My Wild One

A few weeks ago, on March 13th, our baby turned one year old. Already. Where does the time go?!?

Despite not being able to have a birthday party for Charlie, we still wanted the day to feel special. So we (read: I) planned a mini celebration with the 4 of us. I ordered balloons and decorations. I planned a cake (ok, fine, I confess - I made one, but it turned out so ugly I had to run to the store that morning for a back-up, but that's not the point of this post!). Most important to the birthday planning, I assigned a theme. Wild ONE. I loved it. And anyone who knows Charlie knows that this theme was wildly appropriate (see what I did there?!).

Charlie is a firecracker. Her personality is too big for her teeny body. She's funny, and clever, and so, so sweet. But she also knows exactly what she wants and expresses those wants very clearly. And loudly. She has the shortest fuse of anyone I've ever met. If she gets frustrated playing with a toy, for example, she'll pitch it across the room, scream like a banshee, and throw herself onto the floor with enough drama to land the lead role in any Shakespeare play.

Apart from being a handful to handle, I'm not complaining. She is who she is, and we love her spunk. I think it will serve her well in life to know what she wants and not be afraid to say it. However, she is only one. And what one year old's don't tend to consider very well is their own safety, while engaging in all these shenanigans. Which brings me to the point.

My poor, sweet, little, perfect baby has a broken wrist.

Last Friday evening, as we were getting the kids ready for bed, Ms. Charlotte decided that her patience had run out, and she no longer wanted to be on the changing table. So, she twisted herself free and took a dive for freedom. It's worth mentioning here that she is a repeat offender. A few months ago, she did the exact same thing, only that time she landed on her head. We had gone running to the emergency room, had her checked out, and she was fine.

Lesson learned, keep a hand on her at all times. We didn't factor in the fact that a baby on a mission to do something develops herculean strength and CEO level strategy. She knew exactly how to escape, and chose the moment when we were distracted in the disposal of a dirty diaper to make her move. Luckily, this time she didn't land on her head, but on all fours, like a cat. She screamed like hell, but seemed fine after a few minutes. And since her head wasn't affected, we put her to sleep as usual. Fast forward to Saturday morning and she was miserable, and couldn't put any weight on her arm. So, back to the ER for x-rays (so, so awful - they had to strap her down to a wooden board and she was hysterical - I'm actually crying now just remembering). It's a small fracture, we're told it will heal well, but she has to wear a brace 24/7 for 3 weeks and then we go back for a check up.

All of this to say...the mom guilt has set in. I didn't say who was with her when this happened, because it doesn't matter. One time was me, and one time was Stephan. But I feel horrible. It's a combination of things, but between the arm, the head injury, and all the other booboos in between (that are part of being a new walker, or part of being a younger sibling to a brother who isn't really into sharing at the moment :p), she's had her share of injuries. Maybe it's second baby syndrome, are we inadvertently being less careful? Definitely more relaxed, but I don't think we're being careless or cavalier with her safety.

My head tell me that her booboos are mostly caused by simply being in a body too clumsy to handle your own little personality. But my soft mama heart feels like it's all my fault :(

As for where we go from here...the changing table is gone. And the backbreaking work of changing diapers and dressing a baby on the floor is where we're at. Also, I'm thinking of buying a helmet and some bubble wrap. And ear plugs for me, because she absolutely cannot handle the wrist brace and is losing her mind over it every time she looks down and sees it. Sigh. It's going to be a long few weeks for all of us.