An Austin toddler is nearly killed in a crash his parents believe was caused by another driver distracted with a cell phone text message.

Mason and Stacy Jones never thought moments with their son Griffin, 3, would ever be in jeopardy. However, less than a week ago, Griffin was in the ICU at Dell Children's Hospital with his eyes black and swollen shut. The hair on his head nearly all shaved off and a large zig-zag scar across his scalp.

“I distinctly remember the crunch sound,” said Mason.

Griffin's skull was crushed in a car crash on Highway 21 just north of Bastrop last Sunday, October 19.

“Stacy and I were both able to hop right out of the car. I initially thought 'Thank God we're okay' and then we looked back at Griffin and our heart sank,” said Mason.

Another driver slammed into the back of the family's Acura SUV.

“His eyes were swelling by the second and he said 'My head hurts Mommy,'” said Mason.

Griffin was taken by STAR Flight to Dell Children’s Hospital. He immediately went into surgery. His father tears up as he remembers the talk with doctors.

“He said he needed to operate on Griffin urgently and he did. He put all the pieces back together that was Griffin's skull,” said Mason.

The family had stopped on the 65 mph, two lane stretch of Highway 21 to make a left hand turn across traffic. The 18-year-old driver that hit their car, came up from behind and never slowed down.

“I looked in my rear-view mirror and this girl was right on us,” said Mason.

Mason believes the other driver was distracted by a text message.

“She was right on us and not looking. There's no other reason to think that this could have happened. There was no tire blow out, there was no fog,” Mason said.

The family wants a state law banning texting while driving. Until then, they're making a plea to drivers.

“Please God just wait on replying on those texts. Let it ride until you can pull off or stop at a red light or whatever so that you don't hurt somebody like my little boy got hurt,” said Mason.

Despite the large scar still across Griffin's scalp, his family says he's back to normal.

The Texas Department of Public Safety is still compiling its formal report. The findings are expected by mid-week.

DPS says over 3,100 accidents in the state this year have involved cell phones. It does not currently break down the numbers between incidents texting or talking.