Mommy is re-learning some lessons today!

Amor Chiquito woke up early this morning. It was one of those mornings when you just cannot wake up. I eventually got up because I have a child and so did not have a choice in the matter! I went downstairs to adjust the thermostat. That is when our morning got interesting!

Amor Chiquito was alone for less than a minute. It does not take a long time to go down the stairs, adjust the thermostat, and go back upstairs. Once upstairs, I noticed that she was quiet and that she had closed my bedroom door. Can you spell m-i-s-c-h-i-e-f?! I opened the door. She ran into her room and closed the door. I asked her “what do you have?” No response. Nothing on her hands. I thought “strange, but I guess nothing is going on.” Then I smelled a fruity smell, one I know very well. Tums!

“Ari, are you eating Tums?”

“Yes, mommy.”

“How many did you eat, Ari?”

“Three, mommy.”

She can count and understands one through four, so I believe her. I asked her various times and the answer was always the same.

So, yes, mommy made a mistake. The Tums bottle was not in its usual spot. It was left where the three feet tall child could reach. It was late at night and I was not thinking. The tired woman with heartburn was thinking, not the cautious mother.

I figured Amor Chiquito would be fine and then I remembered my mother-in-law telling me many times that kids could get really sick from eating Tums. I figured it might very well be an old wives tale, but, I admit, I panicked a bit. My neighbor is a mother of three, so I figured she has probably been there, done that. I am glad I did!

We called the poison control line rather than calling the pediatrician. I have noticed that the nurses often think I ought to bring Ari in and, most times, the pediatrician thinks I did not need to come in.

Poison control told us that Amor Chiquito is fine, that she might get a stomach ache if she ate 10-15 Tums. But she did not. So far so good.

The lessons for today:

Keep your medications up high. Remember, they can climb. They have awesome problem solving skills at this age!

Find your local poison control agency’s phone number and add it to your list of contacts.