Tag: Tears

The Miracle Cure

Over the last couple weeks, Ella has experienced her share of bumps and bruises.

Those include:

  • Falling off the couch/chair
  • Pinching her finger in her folding step stool
  • Hitting herself with a toy
  • Running fast and falling on the floor
  • Stubbing her toe
  • Dropping books on her feet
  • Shutting the refrigerator door on her fingers

The list goes on and on. Some of the more serious “boo boo’s” bring tears. Most of them don’t make her cry at all. This week alone, she has had “boo boo elbows,” “boo boo fingers,” “boo boo feet,” and “boo boo hair!” The miracle cure for all of these – a simple kiss.

I am sure I did it with my older boys, and it was probably second nature to say, “Let me kiss it and make it better.” I’ve kissed a lot of “boo boo elbows” in my time as a dad, and I am sure there are more boo boos to come. I am always amazed at how kissing a boo boo can stop the tears.

“All better!” Ella will say that after I have kissed the “boo boo of the hour” and run off to continue playing. The boo boos seem to be coming more and more frequently, and that is ok. It is one of those very special moments that I love sharing with her – and I kinda feel like her hero afterwards.

I am sure my dad and mom kissed my boo boos, too, but I don’t recall many of those instances. What I do remember is how my grandma would “fix” them. My grandma was Catholic. I remember one time I fell and conked my head pretty good. I had a huge bump on my forehead. Grandma’s remedy was a butter knife!

My grandma took that butter knife and pressed on the bump with it horizontally and then vertically, making a cross. To her, she was making the “sign of the cross,” on it, which in turn healed it. All I really remember it doing was making it hurt more until she removed the knife. There may have been a time where my grandpa did this, too.

As silly as it sounds, I love the fact that kissing a boo boo makes everything right! A “Boo Boo Kiss” is truly a miracle cure! Wouldn’t it be amazing if all it took to make the chaos of the world better was a simple boo boo kiss?

Ouchies

Sam always makes Ella’s “Well Visit” appointments for her day off. Yesterday, was her 1 year check up. The appointment was first thing in the morning and since I pass by there on my way home, I met them at the doctor’s office. Sam, who is now entering the second trimester of this pregnancy, was glad to have an extra set of hands at the appointment.

The days of just sitting in the waiting room and looking at the fish in the aquarium are long gone. She’s on the move all the time! Thankfully, they called us back pretty quickly and she got to explore the exam room. The medical assistant came in and did height, weight, vision test, and vitals before the doc came in. We discussed the immunizations that she would be getting and then the doc came in.

Our doc is amazing. She looked Ella over and asked us what she was and wasn’t doing, told us the things to expect in the months to follow, and mentioned the foods she was now able to eat. The doc was impressed with her babble and at how “advanced” she is. Before leaving, the doc asked Sam when she was due and reminded us that she’d be happy to see our new baby, too.

Then the medical assistant came in to give Ella her shots. She was laying on the exam table and I got down next to her, holding her arms. Everything was fine until that first “poke.” Ella’s face had that surprised/shocked look and the tears began. Immediately, I felt my heart sink and got sick to my stomach. The next “poke” only made her cry more and me feel worse. The band aids went on and I scooped her up in my arms. I held her and tried to comfort her. She then reached for mommy, who calmed her down by simply talking to her.

With my sons, I was always the one who took them to get shots. God, I hated it! I got that same feeling every time they got a shot. I hated seeing them cry. You know you are doing the right thing, but you feel awful. They give you that “Why are you letting them hurt me?” look, and you just feel terrible. It all came back to me today when Ella got her shots.

As a parent, you will do whatever you can to protect your kids and keep them from getting hurt. In some cases, though, that means tears will be shed … by the child…..and the parent.