When I left for work the other day, there was about a dozen kids standing on the corner of Dumont and S. Henry, waiting for the school bus. When I get home, I happen to glance over at my neighbors, that one maple in his back yard that always turns early has two branches full of bright red leaves. That time of year again.
It's been a good summer. The house has been a mess for 3 months straight, we've eaten way too much takeout, my garden is pathetic and I still haven't gotten around to fixing the outside outlet or the leaky sink. But I spent a lot of time down at the school yard or at Jaycee Park, standing guard while Alex rides his trike down Dumont, splashing in a kiddie pool, or just rolling in the grass. My first summer with a toddler - I think I did it just about right.
When I saw those red leaves, I stared to get a little down about the end of summer - but then I looked up at the 100 year old maples in my front yard, and thought about all those leaves in one big pile in the front yard, with Alex right in the middle of it.
Now THAT is going to be FUN!
Friday, August 31, 2007
Toddler Proof
The thing about being a parent of a toddler is that you never know when they are suddenly going to realize that they can get past the physical boundaries you set up to keep them away from all the sharp, heavy, poisons or otherwise dangerous things that grownups need to keep around
Sometime this past winter, my wife and I are sitting in the living room drinking our coffee, when my son strolls into our completely baby-proofed kitchen and strolls back into the living room 5 minutes later with a STEAK KNIFE in his left hand. Apparently I left it near the edge of the counter which had been completely out of reach until that morning.
He learned to climb on top of the table this summer, at about the same time he learned to move chairs around to get to the light switches (He now can reach the light switches without the chair.)
This morning he was in the kitchen and I was in the living room and it suddenly got very quiet - which is when you know you're really in trouble. If there's noise, you know what they are up to (rearranging the pots and pans, giving the cat some aggressive chiropractic care, what have you) but when they're quiet - they could be up to anything.
So I head into the kitchen to find Alex kneeling in front of the cupboard under the sink - the one with all the cleaning products. He's holding it open as far as he can with one hand, the other arm is shoulder-deep in the very small opening, and he's very nearly succeeded at pulling out the the "Lysol Kitchen Cleaner WITH BLEACH" out. Alex loves to chew on bottles - so I'm sure if he was able to get that out, the next log ical step would be to unscrew the top and take a big swig, or at the very least spray himself in the face.
Baby-proof may be achievable, but there's no such thing as toddler-proof.
Sometime this past winter, my wife and I are sitting in the living room drinking our coffee, when my son strolls into our completely baby-proofed kitchen and strolls back into the living room 5 minutes later with a STEAK KNIFE in his left hand. Apparently I left it near the edge of the counter which had been completely out of reach until that morning.
He learned to climb on top of the table this summer, at about the same time he learned to move chairs around to get to the light switches (He now can reach the light switches without the chair.)
This morning he was in the kitchen and I was in the living room and it suddenly got very quiet - which is when you know you're really in trouble. If there's noise, you know what they are up to (rearranging the pots and pans, giving the cat some aggressive chiropractic care, what have you) but when they're quiet - they could be up to anything.
So I head into the kitchen to find Alex kneeling in front of the cupboard under the sink - the one with all the cleaning products. He's holding it open as far as he can with one hand, the other arm is shoulder-deep in the very small opening, and he's very nearly succeeded at pulling out the the "Lysol Kitchen Cleaner WITH BLEACH" out. Alex loves to chew on bottles - so I'm sure if he was able to get that out, the next log ical step would be to unscrew the top and take a big swig, or at the very least spray himself in the face.
Baby-proof may be achievable, but there's no such thing as toddler-proof.
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