THOMnottom

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.

Looking back over the last year or so, it’s rather amazing to see the changes in Kayleigh’s behavior around people. Especially me.

When Kayleigh was a newborn she was very easy going around me. In fact, being held in my arms and hearing my voice often got her to sleep faster than anything else. But as any parent can tell you, newborns, babies and toddlers are very different creatures. After a suitable number of months passed by with her mother and I filling ye olde traditional family roles, her attachment issues became rather singular. Gone were the simple days of letting her pass out in one arm with a beer or Wii controller being put to use by the free one so that I could give Mommy a break. Instead it was “huggy Mommy” this and “huggy Mommy” that.

To make matters worse, my work schedule eventually ran afoul of her sleep schedule. Kayleigh fell into the habit of an early bedtime, and that meant that getting home past 6 PM ran the risk of the “nighttime routine” already being in progress. At the very least we began the procedure shortly thereafter. And thus she made the connection between my getting home from work and the dreaded state of sleep coming soon. Much to my dismay I began to be greeted with tears and wailing and moaning and gnashing of the teeth.

But like I’ve said, life moves pretty fast, if you don’t stop… no, wait… Ferris Bueller said that. I said something about newborns and babies and toddlers and how different they are and how much things change. So more change happened. Kayleigh bedtime moved later and later until we weren’t even heading up stairs until after 7:30 most nights. This gave me the chance to actually play with my little girl after tossing off the shackles from the daily grind. Now my arrival became a time for rejoicing, not lamenting.

She may not willingly admit it to anyone at this time, but Kayleigh seems to really like her old man now. Daddy coming home gives her even more options for amusement with Thomas trains and juggling balls and oven mitts. So as it gets close to the right time, she starts asking (or telling) Mommy to “see Daddy in the window.” And that is The Woman’s cue to pick her up and let her walk in our bay window. From that perch the wee lil’ one gets to jump up and down excitedly and ask for high fives through the window as I come up the walkway.

Kayleigh isn’t going to be mistaken for a Daddy’s girl anytime soon. Her preference is still obvious to anyone who spends more than 5 minutes around us. But she has at least started to express a preference that I remain a part of her life and spend a little time with her under certain terms – and that’s a big deal after the past few months. Just the other day she asked The Woman if she could “See Daddy at work”. That phone call was a major high for me. Even if all of my co-workers weren’t completely enamored with her I’d still say yes. Fortunately they all are, which makes her visits to the office a nice break for everybody – right up to the diaper change.