For the most part, having sons who are 6 1/2 years apart is pretty easy. Harry doesn’t need as much looking after as he used to and can fetch his own cereal and get himself dressed. He can also help me take care of Liam some. Yesterday he helped me get Liam’s bottle ready and he LOVED it. He’s already pestering me today about when he can make another bottle. He loves his little brother (except when he tries to rip up his favorite magazine, of course) and there isn’t a whole lot of rivalry or envy so far. But there is one problem and that is toys. Harry has since graduated to big boy toys and big boy toys tend to be small and have teeny small parts. Not exactly the sort of thing you want to have around a little baby who is all about exploring and crawling around and putting everything in his mouth.
For the most part, all of Harry’s toys are upstairs either in his room or in the loft/playroom. He’s not really allowed to keep any toys downstairs anyhow. Of course, the occasional toy makes it down here. And then I pester him to take it back upstairs. My new nemesis has become Legos. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve rescued them from Liam’s grasp and hollered at Harry to take them upstairs. Lately, however, I’ve taken to just throwing them away. Because Harry NEVER takes them upstairs. Or if he does, more seem to make their way back down again. And I thought I was doing a pretty good job of keeping Liam’s “areas” Lego free. Until, that is, yesterday.
He had woken up from his nap and true to form, wanted to lay in the pack n play and drink a bottle. As the pack n play is full of baby-appropriate toys, it’s not entirely necessary to keep an eye on him at all times so I’m free to write emails, surf blogs or do dishes (yes, I’m having to do dishes again… AND the trash… how’d that happen?). I hear him kind of choke a little and peek in on him. Doesn’t seem to be anything wrong, and seeing as how this child has inherited his father’s ability to suddenly choke on his own secretions, I’m not too alarmed. It’s not too much longer before he’s done with his bottle and ready for lunch. I set him up in the high chair and give him some diced peaches (his favorite!) and cheerios. I’m fixing my own lunch as well as Harry’s when Liam starts choking again. Except this time, it doesn’t seem to be just spit. I assume it’s a peach or cheerio gone wrong and run over to assist. That’s when he puked.
As I was cleaning him up I noticed A LEGO. In fact, it was a Lego that I KNEW I had pestered Harry just days before to put away. It was small (of course) and circular and just about the worst choking hazard you could imagine. I’m just damn lucky that he threw it up because I would have had no idea he even had it in his throat if he hadn’t. I have no idea how he even got it since he’d been in his pack n play which is devoid of all Legos. Meanwhile, four more gray hairs sprouted on my head. I think I lost a good ten years on that one. Liam was no worse for the wear. Once he was cleaned up, he smiled and giggled at me and seemed interested in finishing the rest of his lunch. And the Lego? SO got thrown away. From here on out, I’m declaring war on all Legos. If I see ‘em, they’re getting tossed. End of story.
