the week’s middle

Was yesterday only Wednesday?

First regular week of school at house.

Monday night, while chatting outside together, we all notice that Mosely had just conquered riding her bike sans training wheels.

She was rocket fast and slightly reckless with some hardcore swerving happening.

Then Tuesday.

All morning Mosely asks, “Can we go outside? Can we ride bikes?”

Not yet, I keep answering.

Spelling.  History.  Copywork.  Bible.  Reading.

Done.  Done.  Done.

“Alright guys.  You can play outside while I fix lunch.”

Before I blink, the table is empty.

Three minutes maybe.

Otto needs a diaper change.  I enter the tent he and Piper have constructed in the living room.  I change the diaper in the tent.  (You’ve never done that?)

And a little Mosely comes careening out of the bathroom.

“Don’t look at me!  Don’t look at me!  I look ridiculous!  Don’t look at me!”

Of course I looked at her.

There was a hole in her forehead and blood was dripping down between her eyes.

I did what I always do when I see one of our children bleeding.

I called Kevin.

Mosely saw the phone and shouted, “Don’t call 911 “.

Which I wasn’t.

Kevin arrived.  We assessed the damage.  (And by “we” I mean he checked everything out and I held Mosely’s hand while averting my eyes from her wounds.)

Eventually we called the doctor.

He suggested coming to his office instead of waiting in an ER all afternoon.

In the end she didn’t get stitches.  There was a gash deep enough for certain but no skin to pull a stitch through.

Below her elbow on her inner arm is road rash as big as her fist.  Her nose is bruised and swollen and scraped from the bottom of her eye to her lip.

And she doesn’t care for the pain.

But mostly, she is concerned about her appearance.

Uh-oh.  What does that mean for our future?

She spent ten minutes trying to hide her face while I tried to take a photo by which to remember this event.

I think she’ll recover just fine – in all ways.

Last night she wasn’t willing to ride her bike – but she did hop on the scooter without any fear.