Holiday Safety
by Jasmine Wood
Season’s Greetings Mamas!
The holidays are upon us, and since I am feeling in the spirit, I wanted to share a little story about last year’s family Christmas!
"Christmas in red and green, Christmas in black and blue!"
Last year on Christmas Eve, as my husband and I were scurrying around the house finishing up gifts, recipes and packing an away bag for our daughter to bring to our annual family Christmas Eve party, the commotion was suddenly halted by a sharp cry coming from our bedroom.
At this point Rita, a very able-bodied walker, whom I had watched just moments ago wander through the doorway into our room, now stumbled back out, crying and holding her hand to her eye.
My heart sunk!
As we rushed to her side to uncover the source of her cries, we realized that she had a small gash just millimeters from her left eye which was bleeding.
We counted our blessings!
Had this injury occured just slighlty to the right, some serious damage to her beautiful little eye could have resulted. As we calmed her down and wiped the wound clean, normalcy began to return to our little Christmas world.
Geez! We just very narrowly missed a trip to the ER on Christmas Eve!
Not seeing the accident take place, we could only assume she had hit her head on a corner of one of the dressers in our bedroom. (Once Rita learned to talk, much to our amusement, she would tell us that her kitty brother committed the act, although it looked like no cat scratch we had ever seen before!)
By the time we arrived at my mother’s house for the party, the gash was surrounded by full on black and blue, yet Rita had no residual side effects and the rest of the night went off without a hitch! However, a small scars remains and the the event is still etched into my memory.
In honor of our little Christmas accident I wanted to take a moment to point out some of the dangers the holiday season can pose to our beloved little ones.
--To begin, any time that adults are busy with festivities, children are less supervised and therefore there is an increased potential for accidents to happen, so be vigilant! It seems obvious but can easily be overlooked in the holiday hullabaloo.
It often helps to assign one adult or an older responsible child the task of supervising the smaller children while distracting holiday preparations are taking place.
-- "Christmas lights, Crock Pots, and oh so many extension cords, fa la la la la la la la!" During the holidays many of our homes are filled with electrical cords that are not typically around during the rest of the year. Do your best to keep all extension cords out of reach of little ones.
-- Watch out for Christmas lights as well, they should be kept out of reach of small children because they often contain lead. Therefore, it is important for anyone handling Christmas lights to wash their hands thoroughly after working with them, better yet, throw on some gardening gloves while you complete the task!
-- Beware of small choking hazards! Many common gifts for older and younger children alike contain small parts in the packaging that pose a serious choking threat.
-- Holiday parties are often filled with delicious treats, such as small candies, nuts and dried fruits. Be sure that all such treats are kept well out of arms reach of small children. And remember that alcohol impairs not just driving, but parenting as well.
-- You may visit places that are not baby-proofed as well you may like. Open stairs, small objects, pets and other curiosities combined with inattention can lead to heartache, not just for the small child, but for the un-thinking adult who forgot how much they valued Gramma's Hummel figurine.
From my family to yours, Happy Holidays! May you have a safe and stress-free holiday season, filled with the warm love that only family can provide!
Jasmine