Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Mmmmm.... Chaos

Tuesday morning was the only time I had to clean the house after entertaining friends and family from last LAST weekend's festivities. Naturally, Fifi, did not get the memo and refused to go down for a nap while the others were in preschool. I sat her down in the middle of our kitchen surrounded by Tupperware and spoons. She kept busy for some time. I got lost in my work.

Minutes passed by and I heard her.

"Mmmmmm..." Fifi mumbled. "This? This? Mmmmmm...."

She had made her way to our pantry, pushed opened the doors, and had managed to grab everything off of the bottom shelf. It was a smorgasbord for the toddler. Boxes of goldfish overturned, Kix cereal spilled, Capri Suns missing straws, and Fifi amidst the chaos smiled up at me with a yellow streak of saliva dripping from her chin.

"This? This? Mmmmmm...." Fifi mumbled and it was clear she had something in her mouth.

I looked into her mouth, finger swept, and pulled out a hard yellow grain. What the heck is this? I searched around her to see where this grain came from. I pushed aside wrappers, boxes, and bags of snacks. Finally I found it. Fully aware that babies aren't allowed to have peanut butter, shell fish, and berries at this age I turned the bag over to read the ingredients.

"... has a unique and powerful antioxidant combination and an enhanced level of natural DHA. It provides precise nutrition for a complete foundation giving your puppy the best start in life. Formulated for puppies up to 12 months, also for pregnant and nursing dogs."

Thank goodness, I exhaled. She has totally had DHA before, in her organic vitamin D milk. (DHA is an ingredient found in mother's milk) Just to be safe I called our doctor.

"Hi. My one year old daughter is a patient of the incredibly patient Dr. HateswhenIcallwithstupidquestions and ummm. Well. She just swallowed some dog food. Should I be worried?" I whispered.

I can only imagine the notes the nurse took. Our doctor files keep growing fatter and fatter with each passing day.

61classy comments:

VerWaynia said...

Well, at least it wasn't peanut butter enhanced dog food :-)

I think eating dog/cat food is a rite of passage for toddlers!

MommyTime said...

First!!

I had to talk to my pediatrician with the opener, "I can't get Son to stop drinking from the dog's bowl." I was mortified. Her response? "Kids do this all the time. If I had a nickel for every child who ate dog food..." So, don't worry. Fifi is in good company. :)

Lacey said...

Must've been some good dog food! I'm pretty sure kids do things like this all the time. ;)

Betsy Mae said...

But she said it was good right?

No dog food eating at my house, but they were eating brown sugar by the handful this afternoon while i was folding laundry upstairs.

krissy said...

My daughter ate Purina dog food on a bet lately! Nice, eh???

I think we have all ate dog food one time or another....or maybe it's just my family!

Nicole Brady said...

I don't recall my girls ever eating dog food, but when they were really little, I think I was better about only leaving it down for a certain amount of time. (Now they can graze all day long with no worries.)

But I'm concerned that she liked it better than the goldfish, kix and other goodies. She obviously didn't find any open packages of cookies or she wouldn't think the dog food was so good!

Wendi said...

You have done it again.

DOG. FOOD.

A topic as simple as Fifi eating dog food. And I sit clinging to every word while my sides ache from laughter.( BTW we share the same doctor!)LOL!

You are amazing! (Blushing yet?)

Texasholly said...

OMG. I am so glad you called about dog food. You are going to be legendary in that office which totally has perks...you never have to explain who you are or who your children are, etc. In the long run it is an extremely savvy move. Now that doesn't look right saavy? savvy? ssavy? saavyy? now I am just amusing myself, sorry.

Mr Lady said...

My oldest once ate an entire pack of Marlboros and I didn't call the doctor. You are a much better mom than me.

Also, once they hit age 1, I let them eat whatever the heck they wanted. Really? No PB? Dude, I am so going to bad mom hell.

Laski said...

Hey, a shiny coat, bright eyes, and white teeth can't be all bad . . .

No worries, I'm pretty sure my doc has a file big enough for a five-year-old (um, J's only 7 months) .

That's why they get the big bucks!

Jeni said...

A while back we had some problems in keeping my 4 year old granddaughter away from the cat's dish - dry cat food. Between her trying to nibble on the nuggets there and then, also pouring the cat's water over the dry food and turning it into mush, my daughter finally had to move the dish up out of the reach of those little fingers. I think it maybe helped the cat too - gave her arthritic joints a bit of exercise that way having to jump up to the shelf to reach her dish, ya know!

Mom said...

Now that is a new one for me, I gues I should go hide my cat food! Glad all is well.

Anonymous said...

We've all been there! I love the way you brought us along on this ride; too cute!

You've inspired me to tell the tale of how a certain Sesame Street character found its way into my son's nasal cavity! I'll have to blog about that one... :)

Anonymous said...

Hmmmm.. I am thinking I should try those.. Sit Donnie, Stay Donnie.. she may be onto something.. LOL :)

Unknown said...

My son ate diaper rash cream. Like sucked it out of the tube!

Don't worry, they're naming a wing of the emergency room after us!

Stephanie said...

No worries! My little one likes dog food too :) I've found it in her mouth many a time now... crazy little girls!

All doctor's seem to be so different - mine told me that Karys (1 week younger than Fifi) could have everything now except peanut butter. That always amazes me - the different advice different ones give.

Anonymous said...

I've eaten a lot of dogfood in my time and I'm perfectly normal. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

(My cousin used to force us to eat it when she babysat for us. Now she wants to come visit in April. What shall I feed her?)

Also, totally laughing at the comment from the brown sugar person. My ace in the hole is a little bowl of brown sugar. Keeps him busy for ten whole minutes!

Irene said...

Ha Ha. Yeah, I am sure there are PLENTY of mothers who can say "Been there, done that".

Stephanie said...

How funny! Don't worry about calling. I think during Chicken's sickness I called them like 7 times, some during the day sprinkled with a few after hours calls, too. They're used to it.

And chances are Fifi has already had a little bit of peanut butter somewhere along the way. Hubby pointed that out to me recently when I freaked about Chicken getting some. My doctor actually told me peanut butter was safe after 12 months to let them try, too, but it's just personal preference. We have no history of allergies in either family but I still get freaked!

Dog food. Even though we don't have dogs, I'll have to make sure Chicken and Punky don't see this blog. I'm sure they could come up with something just as good! ;oD HA!

Momo Fali said...

I wonder if my kids would eat that for dinner? It probably tastes better than anything I could whip up.

Erin said...

I have been lurking on your blog for awhile, and I just wanted to say I really love your posts and pictures... I have children close to yours ages, so I can totally relate. Take care!

Lisa said...

So, so funny! I bet she looked like a little doll with that dog food in her mouth, though!

Anonymous said...

Oh Mommy-

You should know that I have called poison control more times than I can count, all for dumb reasons. One day I will blog about them all. This really helps me to cut down on the dumb reasons I call my dr.

xoxo,
paranoid mommy in NJ

Ashlee said...

Thankfully my children have never eaten animal food before...but I'm sure it's super healthy! It contains all sorts of vitamins and what not! :0) I realize they are for dogs...but still! It can always be worse right?

Anonymous said...

When he was about 15 months old, my oldest got into the huge can of fish food!

Oh, the breath!

Unknown said...

"mmmm...this? this?" ...and what she really wanted to end that sentence with was "this, this puppy chow is just DEEEEE-LICIOUS!!" hahahaha!! never a dull day in the OHMommy household.

John-Michael said...

Sounds like you have this parenting thing into a funky, and fun, rhythm ... under your own unique brand of "control."

just jamie said...

I totally knew it was going to be dog food.

At least it was puppy version, after all she *is* a baby.

Amy said...

did she have friskies for dessert? lol

Miss Lisa said...

But she's your third ;)
I feel bad--when my fourth sucks the ink out of markers I just make note that his diaper will be that color later...dog food, well it is food so it must OK, right?!
Hope you get a chance to clean.

Caroline C. Bingham said...

one time, when I was in a hurry, I just gave my kids dog food for dinner.... okay, not really. But they've all eaten it at some point.

Katie said...

At least the dog food has good nutrients right?!? :)

Angie @ KEEP BELIEVING said...

I haven't had to finger swipe in a long time. Thank God. Now if my kids want to eat dog food, its probably better than the pizza roll and hot dogs they normally ask for. They could use somemore DHA.

KEEP BELIEVING

April said...

Yeah, I'm sure she'll be fine. At least she has the excuse of being a baby. I ate dog biscuits of my own volition when I was about 11. Scary, huh? (They weren't that bad!)

LunaNik said...

My kids prefer cat food.

;)

suchsimplepleasures said...

my son used to eat our cat food!! like...copious amounts. where, you could smell it coming out his pores!! and...i won't even tell you about his poops! oy vey!! is all i'm saying!!
and...she is still a puppy, technically so...it's a excellent source of her daily required nutrients!!
xoxo

AutoSysGene said...

Oh yeah, that's what I'm talking about!! I love stories like this, it makes me remember we're all human..

Melissa said...

Well dog food is better then I thought you were going to say. I thought I was goign to read that she was into some peanut butter with jelly and shellfish concoction. And as for Dr.HateswhenIcallwithstupidquestions that why they get paid soooo much. Make them work for it I say :)

Melissa said...

Well dog food is better then I thought you were going to say. I thought I was goign to read that she was into some peanut butter with jelly and shellfish concoction. And as for Dr.HateswhenIcallwithstupidquestions that why they get paid soooo much. Make them work for it I say :)

Anonymous said...

She'll hate this story one day! LOL!

Mamarazzi said...

"Dr.HateswhenIcallwithstupidquestions" BWAAAhahahahaha! you crack me up!

Amy said...

Oh Kathryn used to eat right from the dog's bowl. YUCK!! That child totally thought she was a dog for about a month.

Tara R. said...

"these products were not tested on children..." I think we may have had the same Baby Doctor.

Karen said...

Our children all dined on dog food more times than I care to admit. In fact it was so bad at one point that the dogs only got to eat when the baby was down for a nap or at night. As far as said child was concerned, the dog's dish was a snack bowl.

Lizzy in the Burbs said...

Had to chuckle, funny story but I'm sure a few concerned moments! Glad she was alright! Well, if nothing else, you know she's self-reliant! :O)

Lizzy

Kat said...

I found Ben sucking lotion out of the bottle the other day. What is it with these kids?

Anonymous said...

The plus side of this is at least her coat will be nice and shiny.

Kristen said...

I have found our kids eating dog food too!

Is it too much to ask that they play with actual toys while we try to get at least ONE thing done??

Cute story!

Kellan said...

Oh, how cute! They are always into something, aren't they? Cute story - see you later. Kellan

Janice {Run Far} said...

My morgie Moo is now helping her self up onto the counter and then into the cupboards. Yep she is eating everything and anything. Ugh

carrie said...

I didn't know that we went to the SAME pediatrician!

Small world . . . :)

katydidnot said...

i just now, this second, got the OH in OHmommy. duh me.

Amy said...

I have pictures of both the boys at different times when they had gotten a hold of puppy chow...don't know what the attraction is ...lol..:-)

ConverseMomma said...

Jackie swallowed mouthwash, ate a sharpie marker, and two cupfulls of dirt from a household plant all in one month. I kept fearing CPS was going to be banging on our door. Glad she was okay. I think all kids eat dogfood at some point. I know I did.

Grandy said...

What is it about when I read your blog I think "Oh Mommy!!" and it's got nothing to do with your location. :)

Glad all is well...and normal...in Ohio.

Anonymous said...

Is it bad that I giggled at that image?? When I had a roommate who had a toddler, we kept finding her munching on cat food (the crunchy kind) and finally I had to lock the cat AND cat food in my bedroom during the day! LOL

Flea said...

Cute! My middle child ate dog food regularly at about Fifi's age, forcing me to switch to a better brand of dog food. When I started giving him meat baby food, he stopped eating dog food. Then he started eating potting soil. Vitamins with minerals cured him of that. Kids!

♥♥♥ A- Licious ♥♥♥ said...

must be a common thing EVERYWHERE....

heheheheheehee!

;o)

u are all good mama!

Jennifer said...

I so loved this post too! You are so hilarious, and your life is much like mine, but you just make it seem bright and cherry I have to try this. My daughters were on the counter the other day eating apples while I was fixing dinner. All of a sudden I hear them bickering about wanting a cookie and who will get another cookie out. I'm trying to think of how in the world they would even get cookies?? Hmm... not sure. I turn around and they are eating dog buscuits. lol they were pretty happy with themselves too. lol
thank goodness your doctor said it would be okay, I didn't call. (bad mommy! bad!)
Hugs, jenn

Victoria said...

Hee hee! My Girlie ate dog food once too. She LOVED it. Ack. =)

Rhea said...

Dog food, haha, hehe, oh boy. I bet your doctor LOVES you!!

I was worried poison control was going to track me down after I had to call twice in one year...

 

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