Tell me your 'near misses' to make me feel better (and make me realise I am not alone)

[OneLieIn]

This is a really difficult subject to talk about, but hopefully YKWIM, those times when something too awful to contemplate could have happened, but it didn't.

DD (7) fell into very deep water yesterday from the pontoon as she wasn't looking where she was walking. She went under, came up, I heard her scream and dragged her out.

I wasn't looking either, I had turned my back for no more than 1 minute.

DD's OK, very shook up as am I- I feel like the worst mother, I should have been watching.

When DS1 was about 9 months old, our car broke down and we had to borrow MIL's for a long journey. I really struggled to get the carseat strapped in but managed it eventually and we set off. About an hour later, I realised with absolute horror that although the car seat was securely strapped to the seat, I hadn't fastened DS1's harness. Any hard braking or, god forbid, a crash and he'd have flown out. I still feel sick to think about it.

MummyDoIt that reminds me - we'd set off on a journey, all packed up and fine, suddenly a little voice right beside my ear says "mummy can I sit on your lap and have cuddles instead?" EEEK! Forgotten to do harness up! ds was just 2 and had been sitting in his seat for about an hour as well.

I have a theory that small babies practice rolling over when we're not looking then wait til the first opportunity when you leave them somewhere you know you shouldn't (middle of the bed, changing table...) then wheeee! over they go.

Dd1 has fallen downstairs twice. We nearly set off on a long journey with her not strapped into her carseat last week but fortunately she burst into tears and said 'daddy strap me'

i fell down the stairs carrying ds too.

when my dd was about seven we were toasting marshmallows around the BBQ.Mine caught fire I waved it about and it flew off and landed right in the middle of her forehead.

She screamed, I screamed and she still has a slight scar now.It was a complete accident and everytime we see marshmallows now my daughter and I laugh about it now she is 10 and sees the funny side.

When DD was around 18 months DH was cooking when the doorbell went. He closed the kitchen door behind him as she had never been able to open it. He heard an almighty crash and ran back to find she had gotten into the kitchen and pulled a red hot griddle pan full of oil off the hob. I still shake thinking about it. Luckily the noise scared her so much she ran away so didn't step in the oil or anything.

Also, we have sash windows so tend to open them by pulling down the top section slightly. I went to the loo and came back to find DD standing on the windowsill, having pulled the top part of the window all the way down trying to pull herself up. We are on the third floor and now only open our velux windows, good look to the little buggers trying to climb out of those!

'when my dd was about seven we were toasting marshmallows around the BBQ.Mine caught fire I waved it about and it flew off and landed right in the middle of her forehead.'

Sorry, pmsl

We only put stairgates up this time (3rd DC) after DC3 fell down the stairs and couldn't focus her eyes for 10 minutes, no crying whilst we waited for the ambulance......She was fine but the longest 20 minutes of my life whilst I imagined DC never being herself again.....yuk.

Lazarou, lol to that.....

When I was about 18 months, my mum had taken me to feed the ducks, she undid buggy straps, turned around to get bread, and I'd fallen head first into duck pond. (Was fine, obviously!)

She also nearly chopped my nose off taking blades out of food processor and didn't realise I was stood next to her.

My dd has fallen head first off sofa, fallen off bed while sitting between me and dh, climbed into a laundry basket then fell over when she tried to get out and chipped a tooth on laminate floor, i've bumped her head on the car door more times than i can remember, she got a carpet burn on her head when she fell down steps on a coach and landed on very rough carpet, oh and a black eye from running into wooden end of sofa.

And she's only 21 months old. It really looks bad when you list it like that doesn't it?

Mine isn't even a near miss - DH didn't lock stairgate, and I wasn't watching DS1 (then 20 months) because I assumed it was locked. He fell down a whole flight of stairs and broke his arm

It was absolutely bloody awful, and I have never felt so bad about anything in my entire life. Apparently he was v unlucky to break it, and it did heal v quickly (3 weeks) but I still felt like the worst mother ever (still do...), and am totally paranoid about stairs now. I was ready to turn myself in to SS, and was expecting harsh questions, but the medical staff were all really kind to me, which made me feel even worse. And I couldn't even go in when he was x-rayed, as I was pg with DS2, and I could hear him sobbing and calling "Mummy" over and over

Seriously considering move to bungalow before DS2 is walking...

naturalblonde - i'm always banging ds against walls, door frames, car doors. i'll be carrying him and i sort of forget he's there and go round corners/through doors as if it's just me and don't leave enough space for him. we go to tumble tots and he always forgets to duck to go under things and bangs his head. he doesn't even flinch. he's obviously used to it

As I was getting off the Tube with my friends, their four year old son slipped down the gap between the train and the platform.
Luckily the other passengers held the doors open so the train couldn't pull away and we managed to haul him out.

ds3 aged 4 fell about 7 feet off a climbing frame onto the back of his head/neck, didn't move and didn't speak only murmured, just kept looking and looking at me with pained look in his eyes. He wouldn't get up so called an ambulance. He was strapped to a spinal board and given oxygen and blue lighted to A&E. I felt sick all the way there. Doctors rushed about all over the place looking really concerned arranging scans and x-rays etc. When they took the spinal board thing and head restraint off ds3 jumped off the bed and said "I want to go home now!"

Bloody scary but we see the funny side of it now! These things happen, you can't wrap them up in cotton wool, they gotta live their lives haven't they?

mog, i hope your dh feels even worse as it was his fault, not locking the stairgate!! but we always seem to take all the guilt on ourselves as mummies, as if its always all our fault don't we?

you have to assume the other adult has done things they are supposed to, you can't spend all your life doublechecking up...you'd go nuts!

just one of many, today was in mad panic finding and wrapping birthday presents/writing cards/getting organised to go to friends little twins 2nd birthday party, turned round to see ds (just turned 2) waving pair of sharp scissors around in front of his nose saying "help mummy now"

aaargh!! had put them up on worktop but too close to the edge, within reach of toddler on chair.

one that no-one was hurt but I still remember the utter horror I felt..

had been for a walk with ds in his buggy..noticed strange car in our street with someone sitting in it, and thought it a bit unusual (v quiet street)..

took ds straight into the back garden, locked gate (he could never open it - double lock), and let him out to play while I nipped into the loo. It was a v safe and quiet neighbourhood - this was in Germany on a miltary patch. Ds was about 2, I think.

Anyway, I went to the loo, couldn't have been more than 60 seconds, then back out to get him - but he was NOWHERE to be seen. I started calling for him, getting more and more panicky, running in and out of the house, and my overwhelming feeling was that that person in the strange car had taken him. In my head I was already imagining the awfulness of telling dh he'd been kidnapped. And how the hell I would live without him. I was so utterly terrified.

However, thank God, he was hiding behind the wheelie bins.

Felt like an arse for over-reacting but the relief was unbelievable.

one that no-one was hurt but I still remember the utter horror I felt..

had been for a walk with ds in his buggy..noticed strange car in our street with someone sitting in it, and thought it a bit unusual (v quiet street)..

took ds straight into the back garden, locked gate (he could never open it - double lock), and let him out to play while I nipped into the loo. It was a v safe and quiet neighbourhood - this was in Germany on a miltary patch. Ds was about 2, I think.

Anyway, I went to the loo, couldn't have been more than 60 seconds, then back out to get him - but he was NOWHERE to be seen. I started calling for him, getting more and more panicky, running in and out of the house, and my overwhelming feeling was that that person in the strange car had taken him. In my head I was already imagining the awfulness of telling dh he'd been kidnapped. And how the hell I would live without him. I was so utterly terrified.

However, thank God, he was hiding behind the wheelie bins.

Felt like an arse for over-reacting but the relief was unbelievable.

DS tried to break a stick by levering it under the door. Just as I opened my mouth to say, "don't do that darling..", the whole door lifted up off its hinges, and fell sideways. I can still see the door falling in slow motion. It completely crushed a plastic storage box and missed DS by inches.
The door is so heavy I had to get 2 men from next door to lift it back into place.

This week - getting ready for a job interview. dp downstairs with 11 month old son (9and he knew he was responsible for looking after him!) Me upstairs drying my hair. Looked round and ds sitting at the top of the stairs with a big grin on his face. He has climbed the whole bloody lot - very quickly and very quietly.

A massive shock to both of us. The outcome could have been so awful.

this is why i never bothered with stair gates. i figured if we had one and left it open by mistake ds wouldn't be used to the stairs and was more likely to fall.

Last night DS in the bath - stood up, slipped and cracked his head on the side of the bath as he lost his balance. I blame this thread for jinxing me!

was at my nanny friends today

her 18 month old charge actually CHOKED at lunch time

in the past 6 weeks the same child as fallen head first down a whole flight of stairs and made a huge gash on her forhead to leave a huge long scar forever (6 year old sister left stair gate open)

AND come extreamly close to drowning in their paddling pool.

(note other 2 incidents were while mummy (not her nanny) was in charge)