I’ve told this story too many times in the last couple of days, but since it involves my little Kayleigh, a large mirror, and a huge welt on her head I guess it bears repeating. Actually, I can’t even tell the whole story because I wasn’t there for the incident and The Woman didn’t really see what happened for sure either. It’s a bit of a mystery – one that isn’t all that mysterious.
The long and short of it is that our bedroom is not truly child or baby-proofed. In some cases it appears as though we are actively discouraging our toddler from harboring any feelings of safety in certain areas of our house. Hey, if we can’t be very comfortable in our own room, why should she? Anyway, there’s this dresser with a big mirror on it. They are not attached. That is, apparently, a safety hazard. Who knew?
So Monday afternoon I got a frantic message from The Woman. She had moved the dresser a couple inches to reach something. The mirror fell. Kayleigh was under it. Panic ensues. By the time I got home, Kayleigh was somewhat comforted but rather sullen while curled up next to Mama. Oh, and there was a huge welt with a cut on her forehead. Head injuries are fun for the whole family! Fortunately she didn’t black out, throw up, or become overly irritable – which meant that she most likely didn’t get a concussion or attend a kegger. Sighs of relief ensue.
While the doctor said there was no need to take her anywhere since all signs pointed to A-OK, we still needed to treat the wound. All attempts to put ice on the new appendage growing out of her skull were rebuffed. That idea was abandoned as it only seemed to fire up the irritability factor. But there was concern for the cut (although it wasn’t bleeding) and we had to push forward with bandages.
She fought the good fight against any kind of healing potions being applied to her head, but I eventually whipped out my notes from Parenting 101 and realized that this was the perfect time to apply some TV knowledge. That’s right, I played the ol’ “Daddy needs a bandaid, too” card and got her to accept one after both of us put them on our own foreheads. I feel like I earned some serious daddy cred by using that method successfully.
Even with her new lumpy head she’s adorable. And that’s how she was able to milk this for all she wanted. Which is why we headed over to Whole Foods for a bunch of blueberries and to see her favorite cashier (seriously). It’s also why we head out to Panera in the morning for breakfast – where she gets to enjoy all of the butter she can cram into her mouth in the 10 seconds we give up trying to stop her.
Are you going to say no to that face?
After 3 days I feel pretty confident in saying that we dodged a bullet. Kayleigh seems happy and healthy – black and blue mark and all.