beware of toddler

I think the manufacturers of "Beware of Dog" signs should also make one for toddlers. Parents could then post the signs on their front doors so that people are forewarned about what they will be subjected to should they enter. I don't mean that (most) toddlers cause bodily harm, except for the occasional bite or flying object that gets inadvertantly tossed into your skull. I mean that when there is a toddler in the house, all of your possessions which are feasibly within reach of a toddler are at risk of being damaged, misplaced, or worse--destroyed.

When Anderson was a toddler, he was a cautious boy. As a result, he wasn't one to touch something that he wasn't given permission to touch. Yes, that made parenting so much easier. However, I do remember one incident when Paul was taking a shower, so he took off his watch and unknowingly put it within Anderson's grasp. Within a matter of seconds, Anderson grabbed the watch, and before Paul could rescue it, it was flushed down the toilet, never to be retrieved.

Bennett, unlike Anderson, is a little more bold in his approach to new things. Today, for example, he found Anderson's pencils which he used for homework last night, and he immediately grabbed Anderson's Peyton Manning football card (which Anderson treasures), and started to scribble on it, even though a pad of paper was right next to it. This all happened within a matter of seconds. Fortunately, I was able to snatch the card before marks were apparent. Then, as I was putting on make-up in my bathroom, he took my running shoes and threw them in my bathtub and quickly turned on the water. He ran out of the room after doing this, so I'm pretty sure he realized he has just done a no-no. In our bedroom, he then managed to try to stick something into the electrical socket that did not belong there. He told me it was "hot", so he may have felt a little electric current run through his tiny body. I don't know. It really didn't phase him if it did.

Fortunately, we have had more near-misses than actual disasters. By fourteen months, Bennett already knew how to unscrew any cap from a bottle. Even the so-called "childproof" ones. I can't tell you how many bottles of nailpolish, medicine or cleaning fluid was almost poured out of the bottle. I did call poison control once because he tried to drink a bottle of dishwashing liquid. I think he only tasted it, and we never saw any ill-effects, thank God. A few weeks ago he tried tasting soap or shampoo while Paul was watching him. My friend, Lori, has a son three months older than Bennett who actually ate the rocks from her fireplace not too long ago. This also resulted in a phone call to poison control. Needless to say I don't think she lit a match near him for a couple of days, but he was fine.

My baby sister, Laura, wins the prize for being the most destructive toddler I've ever known. At the age of three, she had already wrecked my mother's car (yes. really.), swallowed a bottle of baby aspirin (that's what happens when medicine tastes like candy), poked holes with a ballpoint pen in the back of my mother's recliner, broke bricks on the driveway on which I stepped barefooted and had to have lots of stitches, and jumped off a bed upstairs which caused a light downstairs to fall on my mother's head and break into a hundred pieces. In Laura's case, we needed more than a "Beware of Toddler" sign on the front door. She needed to wear it on her chest! But, now that I think about it, she wouldn't have worn it because she always found a way to be naked (or at least down to her underwear) by noon, even though my mother made sure she was fully dressed each morning.

All joking aside, while toddlers can occasionally present a hazard to themselves and to others, the truth is--they are so much fun! I love that Bennett laughs hysterically at the smallest of things--like a silly face, a "zerbert" on his tummy, when we play peek-a-boo, when his brother or cousins act silly, or as he is being chased around a room. I love that he crawls up in my lap and snuggles me when he is ready to take a nap. I love that he dances whenever he hears music. I love that he gets so excited about simple things--like going outside, seeing a ball, reading a book, when his dad or brother walks in the door after being gone most of the day, or when I let him drink tea out of my cup. (Don't worry--it's decaf.) I love that he smiles at strangers, just to get their attention.

Maybe parenting can be tiring, particuarly at this age, with all of the repetitive "no's", picking up after them, and chasing them down. But the rewards outweigh the costs for me...

...at least that is what I am thinking while he naps soundly in his bed.