they might be too old to want to do that, but I guess you're never too old to get messy.  It's my go-to, super easy party - playing with shaving cream, finger painting, whipped cream pie eating contest, decorating their own cupcakes, and a water fight.  I got ONE picture.  Sorry kids.

We later celebrated Madelyn's birthday as a family, like we do with every birthday.  Madelyn is our little spitfire.  Always has been, probably always will be.  The same things that make it hard to parent her are going to be the things that serve her well as an adult.  At least, that's what I keep telling myself.  I don't want to be the one to put out her fire...but it's a challenge ;)  She does light up our lives though, and we are blessed to have her. 

 

 

We'll keep her.

More Castles

You'd think it would be easy to get kids to go see castles and/or castles ruins.  I mean, they're castles.  But apparently they have a limit to how many they want to see.  So sometimes you have to take kids, against their wills, to see castles and/or castles ruins.  The good news is, they usually end up enjoying themselves, despite the initial protests, and everyone comes away happy.  This may or may not have something to do with getting gelato ;)

 

Eppstein Castle - founded in the 10th century. We climbed up the tower, and Madelyn thought she was going to die. Overlooks a cute little town and beautiful valley.

 

 

Eltville Castle - Built in 1330. Right on the Rhein River, and surrounded by beautiful gardens.  There was a wedding party there when we visited, and really, it's a perfect place.  They even had part of the fence along the river designated for locks of love!  The town itself is such a cute little town, and we walked around and got ourselves some gelato.

 

Biebrich Palace and Mosburg. Joe and I had been to the palace before, but the kids hadn't, and we hadn't walked the extensive grounds/park, or seen the Mosburg, which was built in 1805 on the foundation of a medieval moated castle.  There is a great biking/walking path through the whole area.  We only had Madelyn and Alex with us (the older kids were at another activity), and you would have thought we were taking the little kids on the Pioneer Trek instead of a nice leisurely stroll through a park at a palace. Their legs hurt.  They were dying.  They couldn't go another step. (This was mostly Madelyn) Miraculously, when we found a playground at the end of our walk, they made a speedy recovery and were able to play for a while.

 

Last one, Hiedleberg Castle.  Again, Joe and I have been there without the kids, but this time we specifically went to see the annual illumination of the castle and fireworks show.  We went with some friends, and went really early so we could get good seats.  Really early.  Some got there at 4.  We got there at 6.  The show started at 10.  There were a LOT of people.  People lined both sides of the river, and people in boats filled the river. It's kind of funny because the whole thing is in commemoration of the many times that Heidelberg has been invaded, destroyed, set on fire, etc.  But the fireworks also date back to a tradition started in 1613 when the Elector-Palatine brought his new bride to Heidelberg, and arranged to have fireworks to greet her.  During the first part of the celebration the castle is lit up in red, and it looks like it's on fire.  Then there are fireworks, first coming off the top of the castle itself, and then from the old bridge of the Neckar River.  It was really fun to see, even if we did have to wait forever and brave the crowds ;) I didn't get great pictures, but here's what I got.

 

 

There will be more castles in our future, and I hope that my kids know that we're not trying to kill them.  I hope that they will look back over these times and have fond memories and realize how lucky they were.