Project Anthony Watch
by Melanie Bettinelli on November 30, 2011
I remember Bella and Ben and Sophie eating paper. I remember pulling bits of leaves out of their mouths. I remember once or twice finding rocks or bits of bark or whatever. But Anthony has taken putting dangerous bits and pieces in his mouth to a whole new level. I remove little chokey things from his mouth daily. Usually three or four or five times a day. On just one day last week it was clementine peel, toy truck wheel, and paper. I regularly find the girls’ hair rubber bands in there.
No matter how much I try to enlist the big kids in keeping the floor safe for Anthony, they just can’t seem to do it. Bella is just not good at noticing that kind of thing. She’s not a natural cleaner or tidier. Not like Ben is. Ben if he were older would probably be pretty good at it. But Ben’s main concern as far as Anthony goes is keeping Anthony from touching his trucks. He tackles Anthony several times a day, pushes him, hits him, screams No Anthony!. No, Ben is no help. And Sophie…. sometimes I feel like speaking to Sophie is like speaking to the wind.
So anyway, this morning I fished a piece of broken glass out of Anthony’s mouth. I can only surmise that yesterday’s kitchen floor cleaning dislodged a piece of glass that was hiding under the table or a shelf or something because we haven’t even broken anything in weeks. He was sitting by the broom when I noticed him mouthing something in that way he does. He wasn’t disturbed at all so I figured it was probably a bit of food one of the kids had dropped. Still, I stuck my finger in to check just to be sure. Boy was I shocked when this sharp chunk of glass came out. And then he got angry at me for taking it away! As I was changing his diaper a minute later he was blowing bloody raspberries, little flecks of blood on his lips and arm. I’m pretty sure that there can’t have been more than one bit of broken glass; but I’m keeping my eye on him.
Ay! This baby is giving me grey hairs. I plead daily with his guardian angel to keep him safe because between eating all sorts of tiny choking things and pulling ladders and furniture down on himself, it will be a minor miracle if he reaches his first birthday.
Comments
Oh, Anthony, be careful!
Posted by Kathy on 11/30/11 at 05:40 PM
Oh, scary! We anchor to the wall our furniture, TV, everything that could come down on a little one to serious injurious effect.
Is “Project Anthony Watch” an allusion to Project [Bird] FeederWatch by any chance?
Posted by ex-new yorker on 12/1/11 at 03:10 AM
ex new-yorker, It might have been a subconscious allusion. I was just looking at a website for the Massachusetts Hawk Watch and I’ve been aware of Project Feeder Watch. Somehow the title popped into my head without me thinking about it much. I don’t think about things much it seems these days. My brain is too tired.
Posted by Melanie Bettinelli on 12/1/11 at 05:35 PM
Oh, dear. His guardian angel deserves a pay raise.
Posted by The Sojourner on 12/5/11 at 12:56 PM