Blog #2: The Accident

The Accident

After my first blog, I am sure that I left so many with the question, how did the accident happen? How did my sweet boy get run over by a riding lawn mower?

Let me first begin by saying accidents happen. FREAK accidents happen, and they can happen to any of us. We all hear of these crazy accidents, yet we sometimes seem to go about with the idea that it could never happen to us.

As we lived in the ICU for three weeks, we began to meet other parents and bond together in discussion of our innocent children and the story of why they were there. There were three other children in the ICU that were all there for mower accidents. Two of the children there had each lost a leg, one had lost both legs, all had almost lost their lives. All of the children were injured by a family member on the mower. That year, after Dylan was home and I had began to somewhat cope, I posted his story, among thousands of others on a website called www.knowbeforeyoumow.com. This site is filled with info, warnings, and stories of the thousands of accidents involving mowers. I have not gone to that site since I published his story, and I dont know if it even exists. I can hardly bare to read the stories.

July 3rd, was a beautiful day. The sun was shining, it was warm but not scorching hot, and we were at my parent's house getting ready for a fourth of July party. I was in the driveway with my brother and Dylan. My dad had just jumped on the mower to get that started.

So many times Dylan had ridden with his Pops on that mower. Such a fun thing to do!!! I was sweeping; Dylan was right next to me, and then he wasnt. I looked up to see my excited little boy running to ride on the mower as he had done so many times before.

I took off sprinting after him. I was yelling but the mower was so loud. My dad could not hear me. Dylan kept running towards him as my dad was backing around a pole, his back to us and completly unaware that he had an excited little boy coming towards him. They collided. Dylan was under the mower before I could get to him.

I knew it would be bad. I didnt go to him. My dad jumped off the mower and grabbed him as I yelled to him that I would call 911.

Now let me pause for a minute. 911 is never a number that I wish for anyone to have to call. I was hysterical. The lady on the phone, God bless her whoever she was, told me she could not understand me, and to help him I needed to take a breath and calm down- and I did. I began to explain I needed an ambulance and what had happened.

At this point my dad had come inside and was yelling that he needed my help. My brother had come inside as well and I then handed the phone to him to talk to the operator.

Another side note...my dad, my hero, he saved my son's life. I have no doubt in that. He had made a tourniquet for my son's leg. He was losing a lot of blood. We wrapped his leg in a beach towel.

The ambulance was on the way. We went to the driveway to wait for them. My uncle lived next door and he was there too now. Then my mom pulled in the driveway from work. It was chaos. We were all hysterical and my Dylan was scared. The ambulance arrived, looked at his leg, and said they needed to call life flight. I rode with him in the ambulance to the main road where the helicopter would meet the ambulance, and my parents followed in the car.

My mom; God bless her. She was solid as a rock at this point. My dad and I were falling apart, and my mom, she was a rock while we needed her to be. Thats what moms do. We are rocks when we need to be, and we fall apart later. Moms are made like that.

So, Dylan was flown th Memorial Hermann Hospital in the medical center as we made the drive; the longest drive ever. Dylan was in ICU for three weeks. He had several surgeries while there. He recieved many blood transfusions. It was...

I dont have words for what it was.

To this day, Dylan has had almost 40 surgeries to count. He continues to need surgery as he grows. He has a 2 inch difference in his leg lengths. He wears a special shoe.

Now I dont tell you these things to complain or feel sorry for him. I just want to say it to explain what an amazing kid he is. NEVER has he let anything stop him. Never does he complain or get upset or become angry over this. In fact, he knows that he is a total badass, and he will tell you straight up! It is part of who he is and he wears it proudly.

Throw in there that he deals with insulin and blood sugar checks multiple times a day like a pro, and guys, I am a proud mamma! My Dylan is amazing, and I could not be more proud of him. He is super special to me. I am a true believer in that things do happen for a reason. This has made my son an amazing young man, and I would never change anything about his story.

This was a "tears running down my face" story for me, but in the end I am smiling, because my heart swells with love for my Dylan. I was blessed to have him, and he has taught me more about life than I could ever teach him.

So I say again, no one tells you that when your kid's hurt, you hurt a thousand times more...

And it did hurt and it stills does, but the overwhelming pride and happiness I have for my son; for seeing the person he has become, that totally makes it worth it!

Kiss your babies!