Accidents

Oh crikey, Elizabeth 1 - that'll have shaken everyone up! We all know how fast the wee ones can get about, and you only have to turn your head for a second and they're off! Glad to hear there were no serious injuries.
When DD was 10 months old she got around by rolling/crawling about. We were visiting my MiL and baby rolled under the coffee table, pulling down the cloth and a hot cup of tea. MiL grabbed her, raced through to the kitchen and poured a pack of bicarbonate of soda over the scald, making a paste. It blistered, scabbed and no scar remained. We all felt guilty because we'd not taken enough care, but accidents do just happen, however much we try to avoid them. MiL kept saying afterwards, "Thank goodness the tea had milk in it!"

It is very frightening to see little ones have these accidents isn't it? When my two children were tiny I was about to come downstairs with my DS, about 18 months old. I removed the safety gate and just as I went to take his hand he dropped his teddy, which fell onto the first step down. Of course, too young to realise the consequences, he bent to retrieve it and went toppling all the way down. It all happened so quickly - I was right there beside him, but simply couldn't stop it happening. It was absolutely heart-stopping. Thankfully he was only frightened, with no harm done - they do just roll at that age, no thought of sticking out their arms or legs to try to stop themselves.
I do hope your DD isn't thinking badly of her MiL, and losing confidence with leaving her little one with her. These things happen, no matter how careful you think you're being.

My Dgs at about 2 fell off the arm of a chair he should not have been climbing on and cut his lip badly on a wooden toy he had been playing with . A trip to a&e and day surgery next day to put a couple of stitches in. Kids will be kids. When DD was small older brother had opened the stair gate to come up and DD crawled off to the top of the stairs l just caught her leg before she went a over t down them. You just have to be as vigilant and careful as you can. You cannot prevent all tumbles or the child would never be able to do anything.

Trying to manoeuvre a pushchair down the steep Building Society steps with a baby strapped to me in a baby sling, I lost control of the handle and DD1 plummeted down them. The pushchair landed face down, but her straps held and she just suffered grazes and bruising, though we were both very shocked and upset. Passers by rushed to help and comfort us, apart from one woman, who I knew vaguely from toddler group, who decided it was appropriate to berate me about how clumsy I'd been (as if I didn't know).

The next time I saw her, her poor daughter was covered from neck to toe in dressings, having pulled a pan of hot liquid over herself. And I just felt heart sorry for both of them. Accidents can and will happen, and the adult on the scene needs comforting too.

It's a nightmare isn't it? I lost count of the number of bumps and falls GS had when he was small and in our charge, and the number of bumps and falls I had trying to stop him bumping and falling!! He fell off a climbing frame in the park when he was three. Fortunately he had his cycle helmet on, but it was very frightening for all concerned. He lost his footing coming down the stairs and as I tried to catch him coming down, we both ended up in a heap at the bottom. I banged my head on the wall and landed hard on my hip, but he, thank the Lord, was unhurt. I did something similar trying to stop him falling out of a low tree! You lose sight of the fact that when they are small they tend to "bounce" better than you and you're much more likely to break something than they are. As has been said, accidents will happen, and it's part of their growing up that children will learn from their bumps and spills. Doesn't do your nerves any good though!!

Thankfully little ones are very light and tend to land lightly.

However, I spent several weeks in plaster at the age of 18 months, having crawled onto a table and fallen off onto a wooden brick which broke my arm. I have broken that arm a further 3 times, so maybe it created a weakness.

Neither of us have any turn of speed on our feet, so we try to be very conscientious about stair gates etc. - but these things happen so fast. I guess there are bound to be some bumps and scratches; but how bad we feel if it happens on our watch. I hope that the MIL in the original post is not going to get the cold shoulder - she must be feeling bad enough as it is.

Thank you everyone for telling your experiences of accidents which have happened and all the traumas which go with them. I'm very thankful to say my 2 grandsons and their mum has paid us a wee visit this morning where we've all had breakfast and enjoyed a playtime with hugs and kisses. My daughter is very proud to say she tried her best to put her MiL at ease and not to blame herself as these things do happen. They are all off now leaving the house in a beautiful shambles and who would have it any other way.

I had baby DD in the pram and DS on the pram seat on top. I pushed the pram down the path to our front door where there was a slight tip backwards by our front door step. This unbalanced the pram and it tipped up and DS hit the ground and cracked a front tooth. I really felt dreadful about that.

Once both my DSs could crawl, I taught both of them how to get up and down stairs safely - particularly down by coming backwards step by step. I can't remember either of them falling down stairs - although they managed to fall off plenty of other things. Elder son did exactly the same with his children.

Elizabeth - it sounds as though you have a lovely daughter and you should be proud of her.

Why was a one year old at the top of the stairs unattended?

No hug from me.

jingle Can you honestly say you have never taken your "eye off the ball" with your own children? I can't.

They can fall down even when you are watching them if you are unable to move fast enough to grab them.

Invest in a stair gate?

I think there things tend to happen when there's lots of adults to keep an eye on the little ones. Ergo, no one takes the whole responsibility and an accident happens. We always put the stair gate up when having a family gathering, even if the little ones can manage the stairs.

X

Good on your daughter, Luckygirl I'd hate something like that to happen on my watch, and of course we all try our best to keep them safe, but these things happen in an instant and there but for the grace of God....

Sorry, not Luckygirl - Elizabeth1.

I am pretty sure that most of us have had some kind of accident concerning children / grandchildren. No matter how vigilant we are they move so quickly . Of course there are those who can cover every eventuality and never put a foot wrong.

I do not qualify as superhuman!!

Me neither but I sometimes wish I could be.?

Oh my DGS wasn't upstairs unattended Jingle he was with his granny however I'm unaware of anybody except J52 who would have stair gates for the occasional toddler visit. His poor granny was feeling rotten without anyone blaming her for taking her eye off the ball. These things happen to the best of folks. Thank you luckygirl I do have a wonderful caring daughter.

We do actually have stair gates here as we regularly look after little ones and it makes life easier for us - one less thing to worry about.

If you have occasional toddler visits, a travel stairgate is good - we have one that we use at the bottom of the stairs, and just put it in a cupboard between visits. This the one we have, and it is reduced in Argos: www.argos.co.uk/beta/static/Product/partNumber/1819829.htm

We have a wooden one upstairs which can be removed, just leaving its fixtures screwed to the wall. We did not regard the "friction fit" travel gates as being safe at the top of the stairs as the child could push it over.

DS1, at about 18 months, walked into my pantry and, before I could stop him, lifted a jug of milk and, at the same time, gashed his eyebrow on a low shelf. So I had a child covered in milk and blood. Off we went to the Children's Hospital for stitches - 44 years later he still has the scar. About a year later, I came back from a shopping trip to be told by my then OH that DS had fallen on the stairs and hurt his arm. So I then had a child in a plaster cast, and another, by that time, in a buggy. To this day DH swears that his dad pushed him! Between the two of them, we became quite well known in A&E. Strangely, their own DC don't seem to have inherited this accident prone-ness. Fingers still crossed.

I closed the front door (hinge side) into my 2 year olds middle finger. I had her brother in my arms at the time. Always felt guilty about that and yet it healed from a scrambled wreck to just a very slight dent.