Punky Needs a Helmet

Seriously.  She does.

I am thankful she didn't have a doctor appointment this past week.  One look at her head/face may have warranted a call to CPS.  No joke. 

It's unreal how many times she bangs her head these days.  I can't help but feel like the worst mom ever, and it's even worse if it happens on someone else's watch. 

Last Monday night, she flipped the TV remote off the end table and cracked herself in the forehead.  Of course, she got hit with the heavier end that has the battery compartment.  One black and blue mark, left forehead.

Tuesday night, she fell and somehow hit her face on her music table she loves so much.  Over the past few months, she has pulled herself up at that table and then sat herself back down literally thousands of times with no problems.  I have no clue what made this time different, but she had a nice cut just outside of her right eye and developed a puffy, partial shiner under it. 

On Wednesday, she was playing with a toy on the floor and decided it would be fun to lay on her back and hold it straight up in the air above her head.  Then let it fall.  It wasn't a stuffed animal; we're not that lucky.  It was a large, hard, plastic toy.  One black and blue mark, right forehead.

Thursday morning, she woke up with a little cut under her other eye.  I presume it was a self-inflicted scratch and have since cut her nails.  Anyway, one nickel size red blotch with a cut in the center under the left eye.

By that point, Monday's remote control injury had turned that puke green color that all black and blues morph into eventually...

She was a mess, and I wouldn't blame anyone for assuming the worst.  I get so frustrated sometimes.  I'm her mama, I'm supposed to protect her.

I know, "kids get hurt...blah,blah,blah..."  I've heard it many times now and I get it, really I do, but exactly how often is my concern. 

Is this normal, or do I have the klutziest baby on the planet?  I've been known to be a bit accident prone myself, so maybe it's in the genes...

Do I seriously just suck at this? Come on, I can take it even if the truth hurts.

I was sitting right next to her when the first two occured.  I looked at the TV for one second when the remote flew up and hit her.  When she fell by her table, I was sitting on one side and her dad was on the other.  Only twelve inches from her and neither one of us caught her.  Truth be told, I saw her go down on her hiney, but didn't even realize she hit her face until she started crying and I saw the cut.

The third happened while I was at work.  Again, I feel responsible because I wasn't there to watch her.  Although, given the previous days' track records, I probably wouldn't have caught the damn toy anyhow, or even thought to stop her from holding it over her head in the first place. 

The fourth happened while she was sleeping, so I guess I am partially off the hook; however, I knew her nails needed to be cut and I hadn't gotten around to doing it.  Yeah, my fault again.

The next few days were quiet, a minor bump here or there as she crawled into things but nothing hard enough to cause a tear.  I began to think maybe we just hit a rough patch and it was over now. 

Last night, the three of us were in her bedroom.  I was standing on the bed, hanging her freshly washed valance on her window.  Dad was holding her fleshly washed sheet and matress cover (she keeps waking up soaked and that is aggravating enough to deserve it's own post down the road).  Punky was on her crib matress, which was out of the crib and laying on the floor.

When I caught sight of her out of the corner of my eye, I said out loud that she was going to roll off of it and crack her face.  The words were still hanging in the air when it happened.  Again, neither of us had a chance to grab her.  Face met floor once again, thankfully soft carpet, but the tears came and lasted a few minutes.  Her cheek was red for a bit but she escaped another black and blue.

She is fast, really fast, and it's impossible to have my eyes planted on her every second.  And she's so curious and has absolutely no fear.  She does something, gets hurt, cries, and two minutes later she's right back at it again. 

I hope she gets out of this stage quickly, for the sake of her poor little head and my sanity.  Her nine month doctor appointment is scheduled for the 28th of this month.  Let's see if I can manage to keep her boo-boo free for that visit.  Short of duct taping her to the carpet, I have no idea how to accomplish it.