The Scariest Moment in My Life

When we got married we made a firm decision to never have the kids in bed with us. We had a full sized bed which was plenty of room especially for newlyweds. After a couple of years and a couple of babies, we decided to move up and buy a queen sized bed. We had so much room we didn’t know what to do with ourselves. We still didn’t allow any of our children to sleep with us. We had our bed and they had theirs. Then one day that all changed.


It was like any other hot summer day. Late June 2009. We had decided to visit the Indy Zoo. About an hour into the trip we made our way to the farm animals. We were off to visit our favorite cow. Her name is Bonnie. She is our favorite because she doesn’t look like any of Grandpa‘s cows. She looks like a yak or cow with a hairy costume on. Caleb stood on fence to scratch her back. Bonnie turned her head to see what was going on as Caleb reached his hand in to pet her. That is when I heard it. A sound I will never forget. Crack! Bonnie’s horn had hit Caleb’s temple--hard.

The side of my first born’s head instantly turned the color of an eggplant and the size of an apple. He was in such shock that he couldn’t speak or even cry. He just stood there and looked at me. His eyes said it all. “Mommy, what is wrong with me? I am scared and don’t know what to do.“ Matt quickly, yet carefully set him in the stroller and took off for the first aid location. However, I had a feeling this incident was going to need more than just your typical ice pack and bandage.

Caleb indeed had a concussion. Luckily, the swelling was on the outside of his skull, not the inside of the bone. Hence the purple and blue bump now protruding from his cranium. Because of the head trauma we were not allowed to let him sleep for more than two hours at a time. So, that night we put him in our bed and stayed awake with him. As he laid there in my arms, we prayed over him. We prayed like we have never prayed before. Then it dawned on me. This could be the last time I ever get to hold my baby.

That is when we changed our minds on where the kids sleep. Sure it might be inconvenient and crowded at times. We might wake up with someone’s feet in our faces. We get pushed and prodded throughout the night. We even had to move up again and get a king-size bed but it is all worth it. I wouldn’t change it for anything.

I realized that there are only a few years of their lives when they are actually going to want to sleep in my bed. Soon they will be teenagers and want nothing to do with me. Then young adults off to college in a different town. Then married and sharing a bed with someone else. Then they can decide if they will share their bed with their own children. But for now, we wake up almost every morning with someone sleeping between us and thank God again for not taking our son from us.