Breakin' Up Is Hard To Do

It all started out as a beautiful day, a Saturday, September 22, 2007 to be exact.

Kids were running about enjoying themselves, we were having some of the brethren over for a fellowship for visiting preacher, Mike Lehman, so the BBQ was fired up and we were grillin' up a grand time.

Around 5:30pm the brethren left and went home so we decided to have a bit of family time while we still had some daylight. We had just bought bikes for the kids and ourselves so we decided to take a family bike ride. We let the older three kids ride their own bikes and the youngest two were riding with LeeAnn and I. Little did I know that would be a bad choice and not the safest thing in the world to do... We rode together up to the kids' school to play and ride some more. We were doing laps around the buildings and chasing each-other around for a bit when family night became hospital night.

Daddy decided that he wanted to let Jaden sit on the seat of his bike with his hands on the handle-bars. Jaden was a little too short and slipped off, Daddy quickly grabbed Jaden before he fell all the way off but in the process Jaden's foot swung forward and became lodged in-between Daddy's front wheel forks and the tire spokes.

At first, I thought it was no big deal, but upon closer look his foot was tightly lodged that there was nothing I could do to get it out but panic. LeeAnn told me to call 9-1-1, I thought I could run home and get the wirecutters quicker than the firemen could arrive.

The kids were jumping around, crying, screaming, being hysterical as was LeeAnn, I thought if we didn't get his leg out quick enough he could lose his foot, it was turning white because circulation was being cut off by the spokes being so tight up against his skin. I called 9-1-1 and frantically told them the ordeal and to bring wirecutters with them. Within minutes the Live Oak Police, Fire and EMS arrived and one of the firemen cut the bike spokes with pliers while the police officer held Jaden still.

Free at last everything looked ok, but they still took Jaden and LeeAnn to the hospital via ambulance to do x-ray's. I walked home with the kids and took them to one of the brethren's homes so I could run up to the hospital, shortly after I arrived we found out that he had fractured his leg and the doctor said he would need a full-leg cast for 4-6 weeks.

They fixed him up with a temporary splint and the following Tuesday, LeeAnn took him to get casted and better news came forth. The doctor said that he could walk on his cast with a boot and it would only take 2 weeks to heal.

Jaden hated it at first, but has grown to be ok with it, just minutes ago he walked for the first time on his leg with the cast.

He's a tough little monkey and we hope all turns out ok. Below are a few pictures from the ordeal.

The bike responsible for all this... Notice the cut spokes?


The following day before worship. He thinks this is going to be a breeze! ;)


He soon finds out it's not! :(


The shirt says it all... "I do all my own stunts!"