Feel like a bad mommy

Moms View Message Board: Parenting Discussion: Archive July-December 2004: Feel like a bad mommy

Dd who is 14 months has gotten the bad habit of climbing on the kitchen chairs then onto the kitchen table! We've not found a way to keep her from doing this so we've been putting all the chairs into another room. She's too young to understand that she can get hurt by doing this and she is at the age where "NO" does'nt mean a whole lot, By removing the chairs, I feel it is the best way to avoid an accident.
Well, last night me and ds was going over homework at the table and of course the baby was crying to be on the chairs with us, so unfortunatly I used bad mommy judgement and let her sit on the table and scribble on paper while me and my son worked.
She had ds's pencil and when it was time to get it from her, of course she did'nt want to give it up so I pulled it out of her hand and she let go too fast and lost her balance and fell off the table! She started screaming and when I picked her up she had blood in her mouth! I got a wash cloth and was wiping out her mouth trying to figure out what was bleeding. There was a lot of bright red blood, all of her teeth were bright red and the bleeding was not letting up. I started to get real scared that she had something bleeding inside of her from the fall she took. About the time that I was just about to freak, her top lip started to swell and I noticed a small cut under her top lip. That is where the blood was coming from. Since I discoved the souce the bleeding stopped after applying pressure. Her lip looks fine today.
I feel SOOO guilty for allowing her to sit on the table!
Another mommy lesson learned the hard way
Little ones have a way of getting hurt so fast when one minute you think they are doing fine the next they are crying and bleeding.

By Emily7 on Thursday, October 14, 2004 - 10:25 am:

(((Mara)))
I am glad she is doing better this morning.
Ds chipped a tooth when he fell off the coffee table once, it was so scary.

By Tink on Thursday, October 14, 2004 - 01:24 pm:

You are certainly not the only one! I used to set my dks on the table, too. A friend had her dd on the kitchen counter with a spoonful of peanut butter (two no-nos) and her dd fell and the spoon gouged the roof of her mouth. It looked awful but the Dr. said she was fine.
Mouth wounds look the worst because the vessels are so close to the surface that they break more easily and then it mixes with the saliva and it looks like SOOO much!
{{{Mara}}} Don't be too hard on yourself.

By Emdee on Thursday, October 14, 2004 - 04:51 pm:

My dd (17 months) also likes climbing on the chairs and onto the table. I wish they understood why we say no!!! She has fallen off the chairs so many times--I hate it, but I also think she will learn her lesson. We haven't thought to move the chairs. God made children so that they respond to falls and such so good--if it were me falling every time, I think I would surely break something.

By Dawnk777 on Thursday, October 14, 2004 - 08:28 pm:

I have to admit, that both of mine fell off the changing table, at least once. They have both survived. You try to be so careful, but accidents happen.

By Annie2 on Thursday, October 14, 2004 - 09:20 pm:

Accidents happen all of the time. Mouth injuries actually look worse than they really are. They bleed alot but heal very quickly.

Maybe this will deter her from wanting to be on the table. Then again, maybe not!

By Coopaveryben on Thursday, October 14, 2004 - 10:43 pm:

You're not the only one, I let mine sit on the table too...it seems safer than them having the chairs and they don't want to sit in their chair that hooks on the table. Don't feel too bad, we've all done something similar.

By Imamommyx4 on Thursday, October 14, 2004 - 11:53 pm:

We've all done "bad mommy' stuff. At the time it doesn't seem bad but in retrospect you say to yourself, 'Well, duh.' You love your kids, you'd do anything for them, you hate that you made a bad decision that ended up getting dd hurt. But don't beat yourself up. I feel for you.