Practical Mom's Dictionary, Installment #5

Like lightning, Blink of an Eye: How fast a two-year-old is when your back is turned for one minute.

Gray hair: What I didn’t have until Boo came along. This third child is our most adventurous yet. I hope we all survive her toddlerhood.

The beach: Where we went today. We had a lovely time with some friends from church, by the way. It made all the hassle of getting there worth it. Despite the last post, there are definite things to like about living here, and the beach within reasonable driving distance and the friends I’ve met at our church are definite benefits for sure. Boo decided the seagulls were there to be chased by her. Off she went down the beach with me running after. Running and running, calling, “I see quack! I see quack!” Finally I was able to convince her to play in the sand for a while with her friends. J and M were wonderful playing with her in the shallow waves. Then, when they wanted to go out a little further to play with their body boards, Boo really wanted to go, too. As I waded with her, she kept trying to go deeper, no fear at all. She wanted to go deeper, but she pitched a fit if I held her, even though the water was up to her chest. I kept my hands on her arms anyway and lifted her up every time a wave came until we both got tired of that game and went back to the ankle deep water. She is so different from her brothers at this age. Both of them had a healthy fear of the waves. Not Boo. I have to watch this child like a hawk! The only way I will take her with me to the beach is if I do have Drew or some friends with me to help me keep eyes on her at every moment, because if I look away for a second, she beelines for the “pool,” as she calls the ocean. Whew. I’m tired this afternoon.

Baby-proofed: What I thought my house was well enough. I was wrong.

Frantic call to the pediatrician and poison control: The result of being wrong. I thought that I could take a quick shower to wash the beach off my body. The boys were still there with a friend who said they could stay later with her and her kids, but I brought Boo on home with me. She was puttering around in the bathroom, and I was pretty sure there was nothing she could get into that would hurt her, so I took a quick shower, thinking I could hear her and see her, and I wasn’t going to be long at all. When I got out, she had red wet stuff all over her face and I saw that while I was in the shower she got into some sore throat spray that had been under the sink. I don’t know why it was under the sink. Obviously it is not there any longer. Did you know that that an overdose of over-the-counter sore throat spray has some very scary potential side effects? I didn’t either until I called poison control right after this incident. But she seems to be doing just fine after a hasty bath and vigorous scrubbing to make sure I got it all off of her.

Did I mention how gray my hair is going to be before too long?

I am thanking the Lord for His great mercy that she is showing no symptoms and seems like her own little self this afternoon, and it’s been longer than the hour the poison control told me to wait for possible symptoms.