Shiner Tot

NJ is still working out the kinks in this whole mobility thing. I was snoozing on the sofa after our triumphant return from Oregon a couple of days ago when I heard an explosion of crying from the little diddle's room. She was tooling around on the floor and her knee slipped; before The Wife could get to her, NJ's adorable face smacked into the base of her shelves. She got over it fairly quickly, but a couple of hours later the beginnings of a shiner materialized. Now, she's got a legitimate, if faint, black eye:

I want Tyson! Bring me Tyson!

Hopefully it'll fade away soon, because I don't want to tote her around and have everyone thinking I've got a Mel Gibson temper or something. You never know when you'll be in the same supermarket aisle as a DSHS official.

The Curious Case Of The Bloody Baby

What's that, angel pie -- a little scar on your temple? Man, your mom needs to trim those fingernails!

Oh: There's the baby nail clipper, on the end table. I guess your mom trimmed your nails earlier today. Hey, is that another scar, on your cheek? It sure is red.

Jeez, another one? Three red scars on the right side of your face? That is so very, very weird.

Wait a second, that's not a scar. It wiped right off! Was that ... BLOOD?

None of these are scars, they're all blood smears. Holy cow!

Hey, what the -- your entire index finger is covered in blood! Man oh man. OK, don't panic. Where has that finger been ...

OHMYGOD! Your ear is a nasty, bloody mess! It looks like a pasta shell filled with tomato gravy! Did Mr. Blonde visit your crib when I was in the bathroom?

Dad Solo would have leaped into action if only he'd heard the tell-tale 'Stuck in the Middle With You.'

Let's clean that out with a baby wipe. How's that feel? Cool and moist, right? Man, this is a lot of blood.

Ah, there it is -- a pin-point nick inside the ear. It's producing a nice little bead of blood now. How'd that happen?

OK, the bleeding seems to have stopped. No, don't stick your finger back in there. Here, let's go eat some cereal puffs. And don't ever do that again. Whatever it was.