Playdate Injury

Today we had a playdate at our house. Usually playdates are pretty stress-free. As soon as the friend arrives the girls run upstairs or downstairs and I only hear from them if they are hungry or need Barbie clothes changed.

Today's playdate was a nightmare. Juliet was super grumpy and was having a temper tantrum because she wanted me to pick which pj's she should wear for rest time but she didn't like anything I chose. In the middle of her screaming, I heard crying from the basement. At first I was confused, as the only crying that usually happens in our house is from Juliet. So I left screaming Juliet to investigate.

I met friend at the top of the basement stairs holding bloody toilet paper and crying "Help me". I felt like I was going to have a heart attack! Where was the blood coming from, what happened? Of course, 4 year olds are not the greatest at relating accurate events. So all I got from them was scissors and "I have blood!" (this was from friend of course). Crap! I used to be a lifeguard and have lots of experience dealing with blood and minor other injuries. But somehow, having another child injured while on my watch was really freaking me out.

I managed to get friend up to our bathroom where our first aid kit is and the mantra "stop the bleeding" spurred me into action. I've got to say, Juliet falling and cutting her tongue almost in half did not freak me out as much as having another person's kid blood literally on my hands. Luckily, my first aid training and the other voice in my head that said "stay calm" was louder than the part of me freaking out inside and I was able to keep it together, bandage the finger effectively and calm the almost hysterical friend down.

I guess when it comes to your own kids, you know them so well, that you know what's normal for them. You know if their hysteria is just that, or something more serious. I kept playing over and over in my mind the thought "am I doing this right?".

Thankfully, the bleeding stopped, friends stopped crying and after 20 minutes of watching Barbie Fashion Fairytale, friend told me confidently that she could still play even with her finger bandaged up.

Man, do I feel bad and guilty and horrible. Thankfully friend was okay. The whole episode was so stressful for me. The kids were over it in a heartbeat but I'm still feeling the stress and anxiety from the incident. I think it will take a bit for me to shake it off. Much like the time I accidentally bumped Ainsley's head on her crib rail when she was 6 weeks old and felt guilty for DAYS (and I still haven't forgotten it).