A Day in the Life. . .

It's 9 o'clock on Wednesday night and we're expecting Parker to call in saying he's on his way home. Instead, his friend's mom calls to tell us that he's okay, but she just wants to prepare us for what we'll see when he walks in the door. By the way, she's bringing him because she doesn't think it's safe for him to drive.

Now, any parents reading this can just imagine the feeling that surges through your body when you hear those words. Anyone who knows Parker knows that we know that feeling all too well. He walks in holding a bloody towel over his eye telling us he's fine and pleading, "Please don't take me to the Emergency Room!" That's what he says now because he thinks scars are cool. But we know that five years from now he would ask us why we let HIM make that choice!

So, Parker and Darrell left for the hospital at 9:30 pm and this is what he looked like six hours and six stitches later when they returned home at 3:30 am.*


And can I say that my kids need to thank God every day for a Daddy who doesn't pass out or throw up at the slightest mention of blood, needles, broken bones, etc. If not for Darrell, Parker would've been in that little room with the nice doctor ALL BY HIMSELF!

While there is no ideal place to take a hit from a 12-foot long PVC pipe, and anywhere on the face is even less ideal than, say, your belly, we are VERY thankful that it wasn't just one inch to the left. The doctor told him he probably would have lost vision in that eye.

Just in case you're wondering how in the world a 12' PVC pipe comes in contact with someone's face, Parker and a friend were playing "catch" with the pipe. We sure love his fun, adventuresome personality and this is just what happens sometimes, I guess.

*These pictures were actually taken today at Rusty's house, but this is what his eye looked like when he got home.