A new best friend

Okay, this blog is actually kind of a continuation of the one I posted about Eliana's new-found independence a couple of entries ago. If you haven't read it yet, you may want to scroll down so you can get caught up to speed. So there we were getting ready to brush her teeth, and she wanted to put the toothpaste on by herself. I handed her the toothbrush and tube of toothpaste and watched her squeeze a huge blob of toothpaste onto the bristles, trying to hide my look of disgust. She brushed her teeth fairly thoroughly, spit, and rinsed her mouth.
"I want bubblegum rinse!" she exclaimed.
(Miller bought a bottle of pink, bubblegum flavored anti-cavity mouthwash for kids. It wasn't until after she had used it a couple of times that I noticed that the label said it was recommended for kids ages 6 and over. I didn't think it would be so bad, since she always used it under our supervision, and I always put just a couple drops in the cap and diluted it with water.)
"Okay, but you have to wait just a minute. I have to go check on Addie," I said. "WAIT FOR ME!" I called as I ran into the next room. It's a good thing it has a childproof cap, I thought. I found Addie happily playing with toys on the floor, and I hurried back towards the bathroom. Eliana met me halfway back with an unmistakable look of guilt on her face.
"Mommy?" she said very softly.
I waited.
"I drank bubblegum rinse," she said, barely audible now.
My mind raced. Okay, don't freak out. She'll never tell me the truth again if I immediately punish her.
"Thank you for telling me the truth, sweetie, but I told you to wait for me, didn't I?" I said in my most calm voice.
I went into the bathroom to survey the scene. I found splashes of pink mouthwash spilled on the counter and in the sink. The practically empty bottle of mouthwash was sitting on top of the counter with the cap loosely placed back on top.
So much for childproof caps! I thought.
I picked up the bottle, turned it over and scanned the label until my eye caught what I was looking for. WARNING: In case more than is intended for use is accidentally ingested, call Poison Control immediately.
My heart sank. I knelt on the floor so that I could be eye level with Eliana. I put my hand on her shoulder.
"Eliana, how much mouthwash did you drink?" I asked.
She just stared blankly at me.
How could she possibly answer this question? I thought. She has no concept of volume.
I picked up the phone, ready to dial the number for Poison Control, and then I hesitated.
How many times can you call Poison Control before they call CPS on you? I thought.
Let me backtrack. About one week prior to this incident, my parents were in town visiting. I had opened up the other side of our house that we reserve for guests, and where we store a lot of the girls' larger toys, like Eliana's tricycle. The girls, my mom, and I were over on that side of the house hanging out. I told my mom I was going to run upstairs to change my clothes and asked if she would keep an eye on the kids. She agreed and I headed up the stairs, but just before I left, I noticed Addie lifting up the seat to Eliana's tricycle where there is a secret storage compartment underneath. I took about five minutes upstairs, and then headed back down. Addie had a sippy cup in her hand, and my mom said, "What is Addie chewing? She keeps chewing on something."
I looked at the cup and screamed, "She's eating mold!" There was a layer of mold about an inch thick lying on top of the old juice in the sippy cup that someone had apparently stored away as a hidden treasure under the tricycle seat. I know- I was completely horrified and disgusted. I picked Addie up, grabbed the cup from her, threw it in the trash, and ran over to the sink with her and began trying to rinse her mouth out with hot water. I had no idea what I was doing. After a few seconds of this, I gave her a fresh cup of water as I dialed the number for Poison Control. I explained to the lady what had happened.
"Your daughter drank mold?" she asked.
Okay, I already feel bad enough. I thought. "Well, I'm not really sure because it was in a sippy cup, but I just want to know what I should do."
"Well, there's not really anything you can do. Just watch her for the next 72 hours and if she starts vomiting or having diarrhea, just treat her for those symptoms."
Thankfully, she was fine. This was incident number two.
Let me backtrack several months. One night Eliana had an upset stomach, so I gave her a children's Tums. I left it on my nightstand, and the next day, Miller and I noticed she was just hanging out in the middle of the stairs, being very sneaky.
"Eliana, what are you doing up there?" we asked. I went up to find her with a half empty bottle of tums. (This one didn't have a childproof cap). I called Poison Control only for them to tell me that there was nothing we could do, and at the worst she might get constipated because of all the calcium she had ingested. This was incident number one.
So, the lady at Poison Control and I are practically on a first-name basis. I talk to her almost as often as my best friend. It's pretty bad when you have to enter Poison Control as one of your speed dial contacts on your cell phone. Although, I guess anyone with small children should have the number for Poison Control handy at all times. By God's grace, none of these incidences were life-threatening, and the kids ended up being perfectly fine with no symptoms. The ironic thing is that it's my oldest child who gets into more trouble putting stuff in her mouth that she's not supposed to. Don't worry, I'm more cautious now, and for the most part, I always keep hazardous things locked up or out of their reach. These were just some freak accidents, and I'm sure not the last.