Blood and Gore — but not Halloween

Jesh is the tragic star of our story this week. Sunday through Tuesday, he was fighting some virus so he slept a ton and ate nearly nothing. He was finally feeling well enough Tuesday night for a light dinner.

Wednesday he was headed back to school, but he caught a seam in the sidewalk and crashed his scooter. He came down hard on his chin. (I think he hurt himself so badly because he was a little weak and his reflexes were slow from being ill.) These pictures are as we waited to see a doctor.

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He was a trooper through the lidocaine shot and eight stitches, and credit goes to the clinic for having a TV in the exam room. They turned on PBS kids (even though it meant every TV in the clinic was showing Daniel Tiger) and he was mesmerized.

And here he is in the lobby, still mesmerized. Strategically screen depriving your children has huge benefits.

And here are the stitches.

He was miserable — weak, hungry and hurt. He wouldn't eat anything he couldn't slurp through a straw because movement of his head or mouth made his stitches hurt, and he wouldn't take pain medicine because he hates the taste. (I wish I had insisted sooner. When we finally got some ibuprofen in him on Friday, it made a world of difference!)

Thursday night he received a blessing, for which I am so grateful. Friday morning he was swollen and still in intense pain. I was convinced something was wrong with his jaw so I took him back to the clinic. Luckily my mother's intuition led me to the right action even if I had come to the wrong conclusion. His jaw was fine, but his chin was infected.

This isn't a great photo, but you can see the redness all around the wound.

And you may be able to see here how the lower part of his face looks too long because of swelling.

Antibiotics and pain medication made a world of difference. By Thursday afternoon, he was playing for the first time since Sunday morning. He's still not 100 percent himself, though we should be able to get the stitches out Monday, but he is eating and playing (which are some of the best indicators of how sick a kid really is).

To end on a happier note, here you can see some of Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker's amazing moves.