It was one of those moments I will never forget.
I had to call the Poison Control Hotline for the first time.
I ordered Ruthie Jane's Easter Dress online. I happily received the package in the mail, unpacked it, and looked at all the fun goodies from the Children's Place. I removed all the tags, stuffing, etc. and put it back in the shipping box. I sat the box on the table and later we scurried out of the door to meet some friends for dinner. We had a wonderful evening and after our arrival home I remembered I need to bake a cheesecake for the next nights festivities. I hopped in the kitchen with my little sidekick behind me. She happily helped for a little while and then got bored and headed into the living room. The Preacher Man was nearby so I didn't worry too much. I peeked my head around the corner a few times to make sure everything was going well and continued my cheesecake process. I felt the urge to peek around again and my heart sank.
My lil' angel had found the box, opened it, and played with the trash inside. One of those trash items was a little Silca Gel packet that obvisouly reads "DO NOT EAT" and "KEEP AWAY FROM CHILDREN." She had it torn open and beads were everywhere. And, if I know her very well she most likely put one of those beads in her mouth. I panicked. I immediatley dialed up the Poison Control Hotline.
On the other end of the telephone was a sweet lady who calmed my every fear. I dreaded the call because I thought they would slam with with Worst Mommy of The Year awary and label me as a worthless parent who didn't watch their child. I do however take full responsibilty for not throwing the box away as soon as I unpacked it. Shame one me. However, the sweet lady assured me that "companies often go overboard on their packaging because they never know what some humans might consume." She said that there should be no threat to my lil' Ruthie-girls health and told me to have a good evening. She was so sweet and there was no condeming tone to her voice.
Sweet relief.
Lesson learned.
Never trust a two-year old.
Never.
Ohmigosh! You were very lucky! I have a friend who travelled with her family to Japan. Her little boys (5 and 3) were well behaved so her husband bought them a fizzy drink as a treat from a vending machine. Lemonade? NOT SO MUCH! It was alcohol and the boys were both roaring drunk very quickly before anyone realised what they were drinking. She called the Poison Hotline (from Japan) and they were super nice to her too. Now we just tease her about it! She is of course mortified!
ReplyDeleteYou are really not alone on this! We've actually had to call poison control TWICE. The 1st time Grace was a little over 2 years old. It was bedtime and in the confusion hubby and I both gave her her dose of ibuprophen. The 2nd time was last winter. Isaac was 4 and outside with hubby. He ended up eating snow that hubby had just "salted"...but up here it isn't really salt. The bag said to call poison control if ingested so we did just that. Of course, both times they were very nice and reassuring...and both times there wasn't anything we needed to too...and both times they were fine. It does make you feel pretty awful though having to make the call...but it's also nice to know they are there so you don't have to make an unnecessary trip to the ER. Glad Ruthie is okay...but yes...you can never trust a 2 year old! :)
ReplyDeleteWelcome to the club. My son sprayed Oxiclean in his mouth while I was doing laundry. I of course called poison control and she told me that he might throw up but should be fine. He was fine, but I absolutely felt like the world's worst mom. Lesson learned.
ReplyDeleteHey, they don't have to be little for you to need to make that call. Well, in my case I called my sister who is a nurse. Just a few months ago I very absentmindedly gave Katie about 3 times the dosage of ibuprofen she should take. I was on the phone and wasn't paying any attention. She is 12. She even questioned the amount I was giving her and I just waved her off since I was talking. Now, that will make you feel bad. She was fine.
ReplyDeleteoh wow Amber!! I would have panicked too. Glad RJ is okay. I'm sure I will have one of these moments too!! :)
ReplyDeleteHey Amber,
ReplyDeleteI actually just found your blog today while I was exploring the blog roll on Girlfriends with a purpose. I really enjoyed the posts I read. I'm going to bookmark your blog so I can explore some more!! =) Hope you have a great evening!!
Rachel
So glad RJ's fine! Hope this is it for your poison control adventures!
ReplyDeleteI would just like to say that you are very lucky. My dog ate a tube of neosporin and I called poison control and they were going to charge me $60. to tell me whether or not the neosporin was goign to hurt my dog. So I said, thanks, but no thanks, and called my vet. The dog was fine. I'm glad they didn't try to charge you. Must be the difference in animal poison control and people poison control. Glad she's okay! Scary!
ReplyDelete~Kathryn