Girl dances in 'The Nutcracker' after her feet were reattached following accident
Aubrey Scaletta danced alongside her twin sister after undergoing six surgeries.
A 7-year-old girl who had her feet reattached following a serious accident was recently able to dance alongside her twin sister in "The Nutcracker."
Aubrey Scaletta overcame a 35-day hospital stay, six surgeries and months of physical therapy to dance as one of Mother Ginger's Bon Bon children in a performance of the classic Christmas ballet this month in Roanoke, Virginia.
Aubrey, a second grader, practiced for the ballet in a wheelchair, but on the night of the performance, she was able to use a walker to float across the stage with her fellow ballerinas, according to her mom, Lauren Scaletta.
"This is her and her sister's third year [dancing in 'The Nutcracker'], so I think going into it ... she had no question in her mind that it was happening," Lauren Scaletta told "Good Morning America." "She was in a wheelchair but she really wanted to do the parts with her feet, so being able to do it with a walker, she was just ecstatic."
Aubrey's father, Daniel Scaletta, said he was in awe as he watched Aubrey perform with her sister, Grayson.
"I think it was a big confidence boost to her," he said. "She loves it, and we're just very thankful she could get back to the point to be up there and to be dancing and doing what she loves."
It was just eight months ago, in May, that Daniel was driving Aubrey home from gymnastics when a ratchet strap that Aubrey was playing with flew out the window.
One end of the ratchet strap – which is generally used to tie down cargo – wrapped around the truck's axle while the other end was wrapped around Aubrey's feet, nearly pulling her from the truck and severing Aubrey's feet in the process, according to Daniel Scaletta, who also shares a 5-year-old son with his wife.
"There was a loud bang and the whole truck shuddered and Aubrey yelled, 'I'm bleeding,'" he recalled. "I turned around and looked and saw her injuries."
Daniel Scaletta knew he was only three miles from a local hospital, so he drove directly there, where doctors told him they would need to transport Aubrey by helicopter to a larger hospital.
That larger hospital was Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital, home to a pediatric level one trauma center, where Aubrey underwent an initial surgery to reattach her feet. The hospital said while a surgery that complex would typically require multiple days of preparation, the medical team had to coordinate it all in 15 minutes.
"We had to operate quickly to re-establish blood flow and reattach her feet to her legs," Dr. Peter Apel, the orthopedic surgeon who led the surgery, said in a statement. "If we would have waited even a few hours, the feet would have died and most certainly would have been amputated."
Even though the first surgery to reattach her feet was successful, Lauren Scaletta said they weren't sure until as recently as October whether that success would last.
"After the first surgery, there was a lot of question about her right leg being able to make it because it sustained a lot of damage to the veins," Lauren Scaletta said. "And then as we progressed, it was like, 'Okay, well, we made it after this hurdle. We made it through this hurdle. We're looking better.'"
She continued, "I wouldn't say we were ever really sure that we were going to be out of the woods or be able to keep either or both legs up until she had her skin grafts and they started healing."
After six surgeries, including multiple skin grafts, Aubrey began physical therapy in October, the first time she was able to put weight on her feet since the accident in May.
"All this summer was a very big question mark because it was very slow going, very slow healing," Dan Scaletta said. "If you'd asked me back in September if we would be where we're at today, I would have never ever guessed it. The last few months have just been amazing in her healing process."
Aubrey used a wheelchair to get around during her months-long recovery, including at school, to which she returned in the fall. Aubrey initially had a cast on each leg and then had to adjust to other changes, like getting the casts removed for the first time since May, and then switching from a wheelchair to a walker to get around at school and at home.
"Aubrey was a little bit anxious to go back to school with people seeing her legs, and we assured her that, 'There's nothing to be afraid of. Your scars are just part of you,'" Lauren Scaletta said. "Aubrey has handled everything with such grace, I think, that the kids at school have…accepted her and it's been wonderful to see."
Aubrey also had the support of her sister, Grayson, who stopped dancing during the months Aubrey wasn't physically. When Aubrey returned to dance, Grayson, whom her parents describe as Aubrey's "protector," began dancing again, too, and also performed in "The Nutcracker."
"Being twins, the first time they ever spent apart was with Aubrey in the hospital, so that was a big adjustment," Daniel Scaletta. "To see them dance together again, was just unbelievable."
The Scalettas said doctors have told them that Aubrey will need additional surgeries in the future, once she's done growing. But for now, the Scalettas said they're thankful for the doctors and medical staff and community members who have helped them, and that they haven't lost sight of the miracle it is that they can spend Christmas at home together as a family of five.
"It's hard to say you can take a breath and breathe and relax a little bit because we're constantly worried, but it's amazing we're to the point that we can focus on Christmas and enjoy it and have this time together," said Daniel Scaletta. "Everything had to go right for us to be where we're at now."
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