Nose Woes

As the kids grow, I notice that the dangers you have to look out for don't disappear. They merely shift into knew zones. At first you worry that they won't wake up, then you worry that they will never go to sleep. You worry that they are gaining enough weight, then you worry if they are gaining too much. And then, you worry about what they put in their mouths that they shouldn't. A choking hazard, something poisonous, something utterly disgusting. What I never really thought I would be worrying about was what they would be putting up their nose. Ugh...now there are nose hazards to worry about? What is that all about? Just when I thought that worrying about Alex putting things where they don't belong were over, he goes and puts a rock up his nose. Pardon me while I take a moment to roll my eyes...

*Insert obvious eye roll here*

Okay. That's better. So yesterday, we were outside enjoying the beautiful morning. Abby was aimlessly wandering around and Alex was innocently playing in the sandbox. I looked over at Alex and he had a finger all the way up his nose. I did the mom thing and said, "Alex, get your finger out of your nose." He gave me one of those I-did-something-that-I-shouldn't-have-done looks and I immediately knew that something was amiss. I asked him what he did and he said, "I put a rock in my nose." (At least he's honest about it, right?) At first I didn't believe him, but he started crying and his nose starting running on the opposite nostril. I looked up his nose, and sure enough! There was a big black rock stuck as high up as he could push it. I felt my heart start panicking. What the heck do you do when a rock is up the nose? I thought about cocoa puffs. The rule for cereal up the nose is 'crunch and blow'. But a rock doesn't exactly crunch, does it? So I tried to pinch it out and had him blow at the same time. Amidst the crying and blowing, I think the snot slimed up the rock enough that it came shooting out. It popped out into my hand and Alex, being a typical almost-three-year old, starting giggling. He thought it was hilarious. I told him to never put anything up his nose. At this point, nose picking is no longer my biggest concern. Germs, schmerms...I'd take a finger up the nose over a rock any day of the week.