Mrs. Beaver:

Yesterday Tatiana and Natasha asked if they could move their bedroom furniture. They wanted to surprise their roommate, Princess Bink, with a new arrangement. Little did I know when I said yes that the project would result in a visit to the local urgent care.

During the afternoon Daria asked Tatiana and Natasha if she could help. They were delighted to have her assistance. In her short five months as a family member, Daria has become deeply loved; she's fun, funny, kind and a hard worker--a perfect partner in a project.

All was going well until the two younger girls were out of the room and Daria tried to move a bookshelf by herself. As she eased it into a new position, it began to sway. She thought she had the piece steadied and removed her left hand which was holding it. Before she could react, the bookshelf swayed again, toppled and landed on her right hand which was resting on the desk.

Mr. Beaver arrived home just as the girls were showing me her surprisingly swollen hand. As parents of twelve, we've seen enough broken bones to be suspicious so off we went to an urgent care facility. We took Natasha with us because I'd planned to take her to our doctor the this morning. She'd stubbed a toe on Sunday and it too was sweling suspicously.

As soon as we arrived, the physician's assistant on call sent Daria for x-rays. She also told us that Natasha toe was not broken but infected. It would require an antibiotic. (Guess these parents of twelve don't know all there is to know about diagnosing broken bones!) 



Natalya and Dad waiting for Daria while her hand is being x-rayed

Daria exiting radiology

When the P.A. looked at Daria's x-ray, she found a fracture right away and called us to come look.

Next, the P.A. and two nurses set to work building a custom "half-cast" splint to get her through the night. 

Today Daria saw an orthopeadic surgeon who gave us the good news that the type of break Daria has experienced heals quickly. She'll need to wear a removable splint for about a week. After that she just has tape two of her fingers together for a few weeks. We were all happy and relieved for our lovely furniture mover!